I am heart-broken, absolutely heart-broken! I don’t know how many of you guys saw the just concluded cricket match between India and Australia, I just finished watching it, and we lost by 3 runs, that too chasing a mammoth 351 to win! (Warning: This post is meant for cricket lovers)
Very sad indeed, but that’s not the only reason I’m heartbroken, in fact that’s the lesser reason. The greater one is because I probably watched one of the greatest ODI innings of all time and still saw the hero ending on a losing side- a tragic hero of mythical proportions. Yes, I’m talking about the man himself- Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar!! I always thought I would write a post on him the day he retires (Yes, guys, I know it’s a blasphemous thought, but something that’s a matter of when, not if!). Those of you cricket lovers who missed today’s match, or gave up watching after Australia got 350, you have probably missed probably the greatest, and the most poignant innings of all time, by the man most people consider the greatest cricketer to have walked the cricket field after Sir Don.
I saw Sachin brushing a teardrop when he was called to speak after gathering his man of the match award, and that in itself told me a lot about the man. This guy has been playing cricket for 20 years, holds every record conceivable to mankind, demands and commands awe and respect from the entire cricket fraternity, makes millions a year and yet a loss in a one-day game in a bilateral series prompts him to shed a tear! A lot has been spoken about this man, there are still some morons existing who are quick to point out his deficiencies and failings. Sure, he is human after all! But not a mere human, a first among equals, and that too by quite some margin!
We live in a cynical world. A world where, strangely, we have forgotten to find passion in our lives (A small exercise: When was the last time any of us jumped around with joy, or cried with happiness?), where we don’t trust each other or sometimes even ourselves, where we seem to have internalized a lot of the negativity we see around us, where the erosion of values (its situational at the best of times, and thought to be totally unnecessary at the worst) is matched only by the lack of heroes and idols- someone we can truly look up to. It is in this world that the importance of people like Sachin increases, for this guy epitomizes all that people strive to achieve in their lives, in whatever field, and still retaining the humility and simplicity as well as love for one’s motherland that is a lesson for every one of us. A lot of us tomorrow are going to be successful in our lives, to attain wealth and power and status in society. But we would do well to look carefully at this man and understand the importance of keeping a level head on our shoulders, and at the same time living with passion and believing in ourselves as well as the world around us.
I would end this by observing that we, the cricket-loving junta, are a lucky lot. We have seen a lot of great Indian players at their prime over the last 10 years- Kumble, Ganguly, Dravid, Laxman, Sehwag. But nobody has given us greater pleasure, nobody has taught us to believe more in ourselves, and nobody has evoked greater passion in our hearts than a certain Mr. Tendulkar. Its been a privilege, sir! Rock on!!
Showing posts with label Cricket. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cricket. Show all posts
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Sunday, November 2, 2008
So long Jumbo!
I was spending the perfect Sunday afternoon, after a satisfying lunch at home thanks to our caring Maharashtrian cook, curled up on the drawing room sofa watching the India-Australia test match, when the news filtered in of Anil Kumble hanging up his boots. Well, not a surprising piece of news you might say, not even one that would evoke a lot of emotion among someone who doesn’t follow cricket.
However, I’m and always have been, an ardent cricket fan, and always believe test cricket is the ultimate test of a cricketer’s skills, and there is something about test cricket that mirrors life, that is so eerily similar to life itself! And it is with this background that I thought it fitting to pay tribute to a monumental cricketer, and man.
The last few days have been bringing along bad news by the galore, TV channels falling over each other to bring us news of the entire manoos-bhaiyya drama (I call it idiocy), the Assam blasts (of course, it’s a different matter that we have become completely de-sensitized to these by now, as along as we are in one piece, its cool!), not to mention the economic meltdown, courtesy which an entire breed of professionals seem to be losing their value in the matrimonial market! Amidst all this negativity, it was a welcome change to see some positive words and comments today in the channels, that’s the power of good old-fashioned goodness of character, integrity and dedication, words that are as alien to modern day society as politicians not indulging in regional vote-bank politics. And that’s what brings me to the man called Anil Kumble!
There is something very great about someone who refuses to give up, someone who stands tall in the face of adversity and still retains the strength of his character and doesn’t give up on the way he has decided to live his life, someone who is humble and modest often to a fault, someone who, even in these troubled and confused times, pursues his goal single-mindedly and without resorting to cheap gimmicks, low tricks and in a manner reminding everyone the way sport should be played, and indeed, life should be lived- with head held high! Qualities like these warm the cockles of our hearts, because deep down, we all nurture this goodness, and want to live life that way (trust me!), but most of us are too weak to resist the temptations, or we give in to our circumstances, as we love to say. The truth being, there is always a choice (quoting Spider-man), and its upto us to make it.
That’s Kumble’s legacy, not his 619 test wickets, or his nearly un-playable top-spinners or googlies, or his impeccable line and length, but to be able to demonstrate true leadership and be able to be a true champion, someone worthy of emulating and making a role model out of, whichever field one might belong to. Who can forget his bowling in West Indies with a fractured and heavily bandaged jaw, so much as he could hardly open his mouth even to appeal!
The farewell scenes were poignant, and brought a lump to my throat. But more than anything I realized what a true champion can do, he rises above the game or his own field, and gives us some pointers as to the way life should be lived, and unites us in a way which no politician or other hate-agents can ever dream to undo!
Well, I might be getting a bit emotional here, but I guess this is the vent I needed to pour out my feelings about the crap that has been happening lately! Guys, we all have a responsibility of behaving in the right way in the present circumstances, and to use an old chiche, spread the cheer!
And as far as Mr. Kumble is concerned, I guess it will suffice to say:
Well played sir!
However, I’m and always have been, an ardent cricket fan, and always believe test cricket is the ultimate test of a cricketer’s skills, and there is something about test cricket that mirrors life, that is so eerily similar to life itself! And it is with this background that I thought it fitting to pay tribute to a monumental cricketer, and man.
The last few days have been bringing along bad news by the galore, TV channels falling over each other to bring us news of the entire manoos-bhaiyya drama (I call it idiocy), the Assam blasts (of course, it’s a different matter that we have become completely de-sensitized to these by now, as along as we are in one piece, its cool!), not to mention the economic meltdown, courtesy which an entire breed of professionals seem to be losing their value in the matrimonial market! Amidst all this negativity, it was a welcome change to see some positive words and comments today in the channels, that’s the power of good old-fashioned goodness of character, integrity and dedication, words that are as alien to modern day society as politicians not indulging in regional vote-bank politics. And that’s what brings me to the man called Anil Kumble!
There is something very great about someone who refuses to give up, someone who stands tall in the face of adversity and still retains the strength of his character and doesn’t give up on the way he has decided to live his life, someone who is humble and modest often to a fault, someone who, even in these troubled and confused times, pursues his goal single-mindedly and without resorting to cheap gimmicks, low tricks and in a manner reminding everyone the way sport should be played, and indeed, life should be lived- with head held high! Qualities like these warm the cockles of our hearts, because deep down, we all nurture this goodness, and want to live life that way (trust me!), but most of us are too weak to resist the temptations, or we give in to our circumstances, as we love to say. The truth being, there is always a choice (quoting Spider-man), and its upto us to make it.
That’s Kumble’s legacy, not his 619 test wickets, or his nearly un-playable top-spinners or googlies, or his impeccable line and length, but to be able to demonstrate true leadership and be able to be a true champion, someone worthy of emulating and making a role model out of, whichever field one might belong to. Who can forget his bowling in West Indies with a fractured and heavily bandaged jaw, so much as he could hardly open his mouth even to appeal!
The farewell scenes were poignant, and brought a lump to my throat. But more than anything I realized what a true champion can do, he rises above the game or his own field, and gives us some pointers as to the way life should be lived, and unites us in a way which no politician or other hate-agents can ever dream to undo!
Well, I might be getting a bit emotional here, but I guess this is the vent I needed to pour out my feelings about the crap that has been happening lately! Guys, we all have a responsibility of behaving in the right way in the present circumstances, and to use an old chiche, spread the cheer!
And as far as Mr. Kumble is concerned, I guess it will suffice to say:
Well played sir!
Thursday, February 21, 2008
And Dhoni goes to....
And Dhoni goes to.......Chennai!!(slam!)
And thus was ushered in a new era in cricket, or so it seems!! Well, love it, hate it, but the fat cash cows of BCCI have made sure that no one on this earth remotely interested in cricket will be able to ignore whats going on in IPL.
Every expert worth his salt has a view on the recent happenings, and there is no doubt whatsoever that the world of cricket has been shaken up from its very roots. Cricket, since its inception, has been a slow game compared to its peers like football and hockey, infinitely faster and more physically demanding. Perhaps in keeping pace with that, even ICC has generally been a rather slow, geriatric and reactive kind of a body, mostly manned by some old men wiht stubborn mindsets, and it takes, from time to time, a revolution of the sorts of Kerry Packer and now, the IPL to shake it out of its slumber, and redefine the rules of the game, so to say.
I'm by no means suggesting that IPL is the panacea that will change everything for the better, it comes with its own downfalls, like putting further strain on the already bloated international calendar, forcing(sometimes) players to choose between city(IPL) and country, however there is no missing the fact that there is already a buzz that has been created around the cricketing world, and everyone is waiting with bated breath to see what course the events take.
Indeed, images of an alien-looking SRK or glam doll Preity Zinta lapping up Gilchrist and Dhoni like they were blue-chip stocks in a bullish market (its difficult to miss the India connection here) has taken commoditisation of cricketers to a new level, hitherto unforeseen or unheard of, and I cant help but feel that there would be a heartburn or tw among retired greats of he game seeing the obscene amounts of money the players are being bought for.
I was reading an interesting article by Allan Border about how India has too much say in world cricket at the moment, and how we are acting like 'imperial' rulers (couldnt help but chuckle at this:), and there will be a lot written about and spoken about this entire episode, but one thig can be said for certain, cricket as we knew it, will never be the same again. For better or for worse, only time will tell!
So till then, pass the popcorn, and start the show!
And thus was ushered in a new era in cricket, or so it seems!! Well, love it, hate it, but the fat cash cows of BCCI have made sure that no one on this earth remotely interested in cricket will be able to ignore whats going on in IPL.
Every expert worth his salt has a view on the recent happenings, and there is no doubt whatsoever that the world of cricket has been shaken up from its very roots. Cricket, since its inception, has been a slow game compared to its peers like football and hockey, infinitely faster and more physically demanding. Perhaps in keeping pace with that, even ICC has generally been a rather slow, geriatric and reactive kind of a body, mostly manned by some old men wiht stubborn mindsets, and it takes, from time to time, a revolution of the sorts of Kerry Packer and now, the IPL to shake it out of its slumber, and redefine the rules of the game, so to say.
I'm by no means suggesting that IPL is the panacea that will change everything for the better, it comes with its own downfalls, like putting further strain on the already bloated international calendar, forcing(sometimes) players to choose between city(IPL) and country, however there is no missing the fact that there is already a buzz that has been created around the cricketing world, and everyone is waiting with bated breath to see what course the events take.
Indeed, images of an alien-looking SRK or glam doll Preity Zinta lapping up Gilchrist and Dhoni like they were blue-chip stocks in a bullish market (its difficult to miss the India connection here) has taken commoditisation of cricketers to a new level, hitherto unforeseen or unheard of, and I cant help but feel that there would be a heartburn or tw among retired greats of he game seeing the obscene amounts of money the players are being bought for.
I was reading an interesting article by Allan Border about how India has too much say in world cricket at the moment, and how we are acting like 'imperial' rulers (couldnt help but chuckle at this:), and there will be a lot written about and spoken about this entire episode, but one thig can be said for certain, cricket as we knew it, will never be the same again. For better or for worse, only time will tell!
So till then, pass the popcorn, and start the show!
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