Curbing the rage. Or trying to.

  It is Friday, the 15th of August. You're inspired as an Indian. You're feeling patriotic, you're humming Vande Mataram all day after you heard it maybe on a radio or on your TV set in the morning. You're receiving and sending 'Happy independence day' whatsapps, you're liking and retweeting posts related to the same. It is a happy morning. As a Cricket fan, you look forward to the afternoon as well, as India take on England at the Oval in the 5th Test Match of the series. The Indian team hasn't done too well recently in the 3rd and the 4th test, you're hoping for a turnaround. You're hoping for energy, at least on 15th of August.

  Ishant Sharma is fit, they've also decided to drop Jadeja. Your eyes lit up. It's a good pitch but there's a bit of rain around, Dada says in the pre match show that they need to bat cautiously for the first session and then it'll be a batting paradise. India are 43-5 at Lunch. You sulk, you curse, but you knew this was going to happen all along, didn't you? In the Lunch break, they talk about what Kohli and Pujara did wrong. They've been talking about that throughout the series. There comes a daddy innings from Dhoni to get us to 148. You know it is going to be 3-1.

England seize the day, they're 62-0 at stumps. On day 2, they pile on a lot more. India continue to drop catches in slips. Some of them being very difficult to drop. This is another moment when you feel like banging your head to the wall. You feel like shooting the Telly with a gun. But, you curb your rage. Or at least try to. At stumps on day 2 they are 385-7, 237 ahead. On the third day, Joe Root gets to a century. Ishant gets him out on 110 on a no ball. You again curb your rage. Or at least try to. When England get all out for 486, 338 runs ahead of us, Root is left not out on 149. That is more than what the entire Indian team scored in the first innings. In the process, we have given away free runs, bowled too many loose deliveries, not had fielders in catching positions. The experts try to decrypt Dhoni's captaincy, but it just is on a completely different level. A level that even a cunning and a defensive captain like Alaistair Cook cannot attain in his dreams. You again curb your rage. Or at least you try to.

You know we are going to lose. You hope against all odds, that they will at least try to give a fight. You try to convince yourself that this is a very young team, and that most of them haven't played Test Cricket in England before. You also consider how an Indian team with established and reputed players lost 0-4 in 2011 there. You look at the positives, you look at Rahane, Ishant, Bhuvi, Aaron and say to yourself that here are some players who have improved. You also think that the players must have been tired as it has been a 5-test series, something which none of them had played before. You know deep down that most of these feel-good factors are rubbish, but still those are something that help you in trying to curb your rage if you haven't completely lost it yet.

But, in the end you don't want to see India gift wrapping the victory to England. It is something no one wants to see. You want a contest, you want to be able to say in the end that we tried. You want Vijay to regain what he had in Trent Bridge and Lord's. You want Gambhir to do well. You want to see Kohli, Pujara taking some steps to get rid off their weaknesses which England have figured out. At best, you don't want India to lose again on the third day of the Test match. Especially with a bit of rain in the air. Murali Vijay is outfoxed by some top bowling by James Anderson. Gambhir is struggling to see the ball. You think he is going to get out on every ball he's getting ready to face. You know they have to bat out of their skins to make a contest out of this. You think they know that too. Gambhir taps a ball to short mid wicket and runs to take a single that is not there. There's a direct hit, and he's out. You don't have to be an international Cricketer to understand the value of your wicket in a crunch situation like this. It is fine if you get an absolute beauty of a ball to get you out. But throwing your wicket away like this is just surrendering without a fight. You don't care anymore if they lose on the third day or the fourth. You stop hoping.

You cannot curb your rage at this point. You simply cannot. When they pick you to be on that plane to England, it is a privelege and also a responsibility that they bestow upon you. You represent India. That is close to 2 billion people. We don't expect you to win. No nation does that to its players. What you did at Lord's was out of this world. We felt lucky to have you representing us. But when you go down without a fight, not just once or twice, is when you start to be a disgrace to the country. I'm not blaming just Gambhir or the players for this, it is the entire Indian contingent. There are serious questions that need answers. For starters, questions like what are Joe Dawes, Trevor Penney and Duncan Fletcher have been doing. Or why was Rahul Dravid signed up as the batting consultant just for initial matches and not for the entire series? There are many more.

I hope this doesn't go away, like it has in the past. Maybe we'll win the ODIs and the T20 which is to follow and all this will be forgotten. I hope that doesn't happen. About time, we start preparing for that long tour of Australia which is later this year and then the World Cup. Heads will have to roll.

Will we see a fight this time?

It’s a pleasant adjustment this. Almost like getting back to your comfort zone. No more Yes Bank maximums, no more (well, fewer) darted in straight balls by spinners, no more “Dude, that match was fixed” speculations, no more Sidhuisms, no more Cheerleaders in the pre-match show studios; the list goes on. Having said that, I must confess that this has been the most astonishing and competitive IPL I’ve seen so far. Have never seen teams fighting the battle of net run rates such valiantly before. Never thought a talent like Manan Vohra could pull fast bowlers for sixes over long on, never anticipated the Akshar Patels and the Aditya Tares to become stars overnight. Ah, and Pravin Tambe wouldn’t have happened without the IPL too. 42-yrs of age, seasons spent playing competitive club Cricket in Mumbai, one of those who probably got overlooked because of the dirty politics that exists; gets picked by the Rajasthan Royals and the rest is history.

I’ve profoundly hated the IPL since its very beginning. This season probably made me realize how naïve I had been. Among all other things, I feel like I’ve found the beauty of the IPL, which is probably one of its kind. It unearths some of the most hungry-for-opportunity and overlooked talents this Cricket crazy country is blessed with. With talents like these in store, you dream and hope for India to be a world leader in Cricket. It is one of those feel good factors which almost makes you forget the dismal overseas record India has had in recent times. However, with the all-important England tour coming up, there is a considerable chance of the scabs getting peeled off.

In the little Cricket that I’ve seen, I’ve always loved it when India tours England. There’s a different aura that surrounds these tours. There’s always that odd remembrance to Lagaan and The Indian Freedom Struggle when these two countries clash. England also puts up challenging pitches to its visiting teams, just making the Cricket a little bit more exciting. And, the English media is probably the most biased one you’ll ever find. There’s always a little controversial statement or a tweet here and there by the ex or the current English cricketers ridiculing the opposition. You can never love the British, especially if you’re Indian. And as a fellow Indian who just wants the best players in the country to be selected to go on that tour, the selection that has been done appears a bit iffy. It is a matter of shame when we need as many as 18 members to be on that plane to England. It is also a matter of shame when players are picked just to be on the fringe. I will be surprised if Ishwar Pandey gets a game, same with Aaron. They’re neither in exceptional form, nor do they have ample experience to be picked on reputation. It is like one of those messed up *PS allotments, in which you are alloted a dream company but you aren’t going to get a meaningful project.

I was overjoyed when I saw Gambhir making it back to the Test squad. I strongly felt that he deserved it. He had a good Ranji season, scored runs in the IPL, and looked hungry to make a point. I also believed Zaheer’s exclusion was a must. I have enormous respect for the bowler, who has arguably been India’s best fast bowler ever. But, there are serious doubts as far as his fitness is concerned. With the growing age and injuries, the pace has dropped. So has the ability to bowl effective long spells. The ordinary fielding doesn’t help either. Pankaj Singh on the other hand, seems a reasonable inclusion. He has been among the top wicket takers in Ranji Trophy Cricket for 5 years in a row now. He certainly deserved a national call-up, particularly when we were touring England. This should be a great learning curve for him. Stuart Binny, someone who can bat and bowl decent medium pace, appears as a good selection too. He is probably a back-up for Jadeja or in case our bowling fails and we are forced to go in with another fast bowler without reducing the batting strength to a greater extent.

What I was surprised and disappointed with, was not seeing Umesh Yadav being in that squad. In fact, I’ve been upset about him not making India’s playing XI for quite some time now. He last played a Test match for India in November 2012 against the same opponents, England, in Ahmedabad. After which, he had a back injury. He made a good enough comeback during the ODIs in the Champions Trophy where the pace was there, the ball swung and he also picked wickets. He was in the Test squad in that home series against West Indies and also in the series vs SA and NZ in the respective countries; but didn’t get a single game to play. One could argue that there was no vacancy as Zaheer, Ishant and Shami were doing well. But, now that Zaheer is dropped and the kind of form Yadav is in, you would expect him to make the playing XI. But, the unthinkable happens and they drop him from the squad and that too for a tour to the most fast-bowler friendly nation in the world. He certainly deserved a place in the squad ahead of Varun Aaron or Ishwar Pandey. Aaron and Pandey both had an ordinary domestic season, and history has proven that selecting players for Test Cricket on the basis of IPL performances is a terribly wrong policy.

The other aspect of this selection to the England tour which appears as a gamble and I’m afraid not a measured one, is the inclusion of just the two spinners in the 18-man squad. We all know England doesn’t produce square turners and if you had to pick just the two spinners, you might as well have picked two of the best spinners this country has. Ashwin and Jadeja, in my opinion aren’t the best we have as far as bowling on non-responsive pitches in Test Cricket is concerned. Past records of the duo support my claim. I believe the inclusion of Amit Mishra was a necessity. He is in decent form, high on confidence after the inspired performances in the Asia Cup and the World T20. Apart from that, England historically haven’t been great players of quality leg spin bowling and the variations that Amit Mishra brings to the table are no ordinary ones. I have serious doubts whether Ashwin will find his feet on English turf, and a backup in the form of Amit Mishra just had to be there. Mishra, being a wrist spinner, should probably extract turn irrespective of how the pitch is. Ashwin has had a very ordinary record outside the subcontinent in Test Cricket, we can only hope that he turns the tables around this time.

The batting looks strong except the uncertainty at the top. I’m inclined to play Gambhir and Dhawan, but Vijay hasn’t been out of form. I guess, the two batsmen out of the three who’ll make runs in the practice matches will have to be the final openers. The middle order looks formidable with Pujara, Kohli and Rahane, all capable of scoring runs abroad. I am concerned with MS Dhoni’s Test form, especially when the ball does a bit in the air. Remember, Dhoni hasn’t scored a single Test century outside the subcontinent yet. Add to that the pressure of consistently failing as a captain overseas. This is one role where Dhoni’s ‘gambles’ haven’t worked. Dhoni has a serious point to prove as a captain here. I’ll be surprised if he continues as the Test captain if we lose this one. Various decisions made by him regarding field placing, team selection, bowler selections have gone wrong in the past when we’ve toured abroad. I believe MSD is much comfortable in operating his spinners which he does really well in the subcontinent and in limited overs Cricket. He needs to believe in his fast bowlers a little more, give them fielders at catching positions. Doesn’t matter if they get hit for a boundary or two. Here’s his one chance to prove himself.

This being a 5 match series is going to be a real test of character for the players. It’s going to create some absolute heroes and well, expose some lethal weaknesses. I want this to be a competitive one, unlike the one that happened in 2011. Indians have historically been poor visitors, if you leave out the Ganguly and the Kumble era. Every time we’ve been at the top of the ICC Test rankings, it has always been because we are clinical at home. It has always been a matter of shame for the fans, and unlike the odd ODI defeat here and there which gets forgotten, these defeats are hard to forget. All I’m asking for is a fight. We didn’t see one in 2011, I hope we do this time.

*PS = Internship. A BITS reference.

The problem with Bangladesh

    Another big game, another below par effort and another defeat. Hasn't this been the story of Bangladesh ever since they have started playing competitive Cricket? In their 14 years of being a nation good enough to play Test Cricket, all they have had to show is a handful of upsets and a few bits and pieces Cricketers. It is a very monotonous and a saddening story with Bangladesh's Cricket. Every time you see them showing sparks of good Cricket, you hope (only to end up in despair) that one day they will become a tough team to beat. It hasn't happened as of yet and I strongly believe it won't happen in the near future. It is not everyday that I use such blunt words, but when I do, I try and make sure there is logic and reason behind it.

   When Bangladesh had beaten Australia in that ODI at Cardiff on the back of that blistering hundred from Ashraful, I certainly believed that it wasn't a fluke. It wasn't anything like Australia dropped a lot of catches or had rested their key players. It was a typical full-strength Australian side and I thought Ashraful played a remarkable knock to see Bangladesh home. Now scoring a hundred against Australia in alien conditions that too while chasing a stiff target is no child's play. You would expect Ashraful to grow and emerge in confidence and become a player to watch out for. It never happened. Yes, he was always the best batsman Bangladesh had but he never delivered when it actually mattered in the matches later on. Call it pressure or whatever it was, but Ashraful never became the Cricketer we all thought he had it in him. And, the way his career ended was absolutely disgraceful for his fans, at least for me.

  Now the next crop of Cricketers like the Mortazas, the Tamim Iqbals, the Mahmadullahs and the Shakibs did catch peoples' eyes with sparkling performances from time to time. There was never a shortage of talent or ability in Bangladeshi Cricketers. It is their poor temperament which makes us believe that all their wins have been flukes. The 2007 World Cup upset by Bangladesh had a lasting impression among many a Cricket fan. Then when they also won against South Africa we all thought that it was finally time that Bangladesh had arrived on the big stage. But, still it wasn't to be. They even lost to Ireland in the Super 8s. They lost almost everything post the World Cup too. They haven't made a knockout stage of any of the ICC events since then. They did reach the finals of the Asia Cup in 2012, but gave it away in the end. Flawlessness was never a virtue of Bangladesh Cricket. The negatives have often been greater than the positives.

  Bangladesh had been awarded the status of being a Test playing nation back in 2000, when they played their first Test match against India. Till date, Bangladesh have won only two Test series that too against Zimbabwe and West Indies. They did manage to draw a series against New Zealand this year and one against West Indies early on, but that's about it. In 14 years of being a Test playing nation, Bangladesh have won only 4 test matches out of the 83 that have been played. It is a very dismal stat this. I strongly believe, Bangladesh don't deserve to be a test playing nation. There are far better talented and determined Cricketers in Zimbabwe, Ireland and Afghanistan. Cricketers who are willing to give their 100% every single time and emerge among the finest, which are lacking to a great extent in Bangladesh. Also, there is a general blend of undisciplined Cricketers when it comes to Bangladesh. Ashraful ended up in a fixing scandal; we all know about the lewd gestures made by Shakib in front of the camera recently. The Tamim Iqbals, the Mortazas and the Rubel Hossains with their periodic media chatter and controversies haven't been particularly good boys either. It is time they pulled up the socks and focused on their Cricket.

   You would think that I am going really hard at Bangladesh's Cricket and that it is too early to put them off. But, take the example of Sri Lanka. Even they started playing competitive Cricket at a later stage and were minnows for a while. SL started playing Test Cricket in 1981, however by the 1990s they were already a very tough team to beat. They had a much more settled and a dangerous unit comprising of the Ranatungas, the Jayasuriyas and the Murlis by then. They went on to win the 1996 World Cup. One-two years down the line they even started winning abroad! Bangladesh don't even consistently put up a good fight in their home conditions.

  In a Cricket crazy country like Bangladesh, there will never be a shortage of talent. It's just that they need a proper administration and people who would inculcate the values of hard work and discipline among the youngsters. When I say discipline here, I refer to the Cricketing discipline like sticking to the basics, bowling a consistent line and length, being prudent in the shot selection and so on. Dave Whatmore played a huge role in building up such a foundation in his tenure as the Bangla coach, things would have been a lot more worse if it wasn't for him. But, I believe there is a lot more work to be done at the grass roots level. The Bangladesh Premiere League needs to go, at least for now. With the amount of fixing scrutiny it has come under, things wouldn't get any better with its presence. Building up a clean and a competitive administration should be Bangladesh's priority numero uno.

  I also recommend more competitive Cricket and Test playing status for the likes of Ireland and Afghanistan. In the little Cricket that I have seen them play, I believe they have the talent and the ability that is required at the international level. Short tours of 1-2 Tests and maybe 3 ODIs to bigger Cricketing nations would do them a world of good. Such tours would be a great learning curve and good performances against big countries would motivate a lot of youngsters from these nations. All it takes is one opportunity, one little ray of spotlight.

The Time Machine.

Go back in time. To the days when you played Cricket ’07. What do you remember? Hitting Glenn McGrath for 6 sixes in an over? Getting the World Test XI all out for a score less than 10? The messed up names like Murgalideron (Muralitharan) or Dheneir (Dhoni)? Or the magnificent commentary of Mark Nicholas and Richie Benaud? You had a good time. We all did. It was a simpler world back then. Australia were still the undoubted champions. There was no DRS. The IPL was still an unborn baby. T20 had just become this exciting format everyone was eager to exploit. No one would have even thought of a 3-body governing system everyone is talking about.

What went wrong, you ask. Or did it? Is Cricket really that bad as everyone thinks it is getting. The revenues don’t reflect that, one bit. The fan following doesn’t say that either. Maybe the proposed changes in the administration do. But, you have to be too grumpy a fan to care about that. I want to believe I am not one of those, but reality might not depict that. I am excited for the match tomorrow as much as I was 6-7 years ago. But do I desperately want certain results now? I don’t think so. I mean, these days I don’t get upset about India losing. It’s not that I want them to lose. Being an Indian, you always want India to win. But, now when I watch an India match, the intensity of supporting India is almost equal to the intensity of supporting a team with more number of my favourite players pitted against a team with less number of those. It’s not an admirable trait this, not at all. There are too many voices in the head these days while watching Cricket. That’s why I love to watch Cricket with no one around. It wasn’t like that when I started watching the game. Now, I myself reach different levels arguing with different opinions from different perspectives of Cricket that I know of. I don’t get biased on things. For example I don’t love a Ravindra Jadeja. I don’t hate him either. Most Cricket fans would fall in one of these categories. You would have your own ‘tending towards an extremum’ opinion about him. I don’t. These days, I’m more like “The team which’ll play better Cricket will win, let’s hope it’s us”, earlier I used to be like “India has got to win this one”.

I feel like my relationship with Cricket now is more like a marriage into its 20^th anniversary. The honeymoon period is well over. The odd big fights are done and dusted. The kids have grown to a reasonable age. I like to believe I know a bit of Cricket, but yet every now and then it tends to surprise me with its eccentric nature which actually was the reason for me falling for it. I’ve made a few sacrifices and choices, Cricket’s made a few too. Yet, I don’t see another day living without it. When there’s no mainstream Cricket going on, I feel the need to pick up that goddamn phone and check Cricinfo for domestic Cricket scores; my way of texting “I miss you”. This is what Cricket has made me. It has made me poetic, it has made me a drama queen and a wee bit Grumpy as well.

And that’s why, once in a while I like to shut all that up and go back in time to that honeymoon period. That’s where EA Sports Cricket ’07 plays a pivotal part. The Kumbles are there, the Haydens, the Laras, the Pollocks, everyone is there. The old Cricketing rules are there. You know what, there the spinners flight the ball as well! All that grumpiness, the serious critic qualities, etc. take a back seat when I switch that game on. There’s a part of my childhood in that game. It’s something I cherish from the bottom of my heart. I wish life had such a fantasy world too. Where we could go back to our favorite times of our lives, just for an hour maybe, forget all our established principles and be that kid again, ready to take on the world.