The Shetty Life-Cricket theory

I am not claiming any patent here. Nor am I gonna give lectures on this theory. Precisely because India being a cricket centric country, I am sure there are many proponents of the said practice below, but may have not expressed this in full context.

At times when I am down on ideas and need a way out of situations, there is this brainwave - of converting the situation in context of a cricket match.

Simple examples - If there is a lot of work pending and very little time, term it as - "Thats a high Required Run rate". Then think like a batsman in a pressure situation and play it like a game. It has worked.

When there is a long drawn work, testing your mettle and patience - "Its a test match."

Converting situations thus way helps take a layer of pressure off the heart. I say heart because of tendency to bring an emotional angle into issues. Like self-blaming and self-pitying on outcomes of plausible cause analysis. For some the emotional angle takes a better turn, where one pushes oneself emotionally to take charge and manage the situation. Somehow I tend to twine myself into further knots and get impossibly tangled in a utter mess.

Making it into a game increases the scope of a clear analysis. But you do need to process your analysis quickly though. You cant waste too much time equating every factor.

The clarity comes because you keep the analysis light. In a middle of a game you have a target, you need to make a game plan/strategy. But its not some pen and paper chalked detailed analytical plan. Its an instinct driven, learn on the move plan. Your bullish on winning and grab at whatever oppurtunities that present itself(No balls & free hits, power play, extras{freebies}).

Back in 10th (ICSE Boards) drew a World League Plan format. Presuming myself to be the Indian team, I converted the subjects into different teams. Simple factors for classifaction was - Difficulty, trickiness and favouritism.

For example there may be subjects which could be easy, but you could make silly errors. E.g. Mathematics. Make that Bangladesh, if you slip - they pounce on you! Then there is History - Long and strong portion - Australia.

I dont remember the order I used then, but using the logic I designated teams to each of the 11 exams, perhaps making A teams too.

After the exams - at night when I would take a walk I would review the performance. Areas where I didnt get an answer = a wicket. Marks = Runs. By the end of the walk I was done thinking about that subject and move on to the next.

I was stuck in a rut recently.  Everything seemed to be going wrong. A series of mistakes and close to break down point. Then try to load this theory. Didn't work out.

And out of the blue I remembered Sachin Tendulkar. Grateful am I to the back of my mind. Sachin is not my god, but is definately one of the ideals. I just remembered how this man for a period of 21 years, has had his life intervened by the media. There is the media, the public which makes him God one moment and Devil the next. One bad series is enough to rouse national hatred. He is not inhumane that he can merely deflect criticism.

If he has the capacity to sustain an international colonoscopy of his life & performances, I am sure I can take little pow and wow once in a while.

And chart a comeback path staying focused at it. Absorption is the key; whatever helps you stay focused in the 'game', do it.

The Grand Indian Puppet Show

I was 12, taking part in a kids function.
Every year we would have a puppet show, but this time, the directors came up with a new concept. A 'human puppet' show.

I got to be the protagonist, main puppet i.e. All I had to initiate was facial expressions, rest of my movements, dialogue was read out from behind.

Then happened the glitch, my 'puppeteer' pulled me out of the scene. The threads tied around my wrists were being yanked by her. I protested by refusing to move. But she pulled me out anyways. But - the ppl reading the dialogues, unaware of the mess, went on reading.

But at least she apologized when she realized her mistake.

BCCI, owners of the most popular & talented set of puppets, seem least concerned to show any empathy towards the upkeep of their prized assets.

Puppet show is the biggest passion of Indians worldwide, regardless of citizenship. Erstwhile known as cricket, this new sport has stormed the entertainment and sports industry across the world(14 countries) often blurring the difference between the two.

Their shows may have had ups and downs, but commercial interest- brand endorsements, sponsorships- have never dipped.

And betting on this craze, the BCCI, created the grand Indian Puppet League.

It was a festival of great joy, as the indian puppets along with select offshore item numbers were auctioned off to welcoming harems.

But the game changer was the grand world cup. It wasn't a surprise that they put on the best show, the irony was that some members of the Indian govt. didn't allow the original world cup, to be lifted by their own Indian team, which is run by top govt. officials.

This years show scheduling has been intense for the Indian artistes. South Africa --> warm up matches --> world cup --> Indian puppet league --> Caribbean shows --> "the marquee" England tour--> champions league --> West indians in India --> England in India --> the kangaroos down under.

Not as much as 3-4 day gap between them. This has taken a toll on the performers, and they have been lackluster, specially in the marquee series.

MS Dhoni, lead puppet -"lack of rest has affected our performance." This seemed the only honest statement, rest of it was to the BCCI script.

When contacted about the issue, BCCI officials had to say that they were playing to the demand, and that everyone has to sacrifice at some point.

"Do you know how much effort it takes to plan these shows? To count the money? Elections and selections? That's just some of it." - an official who declined to be named said.

There have been major upheavals. They recently ousted one of the key puppeteers, L Modi. Among oother things, he was accused of having ownership in some of the franchises of the puppet league.

Though the league still functions in the same way, as it was before, except for the after-show parties being cancelled.

The move to oust him was headed by N Srinivasan, now Principal of the BCCI puppet shows, also owner of one of the IPL teams, which won the IPL last two times. Just saying.

So the future of Indian puppet shows, entails on the grand audition - IPL- who also have a chance to star in the five day shows, if they just stick around for a while. As characters storm in or limp out of the stage, no matter what the script has in store.

Move over IPL, the real WAR begins NOW!!

While IPL is stuck in a smog thicker than the ones you could find in London, the Sunny Caribbean will witness the Battle of the Nations, which I promise you should throw up a lot more excitement than what the IPL managed this year.

T20 over the years has proven it self to be more of the Battle of nerves, rather than might. If you don't believe me ask the Australian side, who have a 100% loss record against Zimbabwe in T20.

Why I expect this to be the mother of all competitions is -

1. Its not franchise & payment which is gonna push the players. Its national pride, which can produce the most brilliant of performances.
2. Teams & players would have studied each other intensely during the IPL and CLT20
3. Like I said before its the battle of nerves, not might.

Adam Gilchrist was asked before one of the IPL matches - " what counts more in T20? Individual performance or a Game Plan?" " I think Both" came the reply.

That very match, his team did well to reduce MI to 98/5, but then out of nowhere Bhajji brought out an ultimate thriller of an innings to make 49* and snap Gilly in the first over. So you never till the last minute who could be the winner. The only exception being if teams batting second get a slow start, it won't be easy to make up for it in the end.

An ideal composition of the team should be -

A swashbuckling opener - e.g. Warner
An opener with silky touch - e.g. Gambhir or Kallis - who can play a support role to no.1
The guy going one down should be ready to play a contingency role more often than never.

The middle order should be able to adjust their gear according to the situation. But ideally they should get a hang of the wicket before going for the big shots. A batting wicketkeeper is more of a requirement nowadays than just a bonus.

Now comes the bowling options. Two spinners and two pacers? Or a spinner and three pacemen. The latter plan may work early in the tournament, but as the tourney progresses, spinners will play a more vital role. Those who have effective part time bowlers like Yusuf Pathan and Raina, will reap some more economical overs. This is where India and Pakistan stand to gain.

So there is no point in chalking out favorites yet. There are enough elements to make this is an evenly contested affair. ( As I write Ireland are reduced to 37/5 by Afghanistan)

Pitches are gonna be slow & turning and 160 wouldn't be a bad total. So till then Game on.

I will be coming up with group wise form assessment shortly.

An ideal Cricket Administration.

The administration first of all needs a group of tough heads to govern it. They should be united and have promotion of cricket as their primary concern. An ideal mix would be - Say a board of 5-6 persons - A CEO, 2-3 ex-cricketers, a financial consultant, an enterprising business man (Modi Types) and other required support staff. 

It is important that the ex-cricketers take active part in the administration of the sports body. The ultimate purpose of a cricket administration should to be facilitate cricket being played int he country. However Modi & co. have re-defined that. The reasons for employing ex-cricketers -

1. They form the bridge between the admin and the players(both together referred to as 2 parties form hereon). They will help facilitate flow of communication between the two parties, as they are in light of both the player issues and the admin issues. 
2. Perfect mediators between the 2 parties in-case of any confrontation.
3. Will not let the board over burden the players with excess matches and tours.
4. Will have promotion of cricket as primary concern, above profit motives.

The admin also needs a CEO, who will be the face of the Board. He should -

1. stay in touch with the regional boards
2. interact with the media, Govt.( wherever applicable- e.g. Pakistan), the ICC
3. Get the best deals and agreements in aid of the the country's cricket.
4. one of the ex-cricketers could take a CEO's job, provided he can take the pressure and the challenges that also come along with it.

Financial Consultant -

1. The ex-cricketers cannot manage the finances; the CEO would be too busy to manage it. Hence a bunch of wise-guys should manage it
2. 2) An internal finance team might just dabble the finances a bit more than required( leaks, controversies etc.) The financial consultant is simply told to count the numbers and provide solution while fulfilling the Boards goals and programs.

A business man -

• Lalit Modi is one person whom I ahte and like at the same time. i hate him for over-commercialising cricket, but like what's he done for Indian Cricket. We've got a brand new international extravaganza, whose brand value is almost close to the World Cup. The IPL was shifted to South Africa at a very short notice with flawless execution. The IPL has helped generate a new breed of world class players - who may have found it difficult otherwise to make it to the national team.

The Team Staff -

 A head coach, a coach for bowling/batting/fielding each and the other support staff. 

The head coach should focus more on building a strong team. He should be more of an observer, leader and motivator. He should have a clear idea in mind what he expects from his team and his plan of action. He should have an assistant who sits for all the domestic games and observe and recruit future potentials.

Selectors -

Ex-cricketers and the Coach should be on the selection board. Parity to all the members, but the coach should have a greater say in the selection. No regional quotas, no regional selectors.

An independent auditor- Weed out all possible corruption and controversies.

If all these back end factors are in place, then it creates a better environment to get the best out of your players.

What say?

 

Ani da comments on latest news

Kapil Sibal to monitor to get cracking on universities-
Owing to the cash fr seat controversy, Mr. Sibal wants 2 crackdwn on all pvt. univs. Bravo Sir! Tht should win you some votes and media garlands, but will tht solve our education crisis? The reason 'cash-for-seat' exists is bcos of shortage of seats. So new universities, nd faculty training is the need of the hour sir.

DMK to not support PSU disinvestments-
Sure, but where do u propose to get from the funds to run the govt.(or maintain ur bungalows)?

Australia out of Twenty20 WC-
Not surprising. They cant play spin, hole out slow deliveries, Bracken-Lee flopped and they sent back Symmo. Need more reasons? But they never say die. They'll slog it out and come better nezt year.

I'll b there for u -
Thts wht BJP must've said while handing ovr the white lotus(with saffron flushed out aftr d results) to the new govt. Will b interesting to watch this. Will they sit quiet n allow UPA to run away with d accoladws,wid big-ticket legislations?