Humiliation Down Under!

After the humiliating defeat from the hands of their colonial cousins, India set foot in the land of their arch rivals, Australia.. One too many pundits of the game thought, this was India's best shot at winning a test series in Australia, with, many of the star players in their side, injured.. (C'mon! Who are we kidding here?! India and the favorites to win a test series in Aus..! If wishes were horses, beggars would ride..!) Maybe, after a horrific series in England, everyone thought, we, can't fall any lower, I guess, our players proved the world wrong, and showed everyone, the art of losing, and finding deeper pits to fall...

The ongoing series in Australia, was supposed  to be a redemption series.. A chance to redeem thier respect and reputation, after an all out insult in England... The series was talked about a lot, and hyped up by the media as usual..A semi-depleated Australian side v/s a full fledged Indian line up busrting with vengence, after 4 months of torture in England.. The series promised a mouth watering, edge-of-the-seat thriller!!

The first match of the series was on boxing day, in the iconic MCG, all eyes on Sachin, the world waiting to see the man score the ton of tons..! But that was not to be, maybe the little master has to wait another series for it... The match was quite in balance for the first 3 days, but eventually, Australia went on to win it without breaking a sweat..! 

The second match was at Sydney.. The same place where the infamous Monkey gate controversy happened 2yrs back.. well, maybe the ghost of the past kept haunting the Indians..We fell like a pack of cards, The Great Wall of India, finding a brick or two missing maybe, for he was out bowled in both the innings.. The margin of defeat increased by the end of the match, and it looked like the repeat of the England series..! 2 down, 2 to go??

Next destination was the fiery pitch at Perth! A perfect spot for a massacre! Both teams going in with 4 pacers, well, atleast, Aus going in with 4 pacers, and India with 3 pacers and Vinay Kumar..! More like 3 and a half pacers..! India put into bat, and as usual, bowled out cheaply, with no resilience what so ever..! Then started the real movie, "Friday, the 13th", David Warner productions..! The talismatic young batsman walked to the crease like a thug in anger and destroyed the Indian bowlers... David Warner treated Vinay Kumar like someone who has dated his sister twice and dumped her when she refused to put out...! He was ruthless and showed no mercy, he went on to slam the fastest ton by an opener in test cricket..!

The test seies, sure is heating it up 'down under' for the Indians..! The great Indian batting line up, is looking like the "the great Indian Tamasha.." 6 straight defeats overseas for India, looks good, for a 8-0.. What record is India chasing? Trying to beat Undertaker's wrestlemania record of 15-0 maybe..! 

The Last Royal Tiger

RESPECT!! that is the first thing that comes to my head, when i hear the the name Mansoor Ali Khan 'Tiger' Pataudi.. One of India's finest captains, an enduring and yet so charming individual, passed away yesterday at Shri Ganga Ram hospital in New Delhi yesterday.. A sad day for the country, since, cricket is a  religion, and Tiger was one of its God..!


At 21, MAK Pataudi  was the youngest person to captain India, and under his unique leadership, India won its first series away from home..Out of the 46 tests he played overall, he captained India in 40.. Indian spin bowling became a strong weapon under his leadership.. The likes of Bishan Singh Bedi, S. Venkatragavan, were first introduced by Tiger.. The Indian team of that time, would be happy to salvage a draw, and would wish for the 5 days to pass..But with Tiger it was different. He taught the team to play for a win.. His charismatic approach rubbed off on the team, and that was the beginning of what would be a  revolution in the coming times..


Nawab's carrier hit an early road block in the tour of West Indies.. A lethal West Indian pace battery launched a series of bouncers targeting his body. One such bouncer, hit him in the face and he lost complete vision in one eye.. Who would have known, at that time, a man with one eye would mark his comeback and rock the world and with such elegance and grace... He once said, after his return.. " I have only lost an eye, not my vision..." My god, i got goosebumps when i heard this.... He did something, that even God would be proud of.. What a great man, what an enchanting personality. what an ambassador of sport, and a what a great human being.... 


Even though, i haven't   seen  him play, or ever met him personally. i am just happy to have shared space in the world with him, in his era.. His story, is such an inspiration to the youth like myself.. A man, born in a royal family, a Nawab himself, gave up his family business, and  followed his heart to  his passion... And this burning ambition, made him one above the rest, and took him to heights, few people have seen.. having lost an eye, he still dint give up.. Guess, that is how he got the nick name 'Tiger'. A never say die attitude, and an endearing personality, made him retain his aura even after retirement..


His dashing looks and his aristocratic leneage, gave him a heartthrob status... His then love interest and eventually his wife, Sharmila Tagore, was the inception of 'Cricket weds Bollywood".. The much celebrated love gave birth to three children, Saif, Soha and Saba... And MAK's fans still believe, he is a bigger and brighter star than son Saif...

His sad demise came as a shocker, since he was seen in the recently concluded India England series, where he looked hail and hearty.. My condolences to the family, for he was indeed the Romance of Indian Cricket...... Nawab saab, you will be missed......... May you find peace.... 

Demi Gods to Fallen Angels.....

Skirting the boundaries of a humdinger, India set foot in the land of colonial cousins to play a Test series that besides being their sternest test since being christened No. 1,  could be the recipe to rekindle Test cricket.

While the Facebook 'likes' for the series continue to grow, it comes on a platter that is running out of space to accommodate the historic moments that may befall.

Going by the numbers, this series started with  the 2000th test being played in the game's 134 year long history and it also marked the 79year old rivalry between Ind-Eng grow 100 tests old..And no one could have asked for a better place for this historic match to happen than the Mecca of Cricket itself.. 

The cynosure was undeniably Sachin Tendulkar, who stood a chance to shake hands with his 100th international century. Doing that, which none other can or will ever achieve in this sport. But  misfortune hit his innings, never the less, Sachin at Lord's is like God in His Temple, which is seldom observed.

Under such fancy limelight, the series unfolded.. Everyone expecting a cracker of a series..  It was the always the battle between the English bowlers and the Indian batsmen..The Englishmen looked promising with an all round battery of bowlers.. Swing, Seam,Pace,Spin.. u name it and they had the best in the world. 

3 tests down, the English not only dethroned the Indians from the #1 spot, but also made sure, the Indian tigers went back home with their tails between thier legs.. with every match, the win margin of the englishmen just kept increasing and increasing.. and now, india looks good for a 4-0 whitewash..

This is not only the first series loss for MSD as a captain, but also an indication of the dark days ahead.. India have failed to socre even a team total of 300, and on the other hand, Alister Cook, their opening batsman  scored almost a 300 all by himself.. 

Lets just pray India salvage atleast a  draw in the final test, a win is very unlikely seeing the present state of the team..  India came to England like Roaring Champions with Superstar reputation, but returning like Loosers, with bruised egos and fallen angels... None the less, We will work harder and try again, afterall, we are the World Champions..! and we have faith in our abilities..