Not even a week has passed since Gambhir & Dhoni masterminded India’s legendary world cup final success over Lankans; and Indian cricket fans need to brace themselves for a contest between Gambhir’s KKR and Dhoni’s CSK to kick-start IPL: Season-4! It will be just the beginning of this “thrill-a-minute” cricket avatar that spans over 70 matches over 2 months; finally culminating with the 28 May final in Chennai to crown the champions: where the previous winners list includes Rajasthan Royals, Deccan Chargers and defending champs Chennai Super Kings! Whether the average Indian cricket fanatics absorb this entertainment with the same gusto as World Cup in these cricket hangover times? And after the hopefully-never-again auctioning drama, who will the fans vouch for: their home/favourite city or their favourite player teams? As we seek answers to these intriguing questions, I present before you ratings of the 10 teams (5 of them led by Indian players & 5 non-Indians) on a 10-point scale based on very complex calculations performed by yours truly cricket analyst :P
Here goes:

1. Kolkata Knight Riders (7.9/10): Captain – Gautam Gambhir. The best all-round side with the likes of Kallis, Yusuf Pathan, Shakib Hasan at its disposal. And a batting-lineup powered by Manoj Tiwary, Eoin Morgan, Haddin & Ten Doeschate along with Gauti and you have a formidable team with the potential to go all the way indeed! Lee, Balaji, Sangawan & Unadkat form a decent bowling unit too. However, whether or not KKR is able to bury down the ghost of its IPL past remains to be seen? But on paper they are the firm favourites!

2. Chennai Super Kings (7.2/10): Captain – M S Dhoni. Defending champions with Captain Cool at its helm, CSK also boast of a powerful all-round unit with Bravo, A.Morkel & Styris standing out as IPL specialists. Add to that the likes of Raina, M.Hussey, Plessis and M.Vijay in batting & a versatile bowling line-up in Ashwin, Jakati, Randiv, Southee and Kulasekara. And CSK have all bases covered up there! Good to go till the final atleast!

3. Royal Challengers Bangalore (6.7/10): Captain – Daniel Vettori. Despite Virat Kohli being the only player still a part of RCB from previous seasons, this new-look side has a more than decent batting ability in A.B. Villiers, Dilshan, Kohli, S.Tiwary, C.Pujara & Pomerbasch. Zaheer Khan leads the bowling attack with Nannes, Langeveldt and clever captain Vettori. Mallaya’s team will hope to go one better than their IPL-2 final performance!

4. Mumbai Indians (6.6/10): Captain – Sachin Tendulkar. In Pollard & Symonds, MI possess one of the most destructive duo with the bat. With the guile of Harbhajan, Slinger of Malinga, rejuvenation of Munaf and batting prowess of Rohit Sharma, Rayudu and Suman. Last time around, this very talented team was undone by likes of MSD & company at the final hurdle. This time GOD will leave no stone upturned to lift IPL too!

5. Rajasthan Royals (6.4/10): Captain – Shane Warne. The winners of the inaugural edition led by the merecurial Warne, RR is stung by the loss of Yusuf this time. However, Shane Watson & Oram as the team all-rounders and Ross Taylor, Dravid to boost their batting. If Tait, Trivedi & Botha can come good with the bowl too, we may be in for another Royal surprise show!

6. Kochi Tuskers (6.3/10): Captain – M Jayawerdena. Some really shrewd captures in the auctioning means that this debut Kerala side has the potential to spring a few surprises for the established lot. Besides the captain: Hodge, Mc Cullum, Laxman & Owais Shah lend solidity to batting. Murali is a prized pick and KT will hope T. Perera also lives up to his allround potential. Of Sreesanth, RP Singh, R Powar: atleast one of them should come good or so KT will hope!

6. Pune Warriors (6.3/10): Captain - Yuvraj Singh. In Yuvi, N Mc Cullum & Jesse Ryder, this team does have a formidable allround attack. Batting is boosted by M Marsh, Manish Pandey, G Smith & R Uthappa. And if Nehra, Karthik, Parnell and J Taylor can save a few runs, the warriors might turn out to be a little hot to handle!

8. Kings XI Punjab (5.5/10): Captain – Adam Gilchrist. The best of the ‘worst trio’ of IPL-4. They have been hit really hard by auctioning mayhem! With an almost zero-size bowling, with Piyush Chawla their best hope. KXIP would really need D Hussey, Shaun Marsh, D Karthik, A Nayar and the captain himself to fire on all cylinders on a consistent basis for some success!

9. Delhi Daredevils (5.1/10): Captain – Virender Sehwag. My top-favourite during last season; DDR has hit the very bottom on paper this time and are desperately short in all departments! Only and only if the Captain, A Finch, D Warner, V Rao come good with the bat and Irfan Pathan, J Hopes & Van der Merwe can finally deliver as all-rounders, can the DDR offer some resistance to its oppositions!

10. Deccan Chargers (5/10): Captain – Kumar Sangakkara. From being the champions of IPL-2, this side has been absolutely ripped off by the auctioning! So much so that the woefully out-of-form C White is their best all-round bet! It will require some outstanding captaincy by the erstwhile Lankan skipper with a lot of support from Duminy, S Dhawan, Lumb, Steyn, Ojha & Mishra for the DC to make a substantial mark this time. However, in all probability, the ghost of IPL-1 may very well be back to haunt them again!

Here’s hoping that “Manoranjan ka Baap”-4 turns out to be yet another paisa-vasool entertainer!!!

P.S. As we have seen in previous three seasons, the 20-20 format comes with its share of surprises, so despite this analysis I am indeed all geared up to expect the unexpected again!! But would love to hear your predictions people? Which teams will you be vouching for?

Remember the day when you cracked CAT; or the afternoon when you landed up with your dream job; or the evening when you celebrated Happy Hours with your dear friends; or the night when your girlfriend finally accepted your ILU proposal. Add all that together and it may still not match the bliss, delight, joy & eternal happiness that swept the whole India after Captain Cool bludgeoned the final delivery of World Cup 2011 out of the ground with his all famous Helicopter shot!!!

4 days & nights have passed after the historic day but the feeling has not yet sunken in!! Yes, it will take sometime. For its not everyday, that our beloved India scripts an epic saga of a revolutionary-kind; be it sports or otherwise. As far as our religion cricket is concerned, it has indeed been a really long wait.. 28 years but as it now stands, worth all the way!!

I still remember the euphoric atmosphere after our T20 WC victory and silent admiration of MSD men after rising to Numero Uno in Tests. But this achievement overshadows everything and will continue to do so till atleast the next 2015 edition hosted by Aussies & Kiwis!! Scenes witnessed at Clock Tower, Dehradun… across whole India on TV… this probably is the only single event to be celebrated with unbelievable enthusiasm from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, cutting across gender, age-groups, geographies, caste, creed & religion.. Unity in Diversity Personified!!

And Dhoni Dashers did it in style!! After a majestic ton by Jayawardena and some lusty blows in batting powerplay took Lanka to an above average 274, even the over-optimistic MIB cricket fan was fearing for the worst when the GOD was Malinga-ined with a gem of a delivery to upset all predictions about the perfect WC ending with Tendulkar’s 100th international century! Yes, it was a world cup final and it was not going to be easy.. not a bit!! I have always thought of Gambhir as the crisis man in the all-mighty batting line-up of ours. And Gauti chose the ultimate stage of them all to prove his credentials for once and for all. That ‘97’ will always be remembered as the greatest fighting knock by the Delhi southpaw with some very able hand given by the Gen-X star of India: Virat Kohli!

And then came MSD! And I almost felt-like swinging to the trance of 1200 Micro-grams LSD..!!

“Cometh the hour, Cometh the man”!! This ‘91’ will be engraved in memories of all Indians forever for its steely resolve and do-or-die spirit! No Murali, No Slinger, None of Lankans fielding could halt India’s destined march to World Cup Glory!!

Tendulkar: This Crown is for the GOD of all things!

Yuvraj: ‘The Return of the Prince’ and Man of the tournament award!

MSD: The best captain this cricket-freak country has ever produced & Man of the grand finale Match!

And for the Super-15 that brought eternal happiness to billions of hearts!!!!!

A BIG THANK YOU TEAM INDIA!!! 2nd April, 2011 will be remembered till eternity!!!

PROUD TO BE AN INDIAN :) :) :)

THE FORCE that destroyed 3-time defending champions in the Quarters & then steamrolled past our dangerous neighbours in the Semis… The GOD at the top of his powers… Viru at his electrifying best at top… The PRINCE in his career-best form with everything: Bat, Bowl & Fielding… Gauti & Kohli providing calmness & steadiness to the middle-order… MSD at his strategic brilliant on & off the field and due for a big-one with the bat for a long-time now… The rise of ‘Raina: the perfect no. 7’ when the going gets really tough… A bowling attack spearheaded by Zaheer at his wicket-taking best & given solid support by back-in-form Bhajji, competitive Ashwin and now street-smart Munaf & Nehra… The transformation from a ‘below-average’ fielding side to an ‘above-decent’ fielding unit… Team MIB is the Unstoppable Force!!

THE OBJECT inspired by the Lion’s heart & unmoved by burnt-to-ashes English in Quarters & yet-another-semis-act by the Kiwis… The barrage of boundaries by the ultimate Run-brigade of Dilshan & Tharanga… Captain Cool ‘Sangakkara’ in outstanding touch with both bat & gloves… Jayawerdana leading a bit fragile middle-order with his enormous experience… The DEADLY 3M: toe-crushing Malinga, GOD of spin Murali, Mysterious & Magical Mendis… Top all that with a give-it-all attitude on the field… The Island Nation is the Immovable Object!!

The Judgement Day has arrived… It’s the Final Showdown..!!

For the first time in the history of the WC, it will be an all Asian grand finale & the crown will be lifted by a wicket-keeper Captain..!!

“Its what you do that defines you”… And that defining moment is here now: 2nd April, 2011 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai..!!

But as Harsha Bhogle quipped, in this clash of equals, if there is one favourite: it surely is Team India!!

Its time for a 1983-encore… Glory Glory Team India!!

VANDE MATRAM!!!

The Cricketing Religion in GOD’s own country has given us quite a few special moments to be cherished for a life-time. The 1983 WC victory.. 2003 WC Road to the finals.. Sachin’s ODI double century: to name a few.. However, the series of extraordinary events which materialized on 30th March, 2011 in the now-legendary PCA stadium in Mohali will be remembered forever!! Yes, It was a Wednesday when Team India inspired by GOD’s gritty 85 with due heavenly help; bled blue till the very last over to emerge victorious against arch-rivals Pakistan in a WC semifinal match!!

And that was after MSD seemingly shocking decision to replace Ashwin with Nehra for this priceless “mother of all games”. Despite a rampaging start by Viru, MIB finished with just 260! Considered to be a below par score by most experts and yours truly as well. I was in a state of utter hopelessness at the break; with some unbelievably negative thoughts haunting me: Is the DREAM finally over now? Will it be Pak vs Lanka final hosted by India? Will GOD remain without WC glory forever? Crashing out to Pakistan in a WC semis in India: it can’t get more horrible than this?

Hoping the MIB bowling without Ashwin on a spinning pitch & with both Munaf & Nehra on a seamless pitch; to defend this score seemed to be a case of extreme over-optimism!!! Heard about rising to the occasion against all odds with nerves of steel: that’s exactly what the so-called ordinary bowling attack of ours achieved on ‘A Wednesday’!! The fact that the very first extra was conceded in the 37th over of Pak innings is a reflection of the razor-sharp disciplined effort by the now famous-five!! More ironical being the fact that the stand-out performers were none other than ‘Nehra’ & ‘Munaf’: undoubtedly the most ridiculed players in this Indian outfit!! The way MSD marshalled its resources in the most optimum manner despite tons of pressure & a rock-solid start by Pak deserves a lot of appreciation! And the Indians did gave it their all in the field too, which indeed was a wonderfully pleasant surprise!! A strangely played knock by now India’s favourite Misbah and an agonizingly late batting powerplay taken by Pak further compounded their misery!!

Absolute craziness on streets all-over India with booming firecrackers, ultra-loud music, dancing, singing, drinking & what-not: this very very special victory was indeed celebrated with unbelievable enthusiasm & joy!!

Just like 24 Sept. 2007, the day we were crowned T20 champs after another special performance against Pakistan, 30 March, 2011 will also find its place in the golden pages of Indian Cricket history!!

HAPPINESS all around :) :) :D :D

An adrenaline rush of the tsunami-kind, tempers flaring all over the place, blood pressure & heart-beat rates zooming every second & hope, belief, prayers ubiquitous all around: Wednesday , the 30th of March, 2011 will go down in cricket folklore as the dream-turned-reality knockout punch: INDIA vs PAKISTAN. World Cup Semi-final.

Yes, it just does not get better than this. The ultimate cricket-nirvana moment is all set to engulf Asia in particular and the whole cricket world in general when these two arch-rivals lock horns in Mohali. Infact, as soon as Yuvraj Singh dethorned the down-and-out Aussies of their cherished WC crown with that blazing boundary in Motera, the whole of India has been overwhelmed by the sheer thought of the upcoming “mother of all matches”!! Such has been the scale of excitement that the complete social network (Facebook & Twitter) will do well to double-check the power of its servers on this holy day!

The Rise in Price of match tickets will put the all-time-bullish Sensex to shame & after Black Caps, it’s the Black tickets which are the IN thing :P Mohali Mohalla is the cynosure of everyone’s eyes now!!

This God-sent matchup became a possibility after the Kangaroo-killers Pakistan took the stuffing out of Carribean Calypso with a thumping 10 wicket victory led by the ‘bowler’Afridi & 'batsman' Kamran!!

The Mini-finale also lived up to its expectations to produce the most electrifying & intense encounter in Ahmedabad to end the 12 year WC reign of Aussies; despite a determined knock by Punter!! The “UV-Raina” effect soaked in all the pressure to produce a scintillating partnership that shocked the Kangaroos to the core. If playing Raina instead of Yusuf was a MSD master-stroke, then Yuvi’s 4th man-of-the-match effort was the most special of them all: confident, courageous & sublime! This match will also be remembered for some absolutely brilliant performance in field & excellent bowling show by India barring “The Munaf”!

And then came the Oscar-winning knocked out saga of the “Choker in the pack”!! Kiwis ensured that S.A. continued their date with “Knock-out horror shows” with another shocking batting collapse reminiscent of what they managed against England in their group tie! The Kiwi flight was complete and there was no case of “Black Caps Down”!!

The Asian Roar was complete with the most emphatic display of dominating cricket by the inspired islanders!! Such was the extent of the 10 wicket thrashing that their most premier bowler became a “Black Swan” in a completely Straussed-out English side… & to top it all, the neutral cricket fan was even devoid of another English-directed thriller!! However, the curious case of “Yardy-depression” will always intrigue me here..!!

So after more than a month of exciting cricket, the crowning destiny is just 3 matches away for the chosen one!! But before that, it’s with bated breath that die-hard MIB fans await Wednesday, the 30th!!!

No, this is not about Steven Spielberg's next mega-hollywood project; which as a matter of fact is known as ‘Super 8’! For, ‘Super 7’ can be referred to as the series of high intensity & hyper-emotional cricket matches that are destined to take eight nations in particular and most of the world in general to the ultimate Oscar of cricket: The World Cup Crown!

Despite the all gung-ho Irish blood throughout and Bangladesh’s world cup record-breaking 9th wicket saga to stun TRP shooters & neutral cricket lover’s delight: England; it still turned out to be yours truly top-8 that finally did make it to the quarters! However, with certain glaring shockers in the positions indeed… As 10-man Pakistan finally finally halted Aussie juggernaut despite the presence of the one-who-should-not-be-named donning wicketkeeping gloves again… And MIB finally had an almost convincing win with its best bowling effort to date against Windies; courtesy: the Un-Chawla effect!!

Here’s my take on Super 7:

1.Green rule all the way: Despite the nature of its unpredictability, despite “him” in the team and despite a still fragile batting-line up; Pakistan should prove to be just too hot for the minnow-slammers Carribean. A WC Aussie conquest should be their absolute confidence booster!

2.The Mini Finale: Rightly termed-so by the Aussie coach, this could be the Superman encounter in Quarters; especially if Chawla-effect comes back to haunt MIB (remember warm-up match). However, if Ashwin-ism continues & Super-Sehwag is back to match fitness, there is no reason why MIB cant pull this one off! And here’s hoping that batting powerplay nightmares are finally over for once & for all.

3.African Safari rolls on: The only thing standing between Proteas and a semifinal appearance could be the Pallakele Plunderer: Ross Taylor!! But there’s also lot more to this tricky contest: the choker-savvy credentials, Vettori’s tweakers, Villiers injury and ofcourse the recent Black Caps resurgence!! But its definitely Advantage Africa here.

4.Inspired Islanders: One thing can be taken for granted – England will keep its flawless record of producing heart stopping thrillers intact. Everything else, however, is flawed when the case in point is England. For how can one explain this fact: England is the only team in quarters not to have lost to any other team left in this WC!!! And it’s the same bunch of eleven that went down to both Ireland and Bangladesh!! Home advantage, in-form captain & great all-round bowling: this could well be the recipe of Lankan success!

5.The Numero-Uno MATCH: Nothing has, nothing can and nothing will ever beat the awesomeness of India vs Pakistan match in WC!!! And MIB has never ever lost to its unpredictable neighbours in a WC encounter!!

6.The Revenge Match: All those who remember Boucher’s fist pumping in that unbelievable tie that led to S.A. end in WC’03, will know that Proteas would seek revenge in this colossal match-up! However, Lankans may not require any luck to get the better of Proteas this time around.

7.Glory Glory.. MIB!!! If it is indeed an India vs Sri Lanka WC final; rest assured it would be a battle of nerves between two very evenly matched sides. “Preparation can only take you thus far, after that you require a leap of faith”. How I wish :) :)

Fingers Crossed… Let the Super 7 begin…

338, 338, 327 & 329: And to think I had to watch my only live WC match in Delhi and not the new ‘Mecca of heart stopping cricket’: Bangalore!!

The 2011 edition of ‘The Greatest Show on Earth’ has reached an 8.0 on Richter scale after witnessing two of the all-time greatest matches’ ever played in history of the game.

The jaw-dropping fastest WC ton laced with 19 hits beyond the boundary-line in a 50-ball fury from Kevin O’Brien toppled the Englishmen and caused the first major upset of the gala event! Considering the Bob Woolmer case after Irish victory over Pak in ’07, I really hope all is well with Andy Flower in the coming days? Group B has indeed come alive.

And this is after ‘yours truly’ went through a complete roller-coaster emotional ride during the historic TIE on the same flat track earlier. From watching the GOD on top of his powers in a majestic display of sublime stroke play during his 120 in MIB-338 to being amazed & perplexed at the same time by Captain England masterly 154 and clueless Indian bowling. And finally dazzled by a mercurial Zaheer and last ball’s single (sigh-of-relief) in English-338.

Pak’s stunning win over the Lankans, Aussies confident start of their defense which keeps Ponting still unbeaten as their WC captain despite his off-field LCD woes and Malinga’s sensational hat-trick against a completely lost Kenyan side keeps Group A alive and kicking too!

Early days into the mega-event but few teams already need to get their thinking cap on:

MIB needs to do a thorough introspection to rekindle the belief and become a once decent bowling unit again. Maybe play a specialist bowler extra! Even the fielding has hit rock-bottom with dropped catches and frequent fumbles: Buck-up guys!!

If there is a team which requires an even greater turnaround in their bowling & fielding performances, it surely is England! But first they need to start believing in themselves again especially after the Irish Shocker!

The defeat to Pak may just bring out the best in the Lankans: how I would love them to halt the Aussies juggernaut finally!! South Africa has begun well and now start firm favourites against the English!! Afridi-led Pak is looking dangerous already & Black Caps need to pull up their socks for the big fights ahead.

As for now, its time to savour the delight of the exquisite Irish Bailey!! Will they be able to continue their killing spree, only time will tell? But MIB will do well not to underestimate them on the upcoming Super-Sunday clash, especially: MIB bowling vs Irish batting promises to be a really interesting affair!

De Ghuma Ke :)

Its been 27 long years… When Kapil’s Devils gate crashed on the Caribbean party, inflicting a catastrophic defeat to avert a hat-trick of titles for the calypso brigade, and henceforth achieving the miraculous feat: THE WORLD CUP trophy!!

Six tournaments later & history is yet to repeat itself! From hitting the final lap in 2003 to the disgraceful first round exit in 2007, the Indian cricket lovers have seen it all besides the Cup itself. So when the Cricket Mahakumbh opens for the 10th time in the ‘Country of GOD’ with the sport as the Religion, prayers & tempers will reach their ultimate zenith during 19th Feb – 2nd April.

Predicting ‘who will’ & ‘who will not’ do well in such a pressure cooker event is way beyond even Nostradamus genius; but then what’s the fun if this is not done? So here we go:

The Party-crashers: Bangladesh; led by the inspirational Shakib Al Hasan with the very talented Tamim Iqbal as his deputy, are no longer pushovers especially when it comes to competing on the big stage. Add to that home advantage & the mercurial Ashraful and this confident bunch is more than capable of making it to the knockout round. Will they deliver remains to be seen?

Zimbabwe, Ireland & Kenya can also boast from their historical record in WC, but expecting them to go past the first stage will require some serious hara-kiri. I doubt it this time. Gut feeling maybe?

8. Caribbean Anti-Calypso: Despite Double Bravo’s and dangerous Pollard in their ranks, Windies will need the experience of Sarwan, Chanderpaul and Gayle to assure entry into second stage. After that, May God Bless Them?

7. Its All 'Black Caps': The fact that Newzealand is still to name their final 15 for the Cup really sums up the downfall of the once very dangerous outfit! The side plunged into its lowest ebb after suffering humiliation by the hands of Bangladesh recently. Can Vettori-men turnaround their sagging fortunes and make a distinctive mark this time? Maybe Not.

6. The Phoneix Englishmen: They rose from the Ashes to devastate the Aussies in tests, but were beaten fairly and squarely in ODIs. However, with in-form players such as Trott, Bell & Anderson under Strauss fine captaincy, can they finally finally deliver at the biggest stage of them all? Watch out, they just might this time!

5. The Unpredictable Neighbours: Their build up to the mega event has been typically Pakistani style! Surrounded by all possible controversies over match-fixing, player bans, captaincy issues etc. on one-hand and playing some brilliant cricket to outlast the Kiwis on another! The unpredictability of ‘which Pak will show up’ makes them the most dangerous team, yet again. Will Afridi, Misbah and company do a 1992 encore? Conditions will favour them: Remember Remember!

THE BIG FOUR!

4. Agent Smith’s Proteas: The Quintessential Chokers and Perennial Under-achievers! Recent performances suggest that South Africa is fast shedding this woeful image, however, WC is going to be their ultimate acid test. With Kallis & Amla; in their best forms of their lives, Smith does have a balanced side capable of beating anyone on their day and going all the way too. But, hasn’t this been their curious case last time & before & before…….? Kallis is the Key!

3. The Enigmatic Islanders: Sri Lankans have reasons to believe that they ought to be second-time lucky. Its Murali’s last world cup, Sangakkara is in top gear both as batsman and captain, in batting they have the perfect mix of dashers and technique; in bowling of spinners and pacers; the home advantage too! However, Will Inconsistency and lack of match-practice taboo their shot at glory this time? They don’t have the likes of Aravinda De Silva, Ranatunga & Jayasuriya from their 1996 crown, nobody even closer!

2. The Unstoppable Kangaroo-force: Aussies might be a little messed up right now: Ashes humiliation, Captaincy woes, Injury problems etc. But its near impossible to separate the world cup crown from them, even the mere thought seems utopia. 4 times champions and last 3 in a row: do we need to look any further! So will the champion team crusade to another ‘path of WC glory’ in typical juggernaut style or have times indeed changed a lot recently to trigger chaos? Experience & Confidence: both are scarce for the Aussies this time!

1. Numero Uno ‘Men In Blue’: We have the GOD playing for arguably the very last time at WC stage, We have the Home Advantage & We have billions of hearts praying day/night for the dearest & most precious jewel: “The Pursuit of World Cup Happyness”..!! And then we have MSD at the helm, unarguably the best top order batsmen at present, Zaheer & Bhajji hitting top form off late and a highly improved fielding unit. But most important of all, what this team possesses in abundance is the unflinching belief in its capabilities to go all the way this time, come what may! The GOD a.k.a “Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar”: Its Time for you to take centre-stage and add the ‘only thing’ and the most ‘important thing’ in your CV. For next-time may well be too late! So will the Men In Blue keep their date with immortality on 2nd April, 2011? Hope is a good thing and no good thing ever dies. Ever.

MIB – JUST DO IT!

Let the Games Begin :)

Mumbai Indians need 12 to win from 10 balls against Rajasthan Royals…

Abhishek Nayaar hits Botha for a huge six!!!

6 to win from 9 balls.. Game Over for RR.. One can almost hear their co-owner Shilpa Shetty sigh – No Chance!

But this is IPL and RR are the defending champs led by the mercurial Shane Warne!

Botha bowls Nayaar of the next ball….. 4 to win off 6 balls…. And then Munaf Patel bowls an amazing final over as the Royals win by a whisker – 2 runs !!!


Welcome to the ‘Incredibly Pulsating League’ 2009 – the ultimate combo of cricket and entertainment, it just does not get better than this atleast for me!! What with an unbelievable amount of time at my disposal, courtesy my ongoing holiday time at home, IPL 2009 is serving as my daily dose of thrillenium!!

However, this fun & frolic saga had begun during my last EVS days only, when I accumulated a good fortune with my perfect IPL prophecies. Had I continued on with those, who knows I could have been an IPL consultant by now :P

So as this cricketing mahayudh reaches its edge-of-the-seat climax, these are my top-4 for the semis (in that order):





Delhi Daredevils: Viru and Gambhir at the top, followed by Warner, Dilshan, Villiers and Karthik and you have a super-strong 20-20 batting line-up. This coupled with a more than handy bowling attack comprising Nehra, Sangwan, now-injured Vettori, Nannes etc. and you have a really formidable outfit. Not to forget the fact that DDR is also one of the best fielding unit in IPL. Sitting pretty at the top of the table now, this has been favourite team from the start….

“Yeh Delhi Daredevils hai mere yaar, bas cricket, victory aur IPL 2009 is baar” :-)

Chennai Super Kings: Led by the captain-supreme MS Dhoni, CSK is one of the most balanced teams in the tournament and one of the favourites from the start. Runners-up last time, the team had a very ordinary start this time, what with winning only 1 of its first 5 matches. But since then the team has bounced back in style and is on its way to a semis birth. With Orange cap holder Hayden going great guns this time, Suresh Raina blazing on all cylinders, Albie Morkel as dangerous as ever and a decent bowling attack, CSK may well make it to the finals yet again.

Deccan Chargers: After hitting rock-bottom in 2008 with the last spot, the team is determined to make up for the debacle this time around. Fully charged up under the able leadership of Gilchrist, who is himself moving to top gear now, DC would be a tough nut to crack this time. The return of Symonds has further bolstered the team that also includes Gibbs. With some luck, one of the strongest line-ups in the tournament is all set to reach the last 4 stage and from thereon, anything is possible.

Rajasthan Royals: The winners of the last edition had the worst possible start this time, after being skittled out for the IPL-lowest 58 in their very first match against Royal Challangers Bangalore. But the defending champions have bounced back in their inimitable style under the inspirational leadership of Warne. With Yusuf Pathan (one of the most dangerous players in this format of the game), Graeme Smith, R Jadeja etc. in their line-up, the side is good in both batting and bowling. Their 211 runs effort against Kings XI Punjab was testimony of how the team is all set to repeat their 2008-act.

The Surprise Package: Vijay Mallaya’s RCB has been the surprise package of the tournament so far. With their latest victory against CSK, the team stays in reckoning for the semifinal birth. Sachin’s Mumbai Indians may be in a gloomy state after their 2-run loss to RR, but other teams would ignore MI at their own peril.

The Disappointments: SRK’s Kolkata Knight Riders has turned out to be the biggest disappointment of IPL 2009. After being plagued by captaincy issues at the start, the team has been found wanting on all fronts – batting, bowling and fielding despite being a formidable outfit on paper. KKR is all set to do a DC this time around. Yuvi’s Kings XI have also disappointed this time and would have to win all their remaining matches to replicate their top-4 performance of 2008. They will also hope that other results come out to their liking!

All said and done, the last phase of IPL-2009 promises to be a supremely exciting affair!!
Hats Off to Lalit Modi for making this IPL another winner amidst all the problems faced initially and despite this cricketing extravaganza happening away from home!!

So guys, stay glued to this ‘Incredibly Pulsating League’!!

Let the best team (read: DDR) win! :-)