IND-SRI TEST SERIES - THE INDIAN SQUAD

Test Cricket is the best form of cricket beyond doubt.Old is Gold and test cricket is a fine example.In this modern era of fast, annoyingly money minded and glamorous cricket, test cricket still holds its head high. The Indian selectors never fail to give you a chance to criticize them though.In India, quantity is always given more weightage than quality. Instead of giving Raina a break to develop himself, to turn into a better cricketer,to work on his short bowl problem,they have incredibly started comparing him with Waugh and Ganguly!Raina is an aggressive batsman who likes to play his shots,no matter what the situation demands and is by no means ready for test cricket as yet.

Wriddhiman Saha has been named in the Indian national test sqaud! This should mean that currently, he is the second best keeper after Dhoni.This gives us an insight of the level of cricket and standard of players in domestic circuit.South Africa have come a long way and have the stylish AB De villers as the replacement for Boucher.New Zeland have the dangerous Brendom Mc Cullum after Adam Parore.Sri Lanka found Sangakkara after Romesh Kaluwitharana and Chandimal looks good to take on the responsibility from Sangakkara when the time comes.Legends like Adam Gilchrist and Alec Stewart are witnessed once in a lifetime and to find a replacement for them is like finding Krypton in your backyard!! England do not seem to be doing badly in the hands of Matt Prior and Keiswetter while Australia have Brad Haddin to take on the responsibility with
young Matthew Wade and the dashing Luke Ronchi waiting in the wings.Dhoni has been the best wicketkeeper for India and has replaced the likes of Nayan Mongia, Saba Karim,Ajay Ratra and Parthiv Patel!!It is dismal to see India's future in hands of players like Saha.Instead,Karthik and Parthiv should have worked on their game,capitalized on the exposure they were given and should have become instant choices after Dhoni.

Yuvraj Singh has been selected for this test series, just after being dropped for the Asia cup. One wonders if this much time was enough to give him a message or to allow him to work on his game and fitness.Wasn't his axing supposed to give him some time for self reflection and set his priorities right?This selection is a clear indication that no matter what,it was a certainty Yuvraj would return irrespective of achieving the goal behind his axing.Perhaps the board felt that the message has been passed and leaving Yuvraj may backfire as he might take this in a wrong way. If the board takes a positive step and makes a bold decision, then it should stick with it rather than giving away and succumbing to the fear of losing a star player to his attitude.Rohit Sharma is a player with immense talent and quality.Technically,he looks the best of the younger generation and bats for fun when on song.Giving him a chance to play in a meaningless test series against a quality side like Sri Lanka and with legend like Dravid and Laxman would have done his future no harm.

Ishant Sharma has made it to the squad and should be looking to make an impact and come back in the good eyes of the selectors.This series shall give an idea of how well he utilized the break from international cricket.Sreesanth has been off color after a rollicking start to his career. The emotional reaction,the dancing jig in front of Nel in South Africa, made him a hero overnight as he failed to deal with the limelight it brought.Perhaps he enjoyed the attention and made an aggressive,over expressive at times, image for himself.Its time his cricket took the driver's seat with dancing and enjoyment taking the back seat.

The likes of Sachin, Dravid and Laxman are back for this test series.As a cricket fan, i am dejected no end even on the thought of retirement of these matchless jewels of the game.But practically, thats how its going to be a couple of years from now. And hence, its time the likes of Sehwag developed a more flexible approach towards the game.In their presence, Sehwag has enjoyed the luxury of playing his natural game, no matter what the situation demands.Its high time he starts taking some responsibility.Sachin,Dravid and Laxman are legends of the game, true gentlemen who are fully committed to the cause of the team.A team with such unparalleled and inordinate players is seen once in a century.To find suitable replacements for such cricketers is next to impossible.Hence,it should be big worry for the selectors as its not long before our beloved heroes call it a day.The likes of Raina,Kohli and Vijay look comprehensively incompetent to take on the mantle and maintain the No.1 status in test cricket achieved by the greats,which should have been India's in test cricket a decade ago.The golden goose ain't got too many eggs now!For now, let's sit back and enjoy what is going to be referred to as the Golden era of Indian test cricket.

ASIA CUP FINAL - INDIA VS SRI-LANKA

India lift the Asia cup and to the surprise of many, it were the bowlers who won the game for India for a change.Indian fast bowlers have a habit of slumbering for long periods before coming back to life for a game or two! The way Praveen ,Zaheer and Nehra performed in this match was certainly admirable.Though all his deliveries were not precise, Nehra did bowl good lines most of the times and returned with terrific figures.But it was Zaheer Khan who was in full flow and impressed with his bowling the most.The "old" Zaheer Khan was on view in Dambulla.He is a great exponent of swing bowling and should bowl consistently.It was doleful to see him bowl rubbish for sometime now in the shorter versions of the game and let's hope he continues his good work. Being the spearhead of the attack is a big responsibility and he should lead from the front more often than not.A bit more application was expected and required off Sri Lankan batsmen.Perhaps, they scummbed under the pressure of maintaining
their recent dominance against India.

Dhoni won the toss and rightly decided to bat first.The batting performance was dismal, to say the least.Gautam Gambhir seems to be under the impression that he shall have to bat only with Sehwag, his India opening partner, friend and Delhi team-mate.Sehwag is not the fastest of runners between the wickets and hence, Gambhir seems to have adjusted to his pace!On a serious note, his running between the wickets has certainly degraded in the recent past.He jogs his runs and that is what proved to be fatal for him in this match.He was also lucky to survive twice and failed to capitalise.He should try to get back on the right path, else, India might have another Yuvraj Singh.Dinesh Karthik looked completely out of sorts. He has a habit of flirting with danger through out his innings.He amazed all with a funny and stupid shot, never seen before in the game of cricket. He reverse swept Murali with the back of his bat! The design of a cricket bat is such that the ball can lob anywhere when played by the backside and it was ridiculous to see that shot.It wasn't the best of his fifties as he was beaten on numerous occasions, edging a couple of deliveries for four.Ultimately, he gifted his wicket to Kandamby, playing a poor ball straight in the hands of a fielder.Virat Kohli ended his tour on a miserable note, once again falling prey to a ball outside his off stump.Initially,a score of 2 off 15 balls suggests that finding singles does not come easy to him which is not a good sign.


Once again, Dhoni promoted himself at No.4, ahead of an in-form Rohit Sharma, seemingly oblivious to the pit his team shall fall into in case of his early exit.Dhoni has a calming effect and the other batsmen tend to rally around him.But today, he looked strangely off-color. He tried to play positively, at times taking too much risk against the likes of Muralidaran who repeatedly deceived him.He also failed to put away the trash Kandamby offered him and got out at a crucial time, leaving his team stranded for a second time in a row.Raina batted at the position that suits him the best. He is not the master of a sound technique but has the capability to take on the bowlers and hence, is best suited to bat at No.6.He thrashed the soft stuff offered by Dilshan and Kandamby but once again, fell victim to his weakness against short bowling,exposed beautifully by Malinga.Malinga bowled excellently, testing the Indian batsmen with short stuff on a batting friendly wicket, causing a lot of problems to Raina. He set him up with consecutive short deliveries before unleashing peach of a yorker to find Raina on the backfoot and plumb in front.Jadeja was once again sent in at No.7, a brainless move by team management which has failed to understand his capabilities! He was lucky to survive a LBW scare off Murali on his third ball,was beaten on his seventh,was gifted a boundary by a poor ball from Malinga,got two runs off an edge, survived a run out chance on his 21st ball, took a single of the 22nd and defended the next two deliveries!Jadeja is a bowler's joy.He is the delight of opposition captain and his performances are almost equivalent to self goals in football!Harbhajan appeared to be breathless after running a couple just five minutes into his innings and hence, needs to improve on his fitness and running between the wickets.

Sri Lanka were unusually below par in the field, Murali,Kandamby and Maharoof being the prime culprits.There were loads of fielding lapses, among them gifting Gambhir a couple of lives,missed run out chances and numerous fumbles.Maharoof was dealt with as his kind of bowler should be.His hat-trick in the previous game was a fluke, hiding his bowlig prowess temporarily, which was brought to the forefront in the final.Sangakkara was back to his rubbish ways as far as captaining the side is concerned.He removed Malinga, introducing Maharoof in the sixth over which allowed the Indian batsmen to settle.Again, he brought back Maharoof for the 13th over in the second powerplay.He handed Kandamby the responsibility to bowl ahead of Dishan and did not attack once Dhoni departed which was nonsensical.He continued with Dilshan even in the 40th over, paying a heavy price of 12 runs as Raina thrashed Dilshan.He brought back his "premium" strike bowler, Maharoof back in the 43rd over instead of Kulusekera or Malinga.The Sri Lankan bowlers were exceptional at the end of the innings, giving nothing away and bowling yorker lengths, mixed with accurate short bowls, consistently.To regard Muralidaran as a legend is to regard a beggar as a millionaire! I may sound strange, but its a fact that Muralidaran hardly plays a team game.When is the last time Muralidaran bowled in the first 15 overs for Sri Lanka?? Being the premium strike bowler, he should be courageous enough to take on and intice the batsmen inside the field restrictions.The fact is that he is too timid and cannot stand batsmen taking him on.He needs a well spread out field.Also, he seems oblivious to the rules guarding the LBW decisions, appealing like a clown and then imploring in an idiotic way at every instance of a ball touching the pads of a batsman.He is a cricketer who seems terrified by the cricket ball,his fielding a proof of this fact. He runs backward while receiving a throw and fields in a manner unknown.His batting gives an insight of his team spirit. Being afraid of the ball, he swings like a pendulum at the crease, backing away or moving across his stumps, irrespective of the situation,the demands of his team or weather a batsman is still at crease at the other end.


It was the Indian fast bowling that was the highlight of this match.To the dismay of Sri Lanka, Indian bowlers decided to wake up in the final!They bowled with venom, unseen in recent times.
They were helped on their way by some injudicious shot selection of Sri Lankan batsmen who were caught off-guard by Indians and seemed to be under pressure to continue their consistent performance, not playing freely, unlike Indians, who had nothing to loose and played their natural game.The way Dilshan,Mathews and Sangakkara threw away their wickets is a testimony of the pressure they felt.Indian bowlers should have finished off the game much earlier, winning by a bigger margin but, as usual, they failed to deliver the final punch.
Eventually, India won by 81 runs.

ASIA CUP - INDIA VS SRI-LANKA

India returned to the position they have been familiar to for the last couple of years in the last league match of the tournament, being beaten comprehensively by a clinical Sri Lanka. To start with, India named three changes to the eleven that played against Pakistan, two changes (Karthik and Dinda) being forced in due to injury.Saurabh Tiwary was not given an opportunity and it seems he shall return without a game, just performing the duties of a waterboy or a substitute fielder.Sangakkara won the toss and it was a very good and positive decision to bowl first as it enabled his team to get some batting practice under lights before the final.Indian openers were beaten quite a few times by Sri Lankan pace attack sans Malinga and Kulusekera. Gautam Gambhir seemed to be getting into the groove when he fell to a scintillating catch by Randiv.Kathik, who hardly looked convincing during his stay at the crease, was unlucky to be given out caught behind though replays suggested there was no edge.Virat Kohli once again failed to impress and missed another opportunity to make a statement.He fell to an out-swinger from Maharoof which suggests that he might be susceptible to swing bowling or more bowler friendly conditions as presented in South Africa or Australia or England.Raina removed any doubts that remained about his inability at anchoring an innings.He is an attacking batsman and is apt to come at No.3 in batting friendly conditions or at finishing games at No.6 or7.


Dhoni has been India's Mr.Dependable for the past 2-3 years. His flexibility and amazing capacity to adapt has made him one of the most reliable batsman after Rahul Dravid.His ways are certainly not text book but are highly effective.Many a times in the past, he has stabilized the wobbling Indian ship as well as has been its Captain.The way he seems to be unfazed in pressure cooker situations is incredible.His consistency is highly remarkable ,considering most of his innings have come when his team was in deep waters and have
bailed India out of trouble. Indian batsmen already without their talisman, Sachin Tendulkar, just seem unable to build or chase any kind of substantial score without a significant hand from their captain. Once Dhoni departs,the batting falls like a stack of cards.It was no different today. India were bundled out for a meagre 209 on a batting pitch by second string Sri Lankan bowlers.

Jadeja, the "all rounder" once again proved his worth and greatness! His stay at the wicket was one of the most entertaining and exciting part of the otherwise sedate Indian innings.Jadeja moved right across his stumps to a delivery on middle stump and tried to whack it very fine on the leg side. Unfortunately, he was found plumb in front of wicket and the entertainment lasted only for one ball! Jadeja is a viewer's agony. The logic behind his continuous presence in the Indian squad is ununderstandable.Rohit Sharma got a standing ovation from few of his team mates after he reached his fifty! He looked scratchy for the initial part of his innings but then settled down to see India out of trouble.A settled Rohit makes batting look ridiculously easy but there was a severe lack of application on his part in the batting powerplay which Dhoni was alert enough to take after a batting collapse.He took a single of the first ball of the first over and the second ball of the second over of the batting powerplay, leaving Dinda to face the rest of the over.Such casualness and purposeless batting is the difference between him and a Michael Hussey who takes the responsibility and finishes things off in style.Praveen Kumar was unlucky to edge a delivery onto his stumps.India certainly have no batting prowess to talk off when it comes to tailenders.Batting of Ojha ,Zaheer, Nehra, Dinda, Pankaj, RP,Sreesanth,Munaf and Ishant can be put to shame by the likes of Bracken,Hauritz,Hoggard,Gillispie and Warne, let alone Lee, Pollock, Steyn,Vass,Broad or Swann!

Sri Lanka were once again professional and astounding in their fielding efforts. Gautam Gambhir fell prey to an astonishing catch from Randiv and Dhoni was victim to a grotesque direct hit from Kapugedera.Sri Lanka are way ahead and certainly the best fielding unit in Asia.In comparison, India were miserable in the field. Dhoni missed a stumping chance of Sangakkara and Praveen missed a potential run out chance of the same batsman.Fumbles are a part and parcel of Indian cricket and any fielding effort hardly seems complete without them!India have a long way to go in improving their fielding and regular fitness regime and rigorous practice sessions shall do no harm.

The biggest but expected disappointment was a drop in Dinda's pace which was clocked in mid 130's kmph.Just one series was enough to deplete him and expose his fitness levels.He provided the opposition batsmen with width and Tharanga obliged.He would have been taken apart had he bowled to a Dilshan or a Warner.Ojha is a completely ordinary bowler.The Indian spin department without Harbhajan is like a flower without its petals! I think its time Zaheer was given a premonition before the world cup just like Yuvraj.His bowling flucutates between highs and lows just like sea waves.Defending a small total and simultaneously looking for wickets is a difficult task.Dhoni's field placements were simply impeccable though he could have introduced a spinner inside the first or second powerplay to try and get early wickets especially as the performance of seamers was ordinary.Also, positioning Jadeja or Rohit at first and leg slip respectively is inexplicable after the efforts of Kohli in the last match at first slip.Now, both the teams shall next face each other in the final on this Thursday and key players are expected to be back.India certainly need to come up with a special effort to win the tournament.

ASIA CUP - INDIA VS PAKISTAN

India win the high pressure face off against Pakistan, one of their better performances of recent times.As an Indian, the boundless elation, the blend of feelings evoked and the ecstatic cheer it brings is unfelt at any other Indian triumph.The way in which the victory was
achieved revived the memories of Miandad hitting
a six off the last ball by Chetan Sharma and clinching victory for Pakistan.It was pay back time
at Dambulla with Harbhajan hitting that marvelous six off Amir, sparking celebrations through out the country.As expected, the encounter had all the ingredients to form a thrilling contest with many twists and turns and came as a breath of fresh air from cricketing point of view at a time when the focus is at FIFA World cup.

Praveen Kumar started things off for India with a poor over, spraying the bowl outside off but returned to the basics after that. The logic behind giving Nehra the new ball instead of Zaheer can only be explained by Dhoni or the team mangement.Anyways, Nehra bowled well though India was unable to pick up early wickets.Zaheer does not even look like the shadow of his old self. He is lethargic in the field and his bowling is getting increasingly inconsistent, though he did bowl well in the end. Praveen varied his pace regularly and it was a treat to watch him bowl at the fag end. He got the important wicket of Afridi, though he lost the plot when Akmal took him apart.Harbhajan, once again, had an off day against Pakistan. Surprisingly, he has a poor record against Pakistan in the ODI format and today's performance hardly helps in improving his statistics. Harbhajan's effectiveness was also blunted by some superb batting by Malik against him and also by poor field placements by India.India had only 4 fielders inside the ring for Malik and that was a mistake as Malik is apt at finding singles with ease.Once again, India had only 4 fielders in the ring for the debutant Amin. Amin would have been under a lot of pressure as it was his debut match and India were his opposition.Hence, placing a defensive field allowed him easy singles.Not much damage was done as a result of these mistakes as Pakistan lost wickets at regular intervals.


It was a very good move by Pakistan to send Malik at No.3 as Butt and Malik have proved to be India's nemesis, more often than not, in the past. Pakistan players tend to reserve their best for India and good running between the wickets was a proof of this.Indian players were scintillating in their fielding efforts.Jadeja's fielding effort got rid of the ominous looking Salman Butt.Rohit and Raina were also great to watch. The catch by Virat Kohli rekindled the memories of glistering performances by Kaif and (younger)Yuvraj in the field. Let's hope the likes Nehra and Sehwag emulate the performance of young guns and that the youngsters keep up the good work.


Shoib Akhtar and Amir started extremely well for Pakistan, keeping things tight and bowling bright lines and lengths.Virendra Sehwag looked completely out of sorts even before his injury. He was beaten several times by Amir and just seems clueless when situation demands him to see off a bowler.Gautam Gambhir was back in form with a gritty and pleasing knock. The singles were coming easily and running between the wickets had much more purpose to it. He also put in a dive at one stage, a good sign.Pakistan didn't help themselves by dropping him at 69.Eventually, he gave away his wicket in the only way he looked like getting out today and that was his repeated failures to late-cut the ball.Virat Kohli looked brilliant in his short stay at the crease.Its still early days in his career and he has to learn to convert the starts into big scores.The move by Dhoni to bat himself at no.4 is certainly debatable as Rohit could have been sent in. Loss of Dhoni's wicket at that stage might have spelled doom for India.It was not to be as Gautam and Dhoni knit together a match winning partnership.I may sound funny but Afridi also played a significant role in the blossoming of this partnership!Dhoni was beaten 3 times in a space of two overs by Ajmal. Removing Ajmal from the attack after his 6 overs and introducing Malik just indicates the mindset of Afridi to give his bowlers defined no. of overs at specific stages of a match. Given the situation, Ajmal deserved atleast one more over and the result could have been very different had he got rid of Dhoni.Dhoni was extremely unlucky to get out in the 43rd over given to Malik, a poor move by Afridi as Razaq had 5 overs in his kitty to go with 3,2 and 2 of Akhtar,Amir and Ajmal respectively. Rohit was casual in his batting display and got out in an obtuse manner. He was dropped by Akmal at 11 off Akhtar's bowling and failed to capitalize.Afridi made yet another poor move by removing Akhtar from the attack and bringing Amir on in the 39th over, though it hardly proved costly.

Watching him bat is frustrating and annoying. He is a bauble as far as cricket is concerned.Today, he scored 6 off 9 balls including 1 off the misfield by Akhtar and 2 off the misfield by a cover point fielder.He was bowled the first ball he faced of a spinner(Ajmal). Yes, i am talking of none other than Ravindra Jadeja, the fruitless and incompetent "all rounder" who is as oblivious to batting as dogs are to flying! To think he did not have time and had to have a go is ridiculous. There is never time for no.7 in these situations, be it a Hussey or a Kemp, a Morkel, a Mathews, a Klusner or a Pollard. Harbhajan came to bat at no.8 at scored 15 off 11 including that amazing and memorable strike off Amir to clinch victory.Now,should Jadeja be batting up the order than Harbhajan or even Praveen for that matter??Forget about his batting position, does he deserves to be in the Indian national team?The fact is that Jadeja is simply not an all rounder! His batting is pathetic, futile and ineffective and his bowling avg. is worse than that of Kevin Pieterson and Michael clarke..Which book on cricketing laws says it is a necessity to have an all rounder in a team?There was a time when India had 4 specialists spinners in their ranks simply because we did not have a fast bowler.Having an "all rounder" just for the sake of it can really prove disastrous in big matches as it almost proved today.
A partnership of 6 off 17 balls is like Christmas for a Turkey! One does not want it!!Jadeja seems to be enamored with playing cricket. His batting in today's match is once again a premonition to the selectors for the situations that may arise.


A match between the arch rivals hardly seems to be complete without a brawl or two these days! Gautam Gambhir and Kamran Akmal exchanged a few words before Harbhajan and Akhtar exchanged verbal blows.As usual, Pakistan players seemed to ignite the brawls.Now, India face Sri Lanka having already qualified for the finals of the Asia cup.Its time to give the likes of Dinda and Tiwary a look in against a strong and confident looking Sri Lankan unit.

ASIA CUP - INDIA VS BANGLADESH

India kicked off their campaign with a not so convincing win against Bangladesh, also gaining a bonus point on the way.Bangladesh openers set the stadium on fire with their positive batting and stroke-play before Tamim got out to a misplaced stroke off Praveen Kumar's half volley outside off. Instead of looking fresh and rejuvenated, Indian players looked rusty and slack as expected. Nehra showed in the very first over of the game that he utilized the break for anything but improving his fielding. Zaheer's bowling was like lightning in an otherwise gray sky! He started off in a sleepy manner but his next two overs were a pleasure to watch before he returned back to his sleepy ways. Praveen was inconsistent and Nehra was extremely ordinary.The pick of the bowlers was Harbhajan Singh.After the fall of 5th wicket, Dhoni could have gone for the kill by bringing his strike bowlers back but perhaps was afraid of losing the advantage considering the performance of his bowlers earlier! Also, he would have liked to see the performance of part timers though its not much use when a team is five down. Still both, Sehwag and Rohit did a very good job by keeping things tidy and Sehwag hurried through the opposition tail.Jadeja bowled in a situation where he seems to bowl his best and that is when the opposition is looking to rebuild a shaky innings. I would certainly be surprised if he can bowl good consistently when the opposition has an upper hand.Indian bowlers gave away too many extras and need to be more disciplined in their efforts as such mistakes can prove to be fatal against better teams.

Indian fielding was as usual, fumbles littering the innings like garbage on a clean road. Gautam Gambhir looked completely out of sorts before the break, struggling to find even singles. He looked better after-wards but was still beaten outside off many times and was not the Gautam we have become used to watching in the last couple of years.Tamim Iqbal drooped a sitter from Gambhir, otherwise the ride could have been far more tougher for India.Sehwag was unlucky to get out on a poor ball from Mortaza. Kohli and Rohit missed a good opportunity to spend some time in the middle and access the conditions first hand before the important clash with Pakistan. Dhoni, once again, anchored the innings beautifully and saw India through.

There were stages in the match when India had Zaheer and then Sehwag fielding at point. Point is a position reserved for an agile fielder with lightning quick reflexes and not for the likes of Zaheer. Also, India could have attacked a bit more while Harbhajan was bowling;it was surprising not to see a forward short leg in place, considering the number of times bowl went air-borne in that direction.Also, Dhoni could have come at No.4 and spent some more time in the middle as he came from a lay off, though it hardly mattered in the end as Rohit got out first ball! Now, India face Pakistan in their next match of the tournament. A clash between the two neighbors and arch rivals is just like a Cinnamon popcorn mix! Its spicy and you can feel the heat and pressure.Will India miss Sachin and Yuvraj remains to be seen.I think Saurabh Tiwary could be given a chance instead of Jadeja. Surely, Tiwary is a better batsman than him and getting ten overs out of Sehwag,Rohit and Raina should not be much of a problem for Dhoni.

ASIA CUP - THE INDIAN SQUAD

One of the best moves of the current selection committee has been to send the message "Perform or Perish" and that no player has a permanent place in the Indian team. Yuvraj Singh's being dropped is not at all unwelcome! I think it was about time he was brought to his senses.He needs to work on his fitness and fielding. He was found dancing with a pop star, a night before the committee had to decide the squad for Asia cup,suggesting he might have taken his place for granted."Business before pleasure" is an old saying. Such frills are acceptable when your on field performance is upto your potential.Yuvraj should have cricket at the top of his priority list.There was a time when he was regarded as one of the best fielders in the world but now,the captain has a potential problem in finding a suitable fielding position for him. Now, its upto him how he takes this decision. Ideally, India would love to see him rejuvenated and hungry for more.Cricket fans would certainly not mind to see Yuvraj the "cricketer" back again!

Perhaps the most perplexing decision has been the selector's persistence with Ravindera Jadeja.He is an "all rounder" with a bowling avg. in the 40's. His batting is a pain to watch. It is baffling to see Irfan Pathan not being given a chance. This tournament would certainly have tested his mental strength and ability to perform under pressure.Indian squad consists of a lone wicket keeper in the form of their captain Dhoni. Wonder how much more funny and embarrassing a situation could get if Dhoni was to get injured on the morning before a match! Zaheer and Nehra, the pair that formed an integral part of the 2003 world cup, still leads the Indian pace bowling attack. Ishant, Sreesanth and RP Singh have lost their way after a good start to their international careers. Dinda has been selected for this cup which is justifies considering his performance in the recently concluded tour of Zimbabwe but how long can he maintain his fitness levels and bowling accuracy remains to be seen.


Harbhajan shall once again lead the spin bowling.Where as Ashwin has a long way to go as far as his bowling is concerned, Ojha hardly seems to cause trouble to quality batsmen. The decision of Sachin Tendulkar to rest himself is a very good one and is completely welcome. It would be good to see the performance of young guns in the absence of the world's best batsman. The axing of Yuvraj Singh should be viewed as a warning signal by the likes of Sehwag, whose batting has always swung between being carefree and careless and Rohit, whose fitness levels leave a lot to be desired.This tournament also provides an opportunity for Virat Kohli to perform in a big tournament under pressure and make a statement. Saurabh Tiwary should be ready to grab any opportunities that come his way and should view this tour as an excellent opportunity to learn and come to terms with the international levels and standards of cricket.

SECOND T-20 - IND VS ZIM

India seal the series 2-0 and end a horrible tour of Zimbabwe on a positive note. So, what were the outcomes of this tour? Did we find some new talent ready for the challenges of international cricket? Or was this one of those meaningless series which are fit in the schedule every now and then! For starters, i think the way Indian fast bowlers used the yorker to good effect at the fag end of the innings in the T-20 matches was the biggest positive of this tour. Consistent bowling of this quality by the more accomplished players like Zaheer, Nehra and Praveen shall certainly bear fruits in the long run. Bowling in the first six overs of the powerplay still remains a big problem. Dinda bowled really wide of the off stump today and this type of bowling is bread and butter for quality batsmen. Ashwin found it difficult to stop Coventry and then Chigumbura when they took him apart. He is like a frog which cannot swim; when in deep waters, finds it difficult to reach the shore!! What i mean is that variations form a vital weapon of a bowlers armory in T-20 matches and he has to work hard on his bowling. The bowl with which he got Chigumbura's wicket was not the greatest either. Ojha also seems to be inapt at blocking the batsmen when the going gets tough. The way Zimbabwean batsmen picked singles at will off him, hitting the odd boundary, is a worrying sign.

Naman Ojha eliminated any doubts left about his cricket levels. I am sure even the staunchest of his supporters shall agree that he certainly looks under prepared for international cricket.Leave alone the short bowl problem, he does not seem capable of finding singles and is not comfortable playing the incoming deliveries. Suresh Raina has to improve his shot selection.There was nothing wrong about his batting in today's match, where India were chasing a relatively high score but he leaves a lot to be desired when the situation demands him to stay at the wicket. He is an aggressive batsman and there is nothing wrong in that but controlled aggression certainly yields better results than raw aggression. Yusuf Pathan just does not fit into this young Indian team. He is fine when we have the likes of Sachin,Sehwag,Gambhir,Dhoni and Yuvraj up the order as there is a very low probability of a batting collapse and his weakness of unidimensional batting being exposed.He just cannot defend a ball, let alone finding singles or twos. The way he got out today, trying to finish the match with a big hit was as stupid as hiring a plane to reach a destination 100 meters from your home in normal conditions! Ideally, he should have stayed and seen his team through.


There were hardly any fielding lapses in today's game by India which came as a pleasant surprise! Raina proved in this series that he is certainly not a captaincy material. India might struggle to find a capable leader in the absence of Dhoni.Introducing Ojha into the attack in the sixth over of today's game wasn't the best of moves.Also, the way Vinay was bowling, he deserved another over in the powerplay instead of Dinda.Now, Yusuf Pathan has a much needed break and should really work hard on his weaknesses and fitness.Rotation of players goes a long way in keeping them fresh and more importantly, providing them time to rectify their weaknesses. Dinda and Ashwin do not have much time to do so at present as both have been included in the squad for the Asia cup and hence, should concentrate on this tournament and be ready to grab any opportunities that come their way..

FIRST T-20 - IND VS ZIM

So, India wins the first of the T-20 matches against Zimbabwe, much to the relief of their many fans across the globe. The Indian selectors took their resolve to amaze further by selecting an even more imbalanced squad having 4 frontline spinners to choose from.There were days when fielding 7 batsmen was the winning formula for India. Things certainly have changed, atleast for this tournament, as India decided to go in with 3 spinners, 1 bowling all rounder and 2 medium pacers, meaning only 5 batsmen, including the keeper could make it to the playing 11.

Coming to the first innings, the most refreshing bit was to see Indian quicks try to bowl yorkers at the fag end.Other than this, the googly bowled by Chawla to get the ominous looking Chibhabha deserves a special mention.I may sound a bit harsh but there was hardly anything else praise worthy. Zimbabwean batsmen played a more significant role than Indian bowlers in their downfall! Zimbabwe lost regular wickets, batsmen like Taylor and Taibu resulting in their own doom and letting their team down. The best performance by an Indian bowler (P.Ojha) in T-20 in terms of economy rate against a Zimbabwe side, certainly not the best in their history, is nothing to be too happy about.It would have been interesting to see how Indian spinners dealt with the rip-roaring Zim batsmen had they not lost wickets to some silly shots.Seeing both the Indian new ball bowlers put a lot of effort into every delievery was nice but one is not encouraged when we look at the number of Indian fast bowlers (Munaf,RP,Sreesanth etc) who burst on the international scene with a bang and then faded away.Ashok Dinda overstepped a couple of times, the follow up deliveries being far below standard. Ashwin really needs to add a few more variations in his armory and has a long way to go in perfecting his doosra.Vinay Kumar does not seem to know about the word variation! A good example was in the over when he was taken apart by Chimbhabha.Its good if u can bowl at a good length consistently but you certainly need to vary it a bit in the T-20 format to keep the batsmen guessing. Giving Yusuf the bowl in the sixteenth over was not the greatest of moves by a captain, though Zim was not in a position to capitalise by then. Indian fielding was as usual, the highlights being a couple of missed run out chances and a misfield by Ashwin near the boundary.

Indian players, sans Sachin, Dravid and Dhoni, seem to have perfected the art of making a game out of nothing.Naman Ojha looks utterly under prepared for international cricket. He seems to be vlnerable to the incoming delivery, which might have something to do with his stance.Murali Vijay was fooled by an excellent slower bowl by Mpofu.Shots like those played by Raina and Yusuf look stunning when they come off but make you look like a clown if you get out. Suresh Raina seems to just play his shots, no matter what the situation demands. Considering the fact India had lost quick wickets and fielded only five batsmen, a bit more discreet shot selection was required from him.A couple of his shots came off but he played one too many. Stats would indicate that Yusuf played a blinder of an innings at a staggering strike rate of 154.16! But the truth is he does not know any other way to play!! At 48 for 4 and the next batsmen to follow being Chawla, India needed a solid partnership. Wonder what would have happened if he too fell prey to a mishit like Raina.. Kohli needs to work on his patience levels. He seems to get agitated every now and then when the boundaries dry up and hence, is inapt at anchoring the innings presently.The result might have been different had Zimbabwe been more aggressive in the field and their batsmen not let their team down. Anyways, a victory by any Indian cricket team has far more consequences than that by any other cricket team. It covers the boards baffling selections, the low standard of Indian domestic cricket,the shameful defeat of this very team in the ODI series, the perennial fielding problems and the scarcity of genuine fast bowlers in India! :P

AUS CRICKET

Australian selectors have forgiven Michael Clarke for his poor form in Twenty20, naming him to captain Australia against Pakistan in England in July!! (Wonder if an Indian captain would have to be forgiven for his lack of form after the team reaches finals in such a dominating fashion!) The squad to take on Pakistan in two Tests from mid-July won't be named until several contenders such as Usman Khawaja,Michael kilnger and George bailey have fronted up for Australia A late next month.Siddle,Hilfenhaus,Stuart,Ferguson and Mitchell marsh are other talented cricketers making the bench strength..The standards that Aussies set for themselves are simply amazing!!


Australia is undoubtedly the best cricket team in the world at the moment and they have been for quite some time. The reason is neither that all there players are naturally gifted nor is this sucess down to a lucky crop of talented players.. The answer is that the Australian domestic structure is of the highest standard.The amateurish club cricket and bloated county circuit of other countries is no match for the conveyor belt of Australian state and grade cricket. The structure is based to inculcate resilience, unregenerate human nature and self-reliance. An Australian cricketer isn’t spoiling for a fight, but he is ready for one. There has been a line of succession which, perhaps, was never in doubt. Greg Chappell (7,110 Test runs) retired five years into Border’s career; Border (11,174 Test runs) retired nine years into Steve Waugh’s. During his reign, Australians took their bloodymindedness to the next level. Waugh (10,927 Test runs) retired nine years into the career of Ricky Ponting. An Australian cricketer is driven by the will to Win matches. He takes taking nothing for granted and has an inherent mantle of relentlessness.


So, what is so special about the domestic structure of Australians? Firstly, Australia has just six teams in its domestic structure governed by six different organisations. This means every Australian has to fight hard just to keep his place in the state side, forget the national side.Next, the success of the system can be dedicated to the efficient hierarchical system followed while appointing the various members of the organization and well organized domestic competitions.Each of the member organizations elects representatives to the 14 man Cricket Australia Board of Directors, and to the Senior Management Team, which consists of about 60 members of staff.The membership of the 14 man board is New South Wales (three Directors), Queensland (two Directors), South Australia (three Directors), Tasmania (one Director), Victoria (three Directors), and Western Australia (two Directors). The board develops Cricket Australia's strategic plan, but the plan is implemented by the Senior Management Team and the Chief Executive officer. Cricket Australia also organises domestic inter-state cricket in Australia, including the three premier competitions in each of the major forms of the game.These are the Sheffield Shield in first-class cricket, the Ford Ranger One Day Cup, which is the domestic one-day competition, and the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash, which is the domestic Twenty20 competition. Most of the support staff around the world are Australians. There was a time when there were as many as five Australians as National Coaches – Greg Chappel (India), John Bucchannan (Australia), Tom Moddy (Sri Lanka), Dave Whatmore (Bangladesh) and John Dyson(West Indies). The best umpire, Simon Taufell, is also an Australian. Surely there is something in the Australian setup.


In comparison, India has 27 teams in the Ranji Trophy (at least one for each state). These are divided into two divisions – Elite (10 teams) and Plate (17 teams). This number was even higher in 2007 when there were 12 teams in the Elite division. Ideally, this number should be further reduced to eight (something that is hard to do).Until very recently, the Elite- division teams did not have a full time physical trainer. One can surely imagine the condition of the Plate division teams. IPL has brought in the money, but has done little to improve the quality.One of the obvious reasons is that there are as many as eight teams in IPL with the provision of 4 foreign players per team per match as compared to two foreign players allowed in the Australian domestic competition. Instead of improving their skills and developing their talents, the young Indian players thrust themselves into the limelight IPL brings. Its not difficult to imagine the standard of Cricket when the number of teams is increased in 2010. Inefficiency and Corruption in cricket is even higher at junior levels which are by and large outside the media glare. IPL has addressed this to a certain extent but it has also made players less enthusiastic of playing for India, since they can make enough money even if they never get to play for India.



So what can be done to improve the structure in India? Structures are easy to copy; cultures are far subtler. When is success structural and when cultural? Take West Indian cricket in the 1970s
and 1980s. With dazzling batsmen and lethal fast bowlers, the West Indies were all-conquering. What drove this success? Was it their club system? Was it their inter-island first-class competition? Certainly, their cricket was strong at the roots; far stronger than when the Test team declined in the 1990s. But surely the more decisive factor was cultural. Here was a loose confederation of islands collectively throwing off the yoke of colonialism. There was a score to be settled against England; against the white world. The West Indies honed intimidation alongside self-expression. It was a party with a purpose. In the 1980s did English cricket seek to copy the West Indies’ structure? Of course not! Everyone knew that it was a special case..In India, the extent of craze cricket brings is hard to comprehend. For instance,It is perplexing to see people support IPL teams. A guy from Hyderabad supports a team that hardly has any players from Hyderabad or AP for that matter! India’s population every year increases by an amount that is roughly equal to the current population of Australia. Yet our team (of which most of us ardent supporters) is thrashed by a team that was essentially composed of Australia’s reserves. Now, the Aussie culture is changing. Twentieth-century Australia harbored a long grudge that it wasn’t taken seriously enough—the cultural cringe, as it is called.The grudge has now been fully and properly settled, both on the field and beyond. Sydney is a capital of laid-back cool, and Australia is one of the most envied countries in the world.Can the system survive the transition? Will the new cool Australia show the old unshakable defiance? To whom will Ponting pass the mantle?


I’m not suggesting Australian cricket will nosedive as swiftly as the West Indies (though it's certainly possible). That structural advantages such as only six first-class teams, each fed by just one major amateur league shall certainly continue to play a crucial part in Australian cricket.If money alone would have been the issue, then Africa or North Korea would never win medals at the Olympics. Surely they have something right in their sporting structure and it is not marred by the corrupt and inefficient practices. BCCI is perhaps the only Sporting organization in India that has loads of money. It can surely be more innovative and invest in long term projects that can produce lasting results. For instance, it can invest in an Institute of Sports Science (A discipline that studies the application of scientific principles and techniques with the aim of improving sporting performance. Human movement is a related scientific discipline that studies human movement in all contexts including that of sport).Andrew Leipus, India’s physio during 2003 World Cup had a Sport Science degree from an Australian Institute. If we could have a local institute to produce physios, most Ranji sides could have a physio and thus India’s perennial problem of fielding could be solved. Fitness in other sports would also greatly improve. Likewise, Indian sports need Sports Psychologists. Domestic cricket can be reformed with fewer games, better wickets, more practice time and discrete time-slots for competitions to allow proper preparation for each form of the game. It is not because of the system, it is despite the system that Indian sportsmen still manage to win so many accolades and bring glory to the nation! :P

ATTITUDE, STRUCTURE OR BOTH?

I am a huge fan of Harsha Bhogle.. So it came to me as a big surprise when he had to say this about India T-20 loss-- "There is no point blaming the pitches and the bowlers in domestic cricket for the inability to play short-pitched bowling. Gavaskar emerged from the same school, as did Tendulkar, Dravid and even Laxman."

I totally agree with him that attitude plays a very significant part in a player's life but to say domestic cricket is not responsible as Sachin and Gavaskar are products of the same system is to be a little too optimistic.. What about Raina,Yusuf and many others who cannot play the short ball.. What about the loss of pace of many bowlers just after an year of International cricket..For almost two decades now, India has missed a genuine all rounder.. Just when you think the fielding standards could not get worse, Indian players prove you wrong! And the biggest fact-- What about the total failure of the domestic system to produce a genuine fast bowler (Harsha has only mentioned batsmen in his statement).. Just talent is not enough.. It needs to be harnessed.. You might have a special stone but you need to chip off the rough edges to turn it into a statue! Players need to be developed in all aspects of their game so that they arrive fully equipped with the basics expected of a cricket player at the world stage.. And for this, a proper and efficient domestic structure is important.


It is next to impossible to replace cricketers like Gilchrist, Hayden, Glenn, Warne and Bevan, who formed a considerable part of the invincible Australian team.. But Aus have found Nannes, Johnson, Warner, Bollinger, Watson, Tait, Clarke, Hussey and many more cricketers with the potential to carry on the mantle of their dominance, if not invincibility.. SA have rebuild a strong team after the 2003 WC loss and have found AB, Duminy, Morne, Botha, Albie, Smith and others on the way..Steve Waugh was replaced by Ponting as captain of the ODI team and Clarke has replaced Ponting as Captain of the T-20 team, taking their T-20 game to the next level.. Sri have also come up with players like Kapugedera, Chandimal, Dilshan, Malinga and Mathews.. And what has India come up with? Vinay, Saha, N.Ojha, Munaf, Sreesanth? It hardly seems like the young cricketers can take Indian cricket to the next level. India is surely missing a good deputy to Dhoni. V.Sehwag, with his carefree (sometimes careless!) attitude is no good to handle the tough job of captaincy in absence of Dhoni.

Is Jadeja the replacement for Kumble? Are the young guns of India like Raina and Kohli capable of maintaining the high standards set by the likes of Sachin, Dravid and Laxman in tests? Is the board ready to face the tough challenge of finding suitable men to fit in the big shoes of these legends? While most foreign players gain experience and mature into better cricketers at the international level, Indian players start to find their weaknesses here!

"Short bowl problem returns to haunt Gilchrist".. "Kallis, once again done in by spin".. "Ageing Nannes cannot bowl at 150 kmph anymore".. Perhaps these r the statements never heard off in Cricket.. This is because the standards of fitness and the basics imparted to these players during their domestic career are far better than in India, turning them into true professionals.. Just like stardom and money, some problems seem to be part and parcel of Indian Cricket only.. :P

ZIM TRI-SERIES - IND VS SRI

Another incomprehensible performance by India leads to a grim defeat, eliminating them from this tournament. Batting performance, though far better than the previous game, not only in terms of the amount of runs scored but also in terms of the intent and attitude, was still not upto the standards expected at this level. The biggest problem seems to be the inability of the batsmen, sans Rohit, to nudge the ball in the gap for singles. This resulted in Virat Kohli and Yusuf giving away the little initiative that India gained during the batting powerplay. Rohit seems to be the most apt of the lot at finding singles with ease and anchoring the innings. He is a great find for India but needs to really work on his fitness to carry on for a long time.


Thanks to Ashwin’s blinder, India could cross the 250 mark. Ashwin could prove to be a handy batsman lower down the order but his bowling leaves a lot to be desired. He has to learn all the arts of off spin bowling and needs to vary his speeds more often than he does now to hope for a carrier at international level. Ashok Dinda is a good prospect for India but it i doubt if he will be able to sustain for long at this level with the kind of action (he has a highly injury prone jump in his action just before he delivers the bowl) and physique he has. I really fail to understand the role of Jadeja in this team.”Losing an illusion makes you wiser than finding a truth.” Jadeja and batting are just like the current US-Israel relations; they do not go well together!.. His current bowling avg. is 43 which is worse than that of Michael Clarke or Kevin Pietersen.


Coming on to S.Raina, i think he needs to be rested so that he can work on his weaknesses and return as a better batsman. He had a lot of unseen things to offer as a captain! He forgot to inform the umpire about the bowling powerplay and he denied Virat and Rohit the batting powerplay when they asked for it in the match against Sri Lanka, indirectly denying India a possible bonus point. He also kept defensive fields throughout the match against Zim while defending a small total of 194. Even in today’s game, he kept widespread fields though India needed to bowl out Sri-Lanka below 214. Pushing himself down to No.5 has not helped India’s cause either. I think Rohit is far better when it comes to anchoring the innings than Raina, who is an attacking batsman.Yusuf could have been tried as an opener in the initial phase of the tournament. Promoting him to No.4, a position normally reserved for a batsman apt at anchoring the innings, and immediately taking the powerplay resulted in nothing positive of substance. The bowling and fielding was as usual. Whereas the Sri-Lankans lifted their fielding standards for this crucial game, there was no change in intent from India in this department even though it was a knock out game for them. Overall, the young Indian team failed to impress comprehensively!.. It’s high time for some serious thinking and a lot of effort has to be put in by both, the players and the board to raise the level of Indian cricket..

ZIM TRI-SERIES -- IND VS ZIM

A gardener cannot operate a patient just as a doctor cannot build hotels.. But the way Indians played this game, they looked to be anything but cricketers.. They looked a bunch of brainless men roaming on the ground listlessly.. The lack of intensity was such as never seen before in cricket. The basic application exhibited by the batsmen at crease could be well put to shame by boys playing gully cricket. Why are these cricketers not questioned? In fact, why are they not reprimanded for the kind of laziness they exhibit, hitherto never heard off! 285 proved to be too small for India to defend in their previous encounter against zim. And now, they decided to lessen the agony of the spectators by scoring a meagre total, easily chaseable in lesser time! The way they batted was simply unbelievable and inexplicable. No wonder these are the next generation players! If the seniors find Nannes, Johnson, Taylor, Roach and Bravo too hot to handle, certainly the likes of Lamb, Cremer and Utseya are too much for the youngsters!

It is a matter of immense shame for a team, which boosts of having the best players of spin in the world, to lose to a team which employed nearly 40 overs of spin!.. It is the manner of the loss that is so intriguing. The rate at which the Indians find out ways to lose are amazing. The type of defence one wishes to see in a test match followed by a couple of run-outs, not to mention the half a dozen others that could easily have happened, the typical Indian attitude in the field for most of the match and bowling almost at par with that of part timers such as M.clarke and G.Smith formed the story of the day. Really, losing is not such a bad thing after you have given it your all. It simply means the other team deserved it. But to loose in the manner the Indian team lost this match is simply not acceptable.

Now then, which parties are contributing to these rubbish performances? Are the youngsters also tired due to packed schedules and too much cricket? Really, one has to question whether there is any shame left in any of the Indians who played this match?..Let alone zim, i think Aus B women’s team might just prove to be a handful against them!! A person need not be an Einstein for guessing the standard of Indian cricket in the near future.. Zim did nothing extra ordinary.. nothing out of the blue.. They just played cricket, the one thing that India did not. The future certainly does not look bright if India continues to play this way..

SACHIN TENDULKAR - THE LITTLE KNOWN - PART 2

On the tour of NZ in 2003-04, Sachin remarked that pitches were something he had never experienced before. Even the net wickets were terrible. Parthiv Patel was a handful on them..He remembered facing him and he really had to apply himself!..On questioning him on the apparent change in his batting style, Sachin said that there are days when he still goes all out. In many matches in the 2003 World Cup he batted like that. In the match against New Zealand in Hyderabad in 2003, when Sachin and Sehwag put on 182 runs in 30 overs, I told Veeru, "Aaj toh tera role mein khel raha hoon, aur mera role tu kar raha hai."

He is the second ever player to score 10 Test centuries against Australia, after only Sir Jack Hobbs of England more than 70 years previously.He sponsors 200 underprivileged children every year through Apnalaya, a Mumbai-based NGO associated with his mother-in-law, Annabel Mehta.India has won all six times that Tendulkar has made a hundred in an ODI final.He also practices left-handed throws at the nets on a regular basis.Tendulkar has been seen taking his Ferrari 360 Modena for late-night drives in Mumbai. In an interview with Tim Sheridan, Tendulkar admitted that he sometimes went for quiet drives in the streets of Mumbai late at night when he would be able to enjoy some peace and silence.He currently has the most sponsorships out of all players in world cricket. Sachin Tendulkar was an early pioneer in India on cricket business dealings when he signed a then record sports management deal with Worldtel in 1995, the value of the deal being 30 crore rupees over five years. His next contract with WorldTel in 2001 was valued at 80 crores over five years. In 2006, he signed a contract with Saatchi and Saatchi's ICONIX values at 180 crores over three years. He is the highest earning cricketer in the world.

In a series against Sril Lanka, promotion of Irfan Pathan up the batting order which, although only temporary, had an immediate effect on the team's fortunes, was an idea of the master blaster.. Bowlers receive a lot of help from him.. Sreesanth and Agarkar have already voiced their views on this..According to Sachin, ”Whatever I see from mid-on, what the batsmen are trying to do. I walk up and tell them that I get the feeling that this batsman is setting himself up to play everything on the off side or off the back foot - so, try and work on him accordingly”, leaving the final decision upto the bowler..

Sachin is the first batsman to be declared run out by third umpire in 1992 in South Africa.He had scored 16 Test hundreds before he turned 25. In 2000 he became the first batsman to have scored 50 international hundreds.Seven of his centuries had been scored before his 21st birthday, a unique record.Just 30, he has already made more than 50 international centuries.
He is the only player to have over 100 innings of 50+ runs in ODIs.He is also the fastest to score 10,000 runs in test cricket history. He holds this record along with Brian Lara. Both of them achieved this feat in 195 innings.


Craig McDermott told Allan Donald after he saw Sachin on his first tour to SA that he was going to be the best in the world.Late Naren Tamhane, once remarked as a selector, "Gentlemen, Tendulkar never fails."Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin’s idol, once remarked that "It is hard to imagine any player in the history of the game who combines classical technique with raw aggression like the little champion does".
"You almost want him to get a few runs," Mark Waugh once remarked, "just to see him." Odd how a cricketer so Australian as Tendulkar could provoke such un-Australian sentimentality.


Unless he is terribly mobbed, Sachin always stops to sign autographs for children. He always takes a bit of time to ask kids what class they are studying in, or some similar question that makes them feel that the little master cares.When he married Anjali, a doctor and friend from his childhood, he rejected massive sums from satellite TV for live coverage, keeping the ceremony a family affair. He knows his worth, and is wealthy beyond the dreams of almost a billion Indians, but he is not a grabber.He stills feels uncomfortable with the limelight. He feels embarrassed with television cameras around him.Walking back to the pavilion after he was out in th 2003 WC final was one of the most wretched experiences of Sachin’s life, a trek that he hopes he will never have to repeat..



Two biggest testimonies to Sachin’s greatness- The first was Sir Donald Bradman's famous remark to his wife during the1996 World Cup that Tendulkar put him in mind of how he himself batted. The second is the widespread understanding in the cricket community that match-fixers will not successfully get on with their crooked business until Tendulkar is out..

Once, a night train winding down from Simla to Kalka stopped halfway for refreshments at a station lit by flaming torches. On a small television screen wreathed in cigarette smoke in the corner of the dining room Tendulkar was batting in a match in Mumbai. No one moved or spoke or looked away. The train was delayed by 20 minutes. Not until Tendulkar was out could the world resume its normal timetables and rhythms.He is the very first Indian sports personality to be portrayed at the waxworks museum said.A unique initiative by Sachin and his wife Anjali Tendulkar, 'Sachin Crusade Against Cancer in Children', became the biggest fundraising event of its kind in the country. By the end of the evening the record stood at Rs. 1.3 crore and counting.


Sachin's wife Anjali tends to become nervous while he bats, whereas his brother has become so superstitious that he allows the family members to only watch the match recording. On pre-mature and early exits, Sachin likes to take out his anger somewhere. He prefers to be left alone, till he cools down. Sachin strongly believes in the concept of re-birth, existence
of Hell and Heaven. He loves celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi at home with his family and believes that it firms his ties with his loved ones. Once Sachin was batting with Vinod Kambli for a school match. Vinod dropped his bat, in the middle of the game and started to fly a kite. Sachin regards this as the most funniest moment of his career.

SACHIN'S FAVOURITES-
Ground : Sydney cricket ground
Movie : Coming to America
Music : Pop
Hobby : Collecting CD's.
Car : Maruti
Actors : Amitabh Bacchan, Nana Patekar
Actresses : Madhuri Dixit
Cricket Heroes : Gavaskar, Viv Richards and Sandeep Patil
Other Fav. Stars : Maradona, Borris Becker
Drink : Orange / Apple juice and water
Food : Steak
Pastime : Listening to peaceful music with friends
Clothes : Official jacket and tie, else jeans and T-shirt
Magazine : Sportstar
Newspapers : Times of India, Mid-day, Afternoon Dispatch
Restaurant : Bukhara, Maurya Sheraton
Holiday Resort : Yorkshire, Headingley
Hotel : Park Royal Darling Harbour, Sydney
Other Sports : Tennis
Memorable Day : Beating Pakistan in the 1992 World Cup
Worst Day : Losing the fist ODI in RSA in 1992
Greatest Influence : Family
Embarrasing Moment : People asking for my autograph and then asking me my name

Hate : Rumors
Any Changes you desire to have : None

Playing table tennis he is ambidextrous. By all accounts he is a brilliant, if hair-raising, driver. He is a champion Snake player on the cellphone, according to Harbhajan Singh, whom he also taught a spin variation Sachin is a big fan of Mark Knopfler.According to Sachin,the 2003 World Cup game against Pakistan was the biggest match of his life while his counter-attacking 114 at Perth is his favourite ton.


Sachin Tendulkar’s roommate during his under-15 days, Dalbir Singh Gill finally returned home full of life. Tendulkar not only paid all expenses for his hip replacement surgery at Shalby Hospitals but also visited him on the day he was operated. Legend goes that Dalbir used to hit sixes at will. Tendulkar knew Dalbir’s capabilities and respected him even more for that. “I still remember a West vs East Zone match in 1988 where Gautam Dutta (former Assam’s Ranji captain) dismissed Tendulkar cheaply. I was in next and as we crossed each other near the boundary line, Tendulkar signalled to me that I should teach Dutta a lesson. And I did. I hit four sixes and we won the match comfortably . Tendulkar was the first to rush onto the ground. He lifted me off the ground and I still remember that incident vividly,” “, says Dalbir.There were times when Sachin and Dalbir used to sneak out at night and ride the cycle rickshaw . Tendulkar used to love riding it and Dalbir used to be the passenger. Sachin used to draw beard on Dalbir’s face with toothpaste. Other times, he would squeeze toothpaste inside his shorts and T shirts.


Sachin is inspired by the memory of the first ever match he saw in a stadium. It was the India-West Indies Test in the 1983-84 season in Mumbai. Michael Holding was fielding at third man and he was right behind him in the stands. Then he saw Vivian Richards.Those memories inspired him.Sachin’s mother doesn't understand much about cricket, but she prays for his and India's success. He has long discussions with his brother on cricket and support from the other brother and his sister .He shares his difficult moments with his wife, my entire family, and that is one reason he has been able to last for such a long time.

One never-to-be-forgotten day in Adelaide was when Tendulkar was adjudged shoulder-before-wicket..He has toured Australia on four occasions, as many times as Bradman toured England. Like Bradman, he has never gone home without a Test hundred to his name. When asked which bowlers had troubled him the most, Sachin smiled an almost embarrassed smile and said, "You won't believe this." When probed, he said, "Pedro Collins and Hansie Cronje." "In fact," he said, "I once told my partner 'Will you please take Hansie for me? I don't mind playing Allan Donald" In the 1993 Hero Cup, against SA, South Africa needed six runs to win in the last over. There was no plan for Sachin to bowl that over but he said he was very confident of bowling it successfully. He conceded just three and India won. Sehwag got 58 off 51 balls and picked up three wickets in his ODI debut. Tendulkar later walked up to him and said, "You've got talent. Continue playing the same way and I'm sure you will make your name." That ability to motivate youngsters is a trait that makes Tendulkar special.


Sachin is a very quick good reader of the game.A good example was in the Centurion ODI of the 2006-07 series. India were batting first. Shaun Pollock bowled the first over and fired in a few short-of-length balls, against which Sehwag tried to play the back-foot punch. Tendulkar cautioned him immediately and said that shot was not a good option. A couple of overs later Sehwag went for it again and was caught behind, against Pollock.
Sehwag thought it was a joke from Sachin that he will avoid the cover drive in the next match at SCG.He realised Sachin was serious in Sydney when he was on about 180-odd and he had missed plenty of opportunities to play a cover drive. Sehwag was stunned.

Sachin keeps guiding his younger teammates through the innings..A good instance of this was in Multan in 2004 where Sehwag, in the first hundred of the triple century, had hit a few sixes. Sachin walked up to him after he reached the century and said he would slap him if he hit any further sixes in that game. Sachin said that if he tried hitting a six and got out the team would lose the control over the game. Sehwag did not hit a six till he reached 295, by which time, India was in a very strong position.

At the calcutta cricket stadium, Brad hogg took Sachin’s wicket. At the end of the match, Hogg gave that ball to Sachin for autograph. Sachin put his sign with one beautiful sentence.Do u know that sentence??"IT WILL NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN"..Till date, Hogg has not taken his wicket for the second time..Sachin looked to David Boon for advice when he was in Australia in 1991.He hadn't played many West Indian fast bowlers. He thought he should be picking up things from the top players in the world and wanted to get as much information as possible and become a better cricketer.