92.7 FM

So yesterday while being dropped off to Dr. Yagnik Road, Rajkot we were listening to a Gujarati radio station, which we found was the favorite radio station of Michael Hussey. Yeh he actually said my favourite radio station.
Now I see Indian players pretty much endorse everything, especially M.S. Dhoni who's face you can't travel a kilometre without seeing, but this one has to take the cake. You could believe Dhoni or any of the others actually use the products they're endorsing, but how is anyone going to believe M. Hussey actually ever has tuned onto that station

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Been too long

Cricket season doesn't last too long and it comes at a time when everything else is going on from marriages, engagements, etc. So the time spent playing is further reduced.
So not touched bat and ball since September last year. We wanted to make sure we get to play some cricket on the chaupati maidan come Sunday morning. This is where Jaidev Unadkat would come to play his cricket as a youngster, not that he is much older now.
Prior to arriving on Porbandar, I had called up my uncle and told him to make sure a fixture has been arranged for the week we'll be there. He told me not to worry as he doesnt miss a single week.
6:45 and my uncle comes to wake us up. We get ready and head out to the ground. I'm sure you have a picture in your mind of what our cricket match looked like, but this was totally different.
The stumps are set up on an extremely dusty and gravel-filled surface. And we set about getting some practice to get used to the conditions and quickly realise this isn't like the cricket we play back home. The ball is a hard ball made of rubber with a lot of bounce and the surface doesn't help much; a surface which could be mistaken for a sheet of corrugated metal.
We set up our strip and on either side there are other teams setting up their strips. As the teams put their fielders out, you quickly see this is going to lead to a lot of confusion and possibly injures. With matches going on all around you balls would come flying in from all angles. But we took our chances.
We got off to a great start having the opposition 4-5 in 3 overs.
Just then what we feared happened; the batting teams players all sit at the backward point position while waiting to bat. A ball come flying in from a nearby game and struck him on the eye causing a great deal of pain, as you can imagine after being struck by something that weighs about 150g. Luckily for him, there are people selling pouches of cold water which he was able to keep on his eye, to prevent it swelling up.
We went out there with no rules explained to us, so we were stunned and confused as we went along the game and found there are no LBWs, byes and leg byes don't count, the opposition will call you for wides on anything that isn't in line with the stumps.
Having bowled out the opposition for 58, we set out to bat and that's where you see how difficult it is to bat, the ball doesn't travel anywhere unless its smashed from the middle of the bat and you can't tell who the fielders are amongst the 100s of people playing.
Overall a great experience. Looking at what part this type of cricket plays in the development of Indian cricket; firstly the fielding, along the ground, as the surface it jagged, you can't easily attack the ball, you can't dive as you'd just cut yourself up. Catching can be just as difficult as a rubber missile travelling at speed slaps into your hands hard.
Batting allows for 2 kinds of big shots pulling anything short as it sits up and drilling straight anything pitched right up, everything else is very hard to get away.
While bowling its about bowling good lengths, could be a reason why India doesn't produce out and out pacers.

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Stresses of Darshan

One would associate feelings such as peace and tranquility when doing for darshan. The time when you can make that one-to-one connection. But going mandir in India is quite a different story.
Firstly there's the intense security. Which is understandable, after the attack on Akshardham in 2002 security at all holy sites were beefed up (not the best choice of words, but you get the point); obviously to protect the worshipers, but also to ensure retaliation isn't necessary as it would be disastrous for a country which seems to have reached a stage where people are more understanding of others beliefs.
Today we made a trip to Somnath, as you pass the gates, you arrive at a police check point, your bags are passed through an xray machine and yourself through a metal detector; something which could be easily mistaken for boarding a plane if not for the extreme heat and the flock of people selling flowers for offerings
Having passed that; you're informed to leave your bags, mobiles and shoes at the designated locker rooms.
That all is understandable, but things were taken further as we're asked to remove our belts; not being one to boast, but having lost a bit of weight recently the belt has become a necessity rather than a fashion statement. So it become quite a struggle to take more than 3 steps without having to pull my jeans up.
As you get closer and step into the mandir you are required to pass through another metal detector, finally followed by a frisking and you're finally allowed to enter. But just when you feel you're done with all the the hassles and its time to finally get your worshipping done, you're pushed along and hurried out.
So going back to the start, for something which people do for clearer thought and a happier life, it can be quite a stressful experience.
Ranting over, I must comment on how beautiful a temple and its surroundings are. It's a must see - after making your way out after all that you find yourself over looking the sea, hearing the waves coming in and feeling a pleasant breeze on a hot day quickly relaxes you

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A visit to Diu

After a good night sleep, today was something we were much looking forward to. A nice hot cup of tea to kickstart the day and we were off to destination DIU! For information on Diu please visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diu
it is also known as mini Goa by locals. A beautiful hot day and clear blue skys..We took a rickshaw which is only 6km from Delvada, but travelling though roads damaged through excessive use and rain it does seem like a 20km journey as you bounce along in the back of a rickshaw but it's always a good experience.

We entered the big gates of Diu early afternoon and at this point the sun was really beating down and we were beginning to feel it. First we went to some of the local attractions; the fort which is many years old with it's own mini Alcatraz, the church, church museum, Sunset Point and the lighthouse, all of which provdied good opportunity for some holiday snaps. Gangeshwar Mahadev was the place I was eagerly waiting to go to, with 5 natural shiv lings which have existed there since forever. We seeked blessings after a good few hours enjoying the attractions nothing better then going off to Nagoa Beach, the main beach in Diu! As we got to Nagoa beach a corn on the cob with some chilli and lemon was ideal, the sun beating down and everyone having a pleasant time. A quick few snaps in the sea with crashing waves and then off to play high throw catching which was briiliant. Not to forget writing messages in the sand for close loved ones, friends and family.





After all that what more the going to a boat restaurant on the edge of the sea, a beautiful view of the bridge and a lovely meal. After a tiring day, on the way home we sat in a rickshaw with 15 people, some of them hanging out, squashed, you can call it what you want but you just have to adapt here.


Got home, a quick shower and then realise the amount of mosquito bites on my leg..won't believe it but 34!:-( I think the love the foreign blood, as the journey continues I'm sure wel have alot more fun and they'll have alot more of me!

Goodnight...


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Diu

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Journey to Delvada

As we landed in Ahmedabad from
Bengaluru, our dear friend recieved us from the airport. Immense heat of 37deg in the afternoon, all the locals covering for shade and myself standing out in the sun enjoying the heat! We went to book our Diu (Saurastra) sleeping coach tickets and have no luck in one place as seats would not have been ideal; from local advice do not sit/sleep at the back of the coach and or over the tyres as you will have the bumpiest ride of your life!

We booked single sleepers for myself and Kishan, a long 8-9 journey awaits us tonight at 10pm! Our friend then took us to meet his friend circle, about 5 of them sitting, having tea, smoking and makes you think don't these guys have anything to do in life, but what you see is not the case..these guys are living it large, they are all involved in properties and land making big bucks just over the phone. They were all very shocked to see that 2 Londoners have travelled to India specially for the cricket world cup and why living in UK
and supporting India???
Before leaving Ahmedabad, our friend took us to a very well known Paun Bhaji (vegeterian speciality) joint to fill our stomachs. Watching the food being made is not a good idea. They use butter like It comes from a tap; seeing that makes you think twice but once you take that bite you all worries quickly vanish !lol.

Evening hits and time to say goodbyes to friend and his family; we were very well looked after by this lovely family. We get to the coach stand, 10pm expected coach time but arrives at 11pm..nothing unusual about that!

It's called a sleeping coach - either we have a different understanding of the word sleeping or it would help us sleep, but the driver decided to blast some bollywood tunes through the stereo.
Finally when you manage to block out all background noise and doze off you hit some very bumpy roads. The coach bounces along the road and you bounce around in your bed. It felt like my insides were turning to mush.

We arrived at Delvada earlier than scheduled; got dropped off outside my house. It was a delight to see and meet family after 2 years. Both of us were shattered so nothing better than a good nap under the fan..
Woke up early afternoon, a nice hot masala chai and bhakri was an ideal way to properly start the day. The heat was extreme, everyone here says the weather has just changed today..I guess we brought the Ahmedabad heat with us :-) Kishan had a quick haircut and then a stroll through the village, cows guarding the roads, locals sitting by cold drink shops so laid back, paan shops busy as always and vehicles beeping away on the main road.

Even if it's a hot day, there was always time to play some cricket. A bumpy, dusty surface, handmade cricket bat, rubber ball. Very quickly a bunch of local kids arrived and we had fielders, though after a while it got a bit chaotic with everyone running after the ball wherever it went. It wasnt the ideal way to get ready for the cricket season with 3CAPS when we get back but maybe it helped in some way :p,lol.






After a long day sisters ensured that they will keep us awake till late night, so a quick trip to the shops to buy some ice creams and paan and we headed up to the terrace. They decided to play Antakshri, not a good idea as neither of us know how to sing but still had a good laugh attempting to. Talking about life in London, girlfriend and reminiscing about the past. The mosquitos must have come to know we're outsiders as it seems we were the only ones who felt thier wrath. Our feet were covered with bites, not a good sight!

Time to call it a night now!
Goodnight..


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Location:SH 98,Delvada,India

A thrilling debut in India

Finally after a long few days we managed to get in more than 5 hours sleep, only to be woken up by the arrival of breakfast.
Being in South India, I opted for the local choice of masala dosa as well as coffee with crossaints and a danish pastry, which turned out to be a banana flavoured muffin. Bar the downfall, breakfast was enjoyable; maybe that was due to the 1st proper breakfast we had.
After finding out the day before we're hot targets for the hustling rickshaw drivers, we had the hotel staff hail our rickshaw. Every vehicle was packed with cricket fans heading to the stadium, which added to the excitement.
Half a mile from the stadium we saw a massive queue, and just hoped that wasn't the queue to get inside; but to our disappointment it was.
As our rickshaw driver dropped us to the entrance dropped us at the entrance and the back of queue half a mile back, we didn't quite know what to do. Rather than stress on that, we got into the spirit of watching cricket in India and had the tricolor painted on our faces.
Then come out the Indian-ness in us, as Chirag decided we're not waiting in queue and someone needs to be bribed to cut in. And it worked. A bit hypocritical on our part, but hey we were just trying to get in the local spirit!
After a shortened wait in the queue (if you can call 45 mins that) we finally make it to the gate to be frisked 2 times and go through another 2 check points.
We settled into our seats, in Stand H, which was for all those who had their tickets from Kollotta transferred over, though the view didn't allow us a sight of the replay screen. An unattended, open gate provided an opportunity to sneak into the adjacent stand to which we had no hesitation in grabbing.
We watched England train, waiting in anticipation for the boys in blue to turn up - well they're actually the boys in red during training sessions.
Contrary to popular belief that Munaf is a lazy cricketer, he actually turned up for training half an hour before the rest of the team. We got our first taste of the noise an Indian crowd can make when the little master himself stepped out to the middle.
Ground was pretty much packed out by the time the match started. After the nervous start it was a treat to watch the master at work. The way he took to Englands 2 key bowlers was a reminder of the 90's. Each stroke was greeted with a roar that sent a tingle down the spine.
India looked in total control, through out their innings. I felt we could have attacked a bit earlier with the batsmen in the hut and if we did lose wickets, the batsmen coming in would have had more time to get their eye in. At the end it seemed like India got complacent thinking they had done enough to put the score out of England's reach -possibly over-rated our bowling attack.
The break provided an opportunity to get something to eat and drink - its hard enough trying to get something at a sporting event, but when there is no order and a communication problem, it becomes a nightmare.
England came out to bat with the right intent and straight away put India on the backfoot, unimaginative field placings and unwillingness to attack didn't help the cause. England kept up with the run rate the whole way, never allowed India to build any pressure, continuously picking up boundaries every over.
If England didn't take the batting powerplay they would have cruised to victory. The bowling was non-threatening, especially Chawla who dropped the ball short on a regular basis. Zak bowled quite beautifully in his come back spell, knocking out the 2 set batsmen in successive deliveries, sending the crowd ecstatic.
It was quite disappointing to see the crowd drop their shoulders and any attempt to get them going didn't help. Only the wickets changed their mood.
As good as Sachin's innings was, Strauss was on another level, the ease with which he played the Indian bowling was spectacular viewing even though we were at the receiving end. Though I must say the ball seemed to be coming on a bit better in the 2nd innings.
The Bell LBW review left the crowd quite confused - from screaming and dancing to being brought back down to earth in a matter if seconds and it just felt like nothing was going our way; my phone was switched off but I had to switch it on and whatsapp Paras to find out what had happened.
Don't know if I was happy it sad with the result, there were times when England had it in the bag and times we had it secured. India need to look at their bowlers and make sure we go in with the right combination in future games.
With heavy crowds leaving the stadium and heavy traffic, another 2km walk was in order and a wrong turn turned that into 3km.
Everything supposedly closes at 11 in Bangalore, so chances of getting any food looked slim, until we passed a KFC, the less said about the service, the better it is. But they had some awesome drinks on the menu.
Preparing to go next morning, we packed our bags and caught up with everyone and before we knew it, it was 3am

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