Peaceful Strokes

re:#90 by Romair
Romair and other idiots are only left to rant. Cricket is all they have got. I already grant it to them. This is the only field they can outclass India. Economically, India has far outpaced Pak, so much so that Ayaz Amir got a Delhi Belly when he returned from India recently (see his artilcle in Dawn). In all other spheres, India outclasses Pak so much so that Mushy the whore was seen pleading with Aishwarya Rai during a Press interview not to act in anti-Pak movies!

Meanwhile an interesting article from a Chinese: China is feeling threatened by India` s economic growth:
http://www.sulekha.com/redirectnh.asp?cid=329651
Sridhar

great games played in a great spirit (good to see--after all its ONLY a game after all!) BUT...the pitches are SO dead and batsmen-friendly that it is ruining the cricket. I really don`t understand why, given our plethora of express (150 kph +) bowlers we don`t produce really FAST pitches so we can keep the Indians hopping and ducking. Especially in the Tests...and none of them are really comfortable against real pace (except Sachin) which should be our trump card...except by producing featherbeds we are ruining our advantage. After all India have one of the best top 6`s in the world so why give them batting wickets?!

and why isn`t Saqlain an automatic pick in this team?! (Instead of Shoaib Malik)

re: #95 by Romair

If we had sent Razzaq in after Yasir Hameed`s dismissal at 225/3, Pakistan could have added another 20 runs to the total. Inzamam could have nudged around for 1s and 2s, Razzaq could have gone for the big ones. But Younis slowed the momentum at a time when Pakistan could afford to take risks. In an effort to accelerate, Inzamam decided to clobber the Indians and in the process lost his wicket. This was a big blow since an in-form Inzamam could have pulverized the Indian bowling during the slog overs.

Saqlain`s problem until the last World Cup was that his hand started ``second-guessing`` him. As spinners progress in their careers, they often find that their hand reflexes stop obeying their brain signals. Qadir, Hirwani and Maninder Singh had the same problem. When you want to bowl an offspinner, your hand ``decides`` to bowl a straight one. When you want to bowl a googly, your hand ``decides`` to bowl an offbreak. Basically the nerves around the hand develop a ``rogue brain`` of their own. Secondly, Shoaib Malik and Saqlain have similar actions and bowl the same type of delivery. Selecting Saqlain means Pakistan will have to drop Shoaib Malik (a better allrounder) or not bowl him (which would be bad too because he bowled well in Karachi and got rid of Tendulkar at Pindi).

PS: Having listening to Inzamam`s interview on Karachi, I am pretty sure his wife (or some ghostwriter) wrote those articles for Hindustan Times. ``Aaloo`` doesn`t come across as an essay-writer.

Did anyone catch Inzamam`s swearing (in Punjabi) when Shabbir misfielded Dravid`s glider at third-man??

I think Kiran Baloch should be brought in at one-down for Pakistan:

``KARACHI, March 16: Pakistan`s opening bats woman Kiran Baloch smashed the highest individual score in history of women cricket in the one-off Test against West Indies at National Stadium on Tuesday.

26-year-old Hyderabad-born Kiran blasted an unbeaten 242 as Pakistan women declared their first innings at 426 for seven wickets at tea break after resuming at their overnight score of 242 for one.

By stumps on the second day in the four match series, West Indies were reeling at 72 for five wickets in their innings, still needing another 204 runs to avoid the follow-on.

Envis Williams with eight runs in 82 minutes batting and Verena Felicien with five were at the crease when play ended for the day. Shaiza Khan caused the main damage in Caribbean batting ranks with three wickets for 21 runs in nine overs.`` (www.dawn.com)

So, Pakistan kicked India`s butt in mens cricket today and is about to kick West Indies butt in women`s cricket. Who would have thought......

HE #91 Thanks for describing a bit of the pindi match. Now I wish I had seen it. Good to see that the pindi club ground continues to serve its purpose (Although I always thought the ground was a bit small for international cricket). Next match is March 18 I believe, and I think I`ll try to see it live. Starts at 11:30 pm local time here though, and that could be a problem (or madness, according to my wife).

rsridhar #97 I hope you are not being serious when you start bragging about India`s economic success on a board to discuss cricket. How childish can you get!!

It is only in war that there are winners and losers. In cricket (at least as far as true sports fans are concerned) and in economics (as far as anyone who understands something about development economics is concerned) there are no winners and no losers. If the game is played well, or if an economy is doing well, EVERYBODY benefits. Think about this. Is this really such a difficult concept to understand?

Perhaps the spirit shown by the two teams and by the cricket fans from India and Pakistan who watched the matches should be something to learn from, I think. While it is natural to support one`s home team, it is done with no ill-will towards the other team. This may require some thought too.

There are enough idiots on chowk like arjun and jay who have no clue about what is going on in real life and who seem mentally incapable of grasping the above concepts, and I am really get surprised when I see you joining them.

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#98 by HisExcellency

``If we had sent Razzaq in after Yasir Hameed`s dismissal at 225/3, Pakistan could have added another 20 runs to the total. ``

Right on! That`s exactly what I felt. In Karachi with very few balls left Razzaq was able to knock some runs when Younis was getting bogged down. It is clear that he is in good form.
In Pindi, I think Razzaq should have come in ahead of Moin or Shoaib Malik or both. Maindad`s decision to send Moin was weird.

Younis is more of a test match type of batsman and I think they may have to bring in Imran Nazeer in the middle order if not in the top order.

We have two top class teams, at least on the sub continent pitches, toughing it out and that is just great cricket.

Inzamam should start shaving. Maybe it could uplift his image of being a bit lazy.

(too many beards coming up in Pakistani team?)

Hats off to Tendulkar... What a batsman. In my opinion he has far surpassed Sir Donald...

Great game... and Wajahat, if I was you, I wouldn`t be making tall claims as of yet. I want Pakistan to win 4-1 as well... but don`t consider the Indians such a walk over... Indians are no longer the meak, run-over team that Pakistan was so accustomed to ... a national confidence has emerged, and today every Indian plays like a Tiger... beating Indians will be a great achievement ... and I wish our boys the best.

On a side note, whats with the repetition of how Zaheer Khan and M.Kaif are muslims... Their religion has nothing to do with the game... should we like scream from the roof tops that Yousaf Youhanna is a christian, and Danesh Kineria is a Hindu? Does that have anything to do with Cricket... (Ref: Kuldip Nayyar`s article about how 14 muslims took the field on 13th March... ofcourse he pointed out that there were only 12 since Youhanna is a christian)

I completely agreed with Imran Khan`s comments after the 2nd match: Afridi out, bring in Taufiq Umar and Imran Nazir. Shoaib Akhtar dramay baaz ko bhi nikaal daina chaheeay. He makes faces like someones squeezing his nuts and him and afridi gave away so many runs in the last few overs, when all they had to do was do straight tight balling and finish the overs.
Sami saved the day. The new guys should be given full rein of the team. The herofics suck big time and are drama queens and should be kicked out, like they were after the world cup fiasco, except this time they should be kept out. The thing which really pisses me about Shoaib is his detergent add line from the last world cup: `jab wicketein lainee hotee hain tau aap log kehtay hain, Shoaib hay na, jab dhabay nikaalnay hotay hai tau Surf hai na`. He makes me sick.
Dean Jones was also spot on when during the commentary he said that the Pakistani team loves to Panic. Ball araam se fielder ke paas jaa rahee hai and the team idiots, esp. Moin Khan has to shout, OOAAEY BALL ARAHEEY HAI UTHALAY, PHAINKH etc., like choots.

Na Pak Fauj is committing extra-judicial murder of citizens of Paksitan while a shameless Pakistani nation enjoys cricket. Howzat.

urstruly #108 Yesterday 8 Pakistani paramilitary jawans and 1 (?) Pakistan Army jawans embraced shahadat, and in return they dispatched 24 of your terrorist friends to hell.

That is the score.

#107 by Mantolives
//..Indians are no longer the meak, run-over team that Pakistan was so accustomed to...//

Manto - you are going overboard here. Indian teams in past have had their weaknesses - but they were no meek/run-overs. Achievements of those teams have been as impressive as any in the world. You should know better than that.

Similarly - paki teams have their share of achievements. But I don`t think any paki cricketers worth his name ever was ``accustomed to`` ``meek`` Indian teams.

tahmad

yeah that is what they used to say while committing the genocide of Bengalis - the word in vogue in those days was ``anti-social elements - samaaj dushman anasar`` whereas the word ``terrorist`` is a recent invention by your masters. And by the way one of your grand masters is in Paksitan currently to pay hommage to the army of orcs urging them to kill more Paksitani citizens.

#108 Urstruly - How much I agree with you. While the whole nation is taking leave from offices and schools to get drunk in these matches, and our girls are busy taking autographs of indian players, the pakistani army led by General Whore is quietly butchering innocent families in the name of fighting terrorism and to win favors of his western masters.

I wonder if General Whore bent over to India begging them to send their team over, so he could get the cover to do his evil deeds.

And horror ! More than 5000 personnel of paki security forces are assigned at each venue to provide protection to Indian team ! Could General Whore spare a few of these and provide security to shias being butchered in karachi and quetta, or the innocent families being harassed by the thugs under ``Nazims`` of rural areas?

No. General Whore would not do that. He only likes to bend over to those who can threaten him with sodomy. To his own weak innocent citizens, he likes to portray his macho self.