SOS Tugga!

Note: This was an post i wrote in 2005 after Australia's epic loss against the English in 2005 Ashes. In my opinion this post still makes sense today.

Every Indian cricket fan knows what Kolkota ’01 means! History created, Epic rewritten. Laxman belted Aussies giving Indians the first taste of success in that unforgettable series, nor can we ignore Harbhajan’s magical off spins or Dravid’s stand with laxman. But digging further into the match one heroic act got lost amidst all these success stories. Towards the end of day one on this test Aussies were still struggling to break Harbhajan’s spin maze, reeling at 291 for the loss of eight wickets. There was one man waging a lone battle with number 29 reading against his name in the score books. Known as ‘Tugga’ to his team mates. Stephen Rodger Waugh was stranded at one end with Gillespie to support. The critics and the cricket so called experts predicted Aussies final score to 310. But this man showed his real character exemplifying temperament and experience at the Eden Gardens. He scored a century with a tail ender to support him and resurrected his pride temporarily by guiding Aussies to a respectable 445.

Four years later, Aussies struggling to retain their(?) Ashes at Old Trafford. Aussies are celebrating a draw. Something unheard of for a cricket fan irrespective of the continent he ails from. Batting disaster! Not a century being scored by the Aussie batsman except for their captain in the final innings. Aussie temperament and character is being tested out there in the middle by the English bowlers. The need for a batsman who can stay in the crease and attack at the same time is immediate requirement. The very mention of such a batsman kind reminds us of SR Waugh. A batsman who built the Australian team with his success. Ruthless aggression was the only term known to the Aussies under his captaincy. They conquered everything in this world under him. He intimidated the opposition by his nonchalant demeanor. The man they miss most currently is their former captain.

One another good example Waugh’s temperament is his double century at Sabina Park with his twin brother facing the likes of Walsh and Ambrose. On a wicket like WACA the twins showed laudable temperament and character.

It s high time the Aussies realize the need of the hour. There is no more Tugga to stick around while the other blokes play their aggressive cricket. A lot more maturity is to be shown on the field. A more responsible innings is expected from at least one of them. Ricky Ponting’s 156 in Old Trafford is one such example. But a lot more is required from each one of the batsman in the coming two tests to retain ashes. The English team is not similar to the one faced in 2001 or 1997. They are a lot more matured and talented set of bowlers who can snatch the game from the opposition in one session. The Aussies are made to work for each and every run of theirs. A more meticulous and intelligent batting is expected from them.

Aussies were compared to the highly raw West Indian team under Clive Lloyd. They miss their favorite leader. They clearly lack the inspiration. They are a shadow of their former giant image.

Sherlock Holmes - movie

Finally watched the movie Sherlock Holmes after two years. The movie was something I wanted to watch for a very long time and couldn't do it till last weekend. I have always been a big fan of Doyle's Holmes series from my college days, thanks to my friend Koi. The movie was really impressive, one for its plot and second, the portrayal of 1890s London was really awesome and excellent, it did really transport the viewer to that era. The aura around Moriarty was maintained till the end and was a nice build up towards the upcoming sequel. The sequence involving Holmes, Watson and Watson's fiancee was well executed and of course a tribute Doyle's writing to involve wit in every possible situation.

There were certain situations in the movie, which in my opinion were not Doyle like and more cinematic, like Holmes trying to be more comical for no reason. Nowhere in the novels/short stories is Holmes ever made to look silly, he has always been a man of reason behind every action of his. I also missed the exchanges between Holmes and Watson where Holmes would make Watson do the deduction and then confront him with the missing facts, these situations were really something everyone looks forward to in the short stories. Also, the prominence given to Irene Adler as Holmes's love interest is also something I didn't like, as it is not loyal to the story line and also the character of Holmes. But these were minor quirks considering the fact that watching Sherlock Holmes on the big screen was exciting enough to ignore these fallacies.

Another major boost the movie was in the form of background score from Hans Zimmer. The usage of violin in those scores really underlines the fact how much a violin can convey the sombre mood more than any other instrument, but again I am just a ignorant music listening novice. The music was really an integral part in making the movie an excellent watch and once again proves what a great composer we have in the form of Hans Zimmer.

FDI in retail sector

After partially opening up the retail sector to FDI (upto 49% ownership along with an Indian firm as a joint venture) few years back amidst heavy opposition, India is now looking to let the retailers to start their independent investments (upto 51% ownership under their name) on Indian soil. This is a huge move considering Walmart and Tesco have been waiting on the sidelines for a really long time. To an average consumer like me, what will this translate to?

1. A huge increase in the investment on the retail sector and all the mom - pop store will go out of business very soon.
2. A very refined and efficient supply chain will be put into place. All these companies will help the Indian retailers learn more about supply chain management on a larger scale. Indian dont have a single stop store at the national level that we can boast about, so this will lead to a big players like Bharati, Reliance compete or do a joint venture with these retail behemoths (we already have Bharati - Walmart ventures operating in India under Bharati's storefront)
3. The farmers who will directly supply to these giants will stand to gain, considering the fact all the middle men will run out of business. This could potentially also reduce the price on the products, but only marginally. This also opens up a new problem, all these farmers without proper representation will also get exploited and end up without a choice.
4. Consumers will also stand to gain, with wide selection  and single shop points. They will also be spoilt for choice. 
5. All these big players will want big real estate to set shop which are currently available only in the outskirts of any city. This will drive the real estate price of those areas northwards and there by making a dream of owning a house still a dream for the middle class.
6. Increased job opportunities for the unemployed youth.

It is all quite exciting and interesting, at the same time, it has also made me skeptical to the point that, we never know what is in store until we really experience. There is an interesting article about Walmart's foray into the Chinese market which more or less mirrors what you can expect from these retail giants in India. But it needs to be taken with a pinch of salt as China is light years ahead in industrialization and agro progress, not without problems though. If we are to believe the rumors, it is an interesting development on the retail front in India, this could potentially change the face of Indian Retail, which only time can answer.

Bravo!

The second test between India and West Indies went down the scripted path and everything was as predicted. The only aberration was West Indies's second innings, no one gave Windies a chance on the third day when they followed on, but they did show some character in the second innings at the top order. Out of all this, Darren Bravo's innings stood out! He couldn't be any more Lara like, he was so Lara like, be it playing a cover drive or straight drive or cut shot, every stroke of his was modelled after Lara's style of batting. Beyond the similarities, Darren Bravo showed his gut and instincts, he proved that he is ready to grind his innings out when the situation demanded. He didn't restrict himself, he played his natural game and he countered spin effectively using his feet. After a really long time, there is some genuine hope in the West Indies team in the form of Darren Bravo, it really makes the game interesting to watch. A great talent being put to test is always an amazing contest to follow and Bravo has just started. He has got to go a long way to prove he is not just a Lara's batting look alike, but also that he is new saviour 'Lara' the West Indies team desperately needs.

Just watch the way he is holding his bat and helmet, if you cut the face out, any one would say it is Lara! Now see the picture of the Master himself.

Crazy day eh?

The second day of the first test between Australia and SA was absolute mayhem.

1. 23 wickets were lost on a single day
2. Aussies were 21/9 at one stage, only to stagger back to 47
3. Proteas were bundled for 96 in their first innings
4. 9 DRS reviews requested

The entire day was so surreal and the television channels were spared the work of having a specific highlights package for the day. Bowlers had a field day and did I mention two catches dropped in the Aussie innings. For once, bowlers dominated the entire day and showcased why test cricket is still interesting and can never be matched by any other form of cricket.

In this chaos, two specifics of cricket stood out, Clarke's batting for his 151 in his first innings and Dale Steyn's bowling during the entire test match. Clarke's innings should be bracketed along with one of the finest knocks played in test cricket under adverse conditions, it was a pleasure to seem him bat with ease when the accomplished and best batsmen around him found it tough to even survive. It so reminded me of the vintage 'tugga' innings we usually see when the chips are down, the only difference was the elegance involved with clarke's batting which was usually missing in Tugga or Border's batting. On the other end it was Dale Steyn spitting venom with the cricket ball, the contest between Steyn and Clarke was excellent and was a pure exhibition of test cricket. Without arguments, Dale Steyn should be the best pace bowler amongst the current crop of fast bowlers, the control, speed and swing was great and he surely makes bowling an enjoyable watch. If a test cricket between Aussies and Proteas can end within 2.5 days, imagine how the second test is going to be fought, it is going to be hard cricket with both teams capable of making fighting comebacks.

Is Rahul ready?

I came across an interesting article which ran through the grooming of Rahul Gandhi to become the next leader in the congress. Though short, it did have some deep insights on how the situation around the young Gandhi is. With Sonia ready to pass the mantle, is Rahul really ready to take over the leadership of the biggest political party in India? In my opinion, the time is ripe for Rahul Gandhi to take this role and showcase his abilities to the public. Any major issue threatening the government, in the recent times, Rahul Gandhi has always been part of the core committee that looks into resolving the issue and if I were to believe the media articles, I don't think he did have a great say in the way the solution was arrived amongst the bigwigs like Pranab, Azad, PC etc. But as always, we can never conclude from the bits and pieces we hear as news from the media. There has never been any concrete evidence on how Rahul Gandhi would approach a situation and to the Indian public, he has always been a mystery.

The upcoming UP battle in 2012 could be a barometer for what Congress can achieve under Rahul Gandhi. His thoughts and his works with the farmers in UP were impressive and if that were to be taken as a trailer of things to come under his leadership, in my opinion, he would infuse a different perspective into leading a nation. From my observations, he seems to be a very honest and humble leader, but most times he portrays himself to be a reluctant leader than a eager one. His responses on controversial issues and questions seems forced and rhetoric, it doesn't provide any insight into his methods to handle hot topics.

Of all the time he has spent so far in his public life, a concern remains on why he doesn't take any cabinet ministry and show what he is made of. The public, though very eager to see a young leader at the top are at the same time wary of what Rahul is capable of, no where in his position as the most powerful politician in India has Rahul taken leadership of a specific ministry and improve its image amongst the public. If you ask me, this was an opportunity lost for Gandhi, he could have scored brownie points with the Indian public had he proved his worth and come 2014, the election results would have been a no brainer.

The eternal question still remains, is Rahul Gandhi ready to take up where his father had left? Will he be the new India's leader?  I think only time can answer that, but at the same time, I am eager to see how Congress embraces itself into the next generation of leaders. I somehow feel, Priyanka, though in the sidelines will have a great role to play in the coming years, be it guiding her brother or taking up the leadership baton from her mother.

Hobo at the theatre

Over the weekend, I spent the saturday night watching a movie at the theatre. While waiting with my friend to grab a pepsi for the movie screening, a homeless guy standing in the queue caught my eye. I was surprised to find him inside the theatre and when he was at the counter, he placed all his dimes and nickels and wanted a pop. The person at the counter was a teen and the conversation that happened was totally interesting.

Hobo: Hey wassup, I want a soda pop
Teen: Sir, would you want a combo?
Hobo: Combo?
Teen: Do you want nachos or popcorn to go with your soda
Hobo: Sorry, i am poor, I just want my drink. I didn come here to watch movies, just give me my soda and i will be off
Teen: Sir, do you have a scene card?
Hobo: Scene card?
Teen: The theatre offers a card and you can gain points every time you watch a movie or buy snacks here
Hobo: Are you kidding me? Are you seriously asking me whether i have a scene card? Son, I am homeless guy trying to buy a drink with the dimes and nickels I have. You are asking me whether I have a card to use?
Teen: Sorry sir
Hobo: Stop calling me a Fucking Sir, just give me my drink and I will be off

I was surprised on why the teen couldn't make out that this guy is just in here for his drink and not to watch movies. He looked totally ragged and dirty, hadn't shaved in days and was written "poor" all over his face. I sympathized with the hobo and walked towards the screen to catch my movie on time, but my inner thought went "the standard questions and protocols can sometimes be really a pain in the ass".

Mindless Comedies

Paul was a movie with strong inputs from the creative Seth Rogen and I wanted to watch that for a very long time. After Superbad I made sure I keep track of the of movies from this guy and though I was disappointed with Green Hornet, Paul wasn't bad. It is one of those geek comedies and I think the Paul characterization was totally awesome. This is movie is one amongst many where there isn't a necessity to really apply your mind to understand it and at the same time, it was not one of those cheesy Ben Stiller type comedy where you can predict what the next gag is all about. Somehow this movie stood out on the comic gags on nerds and was really time well spent. One another movie was the latest Harold and Kumar movie, this cannot be compared to Seth Rogen's intelligent comic timing, but will still fall under the mindless comedy movies which can just make us laugh for 1.5hrs without any kind of mental effort from our side.

3 Battles

With the Windies playing their first test in Delhi, an interesting contest looms over this test series.

Battle 1:
Everytime we see Darren Bravo, we are always reminded of the great Lara and it will be really critical to see how he fares in the spinning conditions. He is not going to face any great spinner in the form of Kumble or Harbhajan, but to still survive the sub continent conditions will be a test of character and it will lay the foundation for his continued presence in the international arena.


Battle 2:
Another battle is the "who is the next Indian spinner?" in the team, this is the first time since 2000 India is playing a test series without Kumble or Harbhajan and it will be interesting to see who will raise up to take up the mantle, will Ashwin or Ojha take up that role and guide India through the next decade?


Battle 3:
The last battle will be the battle of veterans against the West Indian bowlers in the form of Fidel Edwards and Bishoo. None of these guys played against these bowlers when India toured Windies few months back. So it will be awesome to watch VVS, Sachin handle these bowlers.

One sore point of the entire series will be Chris Gayle. Had everything been set right between him and the board, the cricket fan in India would have been privileged to watch him bat in this test series.

As I write this, India has already managed to make a dull test really interesting by conceding 95runs lead in the first innings. Should be a closely fought test match with a definite result.

India's come back

India defeated the English 5-0 in the ODIs and it was sort of giving England the taste of their own medicine but only not fully. Our defeat to England was total and complete, we did not even win a single game in the English soil and the worst of all, we went there as Test Nation #1 and WC 2011 champions.  Our victory back in India is a comeback of sorts, but to call it a revenge is not appropriate or not correct. If we have to really get back at England, it should be in the test arena, ideally it should be at their home, but i don't think there is going to be another tour of England in two years, so it should be a home test series. We should pummel them like how defeated Aussies back in 2001 at Kolkata and Chennai. We should leave them doubting themselves and shatter their confidence to the extent they should think twice before casting doubt on our test position again. The defeat in England really hurt the Indian fan who was at cloud nine after the WC victory, to hit rock bottom from that height was really painful and to make it worse it was the English's self proclaimed geniuses like Boycott, Nasser, Artherton etc who cast doubt on India's ascension in world cricket. I think, the Indian team has got a lot to prove in their tour of Australia, I sincerely believe we can pick ourselves up and prove to the cricketing world that our #1 position in test cricket was not a fluke.

'Buddy, I am underweight'

Back in 2006, we were a group of 10-15 living in an apartment complex in Seattle and 'hitting the gym' suddenly became a fad. I don't remember when it started or how it started, but there was a brief period when everyone thought, being fit and healthy is really important. So we identified a gym and as as every gym would want you to do, the gym instructor took us through the tour and it ended with a visit to the men's locker room. 3-4 guys freaked out, rather should I say 'had a culture shock' when they saw people walking with their ding-dongs out and they immediately dropped their gym plan. I don't blame them, a culture that is so paranoid and prejudiced about two men holding hands or even worse two men dining alone in an restaurant but it is still considered normal to walk around with your John jr on full display in a men's locker room? I think, it is like Superman's kryptonite Vs Earth concept, no rules/conditions apply inside the locker rooms, eh? Anyways, after the tour, the regular "desi" torment of negotiating a monthly fee and getting gym membership under a "family plan" happened, as fate's script should have it, we had another 6-7guys drop out at this stage. This is one other thing I don't understand, having done all the research and pep talk for days, when the gym sales guy drops the monthly rate, few guys find gym an 'expensive hobby' but expressed under the veil 'I don't need to Gym, I am already fit' reason. I think the moment the rate was mentioned their mental calculators went $40*50 = Rs.2000, no way is it acceptable to spent Rs.100 an hour each day for 20 days. I call them calculators and without these calculators around you, who would you pick/irritate to spend time or entertain yourself (don't judge me!)? So these are essential characters in the life's humour section.

After all this we had only 2-3 guys making it to the gym and as any initial gym fever would have the BMI calculation was always part of the discussion. As the calculators would always say 'You just need to eat healthy to stay healthy, hitting a gym is a scam the corporates have managed to pull over the innocent civilians'. In spite of all this chaos there was one guy who never showed interest in Gym and his reason, he claimed he was underweight. We always had our doubts as whether he was really underweight and for God's sakes, he had a paunch. So we cornered him one evening and asked him to prove his statement and here is the sequence of events

1. He opened the BMI index calculation page from the internet
2. He entered his age, weight and height
3. He hit the calculate button and it came back with 17 as the BMI which is very much underweight
4. We were stunned and when we went through his height and weight, he had entered his height as 6 feet and 2 inches
5. This guy was hardly 5 feet and 8 inches and we confronted him with this fact, he vehemently defended his height saying he was way over 6 feet.

So the fun began, to state something stupid amongst a bachelor group is considered crime, but trying to support your statement even after knowing it is wrong is like wishing death sentence on yourself. Well, who cares, we had absolute and total fun at the expense of our "underweight" friend/roomie.

Testing Team Anna

The entire last week, reports of divide and split within the Team Anna group was reported across various media outlets. First it was Arvind Kejriwal's IT returns issue, then Kiran Bedi's travel expense and the list goes on, any team that takes on a political outfit will have to put up with these kind of attacks. Whether the accusations are true or not, i think the resolve of Team Anna is being totally put to test here. Hazare as an individual has always been the Gandhian face of the team, but much is not known about the team in the background. Hopefully it is not as bad as its accusations, but still I think this is what a team will have to encounter when they enter the public life opposing a political party. I think the real intentions and colours of the Team Anna will be made known to the public and I hope the team in question takes the right step next time by not opposing a specific political party but work towards issues faced by the public.