Googlies: Yuvraj is the crown Prince

What balls,
what chakke!

chakke or sixes when said in Hindi has a ring to it, that English can never hope to muster. "Yuvraj ne England ke chakke chudaa a diye": translates to "Yuvraj hit England to sixes which is severe" but in Hindi it is louder, and bigger accomplishment. Six in six balls. A hundred percent is always hard to achieve. In last series Dimitri hit Yuvraj for five sixes, a hard enough accomplishment, but our dude Yuvraj went all the way. A fifty in twelve balls is hard to beat. Isn't it awesome that the man whose name means Prince is our vice captain now? Its nuts that we both studied in the same High School; I went there as it was called a factory for Engineers and Doctors. He went there for it was called the cricketing school of Chandigarh: the college that gave India Kapil Dev and Dinesh Mongia, used to give India thirty or more IITians every year and scores of Engineers and Doctors on top of it

I had the privilege of hearing Yograj Singh's comments about his son. Yograj got to play one odd match in International cricket and he ensured his son was good enough to play a few hundred. Yograj had an interesting life span, including a stint at Punjabi movies I believe, and attempts at running a Petrol pump in Chandigarh. So when an excited reporter interviewed him, the father said, "Sher ka bachcha hai, ghaas thode hi khayega" (He is a tiger's son, he won't eat grass), emphasizing that Yuvraj is meant for big hits and big matches. Each of his sixes was a delight to watch. Yograj, like every proud father, said, if his son asked him today, about how he performed the father would tell him, "not bad." Fathers will be fathers. When the reporter asked him if Yuvraj's sixes were an answer to five sixes he got he for, the father retorted, "It was an answer to the four hundred rule of the british. My son gave them a good loud message much like Gandhi, Nehru gave to British in their time." On a day like today, I will forgive the father of breaking into all the hyperboles he could think of, and I will join him in being a proud countryman of the man who hit every six taller and longer than what preceded it. Also Yograj raved how India and winning matches for India was more important than any personal accomplishments, and even if it sounded Bollywoodish, I felt proud, happy, excited and thankful.

India nearly lost the match; you may disagree, but I was worried. irrespective of what happened when we bowled. Our batting display was worth a watch, but England quite close. Much closer than what I expected. Sehwag barked and had a bite in his strokes: his usual wag and "get out as soon as possible" approach was missing. Gambhir took his namesake task seriously. Pathan was a revelation once again, and since he is young and good learner I am ready to invest hopes in him. Dhoni must have felt relieved after winning the match: as a future captain of Indian cricket team (or one day team), he would prefer to start on a good note. England did quite well, but it was a day where England could not blame Collingwood or his lap dances for their defeat.

For me the highlights of the series so far have been these surprises. Life is full of surprises and so is cricket. Australia was defeated twice, England and West Indies are out of the World Cup., a thirty three year old man has made us forget how important players Inzy and Md. Yusuf were for Pakistan. Odd players are shining. India is thriving without Tendulkar, Ganguly and Dravid. Australia is struggling. But the best part is number of sixes. Today Kemp showed us why he is dangerous. Yuvraj hit 50 off 12 balls. Asif had a tight bowling spell in a high scoring match. Bangladesh has been more competitive than it ever was in longer versions of the game. Vettori has emerged as a shrewd leader. irrespective of what team wins the series, irrespective of what flaws the shortest version of game has, the cricket has been entertaining and worth watching. I might watch artsy movies with relish, but I love a comedy, a masala (spicy) Bollywood movie for the entertainment value. If you think miracles don't happen, see how India escaped against Pakistan. Or see six sixes of Yuvraj. If you think skill is unimportant, watch Asif bowl, or Kemp strike his boundaries. If you want melodrama, hear or read an interview by Yuvraj's father:)