September 10, 2010
Amid the match fixing spot fixing scandal, we have tournament. It would be nice to see some good cricket.
Mumbai play the Lions today. Since Lions are a South African side, this should be a good match. It’ll also be a good test for the Dhawans and the Tiwarys.
Here’s to good cricket!
5 Comments |
Cricket, India, Indian cricket | Tagged: Champions League 2010, Cricket, Dhawan, India, Indian cricket, Lions, Mumbai, Mumbai Indians, Saurab Tiwary, Shikar Dhawan, South Africa, T20 cricket, Tiwary |
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Posted by vmminerva
April 26, 2010
So the IPL 3 is finally over and CSK have won. But the cat-fight between Lalith Modi and BCCI has just begun. Throw in a few cabinet ministers and a intelligent, good looking, foreign educated ousted one with an attractive friend and you’ve got something that’ll do more to ad revenue than perhaps even the IPL final.
Honestly I’m quite ambivalent about the whole saga surrounding the IPL. Modi is perhaps getting more than his due for the heavy handedness that he’s personified, the BCCI may escape without getting it’s due of rotten tomatoes and worse.
On the other hand, it is sad that India and Indian cricket’s image is taking a hit; its face is now marred again with the soot of corruption and match fixing. Whether people admit it or not (for fear of BCCI’s financial clout), the skepticism surround match-fixing that was almost buried after the Sharjah era is in all fairness back. It is now almost ok to ask if the final was fixed and whether that was part of the reason for sending Pollard in down the order. But it is also baffling. Perhaps that is why I fell asleep half way through Mumbai’s innings maybe it was too lacklustre to be true (but I made up by watching the entire post match ceremony till 2 am).
This time it will take longer to douse the suspicions. But life will go on. With the T20 World Cup only days away, even before the withdrawal syndrome sets in, we’ll be discussing why Dale Steyn isn’t overrated.
6 Comments |
BCCI, Chennai, Cricket, ICC Twenty-Twenty World Cup, India, IPL, T-20 Cricket, T-20 Final | Tagged: BCCI, Chennai Super Kings, Chennai Super Kings vs. Mumbai India, CSK, Dale Steyn, IPL3, IPLGate, Lalith Modi, match fixing, Modi, Mumbai, Mumbai Indians, Shashi Tharoor, Steyn, T20, T20 cricket |
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Posted by vmminerva
April 14, 2010
One must feel for Sourav Ganguly. First there was the outburst after the loss to RCB, then this is the response. As a die-hard Sourav fan, I honestly felt for this loss of KKR, and switched off the TV midway thru the match, knowing its direction. It was like going down the memory lane thru the many defeats India suffered to a world class Australian team in the late 90s under Ganguly, the difference being that was Aus and this was merely Chennai (further, they were 50 over matches, which offers more hope for even in hopeless situations, but I will not go there now). So much for city-support, I live in Chennai and I don’t recall myself ever having supported them :), and proudly so. For more on the city support phenomenon, fellow blogger SP has a full fledged post here.
Feelings apart, KKR need to perform a lot better than this to deserve a place in the semis. The top order almost never fire; if they do, the middle order flops. Despite all odds, if they happen to put up a decent total, the bowlers find a way to mess it up royally. The team management seriously need to think about Ajit Agarkar’s place in team. It was shocking that he managed to get several games.
It will be interesting to see who all will qualify for the semis. Only Mumbai have a confirmed spot. KKR will now have to beat Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai with a very good run rate and hope the other results go their way.
4 Comments |
Chennai, Cricket, Ganguly, India, India-Aus series, Indian cricket, IPL, Sourav Ganguly, T-20 Cricket | Tagged: Agarkar, Ajit Agarkar, Chennai, Chennai Super Kings, Cricket, CSK, Ganguly, Ind-Aus series, India, Indian Premier League, IPL, IPL semi final, IPL3, KKR, Kolkata, Kolkata Knight Riders, Mumbai Indians, Rajastan Royals, Sourav Ganguly, T20, T20 cricket |
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Posted by vmminerva
March 20, 2010
This promises to be a cracker. Mumbai have won all that they have played and Bangalore the last two.
I would pip Bangalore here on momentum. But there are weaknesses, esp when batting first. Bowling has been traditionally good, going by last season’s standard; however this is India and the conditions in Mumbai may not be like last match’s Bangalore track. Kallis and Dravid are the staples, one can expect at least 60 from them put togather, if not more. Uthappa is a wild cracker – it may burst big or just fizzle out.
Mumbai have the Jayasuriya factor. Tiwary and Rayudu are also doing well. But the bowling can be suspect at time.
Can’t wait for 8pm.
4 Comments |
Cricket, Dravid, India, Indian cricket, IPL, Robin Uthappa, T-20 Cricket | Tagged: Bangalore, Cricket, Dravid, Indian cricket, Indian Premier League, IPL, IPL 3, Jacques Kallis, Jayasuriya, Kallis, Kumar Sangakkara, Mumbai, Mumbai Indians, Rahul Dravid, Rayudu, Robin Uthappa, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Sanath Jayasuriya, Tiwary, Uthappa |
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Posted by vmminerva
March 12, 2010
Today is the day. The Monster returns to India and we can hear the crass jingle. Controversies apart, despite my ambivalence towards T20 and the IPL itself, I must admit that I am a bit excited.
Teams I will be supporting this year :
Kolkata Knight Riders – KKR – Wishing Dada and SRK some luck
Delhi Daredevils – DD – A team with Sehwag in it deserves to win
Bangalore Royal Challengers – RCB – Gotta like Kumble, Dravid, et all
Indifferent about:
Chennai Super Kings – CSK – Flat track bullies
Mumbai Indians – MI – Really, if they don’t make it to the top 4 this time, there is no excuse
Kings XI Punjab – (what’s their acronym really?) – Snore…
Batsmen I will be watching for:
Virender Sehwag – Viru, show us the Say-Wah!g
Sourav Ganguly – a true Dada fan will not lose an opportunity to scream DA-DA!
Mathew Hayden – Mongoose bat or not, he will be one to watch out for
Adam Gilchrist – Too many blistering innings to not watch this man
Rahul Dravid – A from-the-heart Dravid fan will always be rooting for RD!
Others – Greame Smith, Virat Kohli, Shane Warne, Sangakkara, Jayasuriya, Tendulkar, JP Duminy.. this list will grow!
5 Comments |
Anil Kumble, Cricket, Dravid, Ganguly, India, Indian cricket, IPL, Kumble, Mathew Hayden, Rahul Dravid, Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly, T-20 Cricket, Tendulkar | Tagged: Adam Gilchrist, Anil Kumble, Bangalore Royal Challengers, Chennai Super Kings, Cricket, CSK, Dada, DD, Delhi Daredevils, Dravid, Ganguly, Gilchrist, Gilly, Greame Smith, India, Indian Premier League, IPL, IPL 3, IPL Season 3, IPL T20, Jayasuriya, JP Duminy, Kings XI Punjab, KKR, Kolkata Knight Riders, Kumble, Matthew Hayden, MI, Mongoose bat, Mumbai Indians, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Sangakkara, Sehwag, Shane Warne, Sourav Ganguly, T20, Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Virender Sehwag |
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Posted by vmminerva