Peaceful Strokes

Brat:
It isn`t about ```letting the other team win```. There will be noteworthy performances, but both the times Pakistan got defeated we had 37/38 wides...and in the Lahore game not getting Shoaib Akhtar when it mattered...please...the goodwill has been pushed down their gullets. If Colin Powell knew anything about yorkers and mid-ons, we might have had an even more interesting game.

I tell you, one team will get ahead in the ODIs, the other in the test series...and something of a friendly duel will happen in Sharjah (it is for charity, so it is all right).

Individuals performing well will always be there, they cannot be so obvious about it, but since the cricketers are not campaigning they are providing the goodwill and filling certain coffers. Just wait and watch...

And for the rest, I bet my ass...

Inzi talking to Ramiz Raza after the match again said some stuff in Arabic .. i think he was blaming allah, or at least hoding him responsible. I think he is a real class player, and should be allowed to spank Akhtar with 10 lashes for every wide delivery.

Since Romair is ducking his usual post-match spin, i will attempt one...

Overall a good match. The momentum is now definatley with India since Pakistan tried their best weapons and failed inspite of that. Whereas, Indians have yet to get their weapons to fire, and they have evened the series. Zaheer is still bowling simple stuff so far, Irfan is a mohalla player, and Indians are happy enough with the results. Ganguly will make some real cool mental-game statements via Dravid (to sound more credible) which can mess-up minds. Akhtar is a good bowler (and chucker), but he has tried his best, and the way he was talking to himself, its clear that he will not be a major threat. Pakistani bowling even had damp evening conditions to assist them. Akhtar will get his two wickets, but will continue to give runs. Since he has already bowled his best, and Indians underrstand it, his performance can only get worse. So, for the final, Ganguly will win the toss since he has so far lost the toss, and he will bat first and Pakistani team will be tired agains Indian attack and the evening Mosquitos bugging them. In addition, Advani will be in the stands, to put more pressure from BJP (somehow). If Ganguly loses toss, Inzi will let them bat first, thinking that the wicket has a better bounce in the beginning,and he tried batting first already. In any case Ganguly will say that toss does not matter, which will put huge pressure on Inzi. Additiionaly, there will be a very big verbal fight between him an Akhtar, in which Sohail will say ``I am the stud and you are the spud``.

I am tired...

Farzana, Sridhar,

You guys are bunch of a$$. Kaif`s maginificeint catch with possible full speed head on collision with Badani and the one that could have paralyzed him for ever is not fixed. Sami and Akhtar are bowling each ball as if their lives are dependent on it and all those Pakistani players diving on the field. These are not fixed things.

Miandad needs those Infans from every gullie of Pakistan the way your front bowlers are giving extras. The Irfan Kid has heart and never die attitude that his players desperately need.

This series has been a dandy so far. Exactly what you would expect of these two wonderful teams. Rarely does a sporting event live up to the hoopla like this.
How `bout that Kaifi, isnt he something? And is Shoaib Akhtar a stud or what?

Farzana & Sridhar:
You two have your heads up your asses.

Brat:
If Tendya were the captain, you would have been treated to a whole bunch of gracious platitudes by now. It`s not Ganguly`s M.O. to make gracious statements in the middle of the series. You have to remember that this is the guy who mentally disintegrated Steve Waugh who supposedly invented mental disintegration. Just wait till the end of the series and the Prince will spout forth with all kinds of gracious statements and so will Tendya & Dravid. Then you can have your heart`s fill.
These days the verbal sparring by way of press statements is part and parcel of the game. Have you noticed how after each game the Indians keep saying that the pressure will be on Pakistan in the next match? This is standard operating procedure picked up from the inimitable aussies.
The whole idea is to keep nagging the opposition with statements that may instill self-doubt but not say things that will really rile them up.
The worst thing you can do is what Javed Miandad did when he said that every gully of Pakistan has a couple of Irfan Pathans running around. Way to go Javed, picking on a 19-year old medium pacer who has not said a word to provoke anyone. Talk about graciousness! So how did that turn out for Pakistan? After two games, little Irfan doesn`t look like a quaint little gully cricketer does he?
And now Rashid Latif has recommended that Laxman be dropped. Do you really need to rile up a guy like that? I know Akhtar castled him last night but wasn`t he starting to look ominous?
Try to understand where Ganguly is coming from, this is all very orchestrated. Every thing is in Pakistan`s favor here, the head to head match up record, the fact that they are playing home, the fact that they have more talent overall. The only thing India has going for them (other than that stupid batting line up) is that they are now, under King John, a tremendously professional and organized outfit.

Post no 144


hamid mere bhai…


now that pakis got
their sorry butts kicked,
defect and come on over!

with all your folks
(the more the merrier)
wife and kids and lover

we’ll gorge and feast
on fat babies
flavored with heaps of heeng,

we’ll dance and scream
with no restraint,
each one do his own theeng.

with hands on hearts
we’ll solemnly swear
to wash bas jumme ka jumma,

in this sweltering summer,
surely soon
we’ll outstink even the ummah!

kya liquor, kya meat
ya won’t miss nothing,
that nasha is much too weak

no way can it beat
the swaad of a wife
who hasn’t bathed for a week!

adaab.

Both sides are evenly matched - so this ding-dong should not surprise anyone in One Dayers.

Being no expert in cricket , I think the Pakistani officials generally downplayed their own team so as to get the general public mentally prepared to accept a defeat easily.

FV # 158

If the matches are fixed - it`s quite hard to tell. Those with a keener eye than mine could comment on the progression of matches - it does not appear that either team is `letting the other team win`. I think it would be hard to play such closely contested games to a pre-determined outcome. But just a stray thought - if they were fixed that might explain some of frustration I`ve had with Ganguly`s behavior - lack of graciousness towards the host country and team. Regardless - isn`t it a lot of fun to watch?

all:
Healthy rivarly and good cricket should rule the day, I watched it last night with one fellow who didn`t know where Cricket ends and Real Life starts, and confuses people of an entire country with a team - very unpleasant but ignoring him worked just fine. Watching it in a mixed Indian Pakistani crowd is awesome - wouldn`t watch it any other way if I could.

My beef with Ganguly I must air - although I`ve heard explanations for it - still it bothers me.
While the Pakistani team and people have been extremely gracious and always praising the Indian team - I don`t see anything similar coming from the Indian team - anyone care to comment? I see it as dignity and graciousness but perhaps for some people nationalistic pride ? comes above all?
Not only this, I think Ganguly could have steered clear of comments about chucking from Shoaib and concentrated on his own batting - that would make more of a difference than anything else.

re: Indo-Pak cricket matches
Gosh, i never thought someday i would be agreeing to what Farzana Bibi said in her last post.
I think she is right. These matches are fixed.
This is more than a hunch. The way Pak played the second and third tests, i thought it will sweep the series but it lost cheaply in Lahore. I think Pak will win the tie-breaker.
All for a good cause!
Sridhar

I cringe everytime someone mentions this series is fixed. I don`t think so. I liked inzi`s response to this question at the post game interviews.
These guys are already playing under so much pressure that talk like that will probably ot help put their minds at ease. Why can`t they just be playing cricket?

I have not read the other posts, so am not sure if anyone feels the same, but I think the Indo-Pak cricket series has been fixed by the two governments. Both the teams will be given equitable (if not equal) doses of the `feel good` factor. The BJP has already won the elections and Prez Musharraf will consolidate his position as democrat in fatigues.

Lots of people are winning over `dils`...it isn`t about cricket; this time it is isn`t about money and sponsors either...we are fighting an election campaign across the border.

Where is ROmairs incisive physhological commentary on the game? I feel cheated...

Very good lahore game. Inzy kind of knows the strengths and limitations and played a very calculated innings. Indians had Dravid, extras, kaif and umpires on their side.. an unbeatable combinations inspite of good chuckers from sohaib. I think Sohaib is taking some drugs. Else its tough to explain why he runs out of steam in 4 overs. It was very uncool of him to go in and out of the match while bowling his spell. The match ref should have objected. Dravid and the Indian side however could calmly exploit weaknesses in pakistani side and got a strainghforward win without any spearhead bowling (thanks to weak pakistani batting except Aaloo the great). Next one should be a much easier win for India, now that experience is kicking in, and tiredness of the ill-conditioned pakistani side is showing up.

Madira bedi was howling for Irfan Pathan. If an older man would have shouted for a teenage girl in such a manner, it would be considered very uncool, but older women seem to get away with such lusty calls with impunity.

India levels the series.

Rahul Dravid and Mohammad Kaif scored unbeaten fifties to guide India to a memorable series-levelling win over Pakistan in the fourth ODI at Lahore. Live Scores!
Full Coverage of the India vs Pakistan tour. Click Here


Dravid, who came in with India`s score reading 75-3 at the end of 10 overs, made 76 off 92 balls with nine fours. Kaif, meanwhile, ended up with 71 off 77 balls. His eight fours included a memorable drive to the long-off fence off Shabbir Ahmed, a shot he made despite a portion of his bat coming off.

Before the duo`s match-winning 132-run partnership for the sixth wicket, Dravid had forged yet another important partnership with Yuvraj Singh. The two men, who came together with their side struggling at 94-4 in the 13th over, brought India back into the game with a rousing 68-run partnership off just 64 balls. Yuvraj with 36 off 35 balls, an innings laced with five boundaries, was the dominant partner before a diving Yousuf Youhana pulled off an excellent catch to dismiss him.

nazar #153 But the brits and the aussies do invoke the Lord`s name. As in ``Ouzzat ya Goddam umpire!!`` or in ``Hell! Got me Goddam ass kicked agin by these pakis, mate!!`` or in ``Jesus Christ, umpire!! git yer eyes checked for Godsake!!`` or ``What the devil!! Got knocked out for a duck agin``

And sure God is watching out for Pakistan. Being stupid as we are, how else could we have won any match against these superior IT trained Indians??

Back to cricket - just an observation - they can continue to do so:

In the small interview after the match, I do not hear the English, Australians, Sri Lankans, South Africans etc cricketers talk about God, Inshallah, Mashallah, Bismillah (Inzamam with hands on stomach as if saying prayers) as the Pakistani cricketers do.

It is only cricket - nothing to do with the cosmic forces.

re:#148 by hossp
Thanks for your post.
I agree with much of what you are saying.
India has reached a stage where it sees tremendous economic benefits by trading with Pak. Political elite in India today feel that economic benefits can translate into votes during elections. Hence the rush to capitalize on India`s economic boom by BJP thr` the now infamous slogan of ``India is shining``. BJP also feels that by emphasising on trade and economy, Kashmir can be relegated to a lower level of priority. Hence there is no rush to solve the Kashmir problem though a commitment has been made at the highest level that the issue will be addressed to both side`s satisfaction.
Pak is in a different boat. It has not reached a stage where it can see trade as bringing any political benefits. Its political masters being the military elite, latter see no reason to get excited about the increasing trade and people to people contacts. What benefit will these bring to the Army, they ask? It will be hard for the Army to give up its adverserial role vis-a-vis India as such a role has heaped tremendous monetary and political benefits in the past.
The only reason why Mushy is singing a peace tune is due to the tremendous pressure from USA. Latter is busy finishing off Al-Qaida and any friction between India and Pak is a distraction. Mushy is being suitably rewarded (a loan write off and status of a non-NATO ally). So, Mushy is hibernating for the moment but Jehad is by no means over.
Pak has much in stake during this cricket match. While India hopes to better relations with Pak for future trade, Pak is trying to demonstrate to the world that it is not a terrorist nation and that it can be friendly when it wants to. This will go a long way to attract investors. If the worst enemy India can tour cricket and find the country friendly, other people surely will have no objection to visiting or investing in Pakistan.
Read the following article which has a similar line of thinking:
http://www.sulekha.com/redirectnh.asp?cid=329967
Finally, i do hope that India and Pak become true friends, without any vested interests coming in between them and devoid of any ideological baggage. Mushy is good for the moment but how long will he last and even if he did, will he bring true peace? Only time will tell.
Sridhar