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Anil Kumble: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Anil Kumble is no ‘Gandhian’

What he said:

"I don’t see any conflict of interest here. The positions with the KSCA and NCA are honorary jobs, and I have to look after myself. At this stage of my career, I have to do that. Otherwise, you’d have to become like Gandhi and give up everything."

Anil Kumble is the third Indian ex-cricketer—after Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri—targeted by current affairs magazine, Outlook India,in their latest issue for an alleged conflict of interest.

Kumble is  director and owner of  player management firm, Tenvic. He is additionally president of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) , chairman of the National Cricket Academy and mentor to IPL franchise, Royal Challengers Bangalore. In the latter three capacities, the former leg-spinner could favorably influence the fortunes of his Tenvic wards.

What he really meant:

“I’m not well-versed in perception management. Besides, Gandhi was no cricketer. No real comparison there. N Srinivasan’s my guru.”

What he definitely didn’t:

 “Money, Money, Money. It’s a rich man’s world.”

Shoaib Akhtar: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Shoaib Akhtar ‘Rats Out’ An Australian Elephant

What he said:

“If one could make up one’s body with steroids, I would turn a rat into an elephant. But I’d advise Hayden to take some steroid that could make him look better. Good answer? Give him this answer.”

Pakistan cricket’s enfant terrible, Shoaib Akhtar, reacts to Australian Matthew Hayden’s allegation that he built up his body with steroids.

The speedster was in the spotlight following the release of his autobiography, “Controversially Yours”.

What he really meant:

“Now, if Hayden were following his former teammate Shane Warne, he’d discover that Estee Lauder facials and creams are more efficacious than drugs.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“You can call me ‘Red Bull’ Akhtar.”

Victoria Azarenka: What she said, really meant and definitely did not

Victoria Azarenka Seeks Respectful Silence From Spectators

What she said:

“I would love people to be a bit more respectful and turn off their cell phones and just come and watch tennis and respect that players are doing their job.”

Belarussian World No. 4, Victoria Azarenka, is turned off by noisy spectators and their mobile phones during her second round victory over Slovakia’s Polona Hercog at the China Open in Beijing.

Azarenka, along with Maria Sharapova, is considered one of the worst offenders when it comes to grunting and shrieking on court among women tennis divas.

What she really meant:

“You should put those cell phones in silent mode and just take pictures or videos of me. Let me take care of the decibel levels. That’s my job, isn’t it? Isn’t that what you turn up for? Grunty Azarenka!”

What she definitely didn’t:

“Now, if I could just discover my ‘silent mode‘.”

Andrew Strauss: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Andrew Strauss Is Running With The Hares

What he said:

“We’re the hunted rather than the hunters.”

English Test skipper, Andrew Strauss, admits that his side are fair game for other Test playing nations since achieving the ICC Test No. 1 ranking. England whitewashed India 4-0 at home to dethrone the current ODI World Cup champions.

What he really meant:

“We were all chasing Chicken Tikka (Team India)  for the past 18 months; now, it’s Fish ‘N’ Chips (us).”

What he definitely didn’t:

“We can hunt with the foxes and run with the hares. We’re that good.”

Andy Roddick: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Andy Roddick Loses Match and Composure

What he said:

“I think you should retire.”

Andy Roddick responds to a Chinese journalist’s query whether he is considering retiring any time soon.

The question followed his first round loss to South African, Kevin Anderson, 4-6, 5-7 at the China Open in Beijing.

Roddick paused, rolled his eyes, ejaculated his rejoinder and left the interview room.

What he really meant:

“What??? A couple of early losses and I’m toast! Good morning, China!”

What he definitely didn’t:

“Victory and defeat are two sides of the very same coin. Treat both impostors no different.”

Shahid Afridi: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Shahid Afridi Has The Shivers For Sachin Tendulkar

What he said:

“I saw Tendulkar’s legs shivering while facing his bowling.”

Shahid Afridi backs up Pakistani speedster Shoaib Akhtar’s claims in his autobiography, “Controversially Yours”, that Sachin Tendulkar was intimidated by Akhtar’s raw pace.

Afridi added that this was normal for most batsmen. Every batsman feared one bowler or another.

“There are times when every batsman feels the pressure, it happens against [Pakistani off-spinner] Saeed Ajmal even,” said Afridi.

What he really meant:

“My teeth were chattering so much standing so close to Tendulkar’s blade that everything else appeared to shimmer.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“More ice-cream for us in the lunch break. That’s the solution.”

Ashish Nehra: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Ashish Nehra Prefers History To Geography

What he said:

“Aapne Kerala se Srinagar tak sabko chance diya hai. Sirf Ashish Nehra hi nahin hain (You have given opportunities to all and sundry from Kerala to Srinagar—just not me).”

Medium pacer, Ashish Nehra, caustically bemoans the fickleness of Indian selectors. The veteran bowler was left out for the English tour and finds himself sitting out the return ODI series against England at home.

Nehra said:

"Please check the records, which India bowler has bowled maximum number of overs at the death in last two years. You want me to prove my fitness but then I am not even good enough to be in any of the Challenger Trophy teams.”

The left-arm seamer said that he would consider participating in foreign leagues “if the Board allows.”

“I can go and play in Big Bash or Pro-40. Or else, I will play with my little son." averred Nehra.

What he really meant:

“The selectors are truly farsighted; they failed to notice me—right under their noses.”

“Now, if the selectors had considered history instead of geography, I’d be sitting pretty."

What he definitely didn’t:

“Arre baba, if RP Singh could be yanked back into the side (evidently unfit), why not me? So unfair.”

Kapil Dev: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Kapil Dev Has No Time For Records—Sachin’s

What he said:

“We have to change our mindset. If we lose the match, what’s the use of statistics? To hell with that!”

Former Indian captain, Kapil Dev Nikhanj, is crystal clear that the Indian cricket team must come before individual achievements. The 1983 World Cup winning skipper was delivering the Dilip Sardesai lecture at the Cricket Club of India (CCI).

He said:

You seem more keen about Sachin’s 99 hundreds and not about how we are going to win the next series.

I am not saying don’t give credit to individual performances, but the country should come first.

 

Everyone knows Sachin has 99 centuries, but how many know which of those have ended in victories? Out of Sachin’s 99 hundreds, 60 have ended in wins. If anyone reports that I’ll be happy.

What he really meant:

“Surely, you folks don’t remember my 434 wickets and the inexorably slow overhaul of Sir Richard Hadlee‘s record. Now, that’s a statistic!”

What he definitely didn’t:

“Sorry, Sreenath, for keeping you out of the Indian side while I was pursuing my world record. Tendulkar’s merely emulating me—on a larger scale.”

Li Na: What she said, really meant and definitely did not

Li Na Is From Venus

What she said:

"Women cannot have the same mentality of men, who expect to win every competition."

Li Na is inventive with her excuse for not doing well post her Roland Garros triumph this year. The Chinese woman became the first Asian ever to win a Grand Slam at the French Open.

What she really meant:

“Sports requires us (women) to be takers. But we’re givers (by nature)—just ask my hubby and my opponents.”

What she definitely didn’t:

“Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, Monica Seles and Serena Williams are more than pleased with this explanation.”

Graeme Swann: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Graeme Swann reflects on his former, ‘loony’ self.

What he said:

"Graeme Swann the captain would never pick Graeme Swann the kid.”

English off-spinner, Graeme Swann, while thrilled to lead national T20 side, believes that his younger self would not have found a place in the side—under him.

Swann added:

But the one regret I have about the young lunatic Graeme Swann is that there was not much Twenty20 around then. I’m sure I would be pretty good at it because I could bat in those days. I would have had a way of staying in the England squad for a few years while I developed my skills in the longer form.

The T20 skipper admitted that "the young lunatic is still in there, but I manage to hide him most of the time."

On the captaincy allowing him to exhibit his mind’s keen edge, Swann said,

No one would have believed this five years ago, least of all myself. It’s surreal in a way, but I have always harboured ambitions of captaining at first-class level and it is nice that I have got a chance if only for a couple of games to show the inner workings of my mind.

On leading in the abbreviated format:

It’s a reactions game. You can start with grandiose plans about how you want to start and they can change quickly. I am not sure it will be too maverick or out of the box, but I like to think I will be attacking. It is important in this form of the game to take wickets. That is what won us the World Twenty20.

Swann feels T20 games should replace ODIs:

It is the biggest game in the short format and somewhere down the line we will have to treat it a bit more seriously and play series of Twenty20 games.We are world champions but going into Sri Lanka we will only play half a dozen games or so in this format before that World Cup starts. For every touring team that comes over it will not be frowned upon if there was a three-game ODI series and a three-game Twenty20 series. That makes more sense than five one-dayers.

Swann disclaimed that his opinion coincided with those of the English Cricket Board (ECB), saying, “These are my views, not the views of my employer.”

What Swann really meant:

“Graeme Swann, the kid, would be such a pain in the butt for Graeme Swann, the No.1 off-spinner, skipper and elder statesman.”

What Swann definitely didn’t:

“There is a Graeme Swann in the younger lot.”