The first (class) Semi Final

Sport is one part beauty and one part cruelty. One part joy and one part despair. One part pleasure and one part pain. On the night of March 24th, 2015, two teams colluded in a far away stadium to show us mere mortals that sporting highs cannot be enjoyed without experiencing the accompanying tragic lows.

After witnessing what is easily one of the best matches in World Cup knockout history, I was left emotionally drained and confused that I wasn't quite sure how to react. There was the first wave of unalloyed elation at a team that deserved to be in the final achieving it in the most emphatic way possible. Then the joy of watching the emotions of a nation that has been in waiting for years channeled through a pulsating crowd. 40,000 of them that cheered as one and then enjoyed as one. Then there was a surge of pure grief. A team denied one more time. Weather. Fate. Destiny. Or the plain old choke. Call it whatever, it was nothing but heart break for this South African team and their nation. Yet another generation of players and fans subjected to yet another loss to grieve about for four more years. That now familiar emotion of having come so tantalizingly close. And as the curtains come down, one team gets to take a shot at more glory; the other left to come to terms with reality.

Did what transpire on the Eden Park turf was actually a choke? In the past, there had always been a single moment in the key games that they had lost around which the game swung away from them. When they chose to snatch defeat when victory was likely theirs. That single point where one could put a finger and proclaim (with the luxury of hindsight) "aha, here is where they lost it". But I would say this was simply a closely fought game between two equals that brought out the best from the 22 men involved. A game where the difference between victory and loss was merely statistical. There was neither a victor nor vanquished. Instead there was raw emotion. Plenty of it. And all kinds of it. Pride. Triumph. Elation. Grief. Anguish. Agony. In the end, some hearts were warmed; some broken.
  

What makes this especially draining is that these are the two teams that are the most likable. Easily two of teams with more "second favorite team" status among cricket fans than the others. How do you pick between two groups of true sportsmen. True ambassadors of the game that chose not to tarnish the sanctity of the occasion with anything cheap. No dirty tactics of mind games, pre-match banter or juvenile on-field behavior that could take away from the beauty of the contest. Aggression was gilded with dignity. And the fight was fought with honor. The celebrations were loud but gracious and the sorrow was raw yet dignified. And the speeches afterwards bore testimony to the true nature of the men involved. Class is what separates the men from the boys. It will be difficult to surpass the bar that they have jointly set so high. 

It seems almost silly to poke through the still warm embers and analyze the what ifs. There was the rain that changed the tempo. There were off-key performances. Then there were the errors on the field. And there were enough of them committed by both sides. But as Sambit Bal has so beautifully put it, "sport and history are generous to the follies of the winner". 

What lies ahead for South Africa may be familiar but not pleasant. Coming to terms with this (I so hate to use this word) loss will not be easy. This team had the opportunity to heal the wounds of the past. But they have fresh ones to heal instead. They will also have to deal with the fact that this group of super talented individuals will be walking away from the game without that one coveted piece of silver. Not to mention the task of rebuilding a team that will have this cloud hanging over them for some time to come. 

Thank you New Zealand. Thank you South Africa. Thank you for giving us a contest that we can cherish nor matter our sporting affiliations. An operatic performance truly worthy of a semi final. A game played with such rare class that I wished I was either a Kiwi or a Protea that night. 

The World Cup thus far

As we approach the sharp end of the tournament, the usual suspects have been identified. Well more or less as the result of the ongoing NZ vs. WI QF game is near certain with the kiwis all but set to join the last four. Not much surprises. Australia in the Semis is a given. The contest is always for the other three spots. South Africa have overcome themselves to take a well deserved spot. No one can grudge the kiwis in the final four. Not even when they were considered to be fighting above their weight. But this time around with their collective form, they take the spot by right. I'm still pleasantly surprised by the great Indian turn around trick though. I was expecting either Sri Lanka or England to be the fourth team but lo behold! It is the men in blue that have made it yet again.

Some teams bring their A game for all matches. Australia and South Africa. Some simply melt down under the weight of the occasion - England, Sri Lanka. There are the perennial under achievers - West Indies. And then there are the unpredictable dark horses: Pakistan. India, much like a typical student cramming on the last night before the finals, always scrapes through. We reserve our A game for the special games. But New Zealand have, in the recent past have slowly managed to shake away the underdog tag and have become genuine contenders. The

Looking at their performances, there is a quiet resolve about this bunch. Something that sets them apart from their predecessors. They are friendly, as they have always been. They play the game in the right spirit, again, as they have always done. Much like the Caribbean teams of the 80s, there is a certain joy in watching the Kiwis compete: clean, spirited and sporting. And this team retains that in full and have managed to reach the semi finals once more. But there is something indefinable about this team and this year could well be the one where they are most likely to go the full distance.

England deserved to go home. West Indies simply lack the quality to compete fiercely at the top level and aren't quite a cohesive unit. Sri Lanka tried one change too many and denied their stars one more shot at the title. And Pakistan? This is not the same sport as in the 80s and 90s to be able to pull off their magic with sporadic spurts.

This World Cup, as a tournament, has been too long. Allowing the fan to switch off between key games. I'm all for an inclusive approach about spreading the game and involving the associate nations. But the World Cup should be a tight fight for the top honor and it should be for the top 10 teams only. There are certainly ways to widen the reach of the sport and empower smaller nations.

Sangakkara, Mahela, Misbah, Dilshan and Afridi. Cricketers that we shall see no more of as of yesterday. But you never know with Afridi. Teenagers aren't the best decision makers anyways. The first three are certainly among the best to ply their trade and among the finest ambassadors of the game. Afridi will be remembered as the one that did injustice to the talent that was his and the opportunities that came his way.

One more week. Three more games. Will the cup travel to the Southern hemisphere? Will it stay in India? I would personally like a closely fought final between India and New Zealand ending in favor of India. Time to buckle up! 

The World Cup thus far

Cometh the hour, cometh the performance. Based on the evidence of the Indian team's performance in their first two fixtures, one can reasonably conclude that they were saving themselves for the World Cup. There's something about colored clothes and the white ball that seems to bring out the top game out of this team. The same unit that was definitely tepid in the recently concluded Tri Series where they didn't make the finals. Was it all according to plan? To not be fully invested in a side show and save themselves physically and emotionally for the big occasion?

It is pleasing to watch the transformation of the bowling performance. Umesh is still wayward but at least he has the pace. But the difference in Shami's performance is nothing less than magical. Where was this control hiding these past months? He had an air of resignation about him in the tests, often seeming listless against confident batters. Same question to Shikar Dhawan who seems to be middling nearly everything thrown at him. And Mohit "last-minute" Sharma has turned out to be a revelation based on the evidence available.

Concerns still linger about Rohit's form and lack of runs from Dhoni. Can Virat please overcome this new found weakness in the pull shot that I first observed in the Adelaide test? The inability to push the scoring in the death overs in both the matches seems to not make full use of the good platform put up the top order. This batting unit hasn't been tested while chasing a stiff total. Both the wins have come defending good totals - which is saying a lot given what was expected of the bowlers - after winning both tosses and batting first. But with the two main games in the pocket, India can now play the theoretically weaker team from the other group in the quarters. But sterner tests lay beyond.

Unless cricket is played in the Easter Islands or some such corner, one can count on Indian fans in strong numbers to throw their voice behind the team. MCG bathed in a loud, throbbing sea of blue was truly a spectacle to see.
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England, part of the Big "axis-of-evil" Three, has been run ragged in the tournament that they want shortened in 2019. Sweet irony. They have been mauled on either side of the Tasman sea by the co hosts and have managed a win against Scotland. But a lackluster performance by the English team in a world cup seems to be  given. But the talk still reeks of the sun not setting on the empire.

An ideal format could be 10 teams in two groups of 5. The top 6 ranks qualify automatically, the remaining 4 are selected by pre-WC qualifiers (other test playing nations + associates). Top 6 make it to an all play all Super 6 round. Decide semi finalists and a best of three final. Any takers?
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As powerful batters help themselves to easy runs against hapless teams (Chris "school-bully|" Gayle and Tillakaratne "I'm-still-playing" Dilshan), I'm really looking forward to what should be an evenly matched contest: the Aus - NZ game. Go black caps!

ICC World Cup 2015 wishes and predictions

Wish: India lift the cup. But twice on the trot? And in Australia where we have spent the better part of the past 3 months searching for an elusive victory? Any victory? Yeah, right.

Now, with that out of the way, on to the predictions.

1. An all Southern hemisphere final: I predict an Aus vs. SA showdown and the Springboks are my favorites.
2. Asia-free semi-finals or at the most one Asian semifinalist and I tip Sri Lanka to be that team
3. Indian bowlers and other pretenders will get completely creamed - new field restrictions and two new balls
4. Explosive/violent batting and brilliant run chases- Read above item. And with ABD, Warner and Gayle, no total can be termed safe.
5. Spin may not be rendered entirely irrelevant but part timers beware.

Happy watching y'all!