Only one

batsman in cricket is capable of such a stroke. See how Samir Chopra reacts to the shot played (or the missed one) by Viru in the test match against Sri Lanka

Somedays you just cant sleep

As I lay awake at 5.30 AM in Chennai I think about life and what it has in store for the future. Not just for me, but in general. Is it a good way to spend time. Well, I don't know. I am really surprised at this state of mine. I had an awesome time yesterday in terms of food and a gult movie. But was uneasy from the moment I tried to sleep. Well, I got up at 4AM and completed Crime and Punishment. An interesting yet depressing book that makes you feel weird. Yes, thats the best way to describe it. Weird!

Anyway, I am also influenced by visit to IITM. I look forward to, as always, taking a walk in the campus that I am so fond of. In addition this year I will be making a presentation. Should be interesting and lots of fun!

Great Fight

Irrespective of the result, Indian Tail showed great spirit by batting on for as long as they did. An entertaining display!

I hate to say this

but a large part of population has to be utterly stupid to allow our political leaders to function the way they do.
There is Jagan going around AP consoling random people who happened to die around the day his dad died.
Then there is Chandra Babu Naidu's rally and his subsequent mistreatment. Can't his political stunt be handled better. He went there for publicity and Ashiok Chavan gave it to him with his stupidity.
Then there are two train accidents that occurred. Ms.Banerjee instead of taking responsibility talks as a rumor monger suggesting that the opposition party is responsible for that.
Now Shiva Sena is protesting Babu's vist by targetting AP's reservoir. I mean does Bal Thackeray have any sense left in him. How can a state that is upstream of AP have any problem with dams downstream. Oh sorry who am I kidding. Indian politicians and common sense is an oxymoron. Or should I say Indian common man and common sense is an oxymoron.

Simply stunning

piece on the Tendulkar Opus
If you haven't heard some random company is mixing Tendulkar's blood (yeah you read it right!) to make a book while charging you 49,000$ (no typo here too) for it. Many of my blog reader (or the few of them) know I am not the biggest fan of Tendulkar. But even if it were Sehwag's blood I would have written the same thing. the idea is preposterous and foolish. But hey, if people have the money to wash down the drain this way who am I to stop!

Andhra Pradesh versus Maharashtra

This has not been nice. The Congress government in AP and Maharashtra surely are not doing what they are supposed. to treat a nine year old CM, a current leader of the opposition of the state it is utterly ridiculous to treat the guy in that manner. There are 74 MLA/MP/MLC within the group. To treat these members in that manner is wrong. Lets see how this unfolds!

Bangladesh beat

England. Awesome for Bangladesh cricket!
Poor Bell walked out to bat in a huge cast. Unfortunately it was in vain!

Christian Ryan on the controversy

around Jon Howard's rejection for the ICC president post here
An excerpt from his article

For it tells us how he carries himself in circumstances where the words you choose are crucial, and where people, non-white people, believe that their rights have long been trampled on, and their voices not listened to, and that only now are they beginning to taste a little power.

Sound familiar, cricket fans? Put John Howard in such circumstances and there is good reason for us all to feel cautious in our hearts.

The entire nation is watching the

Jagan rally. Because, I stay in AP, I am forced to see more of it. Here is a take by a national newspaper on the issue

An interesting piece

by David Brooks of NYT on the learning culture promoted by Internet.

Are we forgetting the most important

constituent of cricket? Dileep Premachandran feels that way and described why so in this piece

An excerpt

In the age of miracle and wonder, and TV deals worth a billion dollars, the hardcore fan, who queues up at dawn in order to sit on super-heated concrete, often without enough drinking water, has been shafted. If you keep telling him that he's wasting his time on something that's not a sport, that's only business, he will eventually walk away. And unlike him, the come-lately groupies that tweet about Yuvi being "cho chweet" aren't there for the long haul.

How can you not feel he is right!

Blogging from Dubai

Well, have been here for 5 hrs and have 1 more hour to go. Watched the Ghana vs Uruguay match. It was pretty cool. Not football of the highest caliber but intriguing nonetheless. The way Saurez sacrificed himself for the team was awesome (Call it unsporting, but thats for another day).
In other news Brazil lost. Thats stunning. But I don't mind.

Then at Wimbledon Berdych is flying hot and I hope his gas will last for one more match. Basically I am asking for a new Wimbledon Champion (if you get the drift:P)

Ok I will sign off with a nice piece by Bhogle on how cricket experts need to react with a little more responsibility regarding how India handled Jon howard's nomination.

I am off to India for 2 months and blogging might be sporadic (if you care!)