INDIA WIN

2 medals at the Olympics. Sushil Kumar, a bronze in wrestling, and Vijender Kumar in the boxing ring. The latter has a chance to go on and make a bid for a medal of higher value, as he has assured himself of at least a bronze by reaching the semi-final.

On a less important note, the highly overpaid cricketers of this country scraped past a measly Lankan total with just 3 wickets to spare.

I hope these sporting stalwarts receive the recognition and monetary reward they are due from the Government. It will be a shame if we ever hear of Olympic medals being sold in the face of poverty.

Slap 'n' stick comedy

Remember that bowler named Sree,
From beautiful God's own country?
At the end of a match
Only a slap did he catch,
At the hands of a gent named Bhajji.

Poor Sree, he shed tears galore,
And for the cam, wept some more.
Some asked for Bhajji's head.
Some begged pardon instead.
Said 'His passion just came to the fore.'

Much remorse to the table did Bhajji bring
When he sat down with the Judicial Ring.
Said "Sree is my brother,
I love him like no other."
And so Sree became Sri Santa Singh.

For better, for verse

Now there was a man named Singh.
Hitting sixes he said was his thing.
He once hit six in a row,
And earned a few crore
Now he's less batsman, more bling.

Mallika after Kirsten?

Why not?

I like the idea of Mallika's forehand going down the line every time someone misfields, bowls a wide, gets out for a duck etc. (Ugly aur Pagli has 99 references to the afore mentioned forehand.)

Statutory warning: The boys in blue might just take their eyes off the ball in order to receive a forehand at the hands of this delicious damsel.

It doesn't get verse than this.

There was a captain named Dhoni.
Said, 'I don't play just for the money'.
The reasons for our defeat,
Can be blamed on tired feet
And a choc-a-bloc itinerary.

The Board came back all flared.
'Go if you're tired' they dared.
'The IPL was the best
Time for you to rest
Now let us of your tirade be spared.'

So off he went on his much needed break
But not so long that his wallet would ache
Then he'd come back and win.
Master Murali-Mendis' spin.
And thus he did for his country's sake?

Alas the plot went ding dong
Someone sang another song.
The Indian team lost,
Gave credit to the host,
And Dhoni said, 'We read the pitch wrong'.


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Ding dong bell,
Dhoni's in the well.
Who put him in?
A big mouth and foot within.

M&M, not so sweet

Sri Lanka 600 for 6. With more centurions than the average Roman regiment.

India 223 for 10. Following on, 138 for 10. Ajantha was tremendis. And Murali's balls, well clear of Hair, crashed through Indian reputations and defences with predictable regularity.

Mendis finished with 8. Murali finished with 11. And India were well, just finished.

We come back again in a few days for another contest between the Paper Tigers and the Lankan Lions. It starts at Galle on July 31, 2008, and will in all likelihood hardly resemble a contest. (Just for the record, 'Galle' and 'maul' rhyme. Please note that I pointed it out first)

Till then, click here for a blast from the past.

Tennis the Mendis

With a grip on the cherry similar to that used by tweakers in the tennis ball version of the game, Ajantha Mendis is the latest virus willow wielders are facing up to. He's turned the ball, Sri Lanka's fortunes and a few batting averages the other way. Never has rush hour traffic back to the Indian dressing room been observed with a spinner operating.
And going by Ajantha's Asia Cup heroics on a flat, batting wicket, it looks like the Emerald Isle has found the successor to King Murali's throne.

More stats on Ajantha Mendis here.

Batch of 1983

This day, 25 years ago, they turned world champions of cricket.

It happened last night

4 overs
1 maiden
9 runs
1 wicket

Shaun Pollock for the Mumbai Indians against the Chennai Super Kings.

Incidentally, he's retired from international cricket. As they say, it's a funny game.

Going public

The team's performance in cricket's summer slam has pasted a big, bold 'UNCOOL' on brand Royal Challenge. And Mr. Mallya's performance in going public with internal affairs only adds a bad taste.

Santa Singh?

If Bhajji and Sree are brothers like they profess, we ought to call the latter Santhakumaran Sreesanth Singh. Or Santa Singh?

Bye bye to bhai bhai

There's a line of defense going around saying Bhajji was provoked to play his forehand in the vicinity of Sreesanth's ear. Personally I haven't heard anything more stupid. As far as I remember, taking the law into your own hands is still a crime in this country. And if the BCCI won't oblige Sreesanth might want to refer the matter to the nearest cop coop.

Meanwhile the farcical drama to save Bhajji the blushes and a ban, touched soap operatic heights. The Turbanator and the Turbanated spoke of brotherly ties. And Sreesanth was adopted, perhaps without his prior consent. (Santhakumaran Sreesanth Singh? Or Santa Singh? He..he..he)

The final decision on this matter will still hover around cheeks, and the Turbanator might just have to pucker up for some very fervent kissing.

Notes from the IPL

The game seems to be further loaded in favour of batsmen. The boundaries are shorter.

The tables have turned. India now has the phirangs(cheerleaders) dancing for them.

The cheerleaders look fine, but the camera angles don't.

Sledging might become less prevalent. It's hard to be friendly team mates one day, and then be abusive opponents on another.

Cricket is taking on baseball hues. Finesse, style, and maybe even timing, will soon be lost causes.

I still wonder why Shane Warne retired. You will too if you've watched the Rajasthan Royals.

Blog and tackle

I understand the theory of not mixing politics and sports, but I fail to understand its application with regard to the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The world's largest sporting event will earn a huge sum of money for the Chinese Government. And as you know the bullets being pumped into Tibet don't come free.

Whose side are you on?

If it's China, you don't have to go any further than this.

If it's Tibet, copy these ads and post them on your blog, and pass the word on to other bloggers. If you're not a blogger, save the ads on to your computer and mail them out to as many people as you think might care.

Click on image to enlarge.

Please cast your valuable vote in favour of...

Keeping in mind the number of bans issued and reversed by the Pakistan cricket board in recent times, please vote on the question below.

How long will the latest ban on Shoaib Akhtar last?

a) 5 years
b) 5 months
c) 5 weeks
d) 5 days