I am back in this space after a hiatus of 3 busy months. And yeah ofcourse I had to break the shackles, with cricket, again ! Lot of things happened in the past 2 weeks in the Twenty20 World cup and lot has been written already. But I just want to put down few thoughts of my own. Once again it is in South Africa that India has put to rest the demons that arose from the World cup in the Caribbean.
Indian were clearly the underdogs, the least experienced in the T20 format, having played only on e game before this World Cup. Australia and Sri Lanka were touted as the favorites to start with. But the line up for semi finals is rather a surprising one. England lost their way completely in the Super Eights, even though they were the one who initiated the shortest version of cricket and supposed to be the most experienced. South Africa done themselves in against India, after being confused about which target they were chasing. Sounds familar, eh? Graeme Smith chose the word 'disappointed' about his team's performance, probably he could not think of any other word. They were below par even by the fielding standards of India, let alone that of a team coached by Jonty. The name Philander always struck a chord with me (People who read my article on names will know my penchant for amusing names), but only in this game did I realize the true meaning of his name. Phil means loving (as in Philanthropist) and I have my own interpretation of his name. Once again, no offence meant ! Philander as I came to think of it meant Phil+squander, one who loves to squander. He dropped two catches and then when SA would have wanted him to make amends by atleast nudging singles around, to make sure they were still in contention. Infact I was thinking that Graeme Smith would have serious words with him after the game, 'coz they cannot afford to play Aussies with this standard of fielding. As it turns out Smith was spared the trouble. However, SA have yet again slipped when it mattered the most.
Australia finally showed why they are at the helm for ages. They have this ability to raise their game at the most important time. Even though they had a dismal start to the proceedings, they eventually found a way out, thanks mainly to the openers and Stuart Clark. And then there is Pakistan, who shocked themselves against India, much to the happiness of Indian fans, but kept their wits together to ensure a spot in finals. Malik just hit a six to complete the formalities, as am writing this. They would meet either Australia or India in the finals. If it is Australia vs Pakistan, then it would be a one sided game in favor of Australia, even though history says otherwise. If at all it is Pakistan vs India (yeah, I still feel there is an outside chance that India will make it), then it is going to be the most intense match of the entire tournament (that would be a fitting finale for this wonderful tournament)....
Newzealand has been the eternal semi finalists, barring the one time when they won the ICC Knockout beating India in the finals. For the first time, their top order fired in this match only to lose the game. Pakistan were more than happy to chase as they have done successfully, ofcourse except against India, where they managed a tie. Sri Lanka were the favorites along with Australia, but after Jayasuriya failed to give them the starts they wanted, they faltered against the rejuvenated Aussies and the Inspired Pakistanis. And finally, India, who were thought as the underdogs. But little did people know that Dhoni would play the cards to perfection to script 2 emphatic wins, and they were within a hand's reach against kiwis only to blow it away in the end. Dhoni has showed he possesses all the qualities that a leader should have at the highest level. But still its been only a few games and hope he continues doing it in the longer version (oh yeah, ODI is the longer version and Test the longest). He has received excellent support from the young team who have all played their roles to perfection so far. However, they will be tested a lot against the mighty Oz, and India need to maintain the fielding standard they exhibited against SA. Yet, they need to stop spraying the ball around, if they fancy their chances of making to the final, especially Sreesanth. Alright the game is just 45 min away and lets see how the Indians fare against the Aussies. While many people frown upon the shortest format, we should not forget it was conceived to entertain people (ofcourse not to forget the money involved) and it has lived upto the expectations !
Indian were clearly the underdogs, the least experienced in the T20 format, having played only on e game before this World Cup. Australia and Sri Lanka were touted as the favorites to start with. But the line up for semi finals is rather a surprising one. England lost their way completely in the Super Eights, even though they were the one who initiated the shortest version of cricket and supposed to be the most experienced. South Africa done themselves in against India, after being confused about which target they were chasing. Sounds familar, eh? Graeme Smith chose the word 'disappointed' about his team's performance, probably he could not think of any other word. They were below par even by the fielding standards of India, let alone that of a team coached by Jonty. The name Philander always struck a chord with me (People who read my article on names will know my penchant for amusing names), but only in this game did I realize the true meaning of his name. Phil means loving (as in Philanthropist) and I have my own interpretation of his name. Once again, no offence meant ! Philander as I came to think of it meant Phil+squander, one who loves to squander. He dropped two catches and then when SA would have wanted him to make amends by atleast nudging singles around, to make sure they were still in contention. Infact I was thinking that Graeme Smith would have serious words with him after the game, 'coz they cannot afford to play Aussies with this standard of fielding. As it turns out Smith was spared the trouble. However, SA have yet again slipped when it mattered the most.
Australia finally showed why they are at the helm for ages. They have this ability to raise their game at the most important time. Even though they had a dismal start to the proceedings, they eventually found a way out, thanks mainly to the openers and Stuart Clark. And then there is Pakistan, who shocked themselves against India, much to the happiness of Indian fans, but kept their wits together to ensure a spot in finals. Malik just hit a six to complete the formalities, as am writing this. They would meet either Australia or India in the finals. If it is Australia vs Pakistan, then it would be a one sided game in favor of Australia, even though history says otherwise. If at all it is Pakistan vs India (yeah, I still feel there is an outside chance that India will make it), then it is going to be the most intense match of the entire tournament (that would be a fitting finale for this wonderful tournament)....
Newzealand has been the eternal semi finalists, barring the one time when they won the ICC Knockout beating India in the finals. For the first time, their top order fired in this match only to lose the game. Pakistan were more than happy to chase as they have done successfully, ofcourse except against India, where they managed a tie. Sri Lanka were the favorites along with Australia, but after Jayasuriya failed to give them the starts they wanted, they faltered against the rejuvenated Aussies and the Inspired Pakistanis. And finally, India, who were thought as the underdogs. But little did people know that Dhoni would play the cards to perfection to script 2 emphatic wins, and they were within a hand's reach against kiwis only to blow it away in the end. Dhoni has showed he possesses all the qualities that a leader should have at the highest level. But still its been only a few games and hope he continues doing it in the longer version (oh yeah, ODI is the longer version and Test the longest). He has received excellent support from the young team who have all played their roles to perfection so far. However, they will be tested a lot against the mighty Oz, and India need to maintain the fielding standard they exhibited against SA. Yet, they need to stop spraying the ball around, if they fancy their chances of making to the final, especially Sreesanth. Alright the game is just 45 min away and lets see how the Indians fare against the Aussies. While many people frown upon the shortest format, we should not forget it was conceived to entertain people (ofcourse not to forget the money involved) and it has lived upto the expectations !
No comments:
Post a Comment