The swordmanship of Kohli

Virat Kohli is a tattooed swordsman who knows how to paint with his sword.

One who wears his heart on his sleeves, Kohli has always dared to express his emotions on field. Not one to shy away from difficult situations whether it is a fight on the field or a verbal duel, Kohli has also shown he has the stomach to learn from his mistakes.

For someone who has been in fluent form for what seems forever, Kohli has shown that words such as "form" doesn't exits in his lexican. His shots against Australia tonight at the World twenty20 were all copybook cricketing shots, whether it was the leg glances, cover drives, straight drives or the shots where he opened the face of the bat at the last moment or the pulls using his bottomhand. Each of these shots would have made his icon Sachin Tendulkar proud.

The way he ran between the wickets seemed he could have given Usain Bolt a complex. Yuvraj Singh, despite all the good intentions, had slowed the chase because he was not able to respond to Kohli's calls for twos. But that didn't upset Kohli, instead the Delhi cricketer dug his heels and kept walking slowy and steadily towards the target, knowing fully well his time will come.

This innings once again proves that he has reached a stage where he dictates the terms of his innings. The maturity he shows on field has glossed over the brazenness that gave him bad press in the past. It seems he has a compass inside his head which knows which way to go, something which works on auto-mode. It only proves that in no time, he has become one of the cricketing geniuses who will end at the top spot in the hall of fame.

There is no doubt, Kohli will go down in history as the best batsmen in the world because never ever in the history of international cricket, any other batsmen has won his team more matches from such precarious situation. Not even legendary Sachin Tendulkar. Even Australia's Mike Hussey and Michael Bevan will take a bow before this new master of cricket. He certainly shut a certain Mitchell Johnson, who will be eating his words!!!

When Tendulkar walks into the fading sun

The Masterblaster finally walks into the fading sun, a world sighs in pain. we could see it coming but there was a sense of suspended disbelief and we wanted to avoid this moment. We wanted to play along and avoid topics of your retirement.

Sometimes we switched off the TV when the anchors discussed your future with so much seriousness. We often cursed those anchors and sometimes even swore at them: 'why can't they just leave him alone', we would say. 


But its time now and no matter how much we try, the moment of truth has arrived. Probably someone like me would tell myself that it has not arrived yet. Still the 200th test is due, still that day is due, still that moment has not arrived when the stadium stands up on its feet and bows to you for one last moment. 

You know, Sachin, when you hanged your boots in the one-dayer, I felt cheated because you didn't give me and zillions like me a chance to say goodbye but this time, at least the fans will have enough time to pacify their sobbing heart and hold their breath and surrender to that moment of truth and smile faintly but proudly when you raise your bat and walk out of the battle field, where you scripted so many memorable wins. 

I had so much to say to you but I could never tel you that. Even when I had the 
opportunity of talking to you over the phone once, I could barely speak my heart 
out to you. It was the highlight of my short sport journalism career. I, however, 
did tel you that I belong to a place called 'Silchar' and I could not hide my excitement and happiness when you mentioned about your innings which you played at the DSA ground in the 1990s. It was a rare moment for me.

I was happy because, I could tell you that your fans are not only in the metros but also in the far-fetched land of the northeastern corner of the country. Like me, there were thousands and lakhs here in my small town, who revered you and worshiped you like God, who picked up the cricket bat because they saw you on the TV one day in their childhood, playing that perfect cover drive or pull shot or your trademark straight drive.

Now when I sit down and think about you, there is another moment that comes flashing in my mind's eyes. It was first and the only time when I had seen you, sitting less than 10 feet from me, addressing a press conference during the Indian premier League at the ferozshah kotla ground. I had to get over my amazement to 
listen to what you were saying because I had a job to do. But to be frank, I didn't remember anything after that because all that I could remember was the feeling when the GOD brushed aside me and standing there less than one feet away from you, I had already frozen in time. I could feel how time slowed down at that moment and I could actually gauge your height.

I had so much to write but even now words doesn't come easy, it never does when it is about the God of cricket. It won't be an exaggeration to say that when you go, the game will lose its soul for many, cricket will lose many fans and for me, with you a little bit of me wil also lose its identity that day on your 200th test.

Why Roy should choose Pune's name properly?

'IPL' delivered two more babies recently and doctor Modi have said no more babies for the next seven years.

Well, even as the babies (different fathers) are yet to open their eyes and the world awaits their 'Naming Ceremony', it has raised quite a lot of concerns in the heart of the IPL aficionados.

Shakespeare might have said, "what's in a name?". Reality is it remains the first indication as how a team fares.

If we look at history, Rajasthan named themselves 'Royals' and so they were crowned in the first edition. Although Punjab got the hint they lost the plot naming 'XI Kings'. Ditto is the case with Chennai, who over did it by adding a Super, hoping to get a super-duper result, only to falter time and again.

Going by the same logic, one might challenge the downfall of the Royals in South Africa but one has to consider that Royals in India doesn't guarantee you the crown in a foreign country. No doubt, Modi hurriedly brought the IPL back to India.


To win in another country, you need to have challenging capability, you need to have the audacity to charge, to display some daredevilry, which brings us to the success of teams like Royal 'Challengers', Deccan 'Chargers' and Delhi 'Daredevils' in South Africa.

So now that he is one of the proud father of one of the babies, the onus is on Subroto Roy to name his kid properly.

Considering Sahara's pioneering efforts with the Indian cricket team, He might name it as 'Pune Pioneers' or 'Pune Paragons'.

I am not too sure about his obsession towards animals but if he had one or still has one, Roy might go for 'Pune Panthers' (speed is the key here) or 'Pune Porcupines' (no one can lock horns with them) or if he wants his members to have a permanent purple patch then the name can be 'Pune Purple martens'.

Knowing his business acumen, Roy can also go for a name which reflects the things he deals in. In that case, 'Pune Pilots' (keeping in mind his aviation industry) could be an option or may be 'Pune propellers'. What say?

Dhoni misses the Dusshera point

'Captain cool' MSD have lost it. Many would say it was a strategical error but I feel it was a logical error and a lack of out-of-the-box thinking that left India in the corner after their suspended match against Australia yesterday.

Desperate times ask for desperate action and MSD should have taken a leaf out of Paddy Upton's book and should have done some head scratching before going into the match.

Or how else would you explain Dhoni's decision to go with a squad like that on the eve of Dusshera and Dasami, the day when the Ram slayed Ravana and Durga returned back to her husband Maha Dev Shiv's residence.

If you remember correctly, Dhoni had the correct recipe to slay this Ricky 'Ravana' Ponting and his 10 heads. The only thing he needed to do was to bring on the mythological characters of Indian cricket.

Say a (VVS) 'LAXMAN' and (Sridharan) 'SRI RAM' in the opening slot would have given the Ricky-avanas a nightmare.

Bring 'SHIV' (sundar Prasad) and (Dinesh) 'KARTHICK', (Dodda) 'GANESH' and And then 'LAXMI' (Ratan Shukla) next and you would have had a perfect Mythological team which would have surely attained divine powers on the holy day of Dusshera.

So there you realize now what a blunder MSD did. They were there all the while but it's only that our captain cool missed the point.

From being a reticent coach to sex guru, Gary Kirsten's life has gone through a complete U turn, a diametrically opposite curve which he himself must be having difficult to fathom.

It's as bizarre as like travelling through Antartica and suddenly finding the sun shining brightly or may be you are standing amidst a pile of sand in some corner of Sahara desert and it starts snowing from nowhere.

Even the bollywood potboilers couldn't have come out with a more thrilling and topsy-turvy script, but that's truth, that life. I feel bad for the man and pity for the journo who for the heck of some publicity and for being famous did such a thing.

I wanted to write a satirical piece but I didn't coz something stopped me. I wish Mr Journo had his facts in the files and heart in the right place before filing the story.

Journalism is intoxicating, my friend. It kills U!!!

PCB : Another epic in making

Get over the twists and turns and mind-boggling plots of 'Ramayana', 'Mahabharata' and 'Bible' or the 'Lord of the rings'(LOTR) and 'Harry Potters'(HP). They might be considered the greatest epics but there is something much more thrilling, edgy, clumsy and confusing brewing in our neighbourhood.

Pakistan 'Circus' Board ... urrr ... sorry ... I meant the Pakistan Cricket Board has the potential of being one of the greatest story never told.

Intertwined with truth, lies and betrayal, PCB has been the centre of attention (if not attraction) among the cricketing world for quite sometime now.

Now, who can beat this?

Qadir, Sohail resign, while Altaf was sacked -- all within three months -- and now Butt is in line. None is spared, if some players are dope-tainted, officials are corruption-tainted.

Younis, Intikhab, Shahid, Asif, Akhtar -- everyday throws a new face, a new story, a new twist in the tale which never cease to surprise you.

Well, that was for the general information but here comes the scoop.

According to surveys/research and data received here LOTR and HP directors are planning to make a movie on this potential-to-be-the-greatest epic.

Well, rumours are also ripe that Khushwant Singh is fed up of dyeing his hair and before dying, he is dying to write the greatest epic of his lifetime and with his 'Train to Pakistan' connection, he can well come out with a masterpiece.

But here also an Indian will have to fight it out with JK Rowling, who is according to sources is not too happy with her Harry Potter series and wants to write a masterpiece before she dies.

Meanwhile, Shashi Tharoor has also decided to come out of the 'Shadows across the playing field' and join the field instead and might partner one of the protagonist of the would-be book.

Well, I don't want to sound too ambitious but who knows I myself could be the next Valmiki or JRR Tolkien. So, WATCH THIS SPACE!!!

Ploys for Aussie Boys!!!

Battered and bruised in the Lord Test, Australia is still licking its wounds. While the tongue is busy lapping over its injuries caused by England, the eyes and ears are working as a radar to catch any (however trivial it may sound) news that can help them to save their skins. According to highly dis-placed sources, Australian players have taken it as a mission to teach the Englishmen a lesson and are employing some logic-defying and head-spinning ploys. Here are few of them:

1. Squirming from the wrath and curse of his mother, Mitch-es has decided to get over the glitches by brokering a cordial relation between his karateka girl-friend and his melodramatic mother and has contacted the king-of-melodrama Karan Johar, who has advised Mitch-es a twin dose: Watch K-3-G in the morning and K-A-N-K in the night and if that doesn't cure the sore, watch Sooraj R. Barjatya's H-S-S-H.

2. To get over the nightmare of Lords and seek divine intervention, skipper Ricky Ponting has rushed to the ghats of Vanarasi in the disguise of sadhus and stared awe-struck at the God's eye and sources say he also clicked a photo which he plans to keep in his left pocket like former skipper Steve Waugh during the rest of the Ashes series.

3. With arch-rivals Australia and New Zealand coming closer , a divine-struck Punter is convinced it is yet another call of the Almighty and so he has asked Cricket Australia to approach New Zealand Cricket Board to sent born-again Shane Bond to Edgbaston in place of a injury-struck Bret Lee.

4. Shane Watson's divine truth about Australia has set the players in a soul-searching mode and Punter has decided to leave all practice session in the backburner and look for some innovation in sledging and coach and players are idea-ting all day long to come up with some camouflaged version of sledging.

IPL ordeal over?

The IPL is finally over
After more than a month show
But the horrors still hover
they just doesn't seem to go

It was a month-long ordeal
giving scribes many a sleepless night
As the players fought in South Africa
we burnt our fingers all night

While Cricketers made fireworks on field
corporates danced their way to bank
the Tinsel town also had the cake
just we had our hands blank

Come June and another circus
another ordeal will begin
As countries clash for T20 world cup
we will fight to save our skin