20 years ago to this day a shy and quiet boy took the cricketing world by storm, not because of the innings he played but because people all around were amazed at the calmness the kid showed in handling so much attention. His polite demeanour and humble nature immidiately made him one of the most likeable characters ever to grace the game.
From that day on, Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has not only been one of the most revered but also the most analyzed cricketer in the history of the game. Always under the keen eye of the camera the way he has conducted himself on and off the field is an example that kids in today's world need to learn and abide by. As Harsha Bhogle testifies, he has a work ethic that would put the younger aspiring sportsmen to shame. He has played one brilliant inning after another and never ceases to amaze those watching him.
He holds almost every record in modern day cricket but the only accolade missing from his kitty is a World Cup. The next year and a half is the most critical phase for Indian cricket and Sachin still leads the pack and would be hoping to help conquer the final frontier. Every era produces great cricketers who are compared with each other based on style, technique and run scoring ability. But Sachin has been the only man who has been a constant in these comparisons. From Border to Grenidge to Crowe to Waugh to Yuvraj, 100s have taken the field but one man still stands tall over them all.
Through all this attention by the media, by his peers and millions of adoring fans, the man to this day remains as humble as when he started. His passion for the game has only grown each day and so has the man. Let us take this opportunity to hail the gentle giant and hope he gives us many more memories to cherish through the rest of our lives. Hail the man, hail the hero, Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.
Friday, November 13, 2009
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
My Favourite websites
Hot Deals
http://slickdeals.net
Cricket
www.cricinfo.com
Live IPL
www.iplive.co.cc/ipl2.html
http://slickdeals.net
Cricket
www.cricinfo.com
Live IPL
www.iplive.co.cc/ipl2.html
Thursday, February 21, 2008
A Special Night with A-Rod and Haas
What a night! The number 1 seed for the tournament pushed to the limit. The number 3 seed fighting for survival. Both faltering on occasions and then lifting their games to show why they are where they are in world tennis. They were games that deserved a semi-final status, but were actually just the beginning of what promises to be a roller-coaster of a tournament. I'm referring to the SAP Open Tennis tournament in San Jose and the seeds are none other than Andy Roddick and Tommy Hass respectively. My first tennis event live at court-side, ever, and what a memorable one it was. Thanks to a colleague who arranged for the tickets, I managed to get a glimpse at the raw power, amazing agility, superlative control, giant serves and some heart-throbbing moments from these amazing tennis stars.
We got the evening session tickets for the lower baseline seats, the ones right behind the players. A perfect spot if you really want to appreciate every movement, every angle and every shot that these guys manufacture at will. First up was A-Rod facing a young Aussie, Chris Guccione, ranked somewhere in the 80's. The first set began, as expected, with both players holding their serves for the first 4 games, A-Rod serving as powerfully as ever and Guccione showing some deft touches at the net. A-Rod broke through in the 5 game of the match, with Guccione making a series of unforced errors at the baseline. From there on wrapping up the first set was a mere formality for the American number 1 and the SAP Open defending champion. The second set began exactly as the first, with both players holding their serves, only on this occasion there were no breaks on offer from either players. The set showcased some relentless serve and volleys from the young Aussie and some brilliant down the line passes from A-Rod. The Aussie was determined to take the fight to A-Rod and, despite conceding a mini-break in the tie-breaker, managed to squeeze out the set 7-3. A-Rod was on top of his game though and kept his consistency going and took the final set to the tie-breaker as well. However this time he made sure he did not make the same mistakes as the previous set and sealed the game 7-5. Despite the defeat, Guccione seems to have a bright future ahead of him, if only he can improve his baseline game.
The most amazing part of the night was yet to come. After winning the game A-Rod signed a few balls and threw them into the crowed, and lucky enough one of them landed right into the hands on my colleague after taking a slight deflection off my hand. We gave the autographed ball to a 65 year old lady sitting right in front of us, who seemed to be completely smitten by A-Rod. The expression on her face said it all, we had made her day. Next up was the German, number 3 seed, Tommy Haas facing off with a little known American Robert Kendrick. The pace of this match was even faster than the earlier one. With both players preferring to stay back, we saw some exciting rallies. It was a see-saw battle between 2 immensely talented players. The first set went to Haas 6-3. The next one saw Kendrick get into top gear, serving with venom and hitting like there was no tomorrow. He won it 6 games to 4. The final set started with a break for Haas and from there on it was only a question of when and not if Haas would seal victory. He eventually won it 6-2.
The first game had started at 7pm and by the time the evening session got over it was 11.15pm. We finally rushed out of the court to catch the last light rail back to work, since we had left our cars there. I ended up reaching home at about 12.30am. But it was one of the most memorable experiences I've ever had. Of course I'm not done yet, as I've arranged for another session on Saturday night and this time it is indeed the semi-finals of the tournament. If we get a show anywhere close to what it was last night, we're in for a treat. May the best man win.
We got the evening session tickets for the lower baseline seats, the ones right behind the players. A perfect spot if you really want to appreciate every movement, every angle and every shot that these guys manufacture at will. First up was A-Rod facing a young Aussie, Chris Guccione, ranked somewhere in the 80's. The first set began, as expected, with both players holding their serves for the first 4 games, A-Rod serving as powerfully as ever and Guccione showing some deft touches at the net. A-Rod broke through in the 5 game of the match, with Guccione making a series of unforced errors at the baseline. From there on wrapping up the first set was a mere formality for the American number 1 and the SAP Open defending champion. The second set began exactly as the first, with both players holding their serves, only on this occasion there were no breaks on offer from either players. The set showcased some relentless serve and volleys from the young Aussie and some brilliant down the line passes from A-Rod. The Aussie was determined to take the fight to A-Rod and, despite conceding a mini-break in the tie-breaker, managed to squeeze out the set 7-3. A-Rod was on top of his game though and kept his consistency going and took the final set to the tie-breaker as well. However this time he made sure he did not make the same mistakes as the previous set and sealed the game 7-5. Despite the defeat, Guccione seems to have a bright future ahead of him, if only he can improve his baseline game.
The most amazing part of the night was yet to come. After winning the game A-Rod signed a few balls and threw them into the crowed, and lucky enough one of them landed right into the hands on my colleague after taking a slight deflection off my hand. We gave the autographed ball to a 65 year old lady sitting right in front of us, who seemed to be completely smitten by A-Rod. The expression on her face said it all, we had made her day. Next up was the German, number 3 seed, Tommy Haas facing off with a little known American Robert Kendrick. The pace of this match was even faster than the earlier one. With both players preferring to stay back, we saw some exciting rallies. It was a see-saw battle between 2 immensely talented players. The first set went to Haas 6-3. The next one saw Kendrick get into top gear, serving with venom and hitting like there was no tomorrow. He won it 6 games to 4. The final set started with a break for Haas and from there on it was only a question of when and not if Haas would seal victory. He eventually won it 6-2.
The first game had started at 7pm and by the time the evening session got over it was 11.15pm. We finally rushed out of the court to catch the last light rail back to work, since we had left our cars there. I ended up reaching home at about 12.30am. But it was one of the most memorable experiences I've ever had. Of course I'm not done yet, as I've arranged for another session on Saturday night and this time it is indeed the semi-finals of the tournament. If we get a show anywhere close to what it was last night, we're in for a treat. May the best man win.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Resolutions and Friends: 2008
Too late in writing this but I'm just penning down what I decided at the beginning of 2008. At the dawn of each new year people ask me " So , what's your resolution for the new year", and every time I come up with with something which I think would not matter if I was not able to achieve. Just to satisfy my ego I would put in an initial effort at following it, but would eventually give up within a month or two. I always wondered what was so special about resolutions but never really felt connected with any resolution I'd ever taken in my life. So here comes another one, and this time I sincerely hope I will be able to stick to it.
My resolution for 2008 is to catch up with friends, family members and even those who I once felt were my enemies. Making friends is not hard and nor is ending your friendship, but the hardest job is to maintain a cordial relationship in the face of all situations. I've made a lot of friends and ended a lot of relationships, and in each case I have done that just to satisfy my ego. Maintaining relationships is about understanding the other person's point of view. Whether its agreeable to you or not, one has to be a good listener. Difference in opinions are a part and parcel of every relationship and one mustn't stretch them to a point where even looking at each other gets irritable.
There is always a commonality between you and your friends, no matter how different your opinions, at times, may be. Thats the reason you were friends with him or her in the first place. I always categorize people into friends and acquaintances. Not every person you know at school or work or in your neighborhood is a friend. A person you study with at school need not be a friend nor is a person from work who visits you at home occasionally. There is a fine distinction between being a friend and an acquaintance. As the saying goes " A friend need not be the one who comes and bails you out for something wrong you did, but the one who is with you in doing it, surely is."
Anyways, getting back to my main point about mending broken relationships. I've had a few relationships that ended, at least in the past 2-3 years, be it colleagues at school or roommates or old friends. My aim for this year is to re-establish contact with those friends and apologize or forgive each one for the differences that came up in the past. Life is too short to let differences linger. Lets hope I go through with it this time. This is the one time I really want to fulfill my resolution and prove to myself that my ego is not the only thing I can fulfill.
My resolution for 2008 is to catch up with friends, family members and even those who I once felt were my enemies. Making friends is not hard and nor is ending your friendship, but the hardest job is to maintain a cordial relationship in the face of all situations. I've made a lot of friends and ended a lot of relationships, and in each case I have done that just to satisfy my ego. Maintaining relationships is about understanding the other person's point of view. Whether its agreeable to you or not, one has to be a good listener. Difference in opinions are a part and parcel of every relationship and one mustn't stretch them to a point where even looking at each other gets irritable.
There is always a commonality between you and your friends, no matter how different your opinions, at times, may be. Thats the reason you were friends with him or her in the first place. I always categorize people into friends and acquaintances. Not every person you know at school or work or in your neighborhood is a friend. A person you study with at school need not be a friend nor is a person from work who visits you at home occasionally. There is a fine distinction between being a friend and an acquaintance. As the saying goes " A friend need not be the one who comes and bails you out for something wrong you did, but the one who is with you in doing it, surely is."
Anyways, getting back to my main point about mending broken relationships. I've had a few relationships that ended, at least in the past 2-3 years, be it colleagues at school or roommates or old friends. My aim for this year is to re-establish contact with those friends and apologize or forgive each one for the differences that came up in the past. Life is too short to let differences linger. Lets hope I go through with it this time. This is the one time I really want to fulfill my resolution and prove to myself that my ego is not the only thing I can fulfill.
Monday, October 1, 2007
The Chak De Effect
The Indian film industry has more often than not been found wanting for movies with good script, good performances and a surreal level of motivation and inspiration blended into the same flick. Shimit Amin's Chak De India does that and in a brilliant and compelling manner. (A stark difference from his earlier film Ab Tak Chappan) Jaideep Sahani's script is close to flawless and never strays from the main theme of the movie, sports. With excellent screenplay, beautiful cinematography and slick editing the movie scores great in all respects. Even the music score blends in nicely with the theme of the movie, so much so that the title track has almost become the country's new sports anthem. The only sad part is that a movie like "Eklavya" was prefered as the Indian entry for the Oscar's over Chak De India.
That brings me to my main purpose or writing this piece, " The Chak De Effect". You could call it inspiration or just plain coincidence, but what Indian sports has experienced since the release of Chak De India is no less than a miracle. Rarely, if ever, has one seen Indian sports or sportsmen/women excel the way they have in a span of 2 months since the film released. It all started with Team India winning a cricket test series in England after 21 years. May be, just may be, it was the film that provided them the inspiration to cross that final hurdle and make the country proud again. The effect moved on from cricket to football, where no one gave the Indian team a hint of a chance to win the Nehru cup. For a team that has never won the cup the achievement was all the more special.
The effect then came back to the sport the movie was actually based upon, hockey, but this time the heroes were the male counterparts. The Indian National men's hockey team lifted the Asia Cup by beating South Korea 7-2 to finally give hockey lovers in "the land of Dhyanchand" something to cheer about after a troubled couple of years. Although the women's hockey team did not achieve the same feat in their version of the tournament, they did manage a respectable semi-final spot. The victory in hockey was followed by the Indian cricket team winning the T20 world championship in South Africa which was significant not only because of its huge popularity but because we beat a team in the finals with whom we have always been at "war". With Vishwanathan Anand becoming the world's undisputed chess champion again this year after his heroics of 2000, the effect may have touched another sport. (though it is unlikely in this case)
These sportsmen, sportswomen, coaches or teams have never lacked the ability or the skills but at times have lacked the motivation, zest and the never-say-die spirit that have kept them from achieving what they truly deserve. We can only hope that Indian sports continues to take courage from such inspired performances and guns for greater glory in the days to come. All in all what the Chak De Effect teachs is to put one's differences away and inspire individuals to unite for a common cause, be it sports or any other walk of life.
That brings me to my main purpose or writing this piece, " The Chak De Effect". You could call it inspiration or just plain coincidence, but what Indian sports has experienced since the release of Chak De India is no less than a miracle. Rarely, if ever, has one seen Indian sports or sportsmen/women excel the way they have in a span of 2 months since the film released. It all started with Team India winning a cricket test series in England after 21 years. May be, just may be, it was the film that provided them the inspiration to cross that final hurdle and make the country proud again. The effect moved on from cricket to football, where no one gave the Indian team a hint of a chance to win the Nehru cup. For a team that has never won the cup the achievement was all the more special.
The effect then came back to the sport the movie was actually based upon, hockey, but this time the heroes were the male counterparts. The Indian National men's hockey team lifted the Asia Cup by beating South Korea 7-2 to finally give hockey lovers in "the land of Dhyanchand" something to cheer about after a troubled couple of years. Although the women's hockey team did not achieve the same feat in their version of the tournament, they did manage a respectable semi-final spot. The victory in hockey was followed by the Indian cricket team winning the T20 world championship in South Africa which was significant not only because of its huge popularity but because we beat a team in the finals with whom we have always been at "war". With Vishwanathan Anand becoming the world's undisputed chess champion again this year after his heroics of 2000, the effect may have touched another sport. (though it is unlikely in this case)
These sportsmen, sportswomen, coaches or teams have never lacked the ability or the skills but at times have lacked the motivation, zest and the never-say-die spirit that have kept them from achieving what they truly deserve. We can only hope that Indian sports continues to take courage from such inspired performances and guns for greater glory in the days to come. All in all what the Chak De Effect teachs is to put one's differences away and inspire individuals to unite for a common cause, be it sports or any other walk of life.
Friday, September 28, 2007
T20: My Take
So India finally had something to cheer about. Beating our "friendly" neighbors in a 3 1/2 hour long battle aided by some inspired performances and by some inspired non-performers. However beating 4 top nations in a cricket world championship (be it the shortest version) is a no mean task. The cricketers are basking in the glory of this victory and so they should, although with one eye firmly on the upcoming series, of what promises to be the most thrilling encounters in recent times, against the Aussies. Dhoni and his boys deserve all the praise and appreciation for this win as it has rekindled the waning flame of cricket in India. Not that I would want other sports in the country to suffer, but lets be honest to ourselves. How many of us actually stayed up to watch India win the final of the men's Asia Cup hockey tournament, or to see the Indian football team beat Syria to lift the Nehru cup for the first time ever. Not many I guess. In a country lacking sports heroes people look up to cricketers as being those unlikely heroes. And hence if successful their accomplishments are cheered more than, at times, what they deserve. But that is all-together a different topic of discussion. Lets get back to cricket and particularly the T20.
A country so reluctant in accepting the T20 version of cricket is suddenly welcoming it with open arms. T20 has impacted the game in a phenomenal way. Increased viewership, shorter duration, extinction of the "underdog" tag, youthful zest and big moolah are some of the biggest impacts T20 has had on the game. T20 is being viewed by most cricket administrators as the future of cricket. The ICL, the Stanford League and even the BCCI formed PCL (along with ECB, ACB and PCB) are all focusing on the T20 format of cricket. However the opinions on the format have been quite evenly polarized. The purists believe that T20 is just a slap-dash form of cricket suited to hard-hitting sloggers rather than the more orthodox and traditional cricketers. They believe that the finer nuances of this highly technical sport is lost in this version. While others disagree saying that the better cricketers will always be consistent no matter what format of cricket they are playing, which to some extent is absolutely true. The T20 World championship proved that you do not need to be an Afridi to score runs. In fact the highest run scorer in the tournament was Matthew Hayden who I consider to be technically one of the most sound and imposing cricketer of the current lot. People have also argued that the bowlers, especially the spinners, have no place in this format.
However with all due respect to everyone for or against this format, here's my take on this. The T20 championship was an enthralling one and a great advertisement for the sport. Many who were never avid followers of the game got engrossed in the nail-biting battles between great teams. But the contest was over in a flash. 27 matches in 14 days and before we knew it, it was over. By the time the tournament entered the last round of super eights I was drawing a blank as to what had happened in the earlier games, barring the schocker for the Aussies and the Indo-Pak bowl-out. To all those detractors, fyi, the spinners bowled as well as the seamers. The good batsmen always got the runs and the pinch-hitters had their moment of glory as well. Fielding in any form of cricket will always remain the most integral part of the game. These events have reinforced my belief that the ability of a true cricketer is a measure of his adaptability to various situations. So whether its Test cricket, ODI's or T20 a good cricketer will always come through. There is just one point that may render a good cricketer, in Tests and to some extent ODI's, impotent in T20, and that is his athleticism. As one grows older his interest and enthusiasm for the game may linger but this body might start withering. But if at 33 a Hussey or a Jayasuriya can be one of the most energetic players of his team, I guess the theory that older people should not play T20 can take a toss out the window.
However the official and players must not get carried away with the instant success of T20. Anything in excess is not good and the same holds true for this format as well. Lets hope the administrators are smart enough not to make this their first choice format for cricket and embed it with the other versions much to the satisfaction of one and all. As the cliche goes, do it for the greater good of cricket and cricket lovers the world over.
A country so reluctant in accepting the T20 version of cricket is suddenly welcoming it with open arms. T20 has impacted the game in a phenomenal way. Increased viewership, shorter duration, extinction of the "underdog" tag, youthful zest and big moolah are some of the biggest impacts T20 has had on the game. T20 is being viewed by most cricket administrators as the future of cricket. The ICL, the Stanford League and even the BCCI formed PCL (along with ECB, ACB and PCB) are all focusing on the T20 format of cricket. However the opinions on the format have been quite evenly polarized. The purists believe that T20 is just a slap-dash form of cricket suited to hard-hitting sloggers rather than the more orthodox and traditional cricketers. They believe that the finer nuances of this highly technical sport is lost in this version. While others disagree saying that the better cricketers will always be consistent no matter what format of cricket they are playing, which to some extent is absolutely true. The T20 World championship proved that you do not need to be an Afridi to score runs. In fact the highest run scorer in the tournament was Matthew Hayden who I consider to be technically one of the most sound and imposing cricketer of the current lot. People have also argued that the bowlers, especially the spinners, have no place in this format.
However with all due respect to everyone for or against this format, here's my take on this. The T20 championship was an enthralling one and a great advertisement for the sport. Many who were never avid followers of the game got engrossed in the nail-biting battles between great teams. But the contest was over in a flash. 27 matches in 14 days and before we knew it, it was over. By the time the tournament entered the last round of super eights I was drawing a blank as to what had happened in the earlier games, barring the schocker for the Aussies and the Indo-Pak bowl-out. To all those detractors, fyi, the spinners bowled as well as the seamers. The good batsmen always got the runs and the pinch-hitters had their moment of glory as well. Fielding in any form of cricket will always remain the most integral part of the game. These events have reinforced my belief that the ability of a true cricketer is a measure of his adaptability to various situations. So whether its Test cricket, ODI's or T20 a good cricketer will always come through. There is just one point that may render a good cricketer, in Tests and to some extent ODI's, impotent in T20, and that is his athleticism. As one grows older his interest and enthusiasm for the game may linger but this body might start withering. But if at 33 a Hussey or a Jayasuriya can be one of the most energetic players of his team, I guess the theory that older people should not play T20 can take a toss out the window.
However the official and players must not get carried away with the instant success of T20. Anything in excess is not good and the same holds true for this format as well. Lets hope the administrators are smart enough not to make this their first choice format for cricket and embed it with the other versions much to the satisfaction of one and all. As the cliche goes, do it for the greater good of cricket and cricket lovers the world over.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Indians and Racism: Who's to Blame?
I know I'm venturing into an issue that is of extremely sensitive nature. However I feel that we as Indians quite often misinterpret the true meaning of the term "racism". Multiple definitions of the term exists as per individual interpretations, however in simplistic terms it means 'a form of discrimination based on race, color or origin .' The discrimination ranges from verbal abuse (direct) to favoritism toward individuals of the same race (indirect).
Lets take a recent classic case of the incident that transpired on the hit British reality show 'Big Brother', where the Indian actress Shilpa Shetty was pelted with some verbal invectives. Thousands of British Indians saw that on national television and condemned it and to a certain extent they were justified in expressing their disapproval of such thoughts. A lot of fuss was made about the specific comments regarding the way she behaved and the way she spoke. I agree the manner of putting those comments may not have been appropriate, but surely comments made on an individual by no means completely reflect racist behavior.
Such comments are taken far too seriously by Indians. If such an opinion is indeed racist then I'm afraid we Indians are the biggest racists of 'em all. When we talk about people of foreign origin, we refer to them as 'goras' meaning 'white people'. We refer to African Americans as 'kallus'. Don't we at times make fun of the way these individuals behave? Why are we so distrustful of 'Blacks' or 'Hispanics'? I am dumbfounded by this question in same way as millions of us are. Forget the indifferent attitude towards these people, we Indians do not even spare our own. Discrimination within different regions, religions and sub-sects of these religions is not uncommon amongst us. Mind you, I'm not generalizing but the truth is out there. Deep within us we all know that every individual has his or her own set of ideas and beliefs which at some point or the other has compelled us to behave in a racist manner.
These questions are difficult to answer, but I'm not searching for the answers. All I'm trying to say is that we should all be a little more considerate. Pointing fingers on individuals who make potentially racist comments is easy, but it is very difficult to refrain one self from acting in a similar manner. Whether its spoken about or not racism is here to stay, so be courageous enough to face it.
Lets take a recent classic case of the incident that transpired on the hit British reality show 'Big Brother', where the Indian actress Shilpa Shetty was pelted with some verbal invectives. Thousands of British Indians saw that on national television and condemned it and to a certain extent they were justified in expressing their disapproval of such thoughts. A lot of fuss was made about the specific comments regarding the way she behaved and the way she spoke. I agree the manner of putting those comments may not have been appropriate, but surely comments made on an individual by no means completely reflect racist behavior.
Such comments are taken far too seriously by Indians. If such an opinion is indeed racist then I'm afraid we Indians are the biggest racists of 'em all. When we talk about people of foreign origin, we refer to them as 'goras' meaning 'white people'. We refer to African Americans as 'kallus'. Don't we at times make fun of the way these individuals behave? Why are we so distrustful of 'Blacks' or 'Hispanics'? I am dumbfounded by this question in same way as millions of us are. Forget the indifferent attitude towards these people, we Indians do not even spare our own. Discrimination within different regions, religions and sub-sects of these religions is not uncommon amongst us. Mind you, I'm not generalizing but the truth is out there. Deep within us we all know that every individual has his or her own set of ideas and beliefs which at some point or the other has compelled us to behave in a racist manner.
These questions are difficult to answer, but I'm not searching for the answers. All I'm trying to say is that we should all be a little more considerate. Pointing fingers on individuals who make potentially racist comments is easy, but it is very difficult to refrain one self from acting in a similar manner. Whether its spoken about or not racism is here to stay, so be courageous enough to face it.
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