Sourav is living on the thin ray of hope i.e. recall to the Indian Cricket Team...
With the Indian teams' fortunes taking a deep dive from the TABLE MOUNTAIN in CAPETOWN, this hope may soon turn into a reality....We all just need to wait n c what is in store in tomorrow's SELECTION meeting for the selection of the Indian Cricket Test team to SA..
Meanwhile watch the "Sourav Last Stand" interview with Rajdeep Sardesai on CNN-IBN live.
the whole of nation awaits another Judgement Day in the lives of Indian High Fliers....
"Munabhai" of the bollywood has heard his fate, now the cricket crazy nation awaits the judgement on the "DADA" of cricket.... Will the PRINCE OF CALCUTTA fly the MAHARAJA airlines to SA is worth rising to..
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Thanksgiving Weekend - Holiday Season
Last weekend was the ThanksGiving Weekend and the curtain raiser for the holiday season to begin in the US.
This was also an opportunity to catch up with your families, take a break from the fast paced worklife.
Apart from relaxing, the most anticipated and eagerly awaited even is the "Black Friday" sales. The "Black Friday" is the day when most of the bigwigs of the retail industry put out 'blowout' sales for a short span of time. This also signals the beginning of the shopping season and would also indicate the health of the retail industry based on the way people would spend. To make the most of this sale, people queue up in front of the shops very early. Hats off to these people as they brave the weather to collect gifts for their loved ones.
Frankly, I do not have the strength to brave the weather/crowds to do such a shopping but feel more & safe in the sanity of online shopping.
This was also an opportunity to catch up with your families, take a break from the fast paced worklife.
Apart from relaxing, the most anticipated and eagerly awaited even is the "Black Friday" sales. The "Black Friday" is the day when most of the bigwigs of the retail industry put out 'blowout' sales for a short span of time. This also signals the beginning of the shopping season and would also indicate the health of the retail industry based on the way people would spend. To make the most of this sale, people queue up in front of the shops very early. Hats off to these people as they brave the weather to collect gifts for their loved ones.
Frankly, I do not have the strength to brave the weather/crowds to do such a shopping but feel more & safe in the sanity of online shopping.
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Traffic Lights in Vancouver,Canada - Intersting Logic
Last week, was away to Vancouver (Canada) for an appointment with US Consulate. The H1 B stamping and interview was sucessfull.
During my stay there noticed that the traffic lights keep blinking green and do not follow the normal mode of changing colors. On enquiring with the cab driver, was told that the lights keep blinking until some pedestrian wishes to cross the road. Even when a pedestrian wishes to cross the road and pushes the sidewalk cross button, the lights do not change color but they turn solid green. After few seconds the traffic turns red and there is no 'amber' step involved. It is believed this method of traffic lights is in place to keep the traffic moving along the long stretch of the road.
Weather in Vancouver during my stay was really 'wet'. It rained all the time I was there and to top it all the City of Vancouver issued an advisory stating the tap water was to be boiled before drinking. Also it was stated not safe to use for brushing or cooking activities. As a result of this advisory, had to go without a 'starbucks' coffee as most of the coffee centers had stopped brewing the coffee.
Was put up in the Georgian Court Hotel, which was very close to the downtown and gave easy access to the Robson Stree - high fashion street. Also had the opportunity to walk to the Harbour Vieww tower and the Chinatown. The hotel is bank opposite the BC Place, unfortunately there was no match scheduled during my stay.
Vancouver is in process of building the city for the 2010 winter olympics. In future, if have an opportunity would luv to return to the city with my family and take in the sights of this beautiful city.
During my stay there noticed that the traffic lights keep blinking green and do not follow the normal mode of changing colors. On enquiring with the cab driver, was told that the lights keep blinking until some pedestrian wishes to cross the road. Even when a pedestrian wishes to cross the road and pushes the sidewalk cross button, the lights do not change color but they turn solid green. After few seconds the traffic turns red and there is no 'amber' step involved. It is believed this method of traffic lights is in place to keep the traffic moving along the long stretch of the road.
Weather in Vancouver during my stay was really 'wet'. It rained all the time I was there and to top it all the City of Vancouver issued an advisory stating the tap water was to be boiled before drinking. Also it was stated not safe to use for brushing or cooking activities. As a result of this advisory, had to go without a 'starbucks' coffee as most of the coffee centers had stopped brewing the coffee.
Was put up in the Georgian Court Hotel, which was very close to the downtown and gave easy access to the Robson Stree - high fashion street. Also had the opportunity to walk to the Harbour Vieww tower and the Chinatown. The hotel is bank opposite the BC Place, unfortunately there was no match scheduled during my stay.
Vancouver is in process of building the city for the 2010 winter olympics. In future, if have an opportunity would luv to return to the city with my family and take in the sights of this beautiful city.
Friday, November 17, 2006
Sachin n Kambli in Making - Hyderabad Boys do it
Finally the record held by Sachin n Kambli is broken.... And it was broken by boys from the fast growing city called HITECH - Hyderabad.
Look at the video interview of Manoj - one of the AWESOME TWOSOMES...
http://www.cricketnext.com/videos/21752/manoj-tumbi-bask-in-the-glory.html
It is interesting to note that the match was a 50 overs one but curtailed at 40 overs due to time constraint. Who knows...if they had continued for another 50 overs, we might have seen another score than 721 on the board...
Great going by the Hyderabad Nawabs...hope both represent India and do well in their choosen careers.
Look at the video interview of Manoj - one of the AWESOME TWOSOMES...
http://www.cricketnext.com/videos/21752/manoj-tumbi-bask-in-the-glory.html
It is interesting to note that the match was a 50 overs one but curtailed at 40 overs due to time constraint. Who knows...if they had continued for another 50 overs, we might have seen another score than 721 on the board...
Great going by the Hyderabad Nawabs...hope both represent India and do well in their choosen careers.
Friday, November 10, 2006
Youngest CEO in the World from INDIA
Thursday, November 09, 2006
Indian Stars shining in other sports
Everyone let's take a break from Cricket and follow the paths of some other sportsmen who are doing extremely well in their field of sports and earning laurels for the country
Jyoti Randawa is going great guns at the US $5 million HSBC Champions where he has even impressed the "TIGER" woods. Look at the details at the following
http://ia.rediff.com/sports/2006/nov/09golf.htm
Saina has stormed into the semi-finals of the World Junior Badminton Championships ...
http://ia.rediff.com/sports/2006/nov/09saina.htm
It is not a surprise to know that she is being coached by none other than Pullela Gopichand a great badminton player of his time and hails from Hyderabad...
Let's keep cricket aside for somtime and follow these sports too..... Hope to see a golfing champ or badminton champion arising from INDIA.. All the best for these sportsperson in their endavours.
Jyoti Randawa is going great guns at the US $5 million HSBC Champions where he has even impressed the "TIGER" woods. Look at the details at the following
http://ia.rediff.com/sports/2006/nov/09golf.htm
Saina has stormed into the semi-finals of the World Junior Badminton Championships ...
http://ia.rediff.com/sports/2006/nov/09saina.htm
It is not a surprise to know that she is being coached by none other than Pullela Gopichand a great badminton player of his time and hails from Hyderabad...
Let's keep cricket aside for somtime and follow these sports too..... Hope to see a golfing champ or badminton champion arising from INDIA.. All the best for these sportsperson in their endavours.
Monday, November 06, 2006
Champions Trophy 2006 - Australia claim stake on the elusive cup
The curtain has finally come down on the Champions Trophy 2006 and the cup has gone 'down under'.
Australia wrapped the final in the only style they are known to do i.e. 'champion style'. No hiccups, no drama, no controversies.....but a methodical surgery took place in Mumbai...the patient WI were administered 'general anesthesia' and they never recovered from the same.
This was considered a dress rehearsal for the WC-2007 and do not know which of the teams benefitted the most. The only teams who would be going home with some 'positives' is NZ and WI. NZ came into the champions trophy after almost 8-9 month layoff and they did not do any harm to their comback performance. Other team to feel on cloud 9 apart from Aussies are the runners-up. Since India brought them back into form they have been firing on all their guns. And if one of their 'icons' MR LARA decides to go out all blazing into the sunset...then it would be bye to many of the fancied teams in the WC-2007.
Host country must be rueing its experiment policy and selection policies. They just did not play to their potential and have lots of thinking to do before they venture for the SA tour. Hope the SA tour turns favourable and does not dampen the hopes of the INDIAN team n fans before the WC-2007.
Other Asian countries, SL started off in a blazing fashion but came cropper against some good offensive. Need to get their act together before the WC. Pakistan were overcome with the sideline tamasha and were not a '100% ' unit. Hopefully they would rejuvenate and become a big force at the WC-2007. But definetely a India v/s Pakistan would do wonders for the WC -2007.
The win would do wonders to Austrailain team before the ASHES. Everyone would now be glued to the ASHES tour and wonder how would the POMMIES fare down under..
It is good bye Champions Trophy and look forward to ASHES n INDIAN tour of SA
Australia wrapped the final in the only style they are known to do i.e. 'champion style'. No hiccups, no drama, no controversies.....but a methodical surgery took place in Mumbai...the patient WI were administered 'general anesthesia' and they never recovered from the same.
This was considered a dress rehearsal for the WC-2007 and do not know which of the teams benefitted the most. The only teams who would be going home with some 'positives' is NZ and WI. NZ came into the champions trophy after almost 8-9 month layoff and they did not do any harm to their comback performance. Other team to feel on cloud 9 apart from Aussies are the runners-up. Since India brought them back into form they have been firing on all their guns. And if one of their 'icons' MR LARA decides to go out all blazing into the sunset...then it would be bye to many of the fancied teams in the WC-2007.
Host country must be rueing its experiment policy and selection policies. They just did not play to their potential and have lots of thinking to do before they venture for the SA tour. Hope the SA tour turns favourable and does not dampen the hopes of the INDIAN team n fans before the WC-2007.
Other Asian countries, SL started off in a blazing fashion but came cropper against some good offensive. Need to get their act together before the WC. Pakistan were overcome with the sideline tamasha and were not a '100% ' unit. Hopefully they would rejuvenate and become a big force at the WC-2007. But definetely a India v/s Pakistan would do wonders for the WC -2007.
The win would do wonders to Austrailain team before the ASHES. Everyone would now be glued to the ASHES tour and wonder how would the POMMIES fare down under..
It is good bye Champions Trophy and look forward to ASHES n INDIAN tour of SA
Monday, October 30, 2006
Champions Trophy 2006 - India hit a dead-end
At the end of England tour in April, India was rated as one of the top contenders for the World Cup 2007 to be played in WI.... Now with just couple of months to go before the cricket's extravaganza takes place..they seem to be tumbling out of the race.
Graham Gooch in one of his columns had made a good observation that the Indian team was peaking too soon before the WC and that surely seems to be the case.. After curtains came down on their involvement in champions trophy, India has nothing positive to take home.
In all the three matches played in the Champions Trophy, India did not look confident nor convincing. In their only win agains England, the win was a laboured one rather than a comprehensive one. In their second game, it was only WI Players who made the match interesting with their 'hara-kiri' tendencies and gave the diwali crowd something to cheer about. And in the do-or-die match, India did not put any kind of effort to stop the rampaging Australia
After the debacle performance in the Champions Trophy, it was expected that scissors would be out in open. But the selectors have opted to stay calm and not follow the cut n chop policy as their predecessors. Well whatever step selectors take in India it is welcomed with a skeptical view and it was nothing new this time round.
This time round, the selectors made the 'critics' jump in joy with their continuing faith in 'Raina' and 'Pathan'. Both of them seem to be out of sorts and with age on their side it would not done their career any harm by dropping them for SA tour. Why is different ball game for different people...Zaheer sat out and is now back in reckoning after performing well in county n domestic season. The other 'shock' inclusion seems to be 'Jaffer' who himself is shocked of his inclusion in ODI team. Players already knocking on the doors like Uttapha or Gambhir would have been a better choice and given 'think tank' options for WC-2007. The only positive outcome, has been the inclusion of 'kumble' in ODI team. Though he was injured, personally feel and looking at the pitches a three spin attack of Bhajji, Jumbo n Powar would have been hard to tackle for WI and Aussies.
Other thing which Indian team must be ruing about would be the scheduling of its matches....BCCI must now be wondering if they should have given 'host' team a 'walk-thru' to semi-finals, just to keep the fans come in to watch the final matches...
Jokes apart, semi-finals matches would be would be a great fun to watch and follow. Aus v/s NZ and SA v/s WI..May the best team won..
Graham Gooch in one of his columns had made a good observation that the Indian team was peaking too soon before the WC and that surely seems to be the case.. After curtains came down on their involvement in champions trophy, India has nothing positive to take home.
In all the three matches played in the Champions Trophy, India did not look confident nor convincing. In their only win agains England, the win was a laboured one rather than a comprehensive one. In their second game, it was only WI Players who made the match interesting with their 'hara-kiri' tendencies and gave the diwali crowd something to cheer about. And in the do-or-die match, India did not put any kind of effort to stop the rampaging Australia
After the debacle performance in the Champions Trophy, it was expected that scissors would be out in open. But the selectors have opted to stay calm and not follow the cut n chop policy as their predecessors. Well whatever step selectors take in India it is welcomed with a skeptical view and it was nothing new this time round.
This time round, the selectors made the 'critics' jump in joy with their continuing faith in 'Raina' and 'Pathan'. Both of them seem to be out of sorts and with age on their side it would not done their career any harm by dropping them for SA tour. Why is different ball game for different people...Zaheer sat out and is now back in reckoning after performing well in county n domestic season. The other 'shock' inclusion seems to be 'Jaffer' who himself is shocked of his inclusion in ODI team. Players already knocking on the doors like Uttapha or Gambhir would have been a better choice and given 'think tank' options for WC-2007. The only positive outcome, has been the inclusion of 'kumble' in ODI team. Though he was injured, personally feel and looking at the pitches a three spin attack of Bhajji, Jumbo n Powar would have been hard to tackle for WI and Aussies.
Other thing which Indian team must be ruing about would be the scheduling of its matches....BCCI must now be wondering if they should have given 'host' team a 'walk-thru' to semi-finals, just to keep the fans come in to watch the final matches...
Jokes apart, semi-finals matches would be would be a great fun to watch and follow. Aus v/s NZ and SA v/s WI..May the best team won..
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Champions Trophy 2006 - Naaya Saal Mubarak, Indian Team
Diwali, ahmedabad and gujaratis ...it is NAAYA SAAL MUBARAK and Indian cricket team must now be awakening to these words literally as they have their jobs cut-off.
Indian team had a roaring season last year, but in this 'naaya saal' they are facing slump in their batting and bowling departments. Nothing seems to be going their way. Suddenly the boy from 'vadodara' has lost his bowling spark, virubhai seems to have lost his swings arms, their twins of 'yuvi' and 'kafi' out of form. Above all they seem to be 'hooked' on experimenting at all games with the composition of their team. Today was no difference, you find 'powar' sitting out and India going in with 4 fast bowlers. With the festive season lingering in the air, there was no way one can mistake onself to think he is playing outside sub-continent. Powar is known to have scored runs in the domestic season and is known for his batting. With all due respect to RP Singh's batting prowess, Powar would have definetely brought in India the 15-20 runs that could have made the difference in the final result.
Feel India made the mistakes even before the ball was bowled, but don't understand what WI was hell-bent on doing. They just seem to get 'hooked' on doing the 'harakiri'. Cruising along at 200-3 and with plenty of wickets in hand they suddenly end up looking down the gun. Gayle had given them the start they required, sarwan n morton kept the good work by building on the platform. Bhajji was really turning it on and giving nothing away. This was when it was required that WI squeeze as many runs possible of the part time bowlers. But that is where they lost the plot and we had a 'thriller' on our cards with the match going down to the wire.
Result would really turn the WI into a positive frame while Indians r back into their sulking mood. Will have to wait n see what experiment 'ausie' is going to come up with against his own country. This situation is nothing new for Indians who like to keep their fans biting the nails till the end.
Indian team had a roaring season last year, but in this 'naaya saal' they are facing slump in their batting and bowling departments. Nothing seems to be going their way. Suddenly the boy from 'vadodara' has lost his bowling spark, virubhai seems to have lost his swings arms, their twins of 'yuvi' and 'kafi' out of form. Above all they seem to be 'hooked' on experimenting at all games with the composition of their team. Today was no difference, you find 'powar' sitting out and India going in with 4 fast bowlers. With the festive season lingering in the air, there was no way one can mistake onself to think he is playing outside sub-continent. Powar is known to have scored runs in the domestic season and is known for his batting. With all due respect to RP Singh's batting prowess, Powar would have definetely brought in India the 15-20 runs that could have made the difference in the final result.
Feel India made the mistakes even before the ball was bowled, but don't understand what WI was hell-bent on doing. They just seem to get 'hooked' on doing the 'harakiri'. Cruising along at 200-3 and with plenty of wickets in hand they suddenly end up looking down the gun. Gayle had given them the start they required, sarwan n morton kept the good work by building on the platform. Bhajji was really turning it on and giving nothing away. This was when it was required that WI squeeze as many runs possible of the part time bowlers. But that is where they lost the plot and we had a 'thriller' on our cards with the match going down to the wire.
Result would really turn the WI into a positive frame while Indians r back into their sulking mood. Will have to wait n see what experiment 'ausie' is going to come up with against his own country. This situation is nothing new for Indians who like to keep their fans biting the nails till the end.
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Whirlwind week - Diwali, Don and Cricket
It has been a whirwind week with lots of things happening at a high speed...
To begin with, it was DIWALI weekend and wish all the viewers of this blog
A VERY HAPPY DIWALI and PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR
Diwali the 'festival of lights' this year was celebrated on 21 Oct all over the world. Diwali symbolizes the 'victory of good over evil'. People celebrate this festival with lots of fun n frolick where the houses are light up, kids burst crackers and lots of goodies to savour on. And this time round, had the pleasure of celebrating Diwali in US with my close ones by savoring on all goodies, dressed up to kill and playing 'teen patti'.
Every year Bollywood marks the Diwali calendar with release of major attractions to take advantage of the vaccation season. This year was no different, we had two releases 'DON - a SRK starrer' and 'Jane-man - a SK n AK starrer'.
I had the opportunity of catching "DON" on the first day, first night show (12:00am to 3:00am). And being a die-hard 'Big B' fan I was really disappointed with the remix. Not sure, why are the bollywood directors going into making remixes. Have we run out of creative script writers. And this movie comes from a director who stirred the box-office with his first movie - Dil Chattha Hai. Even small twists in the story cannot stop this movie from being termed as 'average'. The locations and sophistications are definetely in tune with the generation... nothing can overcome the storyline or the charishma of 1978 DON - who @ 6'2" still stands tall over everyone. "Badshah" of the industry has definetely lost this 'bazi' and would not like to be called 'Bazigar' for this matchup.
And coming back to my favorite sport - 'Cricket and Champions Trophy' things r really hotting up in the group B where the matches r really going to the wire. It all boils down to the match between Pakistan v/s South Africa to decide the last four placeholders in the tournamnet from group b. New Zealand with their win over Pakistan @ mohali have confirmed their place in Semi-Finals.
India play WI tonight (US- PST) @ Ahmedabad and this could decide the fate of the group A. With WI in good form, it looks to be seen how India face-off this challange. A win here for any of the teams would definetely harness their chances for a berth in Semis.
Everyone would be hoping 2 c a blazing innings from Virubhai....a magic spell from Pathan... a spin web from Bhajji...long overdue... But who knows we may have GAYLE force waiting to sweep thru Ahmedbad along with the 'New' Big Boy of WI the Bravo.
To begin with, it was DIWALI weekend and wish all the viewers of this blog
A VERY HAPPY DIWALI and PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR
Diwali the 'festival of lights' this year was celebrated on 21 Oct all over the world. Diwali symbolizes the 'victory of good over evil'. People celebrate this festival with lots of fun n frolick where the houses are light up, kids burst crackers and lots of goodies to savour on. And this time round, had the pleasure of celebrating Diwali in US with my close ones by savoring on all goodies, dressed up to kill and playing 'teen patti'.
Every year Bollywood marks the Diwali calendar with release of major attractions to take advantage of the vaccation season. This year was no different, we had two releases 'DON - a SRK starrer' and 'Jane-man - a SK n AK starrer'.
I had the opportunity of catching "DON" on the first day, first night show (12:00am to 3:00am). And being a die-hard 'Big B' fan I was really disappointed with the remix. Not sure, why are the bollywood directors going into making remixes. Have we run out of creative script writers. And this movie comes from a director who stirred the box-office with his first movie - Dil Chattha Hai. Even small twists in the story cannot stop this movie from being termed as 'average'. The locations and sophistications are definetely in tune with the generation... nothing can overcome the storyline or the charishma of 1978 DON - who @ 6'2" still stands tall over everyone. "Badshah" of the industry has definetely lost this 'bazi' and would not like to be called 'Bazigar' for this matchup.
And coming back to my favorite sport - 'Cricket and Champions Trophy' things r really hotting up in the group B where the matches r really going to the wire. It all boils down to the match between Pakistan v/s South Africa to decide the last four placeholders in the tournamnet from group b. New Zealand with their win over Pakistan @ mohali have confirmed their place in Semi-Finals.
India play WI tonight (US- PST) @ Ahmedabad and this could decide the fate of the group A. With WI in good form, it looks to be seen how India face-off this challange. A win here for any of the teams would definetely harness their chances for a berth in Semis.
Everyone would be hoping 2 c a blazing innings from Virubhai....a magic spell from Pathan... a spin web from Bhajji...long overdue... But who knows we may have GAYLE force waiting to sweep thru Ahmedbad along with the 'New' Big Boy of WI the Bravo.
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Champions Trophy 2006 - West Indies on a roll
WI are really turning the things on...except for the match against SL where they were totally outplayed they seem to be on the roll..
Beating Australia is not something which can be taken lightly. If they keep up the form they probably could be trotting away with 'champions trophy' for second year running. They are a team in building and some of the players are coming good at the right time. Lara seems to be getting the disbanded team together again. WI did not do anything great against Aussies but just kept doing the basics. They did not panic when Gilchrist was jogging along and taking Australia towards the goal. With Lara gone due to cramps, the stand-in captain Sarwan handled the situation well. Even in the death, Australia had the upper hand. But the "TAYLOR" special really turned the tables on them. A 'hat-trick' in the final overs when the opposition team is on top is really worth a mention. Even while batting WI followed the basics and build up a good score around partnerships.
With this win WI have really given Indian team lot to think...though the Indian team may be enjoying the 'diwali' break but the result of this would be definetely playing on their minds. Now the fight for the top position in the group would definetely be between IND/WI/AUS... assuming Eng go thru motions and donot cause any upsets.
Again a low scoring match @ Mumbai but the match was a thriller with batsman n bowlers both having a go at each other.
Champions trophy has finally come alive...
Beating Australia is not something which can be taken lightly. If they keep up the form they probably could be trotting away with 'champions trophy' for second year running. They are a team in building and some of the players are coming good at the right time. Lara seems to be getting the disbanded team together again. WI did not do anything great against Aussies but just kept doing the basics. They did not panic when Gilchrist was jogging along and taking Australia towards the goal. With Lara gone due to cramps, the stand-in captain Sarwan handled the situation well. Even in the death, Australia had the upper hand. But the "TAYLOR" special really turned the tables on them. A 'hat-trick' in the final overs when the opposition team is on top is really worth a mention. Even while batting WI followed the basics and build up a good score around partnerships.
With this win WI have really given Indian team lot to think...though the Indian team may be enjoying the 'diwali' break but the result of this would be definetely playing on their minds. Now the fight for the top position in the group would definetely be between IND/WI/AUS... assuming Eng go thru motions and donot cause any upsets.
Again a low scoring match @ Mumbai but the match was a thriller with batsman n bowlers both having a go at each other.
Champions trophy has finally come alive...
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Champions Trophy 2006 - Pakistan on a ' high'
Pakistan cricket team must be on real 'high' after their match against Sri Lanka.
As stated earlier, Pakistan team cannot be written off lightly. They are team that would definetely create flutter in the tournament. This is a team which would be raring to show the world that they can put all the sideline 'tamasha' at back of their mind and play with 'spirit' on the field.
Pakistan team is one of those teams in the tournament that has everything to prove for. They would luv to win this for their banned captain 'Inzi'.
Sri Lanka might just be hoping that the law of averages caught up with them early in the tournament. They came thru the qualifying rounds with flying colors but a need to note that they put on huge scores against medicore bowling of Bangladesh n Zimbawe. The match against WI cannot be really treated a match of equals as the pitch had a role to play. It will be interesting to see how SL performs going forward in the tournament.
But the day definetely belongs to the 'green brigade' and their spirits n confidence would be really 'high'.
Group 2 would be the group to watch where in the matches will be fight till the end and very nail-biting..
Way to go Pakistan....
As stated earlier, Pakistan team cannot be written off lightly. They are team that would definetely create flutter in the tournament. This is a team which would be raring to show the world that they can put all the sideline 'tamasha' at back of their mind and play with 'spirit' on the field.
Pakistan team is one of those teams in the tournament that has everything to prove for. They would luv to win this for their banned captain 'Inzi'.
Sri Lanka might just be hoping that the law of averages caught up with them early in the tournament. They came thru the qualifying rounds with flying colors but a need to note that they put on huge scores against medicore bowling of Bangladesh n Zimbawe. The match against WI cannot be really treated a match of equals as the pitch had a role to play. It will be interesting to see how SL performs going forward in the tournament.
But the day definetely belongs to the 'green brigade' and their spirits n confidence would be really 'high'.
Group 2 would be the group to watch where in the matches will be fight till the end and very nail-biting..
Way to go Pakistan....
Monday, October 16, 2006
Champions Trophy 2006 - Captain's Knock is the difference
Stephen Fleming lead his team from the front... his knock of 89 was the difference between the two teams. If the scores in the last couple of matches are any indications then the pitches prepared for the champions trophy do not seem to be set for a high scoring chases. All the teams have chased or set a very low score. All the credit should be given to the NZ team for setting a stiff target on a un-even pitch and then bowling SA out.
NZ were lucky to have that xtra buffer of 40-70 runs which England failed to put in their match against India. The way India played another 20-40 runs would have been curtains for them.
Let's wait n c what is in store for us in the match between PAK v/s SL tomorrow... Will Pakistan come out of the 'sideline' tamashas and score over the 'in-form' SL team.. tomorrow's match is definetely going to be an interesting one..
NZ were lucky to have that xtra buffer of 40-70 runs which England failed to put in their match against India. The way India played another 20-40 runs would have been curtains for them.
Let's wait n c what is in store for us in the match between PAK v/s SL tomorrow... Will Pakistan come out of the 'sideline' tamashas and score over the 'in-form' SL team.. tomorrow's match is definetely going to be an interesting one..
Champions Trophy 2006 - Pakistan cricket team under 'cloud' again
Controversies go hand-in-hand with the Pakistani team...
Just a couple of months back Pakistan cricket team was caught in 'ball-tampering' turmoil... Even before dust had settled, we heard about the 'captainship' issue raising its 'serpent' like hood...And before the sting was nullified we hear of 'dopeing' scandal. This scandal may bring down curtains on the career of one of the most talked player off-the field. It is going to be very difficult for Shohaib Akthar to make a come-back from such a 'hurting'.
The new captain 'younis khan' would have his job cut-off. With all due respect to 'younis khan', does not have the charishma or powers like 'Imran' to carry the team to victory. At the same time, do not rule out the possibilities of the pakistani team create some flutter in the tournament. It would be interesting to see how Pakistan would fare under such circumstances in this tournament.
All the best to their team and as an ardent fan from the sub-continent would hope to see a INDIA v/s PAKISTAN finals....
Just a couple of months back Pakistan cricket team was caught in 'ball-tampering' turmoil... Even before dust had settled, we heard about the 'captainship' issue raising its 'serpent' like hood...And before the sting was nullified we hear of 'dopeing' scandal. This scandal may bring down curtains on the career of one of the most talked player off-the field. It is going to be very difficult for Shohaib Akthar to make a come-back from such a 'hurting'.
The new captain 'younis khan' would have his job cut-off. With all due respect to 'younis khan', does not have the charishma or powers like 'Imran' to carry the team to victory. At the same time, do not rule out the possibilities of the pakistani team create some flutter in the tournament. It would be interesting to see how Pakistan would fare under such circumstances in this tournament.
All the best to their team and as an ardent fan from the sub-continent would hope to see a INDIA v/s PAKISTAN finals....
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Champions Trophy 2006 - India Stutters in their chase
Being a day n night match in the Indian Continent means, its middle of night for an ardent fan to stay awake in US - on the west coast... As a result you end-up- missing ur precious sleep and it makes you feel really disheartened when the same old seems to be repeating itself....Bowlers bowl their heart but the batsman almost make it a mountain climb of a mole ...
If India needs to act and play like a 'champions' then these small targets need to be accomplished with ease and confidence. You cannot have the fans biting their nails till the last ball of such chase is bowled. Experimenting with the batting line-up does not seem to end. Even a 'club' cricketer like me would have liked the 'captain - the wall' coming in at the fall of 'virubhai' wicket. In first match of such a big tournament, you expect the team to put its best foot forward and win in a convincing manner. Had India wrapped the match in a convincing manner, the Indian team n fans would have celebrated the 'festival of lights - DIWALI' with a bigger bang. But now everyone would be feeling bit hesitant in their expectations of India's performance against their next opponents - West Indies. West Indies cannot be taken lightly as they are turning in good performances since India played the humble guests in bringing them back to form from the depths of crevice.
But India can definetely take some positives out of the match
- Pathan seems to be finding his rythm back
- Pawar does not seem to have lost his loop
- Yuvraj seems to be getting his touch back
- Dravid seems to be struggling
- Virubhai seems to be throwing away a good start
- Dhoni seems to carried away in the 'fast track'
Let's hope for the best that India comes good against WI at the MOTERA stadium in Ahmedabad. Motera Stadium brings the memory back when I had the opportunity to see my idol 'Kapil' bowl his heart out to take 8 wickets and bring India close to doors of victory in the first ever test match played in this stadium...Again the same old story :-)
A loss @ Motera ...and INDIA can say good-bye to their chances of qualifying ..
HAPPY DIWALI AND ALL THE BEST FOR THE "BLUE SQUAD"
Monday, October 02, 2006
Check this out - Gilispie,Nel,Murali dancing to Indian Music
This is a really interesting video where you see the cricketers like gilispie, nel, murlai and veerubhai dancing to some 'hindi' music
http://www.cricketnext.com/news/games-cricket-stars-play-in-leisure/21002-13.html
All of them are shooting for the champions trophy ad...
Probably the let down in the whole sequence may be mandira bedi who after 2003 WC seems to have become a cricket expert and gone are our 'shanti' days...
http://www.cricketnext.com/news/games-cricket-stars-play-in-leisure/21002-13.html
All of them are shooting for the champions trophy ad...
Probably the let down in the whole sequence may be mandira bedi who after 2003 WC seems to have become a cricket expert and gone are our 'shanti' days...
Friday, September 29, 2006
Sania Mirza Losses - The same old story
Sania Mirza's great run in the Korean Open came to an end against a low-ranked player, rank # 72 to be precise. In the earlier match she had defeated Hingis - 8th ranked in the world. She has raked up the same old question...Why can't the Indians be consistent? They will be always called the giant-killers but not the champions..This is the case in all the sports not only tennis.. You will read of such giant-killing acts in hockey, tennis, cricket..but no consitency..
Champions are made when the players/team show consitencies. Australian Cricket team, Germany Hockey team and individual players like Borg,Sampras, Aggasi, Navratilova,Woods; the list is never-ending
Indian cricket team winning the 83' World Cup of Cricket was another example of consistency..they had their giant-killing act during the league phase and continued the same thru till the finals..
Will this question be ever answered...not sure but lets live the life to moment and enjoy the giant-killing acts by our Indian Greats
Champions are made when the players/team show consitencies. Australian Cricket team, Germany Hockey team and individual players like Borg,Sampras, Aggasi, Navratilova,Woods; the list is never-ending
Indian cricket team winning the 83' World Cup of Cricket was another example of consistency..they had their giant-killing act during the league phase and continued the same thru till the finals..
Will this question be ever answered...not sure but lets live the life to moment and enjoy the giant-killing acts by our Indian Greats
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Sania beats Hingis
Sania Mirza has beaten Martina Hingis in the Korean Open...Now Sania plays World number 72 Virginia Ruano Pascual in the Quarter-Finals.
Question on every Indian Tennis Fan's mind would be ' Will she beat the 72 ranked player" . In the past Indians have been giant-killers in all the sports but have failed to proceed thru the next rounds while playing the low-ranked opponents....
Lets' wait n c..
Read abt her exploits in detail ......
http://www.ndtv.com/sports/showsports.asp?sportnameTennis&slug=Sania+beats+Hingis&id=30512&headline=Sania~beats~Hingis
Question on every Indian Tennis Fan's mind would be ' Will she beat the 72 ranked player" . In the past Indians have been giant-killers in all the sports but have failed to proceed thru the next rounds while playing the low-ranked opponents....
Lets' wait n c..
Read abt her exploits in detail ......
http://www.ndtv.com/sports/showsports.asp?sportnameTennis&slug=Sania+beats+Hingis&id=30512&headline=Sania~beats~Hingis
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Interesting Interview - Glenn McGrath
Guys...watch this interview to learn how the genius 'god of batting' setup the 'god of bowling' to bowl a bouncer
http://www.ibnlive.com/videos/21851/sachin-asked-me-to-bowl-a-bouncer.html
http://www.ibnlive.com/videos/21851/sachin-asked-me-to-bowl-a-bouncer.html
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Gandhigiri and Circuit Rule the box-office
After a gap of some years, had the opportunity to watch a movie san 'violence' but preaches the 'aam janta' on the forgotten 'gandhi' principles of 'non-violence'.
Hats off to Rajkumar Hirani for making this movie and pulling off a 'laughing riot' once again.
Credit needs to be given to whoever invented the character of 'bapu' in this movie. The presentation of the 'gandhian' principles thru 'munnabhai' is awesome and worth watching.
If 'gandhigari' is the trump card of the movie, one should not forget the players involved in the game. The "MOM - man of the match" for this movie is definetely "CIRCUIT". Circuit with his one-liners keeps the public holding their stomachs with laughter
It is the same team that got us the "Munnabhai MBBS" except for the change in the female lead.
It is worth spending some $$$ and watching this movie...full paisa vasool
Munnabhai Laghe Raho.....
Hats off to Rajkumar Hirani for making this movie and pulling off a 'laughing riot' once again.
Credit needs to be given to whoever invented the character of 'bapu' in this movie. The presentation of the 'gandhian' principles thru 'munnabhai' is awesome and worth watching.
If 'gandhigari' is the trump card of the movie, one should not forget the players involved in the game. The "MOM - man of the match" for this movie is definetely "CIRCUIT". Circuit with his one-liners keeps the public holding their stomachs with laughter
It is the same team that got us the "Munnabhai MBBS" except for the change in the female lead.
It is worth spending some $$$ and watching this movie...full paisa vasool
Munnabhai Laghe Raho.....
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