T20 Inaugural World Cup 2007– A rare title triumph for India

When asked how he would keep his feet on the ground after winning the title. "Maybe," he said, "I can retire from cricket." – Dhoni, Indian Skipper 2007.

A rare and a special moment. India clinches the T20 world cup in a thriller.

The new child of cricket, yet to take its place in the world cricket, could not have asked for a better propaganda, could not have dreamt of a final like this. India vs. Pakistan in the finals, 40-over match with victory playing peek-a-boo with both the teams, before saying “booooo……….” and extending its hands for a warm embrace to India. That is India vs. Pakistan for us.

Amidst the tense moments, a few “aaaa…s” and a few “ooo…s” and a few heart-stopping moments, India has done it! Sweeping aside the hurt of ICC world championship, we WON a nail-biting thriller. We are the champions and we deserve every bit of it; the victory, the celebration, the stardom.

Gambhir’s fearless batting allowed us to pose a respectable total. And R.P.Singh shall now become a HERO for Indian cricket with his performance in T20. Little to choose between Irphan Pathan’s crucial middle-over spell, Joginder Sharma’s final over, Uttapa’s run out and Sreesanth’s wicket among his frenzied rhythm, India has clinched the title. Whatever Sreesanth fouled in his bowling, he made up for it in his wicket of Sohail tanvir and his catch of Misbah who threatened and almost took away the match from us. With world cup at stake, and a thousand eyes watching the ball and a few million hearts in their throats and team-mates hopes on him, only he shall know how he did it. Clinging onto the ball with his life, he signalled the close of the match. After two weeks of outstanding, back to back performances from team India against England, South Africa, Australia and Pakistan, India won the inaugural world T20 championship at the Wanderers.

Again the cricket fanatics, the same fanatics who burned the effigies of our team India a few months ago, shall start worshipping these new heroes and start expecting the unreachable… and so, before our cricket loses its beauty, thanks to the craziness of the fans… thanks to the media hype with the polls, tarot cards, discussions and voting, let us savour this victory. Let us drain our highly emotional quotient completely and celebrate while the victory is still alive and fresh. Let us join hands in applauding the young team who played fearlessly with unity and was led by a person who still has a long way to go in cricket. The beauty of this victory is its freshness and the passion with which the game was played. This team came in with the least expectations and enjoyed their game. Held their nerve and played cricket in its true beauty. The tune of this new team sounds melodious. Let us allow them to bask in this glory for a few days.

Twenty20 Championship… FINAL: India vs. Pakistan 2007

A torrent of emotions is running through me today. Woke up with the hope of seeing India rising again and with a hope that Indian Cricket does have a future, however tiny it may seem, after the retirement of the three legends of the current Indian cricket.

As every Indian, I too felt despondent at the exit from the world cup, not so much for the exit but for the way the exit happened. With Dravid relinquishing the responsibility of skipper, felt even lost as I felt no one is willing to take this Indian team into their arms and cuddle and protect them from the demands of modern day cricket. To say that it is OK to lose as long as you give your best. With the wall crumbling, felt that the anchor is lost. And it felt good to see that all hope is not lost and the young India is shouting and beating its heart with a rare passion and saying Chak De India… calling to attention to all those who wrote off the team.

I could not digest the shock of Dravid’s decision, however perfect it may be. Though it is early to comment on the captaincy of Dhoni, it feels fresh to see the team without the seniors and the big names creating ripples on the news front.

The dream final, yet to unfold, promises to be a seat-edge thriller. With the drama and passion of India-Pakistan match, with the ferocity of a world cup final, where teams are battling against the remnant memories of ICC World championship, this match promises to be breath-taking. And yet again, India proved the world wrong. Written off, isolated, without a coach and the batting greats in the team, there was not much to ask for. But they rose above the expectations, like a ball hit hard on the ground… only to reach higher rewriting the script and it couldn’t have been written better.

Yuvraj, a person with talent that was promising and a rare skill came unleashed like an inferno, blasting everything that came his way. Playing with an adeptness of sourav and Sachin, he moved into an iconic status over-night. It is scary, this kind of star-dom. Left out of the team, this persona of good talent, who kept fighting for his place in the team, now looks ahead into his role as a finisher in the ODIs and to lend a credibility to batting in tests. But only if he continues to keep knocking on the door does the opportunity open up to him. He now created an opportunity and it is up to him to reach the heights he dreamed of, when he started playing this game.

Taking it one day at a time, the resurgence of Indian cricket sounds promising. This new child of cricket seems entertaining and more demanding and only time can tell its influence. As the current life style, short and demanding, this is only for the fittest of the sport, with a will to hold their nerve.

Wishing India success…

Chak De India!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Awesome is the word that comes to the mind. What is this Chak de fever anyways?

Well, it’s a movie, so the winning part is inevitable. With all due respects to the sporting personalities in India, who have the killer instinct in them, winning is not just about will and perseverance. It also requires athletes who have the ability to endure the toughest of the challenges thrown at them. It is about their walk up the alpine peak and though a major part is a mind game, another 35% is the athleticism in the individuals. So are we having those muscles here, who can make India proud? Who can put India back onto the map again?

Anyway, let aside the movie, what is its undercurrent theme?
It’s about the fight of a man who raises above his inner conflicts to do the job he loves. Accepting the responsibility of a task that is nearly impossible and to tune the mediocre people who have little interest in hockey to world champions is not an easy task. But, coach Kabir Khan does it. Accepts it, challenges it and wins over it. It shows a person willing to accept the challenges and face the consequences for what he accepts. It is about a person who has the courage to raise above his inner turmoil.

It is about the girls who compete not just to win the cup but to fight against the egos of all the male chauvinists. It is about the women who have to fight not just for what they love but against the male egos to reach what they aspire for. Every step forward, they cross the barriers of the society and they symbolize the growing independence of the women in our country.

This movie is a call to all of us to raise above caste, creed and gender to help ourselves and our nation to move forward, to compete with each other yet work together to bring the best from within us. This movie tells us to focus on the journey and that the end shall take care of itself. Above all, it reminds us to identify ourselves as Indians and to put in effort to reach success.