The flame of passion...

I got super excited when I saw Steve Smith's Instagram story (Ageas bowl picture) today and I cannot wait to see him play!  For someone who started as a spinner batting at No.8 to a test batsman No.1 now... that is some journey. All the coaches and coaching manuals go out of the window the moment we look at Smith. They talk about technique,stance, grace etc. being as per the book. He is a brilliant example of ' be yourself' and do what works for you, no matter who says what! Moving his back foot 'across the wicket' 'outside off stump' and front foot in 'front of leg stump' before the ball is delivered, is completely by his own book. We do not see batsman moving around when they are about to face a ball but the way fidgets or leaves the ball is totally unorthodox and probably irritates the bowlers too, but it has worked wonders for him. Imagine how many people would have told him that his technique or style is wrong! Did he care? No! All he did was do...

On top of my weekend to - do list is to read Ben Stokes’ autobiography – ON FIRE, which my dear friend gifted me. With that thought, my mind wandered towards the autobiographies of other cricketers that I have read, especially Shane Warne’s ‘No Spin’. It is unbelievable how you know some things in life and think that it is obvious but when you read about them in a book, it just sticks in a different way and makes you think.   There are some things like that in Warnie’s book that I want to share from the 1999 WC & the Aus tour of SL.  I need to call out an incident to start with: In the 1999 Australia tour of West Indies, Australia were 2-1 down in the series after 3 tests (5 match series), thanks to Brian Lara’s brilliance. Warne was the Vice captain but wasn’t bowling well. Steve Waugh dropped him for the 4 th test and Warne felt let down as he thought he had always backed Steve. Their relationship had turned sour. After this series, it was time for the World cup in...

To start with...find Dhoni in the pic.... As people become famous, it is very natural for them to want more of the ‘spotlight’ and attention and to do everything on a grand scale. There are very few who run away from it and Dhoni is a prime example. The question I keep asking is -  for such a big star, how could he be low- key and down to earth so ‘consistently’? How can he not feel the pressure to change? The answer I guess lies in being ‘authentic’. He never let his authentic-self die in the process of becoming a world icon. He also never let the game and fame get to his head. It takes something to be like that in India. It has been fun to see how he has managed to fool all of us : his wedding, test retirement or retirement from limited overs. Every single person who watches cricket has been guessing and I will be shocked if even 1 person claims to have got it right.   He gave us so many leadership gems by just being in the background .   He is a live example of the “le...

In 2007,I had almost quit watching cricket due to the match fixing issue. Then,  the T20 WC happened. Nobody gave us a chance. Dhoni  led a young team to SA at a tough time,when India did not even want to play T20 cricket! He re-ignited my passion for the game not because we won but because of the way we won. We  were used to captains with drooping shoulders,frowns on faces in a tough situation. Here  he was..not an emotion on the face,just going about his job and his mind working faster than a computer. He led with empathy,made the team believe and with that the nation started believing. It  was refreshing,humble leadership on display. Who would have given Joginder the last over of a WC when Harbhajan had 1 over left? I,for sure,would'nt have! His words to Joginder before the last over was leadership magic-"Whatever the result, be confident you have my support’. I was also at an important stage in my life with 5 months to go for my wedding. My  then fiance...

I always knew this day would come but the news is difficult to swallow, now that it is official. Fortunate to have been part of his last ODI in India at Ranchi and the world cup semi final.. I started watching cricket because of Sachin Tendulkar...Started believing because of Saurav... and Enjoyed all big tournament victories because of an amazing leader who has been a mystery to everyone.. Again... he retired in his style...you can guess as much as you want but you will never be able to read his mind.  There are few images that give me immense pain in my life as a cricket fan and that image of Dhoni being short of the crease by inches in the world cup semi is right up there...Guptill was in the tournament just for that moment.. We generally remember the crowd noise at a stadium but I can still feel the silence at the Old Trafford stadium. More than being a great captain and player...thanks Mahi for being such a humble human being. Thanks for always putting India above everything e...