We have it!
After 13 months of when I first wrote about it and a month after I last hinted we might be moving towards it, the job's done.
Three sights that will forever remain from this year's final.
a.) Gilly urging his team mates just before the RCB innings took off. The passion in his eyes and his animated quick discourse firing up his team mates to win this almost told you DC will win it but the players had to live up to the captain and live up they did in style. If you need anymore proof of this, just replay in your mind Harmeet Singh's catch to dismiss Vinay Kumar in the 19th over - as good a catch as any you will see in any form of cricket! And possibly the best in a long time given the context of the game.
b.) The other is Pragyan Ojha's reactions - first after getting Manish Pandey and then after getting Van Der Merwe. If Gilly's eyes were all about passion then here was a man who wanted the win so badly he was going to get everyone from RCB out if they gave the man a few more overs. That belief in his ability shining through his face.
c.) The reserve bench running towards Gilly's arms after the game ended. As a fan, I would've to confess, that was something to see and not to write about.
All in all - sometimes it is indeed a function of how badly you want to achieve something. Looking at both the teams especially, looking at the way DC came out all fired up didn't you get the feeling Gilly wanted it more than Kumble?
Or maybe like analysts of all hues, I'm just trying to make sense where there's none.
In anycase, DECCAN CHARGERS - good on ya mates!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
6 comments:
Hurling abuses, though to no one in particular is not the best way of expressing that you want to win very badly. More than the other guys.
As Sunny hardly ever fails to remind us, the most competitive team in the world cricket ever to have graced a cricket field never uttered a single word of abuse, never showed a physical gesture of aggression and yet were the most lethal. Were the stakes then any lesser than it is now ? Were their hunger to win any less ?
Looking at today's Indian cricketers, I fail to understand why do you need to be angry to win. Why the need to use swear words when you have got someone out ? Was Kapil, Sunny, Anil any less competitive than these folks ?
Even for that matter, can we ever recall Sourav, Sachin, Rahul, Anil doing any such things ?
For me, I would have loved it if the DC played like Adam, play hard, play fair. For me, Pragyan and Symmonds took some admirers of the team away by dint of their actions on field.
I am actually a tad disappointed that you lauded Pragyan for his actions. Though knowing you, I do think that on a broader perspective, you would agree to almost everything I have said ?
Prgayan Ojha's behavior was despicable. The problem with us fans is that we confuse attitude with ability - something Sreesanth, or Appam C if you like, is learning the hard way
Gilly wanting it more thank Kumble? You just had to see the fire in Kumble's eyes to know how much he wanted it. The support cast worked for Gilly and didn't for Kumble. Thats pretty much it.
@ Spidey: Hokay! I dont think Pragyan and Symmo were in the same category. Symmo is a perfect case of the example no youngster ought to follow and it's clearly not something I've advocated.
Pragyan came into bowl after Van Der Merwe was in. And his reaction was pretty much giving it back to Van Der Merwe. We liked Ganguly and Harbhajan giving it back to Oz. We liked Venky giving it back to Sohail and we can't appreciate Pragyan winning the battle and giving it back to Van Der Merwe because???
One doesn't need to be angry to win but if someone is giving a mouthful to you, it's fair to react once you've won the battle.
Either the umpires force a rule that opponents cant abuse and if someone like a Symmo is given a license to abuse, then Van Der Merwe has a right to react and Pragyan is well within his right to react as well!
@ AS: You've summed it well when you mentioned confusing ability with attitude and Sreesanth is an utter extreme case of someone like that! But have you ever seen Pragyan react like that ever? It was in the heat of the moment and I reiterate, it was a reaction, not an action. Van Der Merwe had given it to Harris the previous over and Pragyan's reaction after getting Pandey out was to counter that.
About Gilly wanting it more than Kumble, I've myself said , it's probably what I am reading into this.But I can tell you this much, having seen so much of cricket over the years, that's not the kind of pep talk I've ever seen on a cricket field!
Was there an incident of provocation on VD Merwe to Pragyan ? I cannot recollect the same. If it was, then I have no issues. Pragyan's 2nd wicket did not have any - that much I am sure of.
But if it was unprovoked, then well...there would not be much difference between him and Symmo.
And about the incidents you mentioned, all of them were answers or reactions to the action by others.
As Sunny puts it again, friendly banter is fine, abuse is not.
reacting on winning a battle after being abused is perfectly jusified..only if it is not an abuse back! the reaction can be a loud shout...pumping of fists in air... Momentarily Prasad's reaction brought the entire country together...but he is never remembered for his performance...but for the REVENGE he took...kumble, sachin, dravid on the other hand have never hurled back abuses after winning the battle...their reactions have been to self....and that is why they are known as true ambassadors of the gentleman's game!
Completely agree on the Sachin, Kumble, Dravid point.
On the first point though, I think as far as the sporting field is concerned, one is well justified to give an eye for an eye. The flip side like you rightly pointed out is that when one starts doing that one can't be considered as role model.
Post a Comment