Drawing Parallels - BCCI and Indian Politics

So, the news is out. In-spite of all the allegations, incrimination and for the lack of a better phrase self evident facts, the BCCI is set to get the maligned Srinivasan as its re-elected boss. I wonder if the odds could be stacked any worse against a person who is contesting an election. Take this, the chief of India's Cricket board is also the owner of one of the IPL teams which is run by his son in law who has been found hand in gloves with bookies betting against his own team. If this does not amount for conflict of interest, one is left to wonder what does!! What is even more shocking is the brazen attitude of Mr. Srinivasan when asked about the whole fiasco. The man is clearly a power hungry kursi clinger who just out of vain ego will not mind taking the institution and the game down with him. The sooner such lumpen elements are removed from the echelons of power the better. As such, BCCI is looked upon as a bully and a corrupt entity. Handing power over to a tainted man is not going to do wonders to its reputation.

While talking about the current state of the BCCI and the total breakdown of its moral values, one cannot help but notice the uncanny resemblance of it to the predicaments of the leading national political party of the country. What has transpired in the past two days has left the country with a feeling that its political bosses have lost all sense of purpose. Let us look at the issue without any prejudices and see for ourselves how the players of this game have left Indian democracy in no better state than Indian Cricket.

First of all there was the issue of the ordinance to allow criminals to contest elections. For any sane person, this should be an absolute no-brainer. But not to the Congress party. The day this ill fated ordinance was promulgated, there was the usual uproar in the media about the need and speed for such a move. The Congress party spokespersons were all out defending it with all guns blazing. Their energy in defense of this absurd ordinance could easily have been mistaken for something noble that would bring the country some great benefit. So, while the entire party clan was busy defending this indefensible ordinance, out came the heir apparent puffing vitriol. Theatrics apart, are we to believe that Rahul Gandhi, the de facto PM candidate of his party was unaware of this ordinance till it was in such an advanced stage of constitutional process? Did the Congress/UPA think-tank not include him in the decision making loop? Why were his opinions held back till the whole country was debating it? In other words, is he the principal of Team Congress or a mere "enthusiast"?

If anybody other than a Gandhi would have given that kind of a statement in a press conference, his political career would have gone kaput that very same moment. You can't survive a political kamikaze like that unless you are from the God ordained family that has the divine sanction to rule over India no matter how undeserving. So, when politics is like this how can Cricket be far behind? After all, don't the Gandhis also have a wayward son in law who could be saint or a murderer depending upon which rumor you wish to believe. In comparison to that, Gurunath Meiyappan is only a match fixer. Apples to oranges, not really!! But inspite of all the shenanigans of their kin, these lumpen elements in sports and politics can keep on riding their high horses because the good men around them do not dare to challenge their legitimacy.

In BCCI, at least some self respecting office bearers like Arun Jaitley have given in to their moral compunctions and resigned. Can we see something similar in the Political arena though?

Bell the damn cat, silly!!

When corporate honchos fail to deliver results, they are booted out.

When actors fail to attract the masses to their movies, they are relegated to the B list.

When 

BREAKING NEWS: Sri Lanka dislodges South Africa from No.1 position in the CHOKER'S LIST

With their recent defeat in the World T20 final to the West Indies, the SriLankans are now officially the World No. 1 in the ICC Choker's List. The confirmation came after the enormity of defeats of both the teams were run through some real tough mathematical formulas and it was found beyond any shred of doubt that SriLanka has edged past the Proteas by a solitary point. As expected, the SriLankan team was too distraught with their latest defeat to comment on this piece of news but Gary Kirsten's SA team has welcomed this development. A national day of rejoice has been declared in South Africa.

On a different note, South Korean pop star PSY has demanded an apology from both the ICC and the West Indies Cricket Board for their flagrant use of his hit single Gangnam Style in reviving the fortunes of the West Indies team. It is an open secret now that this song was the mojo that drove the WI team to an astounding victory in the recently concluded tournament. The ICC has offered PSY an open pass to all its future events and the WICB has announced that it will officially acknowledge PSY's contribution in a formal press release.

The real coup has been pulled by BCCI, who have managed to secure the pop star's services for the IPL events. When PSY was offered the job by a BCCI top negotiator, the incredulous PSY asked - "But you haven't won the tournament? Why should I sing for you?" to which the BCCI mandarin answered - "We got the money!!!"

Shahid Afridi Facts

1. Afridi does not generally age.
2. One Afridi year = 5 Human Years.
3. Shahid Afridi's bat is actually a broken wind mill from heavens. It never stops swinging.
4. Afridi can hit a six of any delivery bowled by any bowler in any ground around the world. But then there are multiple parallel Afridi worlds and we never know which one he is currently in.
5. Afridi can also get out of any delivery bowled by any bowler in any ground around the world. This World!!
6. When Afridi bowls nobody knows which way the bowl is going to turn, not even Afridi!!
7. One Afridi inning is a melange of tragedy, comedy, drama, action, western, noir, neo noir and horror; all genres in five minutes or less. Aamir Khan gets inspired by watching his innings.
8. Head & Shoulder's have signed the wrong Shahid for their commercial.
9. Afridi is the only batsman whose shots can make MSD's shots look elegant.
10. Bowlers do not like bowling to Afridi. They are afraid one of these days ICC is going to strike off Afridi's dismissals from their bowling records.
11. Afridi can get out in two different ways off the same delivery. He misses the line and gets bowled but the atmospheric anomaly created by his godawesome bat swing carries the ball to the long on boundary into the safe hands of a fielder after it has shattered the stumps.
12. Rajinikanth tried the above. He failed.
13. Afridi holds the patent for a procedure in which one can put his brain in a cryogenic store and yet function humanly. The demand for this technology increases each time Afridi comes to bat. 
14. The SR in Afridi's batting record does not stand for "Strike Rate". It stands for "Swing Rate".
15. An alternate theory of Afridi's swinging prowess states that Afridi got his amazing swings after Chuck Norris shook his hand when they first met.

Piyush Chawla's Selection - No Longer a Secret

While Cricket columnists and commentators around the country have gone wildly insane in finding exactly why Piyush Chawla has been selected into the Indian test team, the Kiwi batsmen have reportedly taken this news with much trepidation. Sources reveal that the computer analyst of the NewZealand team has gone through every piece of video, article or blog post that is there on the internet to find a pattern as to how exactly does Chawla get his wickets but has come up with zilch.

An air of despondency has fallen over the already depressed Kiwis who were as such under tremendous mental stress knowing that the star Indian batsmen Laxman and Dravid will not be playing.
"I only agreed to get myself selected as I thought I could get their autographs." - an almost tearful young Kiwi confessed.

Meanwhile, when a bunch of over enthusiastic reporters tried to contact Chawla's parents to get their reaction on the selection, they apparently received a confused reply from them.
"Last we know, he was playing Virtual Cricket with Mantu, the neighbor's kid on PS3. May be he got some wickets in that game"  - was the hopeful conjecture of the father.

The Indian team is also none the wiser about the selection. Coach Fletcher was seen asking whether the Hyderabad stadium has a safe locker for him or not. Reportedly, the last time Chawla was around the dressing room, he had polished off all the high calorie bars and candies. The coach does not want to go empty handed to his grand kids this time.

When we sought Kris Srikkanth's opinion on this bizarre selection he jerked his thumb in our general direction and muttered "Po da, de!!".

Captain Dhoni though cut through the mystery by pointing out that - "Look, they have got Jeetan Patel and I am damn sure they have no idea what they have selected him for. It is only fair we select somebody that can keep us bamboozled. After all, we believe in playing on a level field."

The Cubs Roar

Down Under in the U-19 World Cup, the Indian team has won a cliffhanger against Pakistan in a Quarter Final match. Detailed report here. On a lighter note, the Indian juniors seem to be outdoing their older counterparts in adding dramatics to the mundane. A target of 137 to be chased in 50 overs does not promise the kind of excitement that was on display today in Townsville. Come on kids....think of the cholesterol laden veins and arteries of your parents that must be bursting with anxiety each time one of you got out or decided to take a wild swipe.

India plays New Zealand in the Semi Finals who beat West Indies in a text book T20 style with an Indian origin batsman (IS Sodhi) blasting 17 runs in the final over.

Congratulations to the Indian team. Keep Roaring!!!!

Retired 'Hurt' (?)

We Indians have the rare gift of romanticizing even the least poignant of moments to degrees that can only be called out of proportion. Hence when the most magical and at times most whimsical of our famed batting quartet calls a press conference to let us know that he is hanging his boots,  we can be excused if we go a tad berserk in mouthing our astonishment. Elsewhere in the world, a 38 year old cricketer with indifferent form and of visibly inadequate fitness retiring from the arena would be a natural progression but leave it on us Indians to drum up a conspiracy theory when none exists.

Nobody in the right frame of mind can undermine the contributions of V.V.S. Laxman to India's cause in the last decade and a half or so. Be it the belligerence of Adelaide or the grit in Eden Gardens, his tag of 'Special'  is well earned. In style and poise, he probably even transcends the greatness of his fellow greats.  But let's face it, he is not age proof, he is not form proof. He is as mortal as any of us and hence when his muscles and nerves do not quite cope up with the rigors of the game, he should give up. Inner voice or no inner voice!!

White Wash

A leading wall paint brand from India has announced that it is planning to hire the services of the Indian Cricket Team for certain commercial purposes. When self declared ad-gurus jumped guns to explain the absurdity of making commercials using a team that finishes test matches in the time span of a TV advertisement and thus finds its saleability at par with that of the field hockey team from Samoa, a company official clarified that the team members will not be endorsing the product but would rather be used as consultants in the development of the brands new all weather resistant white paint. The BCCI remained unreachable for comments on this latest development but unconfirmed reports suggest that the powers that be were driving a mean hard deal with the paint company for every dime, nickel and non-existent new paisa for this deal which could herald a totally new vista of earnings.

Intrigued by this totally out of the world thinking by the company when we hit the grapevine, we came to know that the thinktank of the paint company feels that the ability of the Indian Cricket Team to get itself whitewashed in geographically and climatically diverse environments places its members in a unique position to advise the company's researchers in devising the all weather proof white paint.

A DRS'd Up Argument

Post the first day showings of Australia against an Indian bowling attack(?), the collective conscience of the country has risen up to fever pitch. The Indian bowlers who had been expected to falter like the European economy and breakdown like the Indian parliamentary system are no less clueless about their exploits than the unsuspecting Australian media and public. While Umesh Yadav had trouble realizing that leaking runs at more than five per over is so totally gross in a Test match, Zaheer wondered why the hell his team's batsmen make such a ruckus about the Oz pitches when his deliveries hardly behaved anymore venomously than the python in the Sydney zoo who had a lamb for lunch. Ishant Sharma ambled around like a sooner than expected resurrected Jesus Christ with as much interest in the game as Judas in Christmas. Yet 

Harbhajan to the Rescue of the Mentally Diseased

Harbhajan - A modern day Messiah!!

In an important press release, a leading mental health research institute of the country has announced that patients of clinical depression in the most advanced stages are responding positively to treatment after reading the latest news report that Harbhajan Singh has declared his fitness to play and desire to make it large. The accompanying report contains data from the trials conducted on the most hopeless of the patients who had found no relief for their mental agitation even after being administered with elephant tranquilizers. Reportedly, these candidates showed immediate signs of improvement after reading Bhajji's proclamations. “A few of them slept like babies” – said the beaming lead researcher.

IDEA - India Finds A Way To Win

BCCI, ever the evangelist, has come up with a revolutionary new format to bring uniformity of play in Cricket matches. The technical committee, which rushed in for an emergency session after learning that major sponsors have threatened to take their money to Hockey after India’s deplorable performance in England, has drafted a bill that suggests that all Test and ODI matches be played in a format where both teams will face the same bowling attack.

A spokesman informed that the different pitch conditions, varying weather and especially those inhumanly fast seam bowlers are seriously undermining India's prospects. To address these concerns, the board will co-ordinate a clandestine effort to replace pitch curators around the world with Indian expats who will ensure that India-like pitch conditions are enforced in all cricket grounds. This along with the new proposed format will make India absolutely invincible, if the sources are to be believed. "Weather though, still remains beyond our control" - admitted the spokesman.

A Cricketer & A Gentleman

A sombre backdrop of dark grey hue, a pregnant and threatening cloud looming in the horizon, a dusty gust of wind resonating the ring of a death bell, many a valiant warriors falling to their travails against an enemy far powerful – and you walk in. Somewhere in the minds of a billion countrymen, a bagpiper assumes a steady crescendo to the tunes of that immortal song, Amazing Grace. 

Answer To Indian Hockey’s Woes

The Angry Stick

A profoundly unemployable MBA graduate, after hearing about the shoddy treatment meted out to the players of the Hockey team from TV, has come up with a revolutionary plan to bring Hockey to the same level of popularity and prosperity as Cricket. He has charted out an exhaustive action plan to introduce reforms in the game, its marketing and broadcasting. He, of course, predicates the success of the venture on his own appointment as the CEO of Hockey India. When questioned about his experience in any form of sports management that would qualify him for the top spot, he replied that the sports body needs a fresh pair of hands to set it’s affairs straight, not some old snot. “Besides, the present guys are suffering from some form of arithmophobia. Otherwise, who could imagine that money even existed in denominations of 25000s. For getting some big money, they need a guy like me” ­– quipped the self styled consultant. We learned on further research that this fellow had managed to stay unemployed while all his classmates had netted 1.63 offers each by answering some of the most rhetorical B-School interview questions in the most unusual and absurd manner, namely -

The Reason Why Indian Team Skipped The ICC Award Ceremony

A misplaced punctuation mark and a small typo has created an international diplomatic controversy of the magnitude not seen since the time of World War II. As reported by multitude of Indian news channels with enthusiastic energy surpassing the limits of human, the Indian cricket team has snubbed the ICC by turning a No-Show in the ICC Awards ceremony. A delayed invitation was reportedly the reason behind this. But as the ICC has come up with irrefutable evidence of having sent the invite well in advance, the Indian management is now revealing the real reason behind this act.

India's Loss - Explained

You can find the audio post of this article here.

In a shocking disclosure to The Cricketist, an important member of the Indian team on conditions of strict anonymity has admitted that Stuart Broad is the only Englishman responsible for India’s disastrous tour. When The Cricketist incredulously enquired how could one person be blamed for this monster of a horror show that the Indian team has put up when each member of the English team has managed to invoke his own version of terror on them, the member grinned bitterly and pointed at an oddly pasted, semi-torn poster of Justin Bieber on the patch of wall visible from his hotel suite window and said in a broken voice, “He is responsible and so is his lookalike, Stuart Broad”.

Shocking Revelations - Munaf Is A Rock!!!

A group of extremely nerdy Indian Cricket fans, incensed by India’s latest surrender to the English in the meekest of manners, carried out a very extensive fact finding mission to determine the reason behind their beloved team’s continued misfortune. They were particularly disturbed by the mindblowingly nonchalant bowling, batting and fielding display of Munaf Patel, who according to leading psychologists of the world, needs immediate anger management lessons along with urgent help in such advanced cricketing techniques as holding a bat, throwing a ball and standing behind the stumps after having bowled a delivery. Well, the nerds managed to sneak into the dressing room after the match and got hold of some of Munaf’s saliva sample from the face of an unconscious Parthiv Patel who was severely bitten and lacerated by Munaf for having misfielded on one of his deliveries. While the nerds were collecting the sample, Parthiv mumbled in agony that he had never run faster in his life and that for all the dhoklas in the world couldn’t have dived harder to stop the boundary. Parthiv also moaned that Munaf could be a werewolf which the self styled sleuths immediately rejected as Parthiv’s injury induced delirium. One of them observed that if Munaf had even one strand of werewolf DNA in him, he would be faster than Arjuna Ranatunga. As the nerds made a clandestine exit from the dressing room, Parthiv requested them to tell his story in case he did not survive.

You Must Be Joking, Mr Hussain

Dear Mr. Hussain. As a representative of my species I must register my deep disappointment with the absolutely unfair comparison you have made between the Indian Cricket team and us, the donkeys. I have been further anguished by your continued defiance in the face of strong criticism that you have received from the public of India where me and other members of my species are held in no less esteem than the rulers of the country. You must understand that when you compared the Indian team with us, you also compared them with the politicians of the country. I will leave it to you to decide who should be more aggrieved, the cricketers or the politicos.

Parthiv Patel–The Little Big Short Ball Expert

What a summer it has been for the Indian Cricket team in England. A summer of misery, misfortune and ignominy. Not only has the fall from the top of ICC Test ranking humbled the mighty Indians, it has also left them battered and bruised both physically and mentally. There have been pulled hamstrings, twisted ankles, broken fingers and  bumped skulls. Those will be healed in time, mended back as the Lord made them. But the dents in the mind will be for there to stay. Suresh Raina will have nightmares about the booming bouncers, Sehwag will wonder why his bat kept on fishing outside the off stump, Yuvraj will not know if his any good at the five day stuff and Harbhajan Singh will search in vain for answers to his lost fang. As the tour has progressed the casualty list has grown longer but not longer than the faces of millions of Indian fans. As if the whitewash in the Tests had not been a wound deep enough, England managed to push the dagger further still with a thrilling win in the lone T20. Perhaps given this disaster raised to the power ten performance of the Indian team one cannot blame Sanjay Manjarekar for sounding out the defeatist statement that it is not fair for the Indian team to win the ODIs. In the back drop of this dark and sombre past when Parthiv Patel roars down the pitch to pull a towering Tim Bresnan out of ground imagine how many beats do the heart of the Indian fan skip. More than one for sure.

If size mattered in Cricket, Parthiv Patel would be playing a different game. Thankfully, it is the vertically challenged that have set Cricket grounds on fire. When Parthiv first came into the Indian Test team at the tender age of 17, commentators and viewers alike had him confused for a lost schoolboy. Navjot Singh Sidhu cut many jokes at the expense of the little man to great applause. He did not disappoint anyone but neither did he make himself proud. In spite of the trust of the captain he could not quite make a case for himself. Then Dhoni appeared on the scene and the wicketkeeper position of the team was permanently occupied. Since then chances have come in trickles and Parthiv has been ordinary at best. But this is not an article to discuss the Parthiv the wicketkeeper who failed to keep his place, this is a tribute to Parthiv the batsman who sneaked into the team and took everyone’s breath away, Patel style.

Do Parthiv Patel and Suresh Raina look alike? Stuart Broad and Jimmy Anderson certainly thought so, hence the short stuff came thick and fast…and went higher and faster. Anybody watching the Durham rubber when Parthiv was playing might as well have thought Brian Lara has decided to don the Indian colours. For a moment millions back in India wondered whether it was the same English attack that had India running short of tourniquet supply only a week and a half ago! It certainly was the same as Rohit Sharma found to his pain and agony. But before that, when Parthiv occupied the crease, it was as ordinary an attack as any. For once the English bowlers were not sure of their line and length and the ability to bowl 90 mph did not look like such a good thing. In a clear hangover from the Test matches they stuck to the idea of banging it short only to see the tiny Indian swivel like a helicopter rotor on his heels putting snorter after snorter away to the boundary. For all those who had their spirits low because of the absence of Gambhir and Tendulkar, these strokes must have come as unexpected bonus. And as if the disdain with power was not enough, the stylish manoeuvres towards third man showed that Parthiv Patel was not all brawn. When this mincing of the bowlers was going on one felt oddly surprised at the repeated mention of the big nought in the 100s columns in Patel’s record book, in all forms of one day cricket. How could someone who can pummel these first rate English pacers with such consummate ease not have scored a century against the weak Indian provincial bowlers on the batting paradise of Indian pitches is indeed a case to ponder on. Equally peeving was the commentators mistrust on Patel’s ability to clear the boundary. The first complaint could have been taken care of but for a mere five runs. The second one though did not go abegging.

Come Rose Bowl, Southampton and Patel Scope was extended to sixes. Tim Bresnan came steaming in, downed a short, saw Patel come steaming at him back and heave; ball crosses the boundary, all aerial. Tim Bresnan walked back, an unhappy big man. But it would go on to happen to him once more in the same over, four balls later. This time the ball does not rise as much, so Patel gets under it, pulls it up like a master, bisecting deep square leg and deep mid wicket. Brian Lara couldn’t have done it any better. Commentators, the pocket rocket can launch cricket balls out of big grounds, mind it.

It is sweet Karmic justice that Parthiv Patel is finding his touch in the same place where he first entered international arena, England. Getting selected at 17 and dropped at 19, Parthiv was always a story unfinished. He is still 26 and has just got wings under his arms. May this be the second beginning of a dream that had turned comatose.

Flickr Tags: Parthiv Patel

First Class Domestic Championships of India

With all the high profile international action going on all around the world, domestic tournaments often get relegated to the secondary citizen status in almost all media channels. Indeed, even when there is no international tournament going on but a humble Ranji trophy match being played somewhere in India, it is highly unlikely to find a report anywhere but in the most obscurest corner of the sports page of a newspaper. The lesser said about the coverage of such tournaments in the TV media the better. In the glare of of all the fanfare accorded to the big boy tournaments it is often forgotten that the players of that high stage come through the lowly grounds of regional and zone championships. Until the Indian team faces a crises of the magnitude as we are seeing now with half of the stars convalescing, Ranji performers are hardly discussed in drawing rooms. Here is an attempt by the Cricketist to acquaint its readership with the various domestic tournaments organized around the world, the structure of play, the rules and the regulations with a touch on their history. In a series of articles, we intend to cover the domestic cricket structure of all the Test playing nations. The first one is for dear motherland, India.

As an Indian, one must have heard of the following terms at random times, mentioned in passing, Duleep Trophy, Deodhar Trophy, Vijay Merchant Trophy, Cooch Behar Trophy, Ranji Trophy, NKP Salve Championship etc. Ask an average guy about these various championships and the most that he might actually be knowing is that Team India is selected from the best performers of the Ranji Trophy. But hey, isn’t that the domestic tournament of the longer version of the game? How do ODI players get selected on the basis of their performance in a 4 day (yes, a Ranji match is a 4 day affair) tournament? And what about the players who come from states that have never won a Ranji match yet are big names in the Test line up including our Captain himself. Moreover, how do the State teams get selected, from the clubs, eh? But hold on, clubs don’t play 4/5 day games. Well, do not worry if you have such questions in your mind. By the time you have read this post, you will be wise enough to hold your ground on all these topics and then some more.

STRUCTURE OF FIRST CLASS TOURNAMENTS

Click to expand

RANJI TROPHY

This is perhaps the most well known of all the domestic cricket leagues in India. The tournament is named after one of India’s first cricket legends Maharaja Ranjit Sinhji. This is the oldest cricket tournament played in India having being played since 1934-35. Every year this tournament is played between 1st of October and 15th of April. Unlike popular belief, this tournament is not played between states but different boards that are affiliated with the BCCI. That is why certain states like Gujarat and Maharashtra have more than one teams playing in the Ranjis.

Currently there are 27 teams in the Ranji league. The top 15 of these play in the Super League for the Ranji Trophy while the bottom 12 compete for the Ranji Plate. The league matches are played for points. The point distribution being as below:

Scenario	Points
Win Outright	5
Bonus Point (for innings and 10 wicket wins)	1
1st Innings Lead	3 *
No Result	1
1st Innings Deficit	1 *
Lost Outright	0

* For a drawn match. Source: Wikipedia

The interesting rule in this tournament is that while Plate and Super League matches are played separately at the league levels, at semi final stage, the topper of the Plate group gets automatic promotion to the Super League. Thus the Ranji Super League semi finals are played between the top 3 teams of the Super League and the winner of the Plate. Last years champion Rajasthan were not a part of the Super League but got a promotion by virtue of their first place finish in the Plate. At the end of each season, the bottom two teams of the Super League get relegated to the Plates while the top two of the Plates enter the Super League.

DULEEP TROPHY

This tournament is named after the nephew of Ranjit Sinhji, Kumar Duleepsinhji Jadeja. No less an illustrious cricketer than his uncle, this was what The Wisden had to say about him “In natural gifts of eye, wrist and footwork he is certainly blest far above the ordinary measure.” This tournament has been in place since 1961-62.

This is the zone level championship, one notch above the Ranji Trophy in terms of representation. The whole country is divided into 5 different zones viz. North, South, East, West and Central. This tournament is mostly played after the end of the season’s Ranji Trophy. Players for different zones are picked based on their performance in the Ranji. Unlike the Ranji trophy, this is a knock out tournament. All the matches except the Final are 4 day rubbers. The final is a 5 day match.

From 2003-04 season till the 2008 season the BCCI had experimented with a 6 team format, the sixth team being a foreign provincial side. Some of the teams that participated in the tournament were Sri Lanka A, England A and the national team of Bangladesh. The idea has since been dropped.

IRANI TROPHY

This is the pinnacle of first class domestic cricket in India. It is a one off match between the reigning Ranji Trophy winner and the Rest of India side. Quite naturally, this is one match where most of the test players participate, most often as a part of the Rest of India squad. This is also a five day match. Named after the late Z.R. Irani, this tournament has been played since 1959-60 to commemorate the silver jubilee year of the Ranji Trophy. This is the domestic season opening tournament in India where the Ranji champions get a chance to hone up their game before starting on their title defence.

Now to answer the question raised before, how do players from affiliates that have not performed well in the Ranji get to show their calibre. Well, the Duleep Trophy is the answer for that. As the Zone teams are picked up by selecting the best players from the constituent states, even a player from a lesser ranked team can get a chance to play along side the best in the business by playing for his zone. Then the question of the selection of the state teams. The states pick up players young from the Cooch Behar Trophy (Under 19) and the C.K. Nayudu Trophy (Under 22) tournaments which are the Ranji Trophy equivalents in the respective age groups. So a player who performs well in the Cooch Behar trophy will get a chance to represent his state in the C.K. Nayudu trophy. A good performance here will promote him to the Ranji squad thence to the Zone squad and finally to the National team. Sometimes, the order is not followed strictly though, especially for a Sachin Tendulkar.

Well, this post has discussed in detail the First Class tournaments played in India. We will look at the various One Day, called List A at this level, tournaments in the next post. Keep an eye on this page and wish luck to the beleaguered Indian team in England for the second ODI. Au Revoir.

The Curious Case of Praveen Kumar

For a bowler whose fastest delivery does not cross the 135 KMPH barrier to be called even a medium fast bowler is an overstatement, but for him to be considered the most potent offensive bowling option of an international side is even more unusual. Unless one has the prodigal swinging abilities and combative street-smartness of a Praveen Kumar, these are unlikely epitaphs to earn and difficult reputations to protect. For someone who has gained most of his exposure from T20 matches and the IPL to breach into Test cricket and be labelled unplayable by unsympathetic commentators, Praveen Kumar has indeed achieved a lot in a short span of time. So much so that in the absence of Zaheer Khan, it is not the heir apparent Ishant Sharma that earns the captain’s trust but this relative rookie who gets the ball tossed his way during hours of crises. Perhaps it is only befitting that when the world has decided to crucify the IPL for its derisive effects on Indian cricket a product of the same system is finding acceptance in not only the ODIs but Test matches as well.

So what works for this diminutive cricketer? The answer lies in his ability to generate swing in the most unhelpful of situations. A look at his domestic record will give a fair idea as to how this skill has served him so well in the dust bowl pitches of India.

Type	Mat	Inns	Balls	Wkts	BBI	BBM	Ave	Econ	SR	4w	5w	10
First-class	44	82	10129	199	8/68	10/160	23.44	2.76	50.8	12	14	1
List A	105		5156	151	5/32	5/32	26.34	4.62	34.1	4	2	0

Averages of 23 and 26 in Ranji Trophy and Championship matches respectively for a bowler who does not spin are worth an applause. It takes a smart cricketer to understand that bowling express in India is not likely to translate much into dismissals as the sheer deadness of the pitches nullifies whatever force may have been given to a delivery by the bowler. Movement off the pitch is also minimal thanks to the extreme fondness of Indian curators towards inflicting baldness. That leaves just one trick with the bowler to get a wicket, moving the ball in the air. Kumar must have realized this early in his career as he firmly focuses on bowling those banana swinger with no regards to lack of pace that subjected him to much criticism at the beginning of his international career. Given the nature of pitches that he has shaped his technique on, it is unwise of anyone to gainsay the sacrifice of speed for enhanced swing. In a horses for courses world, “whatever works” must be the philosophy to adhere to.

Swing bowling is no less an art form than Spin bowling which often gets venerated as more intellectual. Be it the normal In and Out swingers or the relatively modern Reverse swing, the recipe for these lethal concoctions are not for amateurs to master. It requires a unique combination of grip, wrist position, study of wind direction,  a reading of the moisture in air, ball conditioning and controlled pace to generate a particular movement in the flight path of the ball. A reverse swing cannot be delivered unless the ball is delivered at a high pace while an in swinger might come about too early to be effective if the pace is above a threshold. Those beautiful parabolas that we saw being drawn on the pitch by past masters like Wasim Akram, Waqar Younus and present performers like Jimmy Anderson or Zaheer Khan are the results of some very meticulous planning and sharp execution by the bowler. But no one delivers them with the ease of Praveen Kumar. Indeed, if he delivered those curves on the dry and lifeless Indian pitches, he must have mastered the fundamentals.

It is highly unlikely to expect India to produce tearaway fast bowlers of the Brett Lee Class any time soon. Any such bowler who may come up the ranks by virtue of domestic success would most likely have an inflated record fuelled in no small measures by the traditional frailty of Indian batsmen against genuine fast bowling. The likelihood of such bowlers finding success against more conditioned international batsmen will much depend on their ability to mix aggression with guile. In the backdrop of this, a military medium pacer like Praveen Kumar is an ideal fulcrum for he can bowl long miserly spells as he has already shown and cause corrosive damage by moving the ball like a pendulum. It will also be much wise if the coaching staff focuses' on his batting skills. He certainly has a talent for slogs but if that could be developed into a more consistent skill, India could earn an all rounder in Tests that they so badly miss. These are still early days for this cricketer but going by his exploits, we might be witnessing the birth of a true match winner.