India

Zaheer Khan: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

What he said:

“When you’re fighting within the team, when you have a war to fight in your own camp, it is always difficult to win.”

Zaheer Khan describes the insecurity within the Indian cricket team during  Greg Chappell’s tenure as coach.

What he really meant:

“The insecurity and politics within the Indian cricket team stifled players and prevented them from giving their best on the field.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“Competition for a place in the Indian team helped me perform better.”

Anthony Martin: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

What he said:

“"I am not married.I might not ever. I may also."

Anthony Martin is wishy-washy about his marital future.

What he really meant:

“It’s a heads you win, tails I lose situation. Help me out here, guys.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“’What’s love got to do with it?’—I love that Tina Turner number.”

Anthony Martin: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

 

What he said:

“I don’t like losing. That ‘L" word is not in my vocabulary. Only Love and Lord. Not Losing."

Anthony Martin is a scribe’s delight as he comes up with original quotes following West Indies’ first victory in the ODI series against India at Antigua.

What he really meant:
”I can’t spell ‘losing’”

What he definitely didn’t:

“Bring me a fresh dictionary.”

Cricket:Mamparas,”hee for chasey” and natural replacements

Cricket lovers have Graeme Smith to thank for enriching their vocabulary last weekend.

The South African Test skipper was “Mampara Of the Week”—selected by the nation’s leading daily, The Sunday Times. It is a moniker reserved for politicians and businessmen but ‘Biff’ trumped all contenders last week with his “wishy-washy apology” to the South African public for his side’s early exit at this year’s ODI World Cup in India.

Mamapara roughly translates to “idiot”. I must admit—“You b****y Mampara” has a nice ring to it.

Sachin Tendulkar—in the sunset of his career—is an inspiration to older cricketers. Simon Katich is the latest to pay obeisance. The West Australian cricketer—in his press conference—slammed Greg Chappell ,rightly questioning his credentials as a selector as he pointed out his inability to predict the master bat’s recent heights.

“Elder cricketers of the world, unite. You have nothing to lose but bad selectors.”

Rushing to Katich’s defence  was minister of defence for the realm, Stephen Smith. Australian politicians love their cricket and their cricketers.

“If he’s not in the top 25 Australian cricketers – and I can’t find one better opener than him on that list, let alone two – then I’ll go hee for chasey.” said the minister. An Aussie phrase learned here—take note,English language lovers.

The West Indians have been shafted once more. Zaheer Khan and S Sreesanth have opted out of the India-WI Test series citing injuries. Indian fans don’t seem to care. The boys in blue have ratcheted up wins—rising to the occasion. Who’s to say that Praveen Kumar and Abhimanyu Mithun won’t?

The trio of Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina and Virat Kohli seem natural replacements for RahulDravid,Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman.

There’s oft a slip ‘twixt the cup and the lip, though.

Remember the dynamic duo of Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif?

Kaif languishes in the minor leagues of domestic cricket whereas Yuvraj "blundered" from strength to strength.

ODI success does not instinctively translate to Test level. Yuvraj Singh will testify.

Quote of the day:
Anything not worth doing is worth not doing well. Think about it. – Elias Schwartz

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Cricket and basketball: The Iffy Debate (Humour)

If the Indian cricket team had selected Baba Ramdev as the team physio, then the men in blue could have been as flexible on the field as the sadhu himself. However, his insidious influence would rub off on them and at the first signs of terror from pace bowlers, bruised batsmen would migrate to women’s cricket.

If Barack Obama were to lose the 2012 Presidential elections, he could always consider coaching the Los Angeles Lakers. “Yes, we can” would resonate with Lakers fans, too. “It’s not the economy, stupid” could do just as well.

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Paul Valthaty: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

What he said:

“I am the same Paul that I used to be before IPL.”

Paul Valthaty claims that success in the IPL has not changed him.

What he really meant:

“I’m still Paul.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“The P in IPL stands for Paul.”

Yuvraj Singh: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

“…he was a ‘bomb about to explode’”

Yuvraj Singh writing in the BCCI quarterly newsletter describes his impression of MS Dhoni prior to his World Cup final assault on Sri Lankan bowlers.

What he really meant:

“Dhoni was as wound up as a compressed spring.Once the pressure peaked, he would burst.”

“Dhoni needed a mere trigger to go off—he was primed—and the World Cup final was it.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“Dhoni’s a human bomb.”

“Dhoni’s a bombshell.”

Jacques Rogge: ‘Shoe throwing could become an Olympic sport’ (Satire)

LONDON—

Jacques Rogge, President of  the International Olympic Committee has given his backing to shoe-throwing making a bid to become an Olympic sport.

Rogge said he would welcome an application from the International Shoe-Throwers Association (ISTA). If successful, shoe-throwing could feature at the 2020 Olympics.

Shoe-throwing is a recent phenomenon and has gained popularity across the globe in recent times.

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Saurav Ganguly: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

 

What he said:

“"I (would) like to play for some more years in IPL. May be after four or five years, I will think about other option.”

Saurav Ganguly would like to continue in the IPL..

What he really meant:

“I’m suffering from brain freeze. Hence, I cannot consider other options.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“I’m forming a brand new IPL. Me ,myself and I are the foremost teams.”