Indian Premier League For Cricket

finishes the job. Scripting a victory worth that is one of best in recent memory.

A strong self-belief is driving the Indians. In the past the side would have just caved in under the pressure of scoring 400 odd runs. But Viru showed the way and the others simply followed in his path. In Sehwag India have found a true match-winner. He along with Gambhir gave India a rollicking start that completely demoralised the English. After his departure early next day, came Sachin and Yuvaraj to complete the task with 20 odd overs to spare. It looks like 20-20 cricket has surely made the Indians a lot more confident in their own abilities. Fast scoring and aggression which is the hallmark of 20-20 cricket has made Tests much more fun.

For more than 3 days England side dominated the show.They were all set to wrap up the match if India didn’t manage a draw. But the complexion of the match changed with Sehwag coming out to bat on the fourth day. He simply belted the ball all over the place like he was playing in a 20-20 match not a Test match. Soon he had scored 85 runs completely dominating the bowlers and demoralizing them.  Gamhir played more sedately from the other end. With Sehwag’s departure early on the 5th day things looked a little more iffy. Gambhir and VVS added a few more runs and departed soon. Dravid’s luck hadn’t turned yet and he went cheaply putting India under slight pressure. In came Yuvaraj and Sachin to bat majestically and with mastery to script a famous victory on a crumbly pitch.

Getting such a huge score on a 5th day wicket when the ball was bouncing unevenly in such a manner is indeed wonderful. It was fitting tribute to Mumbai after the massacre last month. The Chennai Test will be remembered as one of best come from behind victories for India. Dhoni called it the toughest win of his short career 4 test matches as captain.

This should give every member of the team tremendous confidence that they can win in the most of impossible of situations. Congratulations to the Indian team and management for a famous win.

Chennai was chosen as the venue for the test match between India and England. Mumbai which faced a horrific terror attack last month was the original location for the Test. But with the security situation being very fragile in Mumbai, England was not ready to play and wanted to abandon the whole series and in fact flew back to England. After efforts by the BCCI and the ECB it was decided to change the venues and dates for the matches and re-arrange the whole series.

The other casuality is of course the Champions League which was to have started Dec 03. No dates have been announced yet.

The terror attacks seem to have wider ramifications for cricket. Pakistan has seen few cricket tours in the past couple of years because of dangerous security situation. Now, India joins the ranks with the most horrific terrorist attack ever seen. Young men armed to the teeth went on a rampage in crowded places, in profile areas and randomly killed people without any remorse. After, seeing the terrifying visuals on television not many would venture to watch a cricket match. Neither do the cricketers from other countries want to play in India.

But India is the most powerful cricketing nation in the world. We have thousands of youngsters playing cricket, we have the richest cricketing body in the world, we have the biggest endorsements and biggest cricketing stars, we have the biggest fan base and we have the richest cricketing league. So, not playing cricket in India will suck the life out of cricket. Sri Lanka has had a civil war for years, Zimbabwe has its racial and corruption issues, Pakistan has turned too dangerous but still cricket was not as threatened as it is today.

India is the lifeline for cricket and not having cricket in India will mean the end of the game as we know it today.

So, what direction will cricket take? How will the future of cricket be affected?

Will terrorism spell the doom for cricket and many other things we enjoy as our freedoms in a democratic India?

Share your thoughts.

Mumbai’s the target of one of most sophisticated and well-planned terror attacks the world has ever seen is finally seeing some sort of closure. The Champions League which was to have kicked off next week stands postponed. Most of the teams were to have stayed in the Iconic Taj Mahal hotel which now stands a shadow of its former self. Many floors are gutted, their’s been immense amount of damage to this most elegant of hotels. It’s understandable if the teams don’t want to come out now. But this country and this city will bounce back. We always have. But this time we will not forget. We will remember what has been done to us. We will be vigilant. My salute to the brave men of the armed forces, the commandos, the para-military forces, the police and hundreds of victims both rich and poor, people from all nations, all religions. We will not forget your sacrifices. Goodbye

English decided to fly back after the terrorists attacked many iconic places in Mumbai and took several people including foreigners hostage.

It’s one more horrible reminder of how vulnerable we are to terrorists. These guys came in boats and started firing on innocent people in hotels, train stations and roads.  Our top police and commandos have been killed in the attack.