SOME GOOD NEWS AND SOME MORE !!!

Yippie !!! Finally the splint on the finger is gone... the broken bone has aligned itself back in its designated position... and i no longer need to to worry abt it when i play again...

After the big victory last month, we had 2 victories this month... so, now we are on a winning streak of 3 matches... and if one washed out match is considered, then we are unbeaten for 4 matches now... And we have also won all our road games this season... feels good to be on the roll...

The first match this month was against a local team... this team is one of the 6 teams who share the home ground... this team had won 5 games in a row this season... some of its players used to play for our team some time back... So, basically, every player knows every other player's game... as the cliche goes in international cricket -- its just a matter of who plays well on the day... and boy, did we play well?

Skippy lost the toss and had to bowl first... got to a great start and at one point of time, the batting team was 73/9... then they had a small partnership for the last wicket... they were allout for 95... This is the first time when we got any team all out for a sub-100 score while bowling first...

Second half was marvellous... first 2 deliveries of our batting -- both the openers were dropped on the first delivery they faced... we made them pay for it... we scored 101/1 in 7.4 overs... yes, we thrashed them out of the game...

Next game was in Richmond... so, we had to leave at 7 am to reach Richmond in time... we batted first... our best batsman got out for a duck in the first over... the other opener busted his knee a few days back, but played this match and made 43... others chipped in with 10s and 20s... at one point of time, we were in a spot of bother at 130 odd for 6 down... but one guy held it all together and made 56 not out... we reached 206 for 8 in the stipulated 35 overs... decent and defendable score...

When we bowled, we really didnt get the start which we get usually... i was marauded in my 2nd over but came back to get their best batsman out... at one point of time, they were cruising on to win... but we kept our cool... our spinners really choked them with some excellent bowling... they shared 7 wickets amongst themselves, the skipper grabbing a 5-fer... they lost their last 6 wickets in 7 overs... it was a great performance, especially, the way we kept our cool when they were going good...

So, eventually, a full day well spent at Richmond... had'nt eaten even one morsel in the whole day till the match was over and was surviving only on gatorade... came home and gobbled another pizza...

In the meanwhile, I have volunteered to be the webmaster for the club's website... Its something creative and i am enjoying doing it... Pls visit it and let me know ur feedback and suggestions to make it better...
http://www.durhamcricketclub.net

Have another game this weekend, with another local team... will keep all of u posted...
HAVING A BAD 2007 !!!

How has the year of 2007 been for you so far?

Well, it has not been good for Preity Zinta... and she mentions the reasons, to Karan Johar in his talk show... Apparently, 2007 has been a bad year for her because --
  • her 2 films have flopped,
  • her dog died and
  • she was stung by a bee...

Life is bad isnt it? Just dont know what more to add here!!!

THE COLOR OF MONEY !!!

Here's my 2 pennies worth about the latest Indian coach fiasco... Umpteen blogs and articles have been written to crucify the BCCI for the whole incident... Me too jumping on the bandwagon...

The real reason behind this whole issue is as fishy as Bob Woolmer's death... No one knows whether Graham Ford declined the offer because less pay was offered or because he was pissed off with the behavior of the Board or whether he was just try to get a better bargain from Kent... The fact is that he has gone scot-free and BCCI has fallen flat on its face...

But, as the cliché goes, every cloud has a silver lining... I see something good in this whole drama... For once, its good to see someone think rationally and not just go weak in the knees seeing the greens of money... For once, its good to see that even today there are people who think that its better to do a small job with a small pay properly instead of a big job with a huge pay in a messy way... Feels good when someone shows the money-blinded BCCI honchos that money is not everything...

Hope they understand that the fans don't want to see 100 ODIs every year from Timbaktoo to Honolulu... Hope they understand that there will come a time when out of sheer disgust of excess, the fans will stop watching cricket... Hope they accept the reality which is staring them right at their face...

Only if the Pawars and the Modis and the Bindras were listening…
FEELS GOOD TO BE A KID AGAIN

A few days ago, I was chatting with my colleagues over coffee and somehow the discussion drifted towards our age (literally)... Both my colleagues were surprised to learn that I am just 27... Last month, my cricket club team members gave it a shot to calculate the average age of the team and they too were surprised to hear that I was 27... They were also happy that I brought the average age down by a few notches as our team can really qualify to be a Daddy team... (sometimes we also joke that our team's real name is Daddy Cricket Club and not Durham Cricket Club)... This is not the first time that I have seen jaws hang after I mention my age... Even my wife says that I am a 27 yr old who behaves like a 35 yr old...

Well, something happened recently that I can hold as an exhibit against all these dropping jaws (and no, not against my wife... I need a house to stay... I agree with her that I am 35) in the court of Age proving my youth...

As I mentioned in one of my previous blogs (THAT WINNING FEELING), I broke my finger during THAT match... I visited the doctor and he found out that I broke the ring finger on my left hand... He asked me to wear a splint for 6 weeks so that the bones align themselves back into position... He also asked me to come back in 3 weeks for a checkup to monitor the progress in the finger...

The first 3 weeks passed by quickly and before the visit to the doc, I really could not feel any pain or discomfort in the finger and I was hoping that he would allow me to get rid of the splint and that I can get back to my cricket...

But then, when I visited the doc, he just asked me how the finger felt... I replied in the affirmative... he didn't even bother to have a look and just said -- as I quote him -- "Nikhil, even though u feel good, we will keep the splint on your finger for 3 more weeks... bones don't heal so fast in your age... 3 weeks were enough only if u are 10 yr old... u are 27 (yes, with a jaw-dropping WHAT???) and bones don't heal very fast at this age... "

I felt like hitting him (with the non-broken hand of course)... not coz he said I was old... I don't care abt it... but coz he passed the judgment without even peeking at the finger... And I voiced my displeasure... he was stubborn but probably he felt that he was not doing the right thing... And asked me to get an x-ray of the finger with a caveat that this is just to make me feel good...

The x-ray justified my confidence... the bone was right there in place, sitting like a king back in its throne... then he said these words -- as I quote him again -- This is one of the most amazing recoveries I have seen in my entire medical career... your bone has healed like it was never broken... boy, aren't u a ten yr old from inside? U r a kid...

From that time, I am smiling... At least someone is calling me a 10 yr old... Someone agrees that I am a kid... Dropping jaws, its good to laugh at yourself...

And wifey, the doctor is wrong... I agree with you that I am 35... please open the door when I come home today evening...
THANDA THANDA COOL COOL...

Yesterday, I had a oil massage using a scented oil, which I have been using for some years now... Its red and scented due to various herbal extracts present in the oil... On using this oil for a hair massage, it smells very nice (i love the smell and my wifey hates it) and gives a cool sensation to the scalp... Its very relaxing to just sit out in the open air after having this massage, with the cool breeze making the scalp feel even cooler... Some of u might have heard about the oil as "Thanda Thanda cool cool" oil...

Well, the intention of this blog is not to advertise or to create a brand awareness for this oil... The reason for this is, for some time now, that immense sense of relaxation and satisfaction has been missing from that massage... I was trying to analyze it and thats when I realized whats missing !!!

In Bangalore, after every haircut, I used to ask the barber to give a massage with this oil... He used to drench my hair with that oil and then use a machine which had lots of vibrating springs to give a massage... This machine used to give an awesome massage and make one totally unwind for those 5-10 minutes... The walk back home from the salon would be the best... Walking next to a cricket ground, where the wannabe Tendulkars and Irfan Pathans used to showcase their talents, the cool breeze made one forget all the worries and tensions... I really used to feel "Thanda Thanda Cool Cool"...

But then, is this what makes the massage very satisfying... NO... It was something else... The 10 Re tip to the barber used to bring a smile on his face... this smile used to make the massage most satisfying... The broad smile with which he would welcome you on your next visit... The anticipation of that 10 Re tip brought an extra vigor to his nimble fingers and the massage used to be all the more pleasant...

Now there is no "real" smile on the face of my barber even though I hand a 2$ tip every time... Its just a courteous profession plastic smile... there is no walk back home, coz i have to drive, with being careful of not ruining the seat... There is no oil massage, instead you can get a hairgel to make sure that ur hair is set properly... The hot dry temperature doesnt allow me to sit in the patio...

I no longer feel "Thanda Thanda Cool Cool"...
THE POWER OF INDIAN DIASPORA

A couple of months ago, I moved (yes... again !!!)... this time to North Carolina... Whenever I told about my move to this place, the standard reaction was... "Again???" to "Why?" to "Oh!!! North Carolina? Its a beautiful place !!!" to "Tired of snow? Moving South?"... But every reaction invariably used to end with "There are many Indians in that area..."

So, as a Least Common Factor (arithmetic anyone?) of all the reactions, I was looking forward to the Indian community in Cary... First few days, I really did not see so many Indians to shock me... But, then this happened...

I was searching on the net if any nearby theaters show Indian Movies... Usually, if there is any sizeable Indian population, then some theater giants occasionally show some (read Big Banner) Indian movies... Places like NJ have more than one such theatres... But then, these movies don't have intervals... Sometimes it can be a pain in some loooooong movies... Also, there is nothing Indian to eat in these theaters.. Not a very pleasant experience if u don't like popcorn and pretzels and candy...

But, this theater in Cary shows at least 3 Indian movies at the same time... And it does not show only Big Banner movies... It shows almost all the Indian movies which are released in the US... This gave me a pleasant shock... I mean, the sheer number of Indians in the area has forced a theater company to alter its policy to this extent... Its heartening to see this... But then when we went to the movie theater, it was really shocking... This is really a "INDIAN" movie theater... There is a 10 minute interval where one can get free refills (yes... FREE...) of popcorn and soda... We get samosas, Indian tea, Indian coffee and (hold ur breath...) Kurkure... yes, the same Indian Kurkure on the menu... totally Indianized theater...

Well, if this is not enough... this theater has a website where you can even suggest the Regional movies you want to see... if there are sufficient requests, then the theater shows regional movies too... Currently, it is showing a 3-4 Telugu movies, 1-2 Tamil movies, a Jewish Festival etc...

This same theater is showing all the World Cup matches on the big screen... the World Cup for just for 25$... I am sure there wont be even 1 theater in India which will be showing the entire World Cup... There are instances where Indian matches and Semifinals and Finals are shown in theaters... But the entire World Cup? No way...

This was shocking... I mean, do we Indians really have the power to Indianize an entity to this extent? There are a few other instances of such population power exhibited by Indians....

1 - Most of the Cricket World Cup packages over the internet have "India-Only" packages where the subscriber can see India's matches... for relatively lesser cost compared to the entire package...

2 - My cricket team once played in a tournament in Boston... there were a whopping 72 7-a-side teams in that tournament... Can u believe... 72 Indian teams in a local cricket tournament in the US... wow!!!

3 - The temple in Boston gets legal permission from the police to light fire-crackers for Diwali... I am sure that there are many other temples which will be getting such permissions... As far as I know, the only day when one can light firecrackers in US is the 4th of July... Can the Indians have so much population power to make a country change its laws?

4 - There are so many Motels in the US which are owned by people with surname of Patel that the Motels are now called as Potels... same abt Gas stations and Subways and Dunkin Donuts outlets...

5 - Indian curry is apparently so famous in UK that it features regularly on the dinner menu official functions of the Queen...

6 - A Tours and Travel Giant organizes "Indianized" tours where all the tourists are Indian and the breakfasts and lunches and dinners are Indian cuisines... You get Idlis and Dosas and Indian Sandwiches for breakfast... You get bhel-puri and pani-puri for evening snacks... You can get Pav Bhaji and CHole-puri for dinners...

7 - There are umpteen Indian eating places near Niagara falls... You can eat any and every Indian food you can think of there... I have been there twice and believe me, it is as good as any Indian outlet in Bangalore and Bombay...

If this is what one generation of Indian expats can do, imagine what we can do with 100 billion people at our disposal... Only IF it is harnessed to its full potential... the Big IF...

Makes me smile and then I await the day when I can go to the South Beach in Miami and have chats and pani-puri and ice-golas and pav-bhaji and chana-chor on stalls lined next to the beach...

Or, have Wada Pavs and Tea and Coffee shops in the Rest Areas and Service Areas of I-95 when I drive from Boston to Philly... Its possible guys, just needs one visionary to realize the dream...
THAT WINNING FEELING !!!

Date -- 05/13/2007
Place -- Hobson, NC
Venue -- Hobson Cricket Ground.


Something really special happened this day... After my move to NC, i joined a Cricket club called Durham Cricket Club near my new place... Its a good team and it feels nice to be a part of one... Good positive vibe in the team... No attitude on the field and nice camaraderie off the field...

They had an absolute humdinger of a season last year... This season though, we started on a wrong foot... we lost our first match to a very good team and after setting the parity even in the next match, we again slipped due to overconfidence... this places us in a very precarious position where we have to win almost every match to make it to the playoffs...

The first step in this direction would be the most difficult... our next match was against 3 time championship winners HPCC (High Point cricket Club)... Yes, they are the best team in the 4 states of NC, SC, VA and GA... They have an absolutely unbeatable team... they have been undefeated at home for 3 seasons... So, our first step was to defeat the 3-yr regional champions at their home ground... To make matters worse, a couple of our players decided to celebrate mother's day instead of playing the game and one fella couldnt make it due to a medical emergency...

So, with this intention in mind, we arrived at Hobson Cricket ground very early... The intensity was very obvious... by the time our van reached the ground, rest of the team was already pounding the training nets... At the same time, no one from their team could be seen… Only their captain was on the field, setting up the logistics... Clear sign of over confidence… Not that we mind it… its good to be an underdog once in a while...

Our skipper won the toss and we decided to take a positive approach to the game by batting first... Desperate times, desperate measures... Hence new openers... they did their job... gave us the first century opening stand... quick wickets followed... but still, we had 20-25 runs per partnership... we couldn't give that final blast, but still, one of the openers stayed till the end and made a century... we crossed that elusive 200 run mark... first half well done...

Second half was executed with equal clinical efficiency... no catches dropped... good fielding... and hitting the blows when it mattered the most... with every falling wicket, our chins were up and chests were puffed and heads were high but our feet stayed on the ground... We did the right things at the right time... Eventually, David slaughtered Goliath... we won by 50 odd runs...

I was not a part of team when they won their first match and hence, this was my first win with this team... The experience was simply awesome... just to go to the other team's tent at the end of the match and be able to look directly into their eyes and give them a CONSOLATION "Well Played" is a feeling everyone should experience at least once in their life...

I broke my finger during the 2nd innings early on, but still stayed on the field until the end... feel good abt it... that's my only contribution in the victory...

Last year, I won just one League game and one Friendly game with my club... I was on the receiving end more often than not... Only the haunting memories of losing from winning positions remain with me...

But this time, it feels really good... the broken finger doesn't ache that much... the fact that i will be out for 6 weeks doesn't really pain that much... the feeling is good...

After the game, we went to celebrate the victory with a Pizza... Believe me friends, Jalapeno pizza never tasted sweeter!!!