Bleed Blue!!
After a more than exciting match last Wednesday, between India and Pakistan, it was no surprise that the last day of the financial year was spent on discussing literally everything that occurred on the fateful night in Mohali. India won the match by 29 runs and booked a spot in the World Cup final, thanks to a 85 not out by Sachin Tendulkar and some lusty blows by Suresh Raina in the death overs. Credit must also go to the Indian bowlers - Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra, Munaf Patel, Harbhajan and Yuvraj Singh, who picked up 2 wickets a piece and ensured a sweet victory for the dignitaries, from Delhi and Islamabad, who had tuned up for a crunch semi-final.
However, it was the mannerism in which he game was played that brought a doubt in everyone's minds and became the lead topic of discussion for a billion people in India and abroad. Sachin getting dropped 5 times, Haffez's shot selection after his fluent knock, Younis Khan's and Misbah's strike rate as they chased 260 all came under the public's watchful scanner.
This and much more was discussed all through the morning on 31st, in my office, using different tones, languages and ascents. The discussion continued across various locations as well - in the cubicles, near the Xerox machine, in the cafeteria and even in the toilets...
Some discussions were loud enough for the whole floor to hear in.
Person 1: "Agar Misbah khel leta....."
Person 2: (interruping) "Agar magar mat kar....main bhi bol sakta hoon....agar Yuvraj khela hota toh..."
Soon, this discussion became globalized within the boundaries of the office.
Person 3: (shouting from the R&D department) "Match fixed tha re..."
Person 4: "Kuchi bhi kya......Pakistan pressure handle nahi kar paya!!"
Another topic was fired up in the QA section, but that took place in Bangali and I could only assume that they were talking about cricket because I overheard one of them say that GOmbhir and SOchin shared a good partnership.
The third parallel discussion flared up not very far from where I sit. This one took place in Telugu, but the tone was quite subdued. In Mumbai we would call this - khusur pusur. But, here too I could safely assume they were discussing cricket.
Surrounded by all these people commenting on how the match should have been played, reminded me of an old Reliance ad which says, "Bhai, India mein muft ki advice sab dete hain....", but what was most important was that 11 players went out there and made sure that India progressed through to what was probably going to be the most watched match for some time to come.
Fixed or not fixed...I am not sure, but one thing that was common amongst the 1.21 billion citizens of India, was that every Pakistani wicket was cheered, every boundary hit by an Indian batsmen was complimented by thunderous claps and clinched fist; and when Virat Kohli took that last catch of Misbah, everyone jumped up in joy and shouted out their hearts' content.
I don't know the outcome of the final in Mumbai today, but one thing I can say for sure is that We are Indians, We love our Cricket, We worship our cricketers and no matter what happens - We will BLEED BLUE!!
However, it was the mannerism in which he game was played that brought a doubt in everyone's minds and became the lead topic of discussion for a billion people in India and abroad. Sachin getting dropped 5 times, Haffez's shot selection after his fluent knock, Younis Khan's and Misbah's strike rate as they chased 260 all came under the public's watchful scanner.
This and much more was discussed all through the morning on 31st, in my office, using different tones, languages and ascents. The discussion continued across various locations as well - in the cubicles, near the Xerox machine, in the cafeteria and even in the toilets...
Some discussions were loud enough for the whole floor to hear in.
Person 1: "Agar Misbah khel leta....."
Person 2: (interruping) "Agar magar mat kar....main bhi bol sakta hoon....agar Yuvraj khela hota toh..."
Soon, this discussion became globalized within the boundaries of the office.
Person 3: (shouting from the R&D department) "Match fixed tha re..."
Person 4: "Kuchi bhi kya......Pakistan pressure handle nahi kar paya!!"
Another topic was fired up in the QA section, but that took place in Bangali and I could only assume that they were talking about cricket because I overheard one of them say that GOmbhir and SOchin shared a good partnership.
The third parallel discussion flared up not very far from where I sit. This one took place in Telugu, but the tone was quite subdued. In Mumbai we would call this - khusur pusur. But, here too I could safely assume they were discussing cricket.
Surrounded by all these people commenting on how the match should have been played, reminded me of an old Reliance ad which says, "Bhai, India mein muft ki advice sab dete hain....", but what was most important was that 11 players went out there and made sure that India progressed through to what was probably going to be the most watched match for some time to come.
Fixed or not fixed...I am not sure, but one thing that was common amongst the 1.21 billion citizens of India, was that every Pakistani wicket was cheered, every boundary hit by an Indian batsmen was complimented by thunderous claps and clinched fist; and when Virat Kohli took that last catch of Misbah, everyone jumped up in joy and shouted out their hearts' content.
I don't know the outcome of the final in Mumbai today, but one thing I can say for sure is that We are Indians, We love our Cricket, We worship our cricketers and no matter what happens - We will BLEED BLUE!!
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