Different Strokes (old)
Wisdom of the crowd!
The middle-finger salute by Greg Chappell has had the entire media agreeing on one issue
ESPNcricinfo staff
25-Feb-2013
The middle-finger salute by Greg Chappell has had the entire media agreeing on one issue. That it was brought upon by the crowd & that the crowd deserved it. Suddenly “Wisdom of the crowd” and “Customer is the king” thoughts have been pushed to the backburner. People are all convinced that the entire Eden Gardens crowd was unruly & that they brought it upon them. None of them have asked Chappell to apologize or be reprimanded. The general feeling has been that the crowd got what they deserved and the storyline has been that the crowd incensed by Ganguly’s absence, heckled the coach and the coach unbearable at the crowd’s behavior…showed the finger…poor coach, pity the poor coach!
If you looked hard at the facts, an alternate storyline existed, it was just that the media did not want to pick it up…how about “Standing in the queue for 24 hrs waiting to buy a ticket, forgoing all your hard earned money for a ticket, watching a game in the hot sun, watch your side thrashed by 10 wickets, and then the coach to be showing you the finger”?
The purpose of the new storyline is not to sympathize with the Eden Gardens crowd or justify their action; instead it is to present alternative viewpoints and whatever be the viewpoint, Greg Chappell cannot justify his action.
The line of thinking that I have seen till now has been that the middle-finger salute is common among the western world and Greg Chappell just did what he had to do (it was almost like his birth right!). To a football (soccer) fan, all this must look like drama; I am sure anyone who follows football is thinking, So what? This is a daily situation in the football field, when a team does not play well, or if a person does not play well, they heckle him, boo him…why the heck….the great Sir Alex Fergusson was booed & heckled by his own supporters this month when his team lost to Lille in the champions league…had Sir Alex shown the finger, that would have been the end of his career! Anywhere in the world, this would have been a serious issue, so let’s not give Chappell the benefit of doubt, thinking that it’s an accepted practice worldwide.
Full postRana Naved-ul-Hasan
In between the successive days of test I suffer from a kind of ennui, a mixture of listlessness and willful melancholy, even on days like today , when one’s favored team hasn’t disappointed contrary to reputation
ESPNcricinfo staff
25-Feb-2013
In between the successive days of test I suffer from a kind of ennui, a mixture of listlessness and willful melancholy, even on days like today, when one’s favored team hasn’t disappointed contrary to reputation. The best way to alleviate this sort of boredom, which results due to over-anticipation of the next day’s play, is first by gloating over the opposition’s inability to play spin or fast bowling, depending upon which part of the world they are from.
And when you’ve got tired of that (which is quite improbable usually but in dire straits) the next step is to indulge in lofty glorification and totally out-of-context exaltation of your favorite players. Sadly for those who are reading this, today is one of those days when I’m in dire straits. Until I penned this down, I was under the influence of the blogger’s version of a writer’s block. Hence I must undertake the second option, and my choice for player who will be on the receiving end of such grandeur praise as mentioned above, is Rana Naved-ul-Hasan.
Rana, as frequently pointed out, is an accidental cricketer, but that can hardly be said of his endeavors on the field. If there are determined cricketers out there, Rana is probably as determined as they come. There is more about his persona to admire though then his obvious never-say-die attitude. There is his cheerful, Duchenne smile, which at times seems ever present on this radiant face. Then there are his dazzling, big eyes which spread the gusto that is core to his whole philosophy on life it seems.
To complement that are two reasonable sized ears, a perfectly straight nose and a full, un-cleft perfect chin. If in fact there is any feature on his face that does not do justice to the aplomb and fortitude he has made his hallmark as a cricketer it is his receding hairline. May be what is needed is quick and quite call to Advanced Hair Studios, who helped out Shane Warne in his “pursuit of hirsute happiness”.
Full postWelcome to Different Strokes
The best cricket writers don't always come from inside the profession of cricket writing
Amit Varma
25-Feb-2013
The best cricket writers don't always come from inside the profession of cricket writing. Indeed, professional cricket writers can often get jaded, or be too close to the the wood for the trees, or be conflicted by knowing players too well, or simply lack a fresh perspective from having done the job too long. Writers from outside the profession often write with a freshness and energy that those inside can't often muster.
Well, Different Strokes is a group blog of a few of those writers, whose work we have noticed in different places over the last few months, and who have agreed to showcase their skills on this particular platform. They all have their own styles and bring their own perspectives to their writing. So without much ado, here's an introduction:
Anantha is an engineer who considers himself to be the finest armchair cricketer that India has ever produced. He engages in, among other things, serious thought-provoking (and barely noticed) commentary about the game of cricket on his blog - I'm No Superman.
Full postMost Read
Writers