Cherry in the city of oranges

As I write this piece, unless a miracle happens, (with the great Sachin Tendulkar still out there looking not quite satisfied with those 13000 odd Test runs it will be rather foolish to write off surrealistic possibilities) India seem headed for some serious damage in the first Test against South Africa at Nagpur. Keeping Tendulkar in good company is the assiduous, plucky and indefatigable MS Dhoni who seems to revel in circumstances looking hopelessly out of control. The captain and crisis man with a cool head and the....

Posted by Sanjay Jha at 13 : 08 | 0 comments

IPL auction: sense impossible

Enough has already been written and will be done on the furore over the outright rejection of Pakistan players in the IPL auction, so I will keep this piece somewhat short and come straight to some key points. 1) Either the Pakistan players were studiously ignored for the IPL auction (as is now being passionately speculated all over) in an orchestrated ploy hatched between the IPL management and the franchise owners or else the latter sent a pack of astute dunderheads to buy-out the players. Let me put....

Posted by Sanjay Jha at 16 : 47 | 0 comments

What the fake!

I was planning a rare afternoon siesta when my phone bell rang. It was a Mid-Day reporter I was told. Perhaps some trivial cricket quote, I thought. Or maybe some new cricket development, either turbulent, controversial or scam worthy as per expected norms. I yawned, a sense of déjà vu enveloping me like a thick fog embracing India's northern airports in winter. "Mr Jha?" A woman's voice with impressive energy erupted from the other end. "Yes", I said, confirming my credentials. "Are you the....

Posted by Sanjay Jha at 16 : 10 | 0 comments

The real unsung hero: Viru

When he removes his blue helmet revealing often a checked handkerchief covering his balding plate he resembles a tough stud of a railway driver navigating a steam engine through the mustard fields of Punjab and Haryana. But over the years, he has been christened more grandiloquently as the Nawab of Najafgarh, the title bestowed on him following the royal insouciance with which he usually surmounted insuperable foes, usually earning their reluctant acknowledgement as well. On December 3rd 2009 the tradition continued with much pomp, style and grandeur. I vaguely....

Posted by Sanjay Jha at 10 : 29 | 0 comments