Right way around?

To begin with let me issue an advisory : I am not an expert!  While most of my previous blogs on sports-slash-cricket have been introspective or contemplative, this one leans toward suggestive. However, this post is purely a figment of my own opinion and observations, and it's inspiration includes my coaches, teammates and friends.

Ever wonder how the number of cricketers who bowl right handed but bat left handed seems to increase? There are a number of examples in the international cricket community, across country lines. Names like Stuart Broad and Saurav Ganguly come to mind. (The reverse also seems true, as Michael Clarke's highly underestimated bowling arm indicates.) So much so, that this trend seems headed towards becoming the rule rather than the exception. And this points to a (not-so)new school of coaching, that is churning out these seemingly ambidextrous skills, creating more "hybrid-handed" cricketers.

Some coaches might cry foul here, pointing out that they usually encourage whatever their pupils naturally  choose. Fair enough, but are we asking the right questions?

Traditionally, a right handed stance means that our left hand is the top hand and our right hand is below it. One of the first things that happen in coaching is that the bat is placed on the ground in front of the pupil,with the toe facing away, and he (or she;we ladies play cricket too, but for the sake of simplicity I will henceforth use "him")  is asked to pick it up. This means that on picking up the bat, tho toe usually points upwards. This in turn naturally demands a grip in which our dominant hand is closer to the blade, to stabilise it against gravity; similar to the way one would hold up a sword, with our strong hand close to the hilt. Here, I believe lies the turning point. While a sword is always held with it's point against gravity, a bat is usually used in the direction of gravity, with its toe pointing down. In this case, a grip which places our strong hand farthest from the toe is more suitable, as this creates the longer lever, thus more bat speed.

This also makes more sense technically, as for all vertical bat shots, the top hand gives direction and control. Isn't it easier to use the hand that is already our strong hand as the top hand. It would solve a problem coaches continually moan about; that of over using the bottom hand while driving.

Perhaps when we hand the bat to a pupil, we could hold it out to him with the toe pointing down. Then, reaching for it with his strong hand may naturally nudge him toward a stance that will seem to be the opposite to what we traditionally expect(left handed for right handers), but which when you think about it, is more natural.

The advantages to this approach will not be lost on anyone who has played the game. In a sea of ubiquitous right-handed batters(I prefer using this term borrowed from baseball as it is more gender-inclusive), a southpaw poses a challenge for a bowler. It involves a change of line, angle, field and strategy; all of which are headaches any bowler would rather avoid. This very fact is the reason why most teams at all levels employ right hand-left hand opening combinations. Even purely left handed opening combinations, which don't invoke a constant change of line for the bowler, are often more successful than pure right-handed pairs, Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer being the most successful example.

Perhaps this very logic is the reason why a number of  international teams seem to have an equal distribution of right and left handed batters(which, when you think about it, is odd, as the distribution of left handers in human population is only 10 to 30%).

Judging by the number of southpaws in many international sides, I'd say this approach is already popular with many coaches. Just as parents take life changing decisions for their wards, coaches may be coaxing  young children to go against their traditional stance in favour of a "hybrid" stance. And I see nothing wrong with this, if it equips a player with an edge in the extremely competitive cricket environment.

Which approach is better?  Is it fair to young kids playing the game to ask them to change? Will we see a day when left handed batters are more common?  And if so, well that negate their advantage? Fellow players, coaches, friends, aficionados : weigh in with what you think about this. Enter your comments below! This debate is hereby declared open!

What's your frequency?

Okay, I am a self confessed fan of getting a good deal. I love shopping off the streets, and more often than not I get good value for money. One item I always buy off the streets, is headphones for my mp3 player. And mostly I've been pretty lucky, getting good sound quality and longevity, the latter of which is usually tricky with " china maal " ( chale to chaand tak, nahi to raat tak )! But off late I have observed a disconcerting pattern with regards to the point at which these headphones stop working. It seems every time someone notices these headphones and I describe how very clear the sound is and what a steal they were, and so on, they malfunction soon after! Initially I thought nothing of it, and dismissed the observation as random ( I will refrain from using the word coincidence, as I dont believe they exist ). But when this happened three times in a row, I had to sit up and take notice! What exactly was going on here? I was almost as if mere pyare se headphones ko najar lag rahi thi! 

Admittedly I never put much faith in this " evil eye " concept. I do however, subscribe to the concept of vibrations and can attest to their power. I have been associated with an organisation dedicated to improving the spiritual quality of people's lives for a long time now, and this connection has cemented my belief that we are influenced by so many unseen vibrations. But this was the first time I connected these two not-really-so-far-apart ideas. I realised that protecting what's precious to us from unfriendly eyes, by putting a tika or nimbu mirchi etc is something  seen across religions and cultures in the sub continent; and is nothing more than the smallest attempt to shield us from harmful vibrations.

I believe that what goes around come comes around. Not just in terms of our actions or our karma, but also our thoughts. Einstein said,"Everything is energy; that's all there is to it. Match the frequency of the reality you want and you cannot but help get that reality. It can be no other way. This is not philosophy. This is physics ."  ( Disclaimer : I picked up this quote from a Facebook post, so I am not sure about its authenticity; though I can totally imagine him saying something like this ).

So what does this mean in my case? Did I invite the demise of my headphones by waxing eloquently about how wonderful they are? I don't know. Was God telling me that I should appreciate my possessions, and everything in my life, while I have them, for all is uncertain? Perhaps. Its food for thought, and maybe its just to make me more aware of the vibrations I am sending out each second; as these are alive and potent and directly affect me and the people around me.

What vibrations are we sending out right now? Which ones are we tuning into? Will they affect the next pair of headphones I buy? More food for thought. Here's to rumination..

"Boys you can break..."

"..you'll find out how much they can take,
Boys will be strong,
Boys soldier on,
But boys would be gone without warmth from a woman's good,good heart..
...So fathers be good to your daughters,
And daughters will love like you do..
Girls become lovers, who turn into mothers,
So mothers be good to your daughters too.."

Daughters...sisters, mothers, girls.....women. A delicate breed aren't we? Like spiders silk, we appear slight and brittle, something that needs to be held carefully and cherished lest the slightest jerk  damage us. Yet, just as a spider cannot be defined without the silk that makes his web, our men, our priapic, self-assured, able men, are nothing without a woman's love to complete them. I love how John Mayer brings the frailty yet essentiality of a woman out in his grammy winning hit, 'Daughters'. Its a song whose message and melody has touched my soul, and moved me to write this post.

Now I can already hear the feminists protesting! "Were strong too!","We can take care of ourselves..", "We can do everything just as well!", and so on! And so we can! The silk that a spider so depends on is tougher than it looks. Spiders silk is known to be one of the toughest materials on earth; that is to say, it can withstand a huge amount of strain before breaking. And I know that everyone reading this description right now is thinking about some amazing women they know, who personify this. Women who have risen through unthinkable odds, stretching,bending, doing whatever it took to build a life for their loved ones and themselves.

I was talking to my friends yesterday about how it seems fewer women than men need to release their frustrations through addictive vices, or how many young girls of our generation look up to women role models more. And while discussing this, a thought occurred to me. Behind this facade of apparent invincible inner strength women seem to have,we must remember, we are fragile. We can break. Even as the strongest of webs can be swept away by a careless broom, we women can break if we're treated without the care and respect we deserve.

I remember a Marathi poem that I learned in school titled 'He bandha reshamache'. Very Roughly,literally translated; 'These silken relationships'. Women seem to have a God given natural ability to protect the deep yet delicate bonds that connect them to the people they love. The sheer number and depth of the bonds that each woman typically has tells you a lot about how big her heart is. So here's to all you amazing women out there, daughters, mothers, sisters and friends. You are all one of a kind. And to all the men who have these amazing women in your life, "You are the God and the weight of her world", so treasure her.

I Love Sports...???

I know the question marks at the end of that statement are a little surprising,especially coming from someone who has spent the better part of their last 10 years playing competitive sports. But i guess no matter how much you love doing what you do, there can be some small tiny part of it that you wish was different.

Sports is something that has given me so much. I love being in a team, surrounded by people with fantastic skills and so much to learn from. I love the training involved, physical and mental. I love the single mindedness that the game demands, that every ball demands every ounce of concentration that you have,else you will see the ball disappear somewhere far, far away. This single mindedness allows me to be able to leave everything else behind when im on the top of my mark. Its a different kind of peace of mind. I love the challenge, the elation when the ball kisses the edge, the sound when it grips the pitch slightly when its released just right, the pats on the back when i've got the breakthrough.

So what's not to love?

Losing.

Yes i know winning and losing is part and parcel of the game. But off late it got me thinking. Sports can never be win-win. Its always win-lose. I hate losing, but I accept defeats graciously and pick myself up and get back on the ground the next day. But every defeat is a dream dashed, loved ones let down, hours of hard work proven to be insufficient. Its an incredibly unsettling experience, especially if you have just lost a big match by a close margin.

Some of my friends work in a tough corporate environment, a dog-eat-dog world. I always felt that i would never want to have their jobs, where a step up the ladder means pushing someone down. And then i realised, i'm already there. Everytime i put in an hour at training, not only am I spending it for the benefit and glory of my team, but also spending it plotting the downfall of another. And suddenly I realised, this is a part of sports that I can't bring myself to feel good about. Where when someone has climbed a mountain and touched the peak, someone else, who is trying to climb the same mountain, has to be pushed off a ledge somewhere along the way.

Superstition Vs Sunburn..

So this is for all my friends who have played cricket, and i'm not just tallking about competitive cricket, but any cricket : gully, street, school playground, apartment balcony, Lord's, wherever. All of you will know exactly what im talking about. Its about our little, or not so little, superstitions within the game.

Now dont confuse these with routines. Putting on your left pad first, tying your laces a certain way, or praying before hitting the field are all more routines than anything,even if they do have a flavour of superstition about them. No, what im talking about is more sporadic, and yet something that is seen very uniformly across teams and i suspect across cultures as well.

The reason i got to writing this is that we were very recently playing a match in which something curious happened. Our openers were batting, and the rest of the team was sitting in the spot on the ground which we had occupied the match before as well. Incidentally, the match before was a cakewalk for us, and we were carrying in confidence from that encounter. As the sun began to beat down on us, about half the team moved to a shadier location, and the rest stayed close to their kit bags. Around this time things started going downhill in our chase. what should have been a regulation chase, turned out to be a bit more 'interesting'. Our middle order got some exercise they were not expecting, and our short tail had to pad-up in a bit of a hurry.Although we got over the line, we had our hearts in our mouths for a bit. somewhere in between, our team management called us all to sit together, in the sunny spot, and we fell in without question. Nobody said it, but everyone was thinking, "shouldnt have gotten up in the first place!" Whats a little sun burn when compared to a tension free commanding win eh?

So im asking all of you; my 'cricketer ' friends, who hasn't experienced this? Who hasn't been glued to their seats during a budding partnership? Who hasn't stopped themselves from going to the bathroom even when they were bursting, just to make sure they are not d reason our team didn't get the win? Who wants to make sure that they do everything right, even the silly things, to feel the joy and relief in the end?

Like i said, if you are a cricketer, you know what im talking about..and you are smiling right now, and thinking about the time you chose superstition over a sunburn..

The Differently Abled..

A friend of mine lives life with a physical disability, a handicap if you will. I've seen close up how different her life is from those who are not physically challenged,and how much we take for granted the simple things that we can do without much trouble. Her blog(which is worth reading), got me thinking on the one sided view we have to the concept of a handicap.

Does a handicap only describe a physical or mental disability, or can we stretch the term into an emotional one as well? Take for sake of argument, the popular character Sheldon Cooper from the sitcom 'The Big Bang Theory'. Dr. Sheldon Cooper has full possession of his physical abilities and is gifted with an exceptional intellect, but when his room mate has a loud fight with his girlfriend, Sheldon is unable to handle it and goes to any and all lengths to drown out the fight, even walking out of the apartment, leading his roommate to worry for his safety. Does this inability to be in the presence of two people having an  argument( to the point which it, for that time, cripples his academic pursuits and perhaps endangers his life) point to a disability of sorts?

In a way, we all have handicaps. We are all crippled in some small way or another. Some cannot speak up in front of a crowd, some cannot keep their cool when they need to. Few cannot see the silver lining, few keep looking for a greener side. You will argue that these 'handicaps' are 'curable'. That physical and mental disabilities cannot be remedied without major medical intervention, while my so called handicaps are a matter of applying  some will power and the right support. And I agree with you fully. In both cases, the crux of the matter is acceptance. In both cases, we need to fight like hell, but accept when our inability holds us down, and ask for help. There is no shame in that. Those who see this move ahead in the race of life, no matter whether they can or cannot run.

life in slow motion..

        Anyone who sits at home and while watching the match on their TVs, says "this looks so easy!",should actually take the trouble of visiting a stadium when a test is in progress .Had they been among the crowd and actually seen Fidel Edwards steaming in and digging the ball short,and VVS at the other end nonchalantly pull-flicking it through  mid wicket, they would have come to appreciate a touch more, the amount of skill and precision required to play the game at the highest level and in its toughest format.It is this feeling, this awareness, that only live action can bring, that was awakened within me after a friend convinced me to watch a bit of the last test between India and the West Indes at the Wankhede.I was surprised at the invitation because i had never been to watch a test and somehow had never felt inclined to do so.But i took the chance to erase one more item from my (quite long)never-done-before list and tagged along.And i didn't regret it one bit.It is an experience i would recommend to all those who have played the game, and here i unashamedly admit that there will be quite a few of us who ,like me, never felt inclined.Not just because it is perhaps the best exhibition of the game we love, but because it gives us an idea of how things that appear so simple are in reality extremely difficult.
        We will never get an idea of how fast is fast until we sit in the stands at ground level , perpendicular to the pitch and watch a quick bowler bowl.(A better view is probably inside the batsman's head ;i am curious to see its 'colour' as the bowler nears the crease.)  But it all  looks deceptively simple on TV.We think nothing of the fact that Tendulkar and Dravid can play a short  ball just on off stump down to fine leg with deft wristwork.It looks easy and so it must be.And this is how we think when we are dissatisfied with our lot and look at other peoples lives .We see only the results, and the apparent ease with which they are achieved.we look at their lives longingly and think" if only i had it made ,like they do".We see only the TV view, not live action from inside their heads.This is why everyone must watch a test match live, at least once in their lives, and go home knowing that everyone plays in the real world, and no one does well easily,for there would not be any sense of achievement if it was so.No one lives slow motion, TV lives.The grass is as green as you make it on any side.