An open letter to Sachin Tendulkar...

Dear Sachin,

I have been your most ardent fan since the time I started watching cricket. For proof, you can refer to my parents and most of my friends and even some of my articles in this blog. However, off late, particularly in the last few months, this stance of mine is slowly beginning to change; my fascination for your batting is starting to fade. This letter is to just express my anguish at what you've done in the past 10 months and maybe I am writing this only because I've liked you way too much.

Firstly, your Centurion century against SA in December last year. I fully agree that your 50th test ton was a very good innings under the circumstances. True show of grit and all other usual adjectives. But all said and done, don't you think you could have gone that extra mile to ensure that SA bat again instead of cantering home by an innings victory? You exposed the tail when you should have helped India get those 25 runs to go past SA. Why did you not do it? And my god! The way the media ignored the defeat and concentrated only on your hundred, just added fuel to the fire in me, although this was not your mistake.

The second instance was your "IPL showing". The tournament has become more of a yawn and I seriously don't understand why cricketers like you take part in such a farce! Your team had just won the World Cup and even before the entire country could get over that, you guys had consented to take part in an almost two month entertainment show across India. Above all this, the one thing which I hated the most came after this fiasco got over. Before the tour to the West Indies, you expressed that you wanted to spend time with your family and hence requested the board to not pick you. My question is, what the heck were you doing during the IPL? Why couldn't you stay away from that, be with your family and then go to the West Indies, get some good runs under your belt and prepare yourself for the grand and historic 2000th test match at Lord's? If senior players like you cannot show the way, then what will the youngsters do? Whom do they look up to? Remember that the IPL is just a domestic T20 event! I hope you know this fact.

Finally, it's regarding the much awaited England tour. You just thought one practice match would be enough to get you into test match mode at the world's greatest cricket stage against an all-round, brilliant home side? Well, the answer was there to be seen in front of everyone's eyes at the Mecca of Cricket. And once again all the media hype for your much anticipated 100th international hundred was absolute rubbish. The final nail in the coffin was your second innings display. What prevented you from being positive, only God knows! I do not want "fever" as a school-boy-like excuse. I hope you vividly remember one Mr. Anil Kumble bowling with a bandage around his head after being injured and many other similar instances in your more than two decade career.

On one final note, I would like to know if you can ever come out of your comfort zone. Dravid was pulled out from number 3 and made to open when Gambhir got injured. Inspite of not liking the role, Dravid has simply been stunning so far. Laxman has been asked to bat at number 3 from his usual number 5. Dhoni, in the first test after Zaheer left with an injury, started to roll his arms over to fill in some overs and Dravid kept wickets. And I am sure Ganguly, if playing now, would have done the same. However, you, in my opinion a very clever bowler and the greatest one-day opener of all time, did not take up either of those responsibilities.

I demand answers for all these and fast. You are one of the world's greatest cricketers ever and I would like you to go out on a high. A sincere request from my side would be for you to not get distracted by crappy numbers, landmarks and milestones and shoulder more responsibility to take your team forward.

With Love (I hope always),

Vijesh Jayaraman

2011 ICC CWC Champions - India

India have captured the World Cup after a span of 28 years. As Kapil Dev had wished, he's not alone anymore as MS Dhoni joins him as the second Indian captain to win the coveted trophy. Here's a tribute to a squad that's made the dream of over a billion people come true (most helped but a few din't).

Virender Sehwag - The swashbuckling opener set the pace for the team with a brilliant 175 against Bangladesh in the Cup opener. The innings helped the Indians bury the ghosts of the 2007 WC debacle. His outrageous assault on Umar Gul in the semi-finals would serve as the perfect lesson on "how to dent the psyche of a bowler who's at the peak of his form" for years to come.

Sachin Tendulkar - 32,000+ international runs, 99 international hundreds and 2000+ runs in 6 world cup campaigns later, the great man is finally there! A world cup winning medal for Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar aka God of Cricket after persevering for close to 22 years. Can there be a better role model than the Mumbai magician? I cannot see anyone in my lifetime.

Gautam Gambhir - The man who's always been shy and been behind his more glamorous collegues. 39, 51, 10, 28, 69, 22, 50, 27 - definitely not from a person who's supposedly "out of form"! Shuts up all those "critics", in typical Tendulkar-style, with the bat, by scoring a world cup winning 97 in the finals against Sri Lanka.

Virat Kohli - Seems to have come of age in an unbelievably short span of time. His composure and calm head at No.4 at such a young age has been vital from India's point of view. His invaluable knock of 35 and his 83-run association with Gambhir in the finals re-built the innings after the Lankans thought they had one firm hand on the title by taking out Sehwag and Sachin

cheaply.

Yuvraj Singh - The unanimous choice for "Player of the tournament". One year ago, he was speculating on quitting the game. But now has become a potent all-rounder. It's come a full circle for Yuvraj. The way he applied the finishing touches during chases against Ireland, the Netherlands, Australia and Sri Lanka had a heavy resemblance to one of the best ODI finishers in the world - Michael Bevan.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni (C & WK) - The man with the midas touch. Whatever he'd touched turned to gold during the world cup. Some of his selection and tactical decisions came under a lot of debate. His form also wasn't great with just 150 runs in 8 innings. But nothing of this will be relevant when only flashes of his 91* and THAT majestic six to seal the deal, will be played for generations come! Cometh the hour, cometh the man.

Suresh Raina - The solution to India's problems when it came to using the batting power play effectively. His cameos against Australia and Pakistan augurs well for a good future for this talented south-paw.

Harbhajan Singh - Bhajji was not as effective as he was expected to be, given the slow and turning nature of the tracks in the sub-continent. But yet, the way he choked the batsmen and checked the flow of runs at crucial periods by bowling a tight line warrants a lot of appreciation. His dismissal of Umar Akmal in the semis with a faster, flat delivery was a gem which turned the game and tournament on it's head.

Zaheer Khan - The unsung hero of the team. Dhoni's go-to-man to avert a crisis or during one. 21 wickets at under 19 with an economy of 4.8 runs per over shows the kind of quality he brings to the bowling department. The yorker to get rid of Andrew Strauss when he was on 158 was THE game changer. In 2003, he was very good. In 2011, he was lethal and deadly.

Santhakumaran Sreesanth - An absolute excess baggage. India could have well just had a 14-member WC squad. Just can't win a WC medal by simply being a lucky charm! Come on!!

Munaf Patel - The steady line and length he bowled at all times was a great asset. He has developed variations like the cutters and the slower ball (much slower in his case considering he bowls 130 kph max). Would do a world of good to him and the team if he adds some more pace to his bowling. The ball which took Abdul Razzaq's off stump in the S/F was a peach.

Ravichandran Ashwin - The player who was desperately unlucky to miss out on being in the semis and finals. The decision not to play him could have easily back-fired on Dhoni and India. Fortunately, it did not. He is a wicket-taker, controller, fierce competitor and a great asset to the Indian fielding. His deeds, many of which are yet to come, was aptly put in perspective when Sunil Gavaskar made the following statement: "He's going to win the world cup for India".

Yusuf Pathan - Had a pretty ordinary run considering that he was in great form coming into the tournament. Took India home in the game against Ireland but did not do much otherwise. Gave way to Raina in the latter half of the event.

Piyush Chawla - Had a shocker of a tournament. Another adamant decision by Dhoni to play him in the initial matches. Came an absolute cropper.

Ashish Nehra - Nehra was instrumental in restricting Pakistan while they were chasing 260 for a place in the final. He injured his finger while fielding in the same game and hence was not part of the grand finale. I don't seem him play a further role in the team in the coming days.

The Crowd - Not to forget the way in which the audiences, including big names from various sectors, supported not just the home teams but whenever there was good cricket on display in the middle. Really kept India going in the knock-out stages by applying the typical "sub-continental crowd pressure" on the opposition. Hats-off :)!

PS: The 50-over game and the world cup are here to stay for a long, long period of time. For the so-called critics, I have just two words - "SHUT UP"!

A tale of two extraordinary legends

The ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 has been a tremendous success inspite of complaints about it's duration and the participation of minnows. With just one match left to be played - the final at Mumbai - it has thrown up unexpected scenarios, the least likely of heroes and the most unbelievable of surprises. However, it has come up with two finalists - India and Sri Lanka - who are well worthy of the tag. Also, if I can take the liberty, I'll proceed to say that they were expected to be there for the summit clash, given the conditions in the sub-continent.

Kumar Sangakkara, with his scholarly and calm presence, has marshalled his troops well and extracted maximum out of the varied resources available at his disposal. He has led from the front, batting like a dream with so much touch and class, which is very much required from the captain of a team in such a big event. The fact that they played most of their matches at a single venue should not undermine the way they have gelled together as a unit and come up trumps to reach the final. With Tillakaratne Dilshan and Upul Tharanga going hammer and tongs against every opposition they've faced and a middle order boasting of the likes of class acts like Mahela Jayawardena, Thilan Samaraweera and Angelo Matthews, the batting order looks an awesome package. But what sets the Lankan Lions apart is their highly varied bowling attack which forms a perfect ally to their explosive batting. Ajantha Mendis has been steady, Lasith Malinga has been deadly and Muttiah Muralidharan has shown why he is the boss when it comes to spin bowling. Surely, the team looks formidable and hence their journey to a second consecutive world cup final (which in itself is a commendable achievement) and their third overall, comes not much as a surprise. So, can they be stopped on their tracks in pursuit of their second ever world cup silverware? The answer is yes, because they have an equally able opponent (if not more) waiting for them on the 2nd of April, 2011 at the Wankhede Stadium.

India, the co-hosts and tournament favourites to begin with, did not have an easy passage through the tournament. They scrapped quite a few games in the league stage and battled it out in the cauldron in the knockouts. The bowling lacked skill and penetration (Zaheer Khan being an exception) - they could not defend targets of 338 and 296 against England and South Africa respectively. But the addition of Ravichandran Ashwin has brought in some sort of balance to the attack and has given the skipper, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, some variety to work with. But, during the crunch times, the bowlers seem to be finally bringing their acts together, especially in the matches against Australia (in the Q/F) and Pakistan (in the S/F). The batting has not been much of problem, barring a couple of collapses in the initial games. It shouldn't be because it consists of players of the calibre of Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina. Yuvraj's bowling has been a revelation and a big boost to the team. However, the lack of form of Dhoni and Kohli (except for the latter's 100* against Bangladesh in the Cup opener) is a big cause for concern. Dhoni has just been a shadow of what he was when he first burst into the international scene more than half a decade ago. He desperately needs runs, not just for his own confidence but also to give ample support and stability to the team's middle order. But his "cool" head and composure under testing times, has rubbed off on his team mates, who are willing to abide by his words as the laws of the land and are ready to execute whatever plans he and the coach, Gary Kirsten, come up with. It helps a captain when he has such right amount of control over his players. Raina has been the solution to India's wobbles in the batting powerplays while Sehwag, Tendulkar and Gambhir have been their usual selves at the top of the order.

The final, to be witnessed by the who's who of both the countries, will be focussing upon two greats from either side. Muralidharan and Tendulkar would be the cynosure of all eyes watching this great game of cricket. The former has already announced that this will be his last ODI while there has been speculation that this could be the latter's last ever shot at one-day cricket's ultimate prize. They have been masters in their respective arts and have played a vital role in putting their teams on the global cricketing map. The pressure might be more on the Mumbaikar, the local "boy", because the world cup is one trophy missing in his CV whereas Murali has already been part of a world cup winning team under Arjuna Ranatunga in 1996. But such pressures for Sachin, who has been carrying the burdens and expectations of over a billion people for well over two decades, should not be much of a problem to handle. The period when these two titans clash on Saturday is sure to set heartbeats racing and can produce heart-stopping moments as well. Both have also been important contributors in bringing their teams into the finals of the 2011 edition. Unfortunately, only one of them will be going home all smiles while the other's dream will be shattered to pieces after the end of the tournament.

Fortunes could fluctuate, momentums could swing, masterpieces could be crafted, skill levels could come under intense scrutiny and temperaments could be tested upon. The World Cup is waiting for the team which would ultimately conquer all these apart from bringing out their best in a pressure cooker situation and holding their nerves. It would be one hell of a contest, at the end of which cricket will turn out to be the ultimate winner!

PS: Hopefully, the Mumbai crowd behaves more responsibly in case the home team falters at the last hurdle. It ought to have learnt from bitter past experiences of poor behaviour. It should show up as an audience worthy of watching an epic staged at the centre.

World Cup fever? Not quite so, yet...

It's been more than a fortnight since the start of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, but somehow, deep down, my heart makes me think that that "feeling" is yet to come and sink in. Thinking of reasons for such thought, I had quite a few to substantiate this current state of mine.

• Firstly, it's regarding the entire scheduling of the event. Close to 50 days for a such an event would be too much of a burden on the audience, leave alone the players. And with the IPL to follow barely a week after the finals, it makes it all the more worse.
• The intervals between each game a team plays makes it too long a wait. A couple of examples would be India playing just three matches in the first three weeks of the competition! Add the fact that Australia last played on Feb 25th and are yet to play their 3rd match, shows how bad the planning has been.
• Thirdly, it could be because of the participation of too many countries - 14 in all! This debate, regarding how many teams should be in a world cup, has been going on for a while. My personal choice would be 10, the split being the top 8 full members and a qualifier tournament for the other two and the associate members, with the finalists of the competition gaining the "privilege" to play in the main event.

I guess a majority of the people might concur with me on these points which I have made, atleast with the first two. But Ireland might have just shaken me up on the third with their stunning victory over favourites England. Taking your team from 5 down for almost nothing to a victory target of around 330 is an awesome performance and I take my hat off to Kevin O'Brien! The only other innings of such scale that I can recollect from the last 2-3 years, is Yousuf Pathan's blitzkrieg against New Zealand late last year.

Apart from this encounter, the England - India "tie" at Bangalore was the only other match which did not shape up according to "the script". It was an absolutely rubbish bowling performance from both the sides and surely neither deserved to win. The game has given a very good advert, particularly for this world cup and also for ODI cricket overall. Andrew Strauss and Sachin Tendulkar have taught us lessons on how classic 50-over innings are constructed. An absolute masterclass from both of them.

As I write, there are still almost three weeks left for the league stage to end to determine the quarter-finalists. But I am desperate to see more closely fought matches like the ones I have mentioned above and less of matches which get over in less than 35-40 overs (both batting innings combined that is). Moreover, it would be wonderful to watch games played on sporting tracks. I have had enough of seeing 300-350 being scored over the past week and a half. Another few of those could just make it a fourth reason that could be added to the aforementioned ones regarding the world cup fever not gripping me. High time we had matches with nominal totals being scored and then overhauled/defended. Will my wish come true? Well, the answer lies in the 2 weeks ahead starting with cracking matches in the upcoming weekend. Fingers-crossed!

PS: I know it's a little too early for predictions, but the following would be my list of the teams which could make it to the knock-stages (in no particular order):

From Group A,

Australia

Sri Lanka

Pakistan

New Zealand

From Group B (For me, this is the group of death),

South Africa

India

West Indies

England (But Ireland might just tip their giant neighbours at the very end)

An uncertain future...

The last two months of 2010 were a real treat for cricket fans the world over. England took on Australia in the Ashes down under while test rank #1 India were up against a formidable #2 ranked South Africa in their own backyard. The two series lived upto the top billing status given to them. With Aussie cricket on the decline, England thrashed their arch rivals 3-1, with innings victories at Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney, to not only retain the urn, but also to win their first series on Australian soil after 24 years. While England celebrated their wonderful win, the Aussies were left to do some serious introspection and also to decide on the future of their national game and their national captain, Ricky Ponting, who had an abysmal series where he averaged less than 20.

Though the series down under was mostly one-sided, cricket fans, fortunately, witnessed a hard fought battle between two high profile teams in the rainbow nation. A lot was at stake for both India and South Africa - India needed to prove to the world that they are worth the No.1 status and South Africa to show that they were equal to being No.1 if not more. And that's exactly what happened in the entire tournament, with rapid momentum swings in every session of every test match. Dale Steyn came up with the best fast bowling performance in the last two decades, which helped to put his team into commanding positions. If it was Steyn with the ball, then it was their go to man, Kallis, to do the job with the bat, which he did with aplomb, scoring close to 500 runs at an incredible 167! India, on the other hand, after the drubbing at Centurion (which will be more remembered for Kallis' first double hundred 15 years after his test debut and Tendulkar's 50th test ton) came back very strongly in Durban to show they are no longer push overs on foreign soil, thanks to a very special 96 by VVS Laxman. And rightly, the last test ended in a draw for the teams to share the series honours 1-1.

Although it was fascinating to watch these two hardly fought bilateral series, I was left to wonder whether a contest between any other nations would have been as interesting for the viewers. Sri Lanka have a very good set of players, but it's high time they came out of their bracket as "lions only at home", just like India were labelled in the 90's. Pakistan is as unpredictable as always and with no home matches in the near future and the spot fixing allegations, it is very tough to expect them to be consistent world beaters in the next couple of years. New Zealand and West Indies are just a shadow of their past (even that is an overstatement). 2010 witnessed cricket hitting rock bottom with West Indian players refusing to sign their board's central contracts and instead wanting to play only in cash rich T20 leagues. That definitely doesn't augur well for a game which already is only played by 8 countries around the globe. Cricket administrators need to take a serious look at taking the game to new avenues. The rise of Afghanistan is a very good development among all these ruins, but it shouldn't turn out to be a form of consolation for all the losses.

With the most important problem being the lack of interested players from various countries, T20 sure is an easier way of marketing and taking the game forward. But that alone is not sufficient. If, indeed, that is the perception, then there is no way to prevent this great game from dying a slow death, especially after a decade which saw shift in powers and more closely matched teams than at any other time in the last quarter of a century.

Don't play if you cannot and/or if you are not interested!

Seeing the Pakistan v/s Bangladesh "dead rubber" yesterday, one could easily catch a glimpse as to why ODI cricket is dying a slow death. If this is how it's going to be played, then no one can save it from extinction. What on earth were the Bangladeshi batsmen, with the exception of Tamim Iqbal, trying to do?? Clearly, they wanted to improve their averages and show off their defensive skills. But, wait! Weren't they chasing 386 in 50 overs?! These players should be taken to task for such "spirit-killing" acts. This is also an offence against the game, just like any other - match-fixing, drugs, etc. What Bangladesh was trying to do was essentially against the ethos of the game. It would have been much better if they had managed a 240 all out in 40 overs than a 250/5 in 50 overs. Junaid Siddique, justifiably, fell short of the three figure mark. If he did manage one, the meaning of reaching that milestone would have taken a severe beating.

This certainly calls for a few changes in the way the 50-over format is to be played. I'd suggest a two-tier system with the current ICC rankings table being split into two groups. The bottom placed teams can play with each other and if they do well, they can qualify to play with the elite teams. Similarly, if one of the elite teams doesn't do well, they can be relegated. This will give more for the players to play for, apart from the cash and awards. Also, the splitting of the format into two halves of 20 overs each is senseless. As Ian Chappel put it, it is a filthy way of playing more 20-20 cricket.

Another point of concern has been the way of playing the middle overs in a 50-over game. Captains have been pleased to have players knocking the ball around and scoring at 5 RPO in these overs. That obviously makes it boring for the spectators. Here, I'd have a rule which goes like, in a block of 10 overs within overs 16 and 40, these many runs have to be made or these many number of boundaries have to be hit. This will force the players to look for more scoring opportunities and tweak their techniques in getting a 4 or 6 off a good ball. A penalty in the form of reduction of runs or making the team play with a batsman less can be brought into practice. It would make for interesting viewing as the batsmen will need to preserve their wickets while going for runs.

Agreed that all this is easier said than done. But the ICC can atleast consider some changes on these lines; definitely not the split-innings theory. I strongly second Ian Chappel and, for once, I oppose Sachin Tendulkar.

And that is why they are The World Champions...

Words will do no justice in describing what the Australians did yesterday in the semi-final match against Pakistan. The unbelievable amount of self-belief which these set of cricketers possess was brought to the fore in a thriller against the defending champions. The Aussies were dead and buried and Pakistan just had just one nail to pin down. But then came the brilliance and professionalism of the Australian team. They have always played this as a team game and that's exactly why they have different men putting their hand up for different situations. If it was Warner and Watson in the league stages, then it was White, David Hussey, Steven Smith and Michael Hussey for the Super 8's and the knock out stages. The last gentleman in the list, whom Clarke described as a "freak", continues to pull rabbits out of the hat for his team. He's just taken it upon himself to be the next Michael Bevan for his team. But this astonishing player is doing the job much more effectively and efficiently. Australia, and only Australia, can churn out such legitimate match-winners.

For once in the tournament the Aussie bowlers had let their team down. But even then, their fielding and batting more than made up for it. To quote an example, David Warner, as usual, was brilliant in the out-field. This is what true champion teams are made of. An off day in one department will not have a bearing on the others. And when it came to batting, with the exceptions of Warner and to a certain extent, Clarke, all the others chipped in with useful cameos. It was a chase which had two options - either have one person anchoring the innings while the others went bersek or have everyone start firing right from ball number 1. The Aussies seemed to have shifted to the latter approach once they lost their openers pretty early. They were definitely lagging behind for 38 overs of the game, until the Australian cricketing mindset of "a match is not over till the last ball is bowled or the last run is scored" and Hussey changed all that. His belligerent 60* off 24 balls which included 6 massive 6's would surely be rated as the best T-20 innings for a long time to come, given the situation, pressure and the high stakes of a final berth in a World Cup.

The other teams would be doing themselves a world of good by taking a cue from the Aussie playing attitude. Agreed they have temperamental players like Watson and Johnson, but I guess the rest just overshadow all these little niggles (in terms of behaviour) in the Australian camp. Also, people point to cases like "Sydney Gate". Yes, it was not expected from a World Champion side. But other countries too have had similar incidents to be ashamed of. Remember our very own Mr. Gavaskar, who walked off the field, taking the non-striker with him, for wrongly being given out LBW! But still we love (and I love) India. It's high time cricket lovers ignore these kind of blemishes and start appreciating such scintillating and wonderful team performances. Afterall, this is a team game that we love and are talking about!

I, now, proudly call myself a genuine Australian cricket fan from 12.43 AM, 15th May, 2010.

P.S: I will continue to support India.