And the award goes to..

Everyone news channel has an awards of IPL section. So here I am with my own version of IPL Awards

Intruder of the IPL Award
The dog that held up play for more than 10 minutes during the opening match of the IPL

Rat out of the hat Award
Tie
KKR decide to go with Mendis for the super over against RR
Sachin's over against DD during the league game

What a wide Award
Lasith Malinga

What is going on Award
DC throw away match against DC courtesy of a cricket suicide

Shiverer of the IPL Award
Gaurav Kapoor

Foot in the mouth Award
Robin Jackman's famous "Citi moment of disaster" comment on air - didn't get to see him on air after that

Change the name Award
Tie
The sixer will henceforth be called the DLFer
ODIs will now be called 50-50 cricket or F50 cricket

Fake of the IPL Award
No.. not the idiot FIP
Akon during the closing ceremony

Come never back Award
SRK

Question of the IPL Award
Sameer Kochar to some in the audience at the final : You here to see the final?

Big time heel cooler Award
Glenn Mcgrath

A gloryfying ascent and yet another fake IPL...

What a moment it must have been. In two contrasting years of fortune, DC came from finishing last in 2008 to finish at the top in 2009 - an ascent to be proud of. It was just reward for the team's determination and in particular for one man - Adam Gilchrist. He put up incredible performances one after the other - as captain, wicket keeper, batsman and a sportsman - something that won him the Golden Player of the IPL Award. He made everyone wonder why he even retired from cricket. With the T20 World Cup just round the corner, Australia would be well served if he was in the team along with another star of the season - Mat Hayden.
As I expected and as variants of Murphy's law would project it was DC and RCB who made it to the semis. DD were too casual in assuming that they were unbeatable. But on Friday, even if they had decided to show grit, it wouldn't have mattered as Sehwag mentioned. Gilly simply decimated them. CSK made the big mistake of not taking Mike Hussey's services even though he was available. And just because Haydos returned, MSD got fooled into thinking he would win. And when RCB players decoded Murali's crypt the writing was clearly on the wall.
The final was the icing on the cake. The match swung both ways once every 5 overs. DC just hung on when the match swung its way one last time. Congrats Chargers! I am just hoping now that there were will be a parade of the Chargers with the trophy atop a bus in Hyderabad - just hoping. Ram Reddy.. are you listening?
As expected, the weight of the finals just got to the IPL. The whole closing ceremony looked very fake. Except for the Phoenix Fire Dancers performance and to a little extent Katrina Kaif's swing everything else was fake. I have heard that Britney Spears once did lip sync during an awards show. Yesterday it was that "international singer" Akon failing miserably in trying to do the lip sync. And that was just not the end - there was another drums show that was fake followed by a really fake fashion show. In the end the show dragged too long and almost shadowed the glory of the evening. And what were the organizers thinking when they just handed over the medals in a bunch to the dignitaries for the presentation. It was so funny watching them (and it included the President of South Africa also) trying to unwrangle the medals that were wound up. And there was more to come - as the players kept coming to collect the medals, the presenters ran out of medals - even Anil Kumble did not have one. And whom did they give the Fairplay award to? KXIP!!! Now that must be a joke considering who they have in the team - Appam.. err... I mean Super Sree.

Some fine bloopers at the final

Mandira Bedi to Gilchrist : "RP Singh has proved to be good at taking wickets for Deccan Chargers and (pause)... in general
Glichrist : ????????? (thinks) in general????

Sameer Kochar to a few people in the audience before the match : Are you here to see the final?
Spectators : ???????? (thinking) no we will leave shortly

Danny Morrison from the dugout to Ravi Shastri : I want Deccan to win keeping in mind my Aussie connection.
Shastri : Aussie connection Danny?
Danny : (embarassed) Well, you know Scotty Styris the Kiwi, he is not playing but... blah blah blah

And finally it was hilarious to see Sameer trying to liven up the post match interview with Symonds and failing miserably.

A blessing probably

In most tournaments, matches played on the last day always have some impact on the knock out stage. But there was nothing at stake on Thursday. While DD-MI had absolutely no impact, the DC-RCB match lost its impact when it was mentioned that DC have to lose by about 195 runs to get eliminated or win inside 11.2 overs to eliminate RCB. So it was just a fight to decide who will face DD in today's semifinal. And by losing the match DC took the honors. I feel this could be a blessing in disguise - they have a better chance to upstage DD than CSK - who now have Mike Hussey also in their ranks as if the current line up wasn't enough.
What the teams need to do now
KKR had the same fortune of DC from last year - losing a few close ones and looking out of sort in other matches. They will probably bounce back like DC. For MI it looks like Sachin must think again about captaincy. Nothing seems to be working for him. Bhajii would make a better captain provided he keeps his slapper.. err.. his hand in control. RR must start thinking now. Their ploy of bringing in the surprise factor by throwing totally unknown players into the fray worked for a season and half. But now they need to bring in real talent. KXIP will do better with some spirit. Yuvraj seems a bit lazy and it catches up with the team.
The semifinalists
DD have been making a march on the opposition through the tournament. But they have a lot of potential banana skins within their team - the form of Gambhir and Sehwag the most important of them. One off day for AB and Dilshan could spell disaster and that was exposed by RCB. So DD beware.
CSK have a lots of factors going their way but the same factors might backfire. Brilliant starts from Hayden have kept them competitive throughout. Raina's bowling has supported Dhoni very well. Hayden's injury might play a big part if it is serious. Hussey's return is a plus provided he is not very rusty. Murali can go for 8 runs off 4 overs on one day and 55 runs off 4 the next day. So CSK has to tread carefully.
RCB have been the dark horse. With the same "test team" from last year they have gone as high as 3rd in the league - thanks to the resurgence of Ross Taylor once KP left the scene. Kumble's captaincy hasn't been good or bad. Kallis and Taylor are very important to them now. But RCB haven't been involved in pressure chases for some time. Can they perform then?
DC must look to reverse the pattern that is emerging in their matches in today's semifinal. They begin their bowling very tightly - there is always a wicket or two to RP. There is discipline until about the 16 overs - except for the odd misfield or dropped catch. Over the next 4 overs, they lose their way. Too many runs are conceded and suddenly a decent total becomes a huge total.
While they bat, the pattern looks similar. Gilly begins in cracking fashion. Gibbs or someone in the top order too compliments the start. By the strategy break, the situation looks very bright. And then the slide begins. Barring Rohit, nobody seems to have any clue as to what to do and they finally capitulate. Hope this doesn't repeat today.

Bye bye bollywood

It was a memorable evening for me. Whatever was left of Bollywood was packed off in spectacular fashion. Four teams competed with each other in trying to lose as much as possible. But in the end, only the biggest losers could lose heavily. And the icing on the cake was that PZ's KXIP and SS's RR were ejected out of the IPL. RR can have further humiliation for having been the defending champs. If Mumbai win today's inconsequential (depends on the perspective) match, RR will end up 7th - certainly not what Shilpa would have expected when she acquired the 11% stake. But then RR played that way. The batsmen were looking to score 300 in 20 overs and humiliate KKR but failed. But that didn't prevent KKR from offering to get humiliated and only a miracle saved them - you have to call it a miracle because Ajit Agarkar finally played a role in a winning cause for any team that he has played. The second match was supposed to throw the semifinal spots wide open. But KXIP were not ready to oblige. They took 38 runs from 3 spinners in 12 overs and gifted the entire top order to CSK who were too casual to be serious but suddenly ended up winning the match. The moment of the match though was when Sreesanth castled Dhoni and ran all over the field celebrating.
At this juncture, as we look back at the IPL, there seems to be a really bad example being set by the players - a very bad one. Everyone must have noticed that. Whenever a bowler picks a wicket or a batsman gets dismissed under embarassing circumstances or a fielder finally takes a catch to dismiss a batsman or there is a misfield or.. and the list goes on, we see players badmouthing each other. Even though the TV people mute it off or we don't hear it we know what is being spoken - a direct vulgar attack at the other player's family. Not one player shows restraint. Don't they know they will be in focus of the cameras under such circumstances? Somebody has to take serious actions.
Suresh Raina was in focus during yesterday's match. Having hit Sreesanth for a 4 he found himself being abused by the over rated bowler. He calmly responded (and was heard on the stump microphone) saying that Sree could sledge him but not be abusive - now that's a cool head.
DC and RCB meet in today's match to decide who will face whom in the semis - a mighty turnaround for them after they finished at the bottom during the inaugural season. But then the semis are not going to be easy pickings. The winner will have to face CSK and the loser will have to face DD. But the losing team should be careful enough not to lose heavily. Because that will chuck them out of contention and let KXIP sneak in through the backdoor. As I always mention - anything can happen in T20. It's all about chances.
By the way, fake IPL player has "revealed" himself. But when you look at the revelation, all you can think of is - what a coward!!

A "knight" to forget

Captain Cool finally had a hot night - a night to forget. It wasn't the CSK that we have seen all through IPL2. For starter, there was no Hayden (and it looks like he will miss the next match too). And then.. even though they posted 188 runs, it did not look like a convincing target. As KKR chased, the bowlers erred. Tyagi and Jakati who have successfully played second fiddle to Morkel and Murali respectively suddenly lost it completely. Balaji who has been escaping punishment somehow finally got what he deserved. While bringing on Raina against KXIP a few days ago looked like a tactical move, this time it looked more like a desperate move. And to top it all, Dhoni lost his cool. He was so stunned by the KKR assault that he let Parthiv take over wicket keeping and tried motivating his players by being on the field. Even that did not help. Macullum and Hodge were determined not to let another match slip by. And as deserving as it may be, KKR finally got to win a match off the last ball.
I had written a few blogs ago that KKR might set someone's semifinal hopes on fire. CSK could turn out to be the team that will be on the receiving end of that blaze. With 15 points and 1 game against KXIP in hand, CSK must win that match. And as fate would have it, KXIP (14 points) also have to win that match to stay alive. Imagine what could happen if CSK lose and RR (13 points but lower NRR that CSK) beat KKR. Distant possibility, but in T20 anything is possible.
What all this means is that if RCB beat DD in today's match, the final league match between RCB and DC will go on to become a virtual quarterfinal just as I prophesied yesterday.
All the off field fun from yesterday came from "what you call" Kris Srikanth as he came on as "what you call" expert commentator and shared a few "what you call" jokes with Mandira. The best "what you call" moment was when he had to refer to the IPL and put a "what you call" in front if it.

Undeserving

Much as I can acknowledge that DC did not deserve to win against KKR on Saturday night, I must say that they had to win against KXIP on Sunday. But I must also question Ryan Harris' running off the last ball against KXIP. The non striker had almost completed the third run and was indeed running to the danger end. So what was Ryan thinking as he strolled towards the dug out after completing the second run? After all T20 is all about taking your chances - even if it is non existent or slimmest. Just take Yuvraj Singh for example. Who would bet on him taking not one but two hat tricks in the same tournament? It's all about taking chances and Ryan just missed the plot. On a foot note - kudos to Rohit. He proved everyone wrong about his attitude. Despite the result, DC are still 3rd thanks to CSK and DD pulling well clear with victories. Now DC has to slug it out with RCB, KXIP and RR for the two semi final spots - something that could not have been so tough had DD not laid down for KXIP to roll over them on Friday and had DC not committed that cricket suicide. Looking at the remaining matches to be played, it looks quite absorbing.
RCB have the might of DD to face up before heading against DC in the last league match which could turn out to be a potential quarterfinal.
RR could falter if they take KKR as a sitting duck in their last match.
KXIP have to contend with CSK who have already cemented their spot in the last 4 - something that might let CSK to go with fringe players and boost KXIP.
There's a lot to joke about off the field. It was a pathetic sight yesterday to watch the RR cheerleaders dance with their most minimal clothing on when everyone else at the ground was running to cover themselves against the biting cold. Mandira Bedi finally listened to what has been said about her dress sense - but still has to improve on all other senses. Akash Chopra finally got himself convinced that he had to cheer for KKR and even that couldn't turn KKRs fortune around. Sameer Kochar made the most laughable joke. After the last ball six that won the match for DC against KKR, Sameer burst on to the screen with the hang over of the excitement still lingering. But all of it ended in anti climax when he finished saying it was a comfortable victory for the Chargers. It was also funny to watch the square leg umpire trying to stop Mortaza from bowling before that contentious no ball during the match.
The next one is something I have wanted to talk about for a long time. It's about the IPL trophy. The organizers have put in a lot of thought, money and what not into making the IPL a big success. But alas! Where were they when they designed the trophy? Every time the trophy comes on screen and the commentators start praising the trophy ravishly, I begin to think if I am the only one who feels otherwise. Just look at the trophy - does it look even slightly attractive? Alright, its replete with diamonds and rubies. But it looks like a hastily arranged India map made of some white stones from which a few stones have fallen off. Come on Modi - try finding something else. This trophy doesn't reflect the mood of the IPL!!
The joy and thrill and money in the IPL has indeed turned a few heads. While some former foreign players and foreign boards are going green with jealousy - Javed Miandad calls IPL a joke and alleges match fixing while most English commentators have blamed Chris Gayle's late arrival in England for West Indies' test loss - many of the ICL players are already quitting it - Hemang Badani is the latest in this list.

Royal thrill

RCB and RR have made it really tight at the top now. Just when I thought the pattern that would make the bottom 4 drift away from the top 4 was emerging comes two thrilling matches. But looking at how their opponents played, it must not have gotten thrilling at all. While CSK clearly looked like they underestimated RCB's late order, Sachin's MI got everything wrong with their late order.
The story of both matches looked quite similar. CSK were in the driver's seat with yet another Hayden 50. They were then pegged back spectacularly by RCB. When RCB chased, it looked like CSK had the game in their hands when they packed off the top order. But Taylor's heroics for the second game running derailed CSK. Such was their excitement that even after the last shot from Vinay Kumar went for 4, they were still running between the wickets to get the winning runs.
RR had a whirlwind start and MI stemmed the rot with a good bowling display at the end. With 145 to chase and Sachin and Sanath in their ranks, MI looked set to win home and dry. But it was yet another "rat" from the hat from Sachin when he sent in Bravo, Takawale and Rahane to bat before he and Sanath stepped in. But Warne (yeah despite an injury that threatened to take 10 days off he played with the limp) had other ideas. Not only did he marshall his troops well but he set the example by removing both the stroke makers. And then finally with 6 needed off the last over, MI conspired to lose by 2 runs - it looked like a repeat of the "cricket suicide" from the previous day. It's now 2 points separating 2nd place and 6th place - the last week is going to be very exciting.
Isn't somebody going to tell Mandira that the off shoulders that she wears only reminds people of what they see in the biology labs? Come on Mandy, you can do better. Don't get fooled into thinking that TViewers are mesmerized by your dress sense.

Suicide

What an awful night it was. It was supposed to be the glory night that catapults DC back to the peak - temporary though. But the self-triggered avalanche completely ransacked them. All they needed were 25 runs off 19 balls with 7 wickets in hand. Instead they made 12 runs of 17 balls and lost all 7 wickets. The domestic crop in DC proved to be just "weed". Not only was the batting display a dampener, equally dumb was the fielding effort. At least, if they are not able to catch high balls the fielders should refrain from converting them into sixers - pathetic sight. It was completely self inflicted and more severe because DD were not as good either. They were also suicidal with their fielding. It was just that DC proved to be more cruel to themselves than DD. And among all this catastrophe, you can also put in positives from Dinesh Karthik, Adam Gilchrist and Andy Symonds. It surely looked like there were 2 matches being played there - a more prominent scrappy game and a less effective batting cracker. But Delhi won both matches.
Rajat Bhatia became an instant hero to everyone's surprise. Everyone else was a villain - Chaminda Vaas the worst of them all.

Condemned, doomed, cursed...

Condemned, doomed, cursed, ill fated, unlucky.... any number of such adjectives would summarize KKR for this season. It was supposed to be the turning point with Brendon Mac striking form. But SRK still has to wait before he can book a flight to South Africa. And moreover, he mentioned that he would go back only if KKR "start winning matches". With just 3 more games to go, I don't think KKR will set the IPL on fire but with Hussey in and Mac in form, they might just set the hopes of some semifinal contenders on fire. Anyway SRK! See you in IPL 3 unless you decide to sell the team off. But before you wash your hands off, you better ensure that the "Phoren Babas" involved in Ajay Jadeja's spectacular racism claim are dealt with.
Let us not take away credit from Ross Taylor though. As much as KKR's luck proved to be a factor, we all know that Ajit Agarkar is not one to be trusted to bail you out when a batsman is in murderous form. Keep it going KKR. You may finish last but you can keep in mind Swami Vivekananda's philosophy about being at the bottom to console yourself. As for RCB, it looks like they might better their best performance in the IPL - finishing 7th.
MI and KXIP played a scrappy game. Off the 119 runs that KXIP made, there were 23 extras. Imagine what could have happened had this been a 50 over game. It was an eye candy to watch Sreesanth hammered all over the park. In one over bowled by Super Sree, Bravo tripled the MI score and MI never looked back after that. It was so easy that even Sachin scored a few runs. That was sarcastic but I had to make it for obvious reasons.
Bret Lee sends in a bouncer and Sivaramakrishnan the commentator says that Lee is still rusty from the injury lay-off. I cannot imagine what Lee would have done had be been in perfect condition - bounce the ball all the way to the moon?There is a saying that means it is better to remain silent than gloat and show your ignorance. Before they are picked for commentary, these commentators need to go through multiple screenings.
Sameer "Stone Cold" Kochar has replaced Gaurav Kapoor on the field. At least, he was not shivering. But in trying to be a Gaurav on the field he failed miserably - much like Sunny Deol trying to dance.

Clinical

Finally DC came up with a clinical performance to despatch RR. The moment Yusuf Pathan departed, there was only one team that was going to win the match. Yusuf incidentally has been the man of the match on all previous occassions the two teams met - some record this. Dwayne Smith has proved to be the trump card for DC this season. The short arm scoop he hit for six off Trivedi was a stunner. Yet another trump card would be Rohit Sharma. He seems to be the bowler to go to once the top order has been cleaned off. He takes no time to polish the middle order and the tail. And as Gilly said, he may be more off chasing the Purple cap rather than the Orange Cap. Warne's injury during the match that rules him out for 10 days means that RR have to finish among the top 4 and win the semifinals also before he can play - tough ask. By the way, did you notice Munaf sulking towards the end of the RR innings? He did not even care to run singles which were on offer. May be he was sending a message to skipper that he did not like being bowled only for 1 over when DC batted.
I've been watching with a bit of pity at the way in which Indian cricket is shaping. Even though the IPL is the opportunity for many a budding talent, it looks like they are not using it as effectively. The number of dropped catches - most of them absolute sitters, misfields, wavery bowling - all this coming from the Indian contingent in all teams point at only one thing. The first team is good - but behind them everyone is struggling.
Meiyang Chang seems to have gotten over the IPL butterfiles in the stomach. He seems the most composed of all the comperes. Robin Jackman was funny yesterday. He bent down to field a ball that was racing towards him in the boundary. And after that he was complaning of pain in the back and knee for the rest of the evening.

It looks like a curse

I thought it would turn around for KKR just to go by the law of averages. But it looks like KKR has been cursed. I can now bet on KKR not winning any of their remaining matches. Hope they don't prove me wrong against my favorite team Chargers. Dada now seems to waging a lone battle. But despite all the wrong things happening to KKR, the team still seems to be enjoying the game. It looks as if Brendon comes to the field every time just to see what fate has in store for KKR. He seems to enjoy every edge, dropped catch, wrong decision, overthrow and what not. We can expect a book on IPL 2 from him. The mystery man of KKR - yeah the FIPLP - has put up a poll on his blog now. Suddenly this guy wants to become famous. And what's more interesting is that there have been more votes registered on this blog than the number of votes in the Mumbai election.
CSK and DD are well on course to the semis. The rest of the teams are at quite a distance. My team lost to KXIP because of indiscretion during the last overs once again. MI finally won despite Sachin being their captain. With 5 teams vying for 2 remaining spots, it should be exciting.
Alright. It should be OK if Jeremy Coney or Mark Nicholas or Robin Jackman call Kigs XI Punjab as "Kings XI Poonjab". But why is Ranjith Fernando going that way? Is he trying to gel into the commentator team? More from Ranjith and the rest here. Enjoy!!
Gaurav "shiverer" Kapoor has been relegated to the studio - just punishment for all his tantrums on field. All he had to do was wear some warm clothes. If he couldn't do even that, then he doesn't deserve to be there on the field. But Mandira continues to be the joker on the field with her costumes (did you see that yellow one yesterday?) while "Changy" guy just keeps getting on my nerves with his childish behavior. Ramiz Raja seems to be the guy who has brought some fervor into the commentary team. But when you lose Toney Grieg, Dean Jones and the likes to the poor man's IPL, you have to put up with guys like Neil Mckenzie and Greg Blewett.

Thoughts

Things that I enjoyed so far in the IPL, in the weekend:

· Hayden pushing Warne out of the way to take a single

· Ramiz (or Rameeeeez ) Raja suggesting three strategy points and naming them as A. … B. … and 3… .

· The Indian idol dude commenting that, “the part-time spinners are doing really well like Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina and the other day somebody from Chennai Super Kings”.

Thoughts

Chennai lost against RR in all their matches last season, and so far Chennai has won all, will there be a Chennai vs RR final and this time Chennai will lift the trophy? I hope not, since my favourite team will lose out then.

Links:

That was fast !

A glossary of nicknames by the FIP

Ah that captaincy theory again

What a way to prove me right one more time. With DD needing 43 runs in 5 overs against MI the unluckiest captain of all time picked up the ball to throw his gentle off spinners at half track. 19 runs came off that over - so much for a shot at masterstroke a-la Dhoni from the previous day. DD never looked back from there and won comfortably. I was laughing all the way to the end from that spectacular over.
DD seem to be the first team that have stamped their authority in the tournament. They are almost at the doorsteps of the semifinal. Today's matches might throw in another couple of potential semifinalists. The tournament seems to have peaked with respect to the points table. But where have all the crowds gone? It's turning out to be an eye sore to see empty stands even though the organizers and commentators still think that the crowds are adding to the excitement.
Ramiz Raja has come to join the commentary team. Now that is a valuable addition to the potential bloopers collection. He almost had a blooper yesterday. Even as Dilshan struggled for words in the post match interview, Ramiz continued to flaunt his hi-fi English. But thankfully for Dilshan, the interview got over before it got funny. SET is trying all means to make the in-studio team look better. They got Anjum Chopra instead of Arul Lal - too early to make comments now though. Will wait and watch for a couple of days and then point out the bloopers if any. Adios!!

Thrilling run fest

Same pitch, same day, different results. Hours after one Royal team gave another Royal team yet another Royal thrashing in a low scoring game, Dhoni's kings and Yuvi's kings provided a thrilling run fest as they scored 359 runs in just 36 overs. It was a treat to watch and it's quite unfortunate that such a match was not played with the stadium packed with passionate supporters. Had this match been played in Chennai or Mohali, the crowds would have certainly added to the flavor. Yuvi's kings were so hot in pursuit and it took a Dhoni masterstroke to pour cold water on it. Not in their wildest dreams would any skipper ask Suresh Raina to bowl 2 overs inside the final 4 overs when the opposition were going hammer and tongs. But then just like in the movie "Unbreakable". if there is a captain whose every stroke results in utter failure (you know who I am talking about ha ha ha) then there should be another whose every touch is Midas' touch.
It was bizzarely funny to watch Gaurav Kapoor during the innings and rain breaks. The wind was blowing hard and it looks like Gaurav hasn't learned the lesson yet. Whatever he was wearing, it was not enough to stop him from shivering like Courage the cowardly dog. It was an irony that he was advising those that were planning to visit SA to pack their woollens. Alistair Campbell's confused look when he was talking to Gaurav summed it up. He was not sure if Gaurav was mocking him or if he was indeed reacting to the cold. And by the way, as I speculated the other day, Arun Lal is back in the studio. Oh no!!

The 7 ball itch

I did not believe it could happen but it did happen. DC won a match which I thought they had lost inside the first 10 overs of their batting. All it took was just 7 balls to derail the Mumbai Indians. While RP Singh bowled 2 off them at the beginning of the innings and accounted for Tendulkar and Jayasuriya, the surprise package came from Rohit Sharma. Little did I expect that of all people it would be Rohit who would pull the plug on the Indians. But then the Indians had to do something to ensure that my theory on Sachin's bad luck with captaincy stayed intact. But let us also give credit to DC a bit - with the bowling line up they have, 10 points and 2nd position in the table is great result.
And what's it with matches involving DC? Once again there was hardly anyone in the stadium and there was hardly any soul in the commentators too. All said and done, with the South African winter biting hard, the crowds have indeed stayed indoors. Ask that to Mandira who came up with that horror costume the other day. I could hear her teeth chattering when she was on air. And yesterday it was Gaurav Kapoor shivering and chattering through the fours, sixes and wickets packages. It was also funny watching Gaurav trying to pronounce "Tirumalasetty" during the post match interview. Thank God, they didn't have any "Phoren Babas" doing that interview. Didn't see AC in the studio yesterday. So there were no serious jokes :-)

Everything royal about it

Finally the tournament had its first score above 200. It was a "Royal" smacking that the kings from Punjab got. It was all over even before the chase started. Kudos to Warne for continuing to prove everyone wrong. Without Shane Watson and Sohail Tanvir the Royals are still quite a formidable line up. One the same lines, the match comes as a hard knock to Yuvi's kings - a hard Royal knock!
But all the comedy of errors were indeed reserved for the second match of the day. Having scored their highest score of the season so far, KKR played one of the most sloppy games of the season so far to lose to DD. Almost all 114 legitimate balls they bowled could have resulted in wickets but they took only 1 wicket. That was how the Delhites batted. But KKR players took turns to drop sitters, get nut megged by the ball, misfield balls on the boundary at will, effect multiple overthrows etc. etc. And to add to their woes umpire Ian Howell failed to notice the only catch the KKR took amidst the misses. Conspicuous by his muteness through all this was Dada - he effected one misfield and one overthrow and did not even come to bat or bowl. Despite all these, KKR put up a brave face to go down after 19 overs. SRK had said that he would go back to South Africa only after KKR started winning. May be his team is conspiring not to let him come. As for the Delhi batting - the lesser said the better.
On top of the TV bloopers list must be Mandira Bedi's costume yesterday. Simon Doull tried hard to contain his laughter whenever Mandira talked to him. And Mandira had further embarassment when she forgot Moises Henriques's name. Back in the studio, after 24 hours Sameer Kochar finally made Akash Chopra root for KKR. But it didn't seem to help KKR's cause.

"Dis"charged

It was not good viewing at all. Last evening I watched the whole match on TV without moving an inch away from the screen. I went from hopeful to desperate to devastated as I watched CSK systematically discharge the Chargers. But then after 3 wickets for 1 run, it had to happen that way. It's time for a revamp of the team. With Symmo coming in soon and Vaas still warming the bench some kind of change is required. With Fidel gone, the sting is also gone. Come on Chargers! Stop the discharge!!
I suppose that from next season onwards (or may be already in this season) teams need to start speculating about whom they will try to pry away from other teams. For example, Suresh Raina would certainly be on the radar of all clubs. That way, there will be additional excitement angle to the IPL.
Finally Mandira re appeared on TV but still - she's better in the studio. Why don't Sameer and Mandira switch roles? Alright, now to the TV goof of the day. It was a very dull day at the IPL. There was hardly any crowd and the commentators were talking as if they were watching a test match. Suresh Raina hoicked a ball with all power out of the ground and Harsha Bhogle who is normally animated responded with a simple and monotonous "Nice shot. Where is it going?". It was almost becoming a day without the bloopers when at the end of proceedings, "expert analyst" Akash Chopra came up with a stunner. Sameer Kochar prompted Akash to spell out today's (tomorrow's for yesterday) schedule. Sameer's vision in asking Akash to do it was because Akash's own club KKR was to play today against DD. When Akash did not catch the "vision" in the move, Sameer tried to rev it up by telling Akash that his team was in action. Out came a thunderbolt from Akash - "I am a Delhite and my heart is still with the Delhi Daredevils". And as usual Sameer was lost for words after that.
The IPL has indeed come as a blessing for many players. Praghyan Ojha and RP Singh have forced their way into the T20 WC squad on the back of some wonderful performances. Yusuf Abdullah, the South African who plays for KXIP and Lasith Malinga (MI) have also seen their IPL stints fructify into a WC squad spot. So the seeds are starting to bear fruit.

The veil is coming off soon.. or is it?

It looks like the Fake IPL player has not been able to stand the excitement and the suspense. He has decided to unravel his identity once the IPL season is over. I only hope it is the real fake IPL player who is now doing the blogging. I think the blog has been hacked over and over and there are too many of them blogging there.
Staying with what happened on TV over the past 3 days. My favorite team the Chargers have lost 2 in 2. Gilly seems to place too much confidence in Venugopal Rao and VR has repaid the confidence by promptly handing over the initiative to opponents. KKR have lost to the only team that they haven't lost to in the IPL. Now they are in the tournament just for the sake of the fake IPL player. Sachin's "ill luck with captaincy" theory still continues to hold good and as I said, KP's exit has only made RCB a better team.
There was yet another "controversy triggering" moment on TV. Danny Morrison was on the field reporting in one of the matches and guess what was sitting on his lap - a cheerleader. Even as the shocked commentators struggled for words and Danny continued to coochie-coochie with the girl the television decided to stop right there. Fortunately, the netas back home were too busy with the elections and it looks like they have not taken notice of what happened.
There is good news and bad news from the studio though. First the good one - Arun Lal is gone (is it temporary??). Now the bad news - Saba Karim has replaced him. Period. No more comments. By the way, where is Mandira? Has she gone into hiding because she fears the fake IPL player. It looks like most of the off-field stars have disappeared (they might attribute it to the elections) because they are scared the fake IPL player would expose them.