Tuesday, November 8, 2016

New face of Indian Cricket - 4

The Indian cricket team is on the verge of playing England in the middle of a grueling home season. To go back to the famous Ashis Nandy line, "Cricket is an Indian game accidentally discovered by the English." England has won their last three Test series against India, but this time they are branding themselves as “massive underdogs”. Despite of many pundits writing England off, one must look for Captain Cook leading from the front for a tough duel. Grit, Aggression, and looking for results will be the highlights of the series.

The coaching job went into the hands of Anil Kumble mid of this year. It's unreasonable to expect extraordinary work from someone who isn't trusted to create it. Indian camp has the highest regard for Ravi Shastri as a professional cricketer and wanted to be the transition to be smooth as possible.  It is argued that the game comes easier to the greats, making the coach's job of solving problems of average or even good players much more difficult. There is a counterargument in the case of bowlers because they have more understanding of cricket to survive in the batsman-friendly era. Indians hope that the Kumble Kohli partnership can go for establishing India in good records in abroad too. Both of them has forged relationship, mentored the team sensibly, and taken decisions under pressure in the right manner in all the tours.

There is an ongoing state of conflict between the philosophy of aggressive dominant style and playing the match scenario. The parameter for the judgment was fixated on the strike rate of batsmen. With Kumble in the coach position, the debate of batsmen around grafter and entertainer in test matches is quite settled and limited to a positive approach only. Any team in the subcontinent did not need to score at a rate deemed attractive to the public, but in their understated way can decide the outcome of the series. Batting seems counterintuitive in nature on days 4-5 in India. With the turning tracks in the picture, the batting unit needs to use their feet and maneuver the ball and get more singles and twos before going for boundaries.

Test cricket is not a finishing school for the players but a first-time series in the subcontinent for English cricketers will be baptism by spin and reverse swing. As a debutant, every player wants to feel belonged on their first days at work. Ben Duckett, Haseeb Hameed, Hardik Pandya & Karun Nair will catch the eyes of the public with their intent and performance in this series. The selection woes continue with the search for and fast-bowling all-rounder. We waited for the system to produce, rather than for us to actively promote. Sometimes, selectors pick players depending on what future tours are in mind.  Amid great negative reaction to the selection of Hardik Pandya, let us recall a quote by John Wright - “The key is to identify the right players to back. They must have reasonable ability and technique, but you must understand that certain players might not be as talented as others, but boy, they have big hearts and a huge desire to succeed. Those guys, and teams with that attitude, will always surprise you.” In the dynamic of the selection, selectors must explain why certain players have been taken based on potential and why few else have been subjected to limited chance. All players possess basic levels of natural talent to reach the highest level and then it becomes a question of temperament and self-belief. The self-belief to turn it on when it really mattered was the trademark of Kevin Pietersen.

Let us applaud Indians for using the Decision Review System (DRS) in the test series. Stars are born in tough situations & qualities like character, holding up under pressure, and putting your hand up to do the tough task will be scrutinized in this tour.  For too long, however, India has been a story mostly of potential. Turning possibility into reality will demand a greater focus on winning test matches ruthlessly. India should be ready enough in international cricket to start dominating Test matches and win those crucial situations and sessions. That’s how India can become a better team.

Thursday, December 31, 2015

Books Read in 2015

Annus mirabilis is a Latin phrase that means wonderful year or "year of miracles". This year was wonderful in more nihilistic sense. I was able to complete only three books despite of ample time. I remain connected to Facebook and whats-app. That is clear symptom of distraction by technology. I need to create tech free zone around me in the era of techno-utopianism. Personal reform is always an active choice. It involves to do something that isn't default and must be applied with rigor in disciplined way.

I might have been victim of the slow kind of destruction due to many days & nights of loneliness. It just erodes enthusiasm and put reading habit in demise. The anxiety due to monotonous life became irrepressible leading to mental frailness. Even if I was doing everything right to read books but not able to progress beyond few pages. When I don’t read books or watch movies– always having stock of them – and then I “surf” them.

I have wasted a lot of time in surfing news articles on the internet. This addictive habit is going out of control for me. In this random news readings, I enjoyed words of Sanjay Manjrekar and Akash Chopra. There is strong element of lethargy in this reader's block. The lack of concentration, anxiety and work related exhaustion are minor elements of the whole story. Even the longest rope will fall short if I don't take a more strict and passionate approach towards reading. Excessive self-pity has its own psychological quirks. Hence, I would buck up for the challenge of reading 26 books in the new year. As Mark Twain wrote on New Year’s Day in 1863, “Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual.”

Books Read in 2015:

1. Inferno - Dan Brown -English - 8/10 - An interesting and stylish read but lacking content level of previous novels.

2. Hind Swaraj - Mahatma Gandhi - Hindi - 7/10 - Honest opinion to be read for understanding conditions of India through personal lens.

3. Poor Economics - Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo - English - 9/10 - Refreshing book with clear evidences to work at micro level to alleviate global poverty.

4. Wisdom of Ants - Shankar Jaganathan -English - 7/10-  A good book for the beginners on the history of economics

Monday, October 26, 2015

Something like an autobiography - 600

“Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout with some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon whom one can neither resist nor understand.” - George Orwell

I had a background of literate and disciplined family, but there was slow development of character in the life who doesn't have any rigid sense of social morality. I tried hard to develop my own sense of just and liberal values. If I say that is easy, that will be gross lie. Putting that in the words of John Maynard Keynes’ belief that the difficulty lies not so much in developing new ideas as in escaping old ones. But solitude always gave me an opportunity to re-define myself as a person and unlearn whatever I have learnt all these years as a bachelor. This was achieved only through lot of writings on the blog.
I have survived engineering and wandered into strange paths to tell the tale of traveler. These records of 600 Posts are record of this illusion, confidence and chaos of innermost me. Reading Sparsh, readers will find out what it means to excitement in learning new, failing in projects and start from scratch in the youth of one's life. I would say about initial posts has to do with unresolved anger and that brought catharsis to me.
I use my personal blog like a memory bank, to drop in my idle thoughts and reflections about development so I can find them later. This blog has acted as a powerful catalyst to develop ideas. My blog is at its most useful when it reaches beyond few and starts to create an alternative view. This blog provide a special kind of sanctuary to me, to the rest of the world. Yet, I don't want to be exhausted only with civic duties by tweeting and blogging. The best part is to have never written for prize, fame and money.
I had slowed down writing on this blog for a while and shifted attention to my new blog. In the history of any art,game & science, no-one has ever saw a player get better by doing less work. 600 Post is a long journey for an isolated and boring individual. I may become perhaps more infamous, for an incisive critique of XIMB,IT-BHU, religion and mostly society. But I have learnt an unwelcome art of living alone or with few friends (both admirers and critics included). In the business startup or literary world, you're either a genius or an idiot. One can never became just an ordinary guy trying to get through the day. When this world of words is inhabited by you voluntarily and habitually, then a sense of carefree inhibit in you. A sense of indifference slowly creeps in the mind and work of author. I don’t quite know why I write it today. I assume I write it because it fascinates me.
The way I approach each write-up is, “let’s not keep any great ideas in reserve – let’s use them all". There should not be holding back and each words must be an expression of something rather than cliche. The content is neglected in favor of the wrapping for showcase.  I read somewhere that to write is human, to edit divine. First draft by heart and then editing comes with head. Never modify writing even to sound more, ahem, erudite.  
A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without putting a word on paper. Good writers always pay attention to craft and read to steal tricks and moves from authors they admire. I had written by by thinking, feeling, referencing, cheating, borrowing and even stealing works of the eminent people. This was supplemented with the facts and always leaving possibility of open discourse. 
Today, I thanks BLOGGER.COM with the free service of publishing leading to a great way to spark a conversation. Most of the stuff I write appears as garbage with the passage of time. But, it is necessary for me to convey my thoughts in the words. For those of us writing in blog, it is a privilege. This freedom comes with the responsibility of having to know what one is talking about.