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Deepika Padukone: What she said, really meant and definitely didn’t
Deepika Padukone is a sports lover, biopics or no biopics.
What she said:
“It’s nice that so many biopics are being made, and they are leading to more awareness. But why do we have to wait for a movie to learn more about the sportsperson or sport? It just shows that we don’t encourage our athletes enough.”
Bollywood actor, Deepika Padukone, feels that the big screen should not be the sole medium via which sports stars are lionised for the public.
Padukone said:
“If we start writing and talking about them early in their careers, it will be much easier to create awareness about various sports and their champions. Also, I feel the media has a huge part to play in making people aware of our champions. It’s not just cricket, we have so many other sports.”
Deepika is the daughter of former shuttler, Prakash Padukone, the first Indian player to win the All-England Open. He is widely rated India’s best male badminton player ever.
On the Mary Kom biopic:
“But people didn’t know who Mary was. Four-five years back, I think she was a three-time world champion. Now, she is four- or five-time world champion. So, when Priyanka (Chopra) did the film, I thought it would be great as everyone would get to know her.”
What she really meant:
“I’m not just a pretty face, you know. I have sporting genes. That I chose to become a model and actress instead is beside the point.”
What she definitely didn’t:
“Now if I’d only known that I wouldn’t have to wear prosthetic makeup for ‘Mary Kom’, I’d have done the picture in a blink of an eye.”
Sir Alex Ferguson: What he said, really meant and definitely didn’t
Sir Alex Ferguson would rather leave West Ham behind and take home the bacon.
What he said:
“I hope that before I die, someone can explain the ‘West Ham way’. What is it? They last won a trophy in 1980, the FA Cup. I never played against any West Ham team that played football I was afraid of. They were always surviving, or lucky as hell against us.”
The updated version of “Alex Ferguson: My autobiography” has the former Manchester United boss deride West Ham United and their supposedly different style of play.
The surprising attack prompted a spirited defence from West Ham co-chairman David Sullivan.
Sullivan said:
“I read an article this week in which Sir Alex Ferguson said he was not sure what the ‘West Ham Way’ was.Personally I think what we are witnessing right now is exactly that. We are playing attacking football with everybody giving 100 per cent and we are getting results at the same time.
Our strikers have scored nine times this season and given us what we sorely lacked last year – goals.”
What Ferguson really meant:
“I’m so mad. Why is there no Manchester United way? Is there? Or even better the Alex Ferguson way? Just count the number of trophies in my cabinet.”
What he definitely didn’t:
“I’m lucky as hell.”
Andrew Haldane: What he said, really meant and definitely didn’t
Andrew Haldane is a front-foot proponent of back-foot play.
What he said:
“Three months on, it is time to update the batting averages. Ian Bell’s batting average has remained at 45 – the front foot recovery has remained on track. But over the same period, Joe Root’s has risen to 51. Cricket statisticians and financial markets are agreed. While still a close run thing, the statistics now appear to favour the back foot.”
Andrew Haldane, chief economist of the Bank of England, appears to obfuscate while outlining the UK’s monetary policy outlook for the coming year.
He said:
“In June, when evaluating the UK’s monetary stance, I used the metaphor of a batsmen in cricket deciding whether to play off the front foot (raise rates) or the back foot (hold rates). And I compared the averages of two English batsmen, one who played from the front foot (Ian Bell), the other from the back (Joe Root), to illustrate the dilemma. At the time, Ian Bell averaged 45 to Joe Root’s 43. In other words, while it was a close run thing, the data narrowly favoured the front foot. Cricketing statistics are not the sole basis for my views on the appropriate stance for UK monetary policy. Nonetheless, on balance, I felt the same front-foot judgement was appropriate for UK interest rates at the time.”
English: Joe Root makes his Yorkshire debut at Headingley, against the Essex Eagles (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
He added:
“On balance, my judgement on the macro-economy has shifted the same way. I have tended to view the economy through a bi-modal lens. And recent evidence, in the UK and globally, has shifted my probability distribution towards the lower tail. Put in rather plainer English, I am gloomier. That reflects the mark-down in global growth, heightened geo-political and financial risks and the weak pipeline of inflationary pressures from wages internally and commodity prices externally. Taken together, this implies interest rates could remain lower for longer, certainly than I had expected three months ago, without endangering the inflation target.”
What he really meant:
“I follow cricket and its related statistics with as much interest as the economy. Maybe, it will help enliven my dry speech and perhaps have you wondering what in heavens am I meandering about so much so that you will ignore the gravity of the message conveyed. You see, I’m on the defensive and can only hope (unlike Joe Root) that things will work out for the British economy from here. This way I can backtrack on whatever I say should things turn worse and if things get better, it’ll simply be a case of ‘I told you so, didn’t I?'”
What he definitely didn’t:
“I’ll be catching up on the cricket this winter and next summer. Haven’t you received my memo? My arm-chair coaching should certainly help England regain the Ashes.”
Jose Mourinho: What he said, really meant and definitely didn’t
Jose Mourinho is no pushover when push comes to shove.
What he said:
“Charged? Charged? If it was me, it would have been a stadium ban.”
Jose Mourinho vents his ire at Arsenal boss, Arsene Wenger, claiming that if he had been the aggressor he would have been severely penalized.
The Chelsea boss was involved in a confrontation with the Frenchman when the two sides played each other at Stamford Bridge earlier this month.
Mourinho said:
“I gave you my reaction after the match, saying nothing had happened. The reaction from everyone else was saying nothing had happened. Am I surprised he wasn’t punished? I’m not surprised. I’m not surprised. Charged? Charged? If it was me, it would have been a stadium ban.“
What he really meant:
“History’s not on my side when it comes to fracases. I may be the Chosen One in more ways than one.”
What he definitely didn’t:
“I have a persecution complex.”
Anil Kumble: What he said, really meant and definitely didn’t
Anil Kumble defaulted to skipper status.
What he said:
“‘ok, Anil is the only guy and let’s give it to him’.”
Anil Kumble tells a tale of his ascendancy to the most exalted position in Indian cricket—the captaincy of the national side.
Kumble said:
“I became captain after representing India for 17 years, so, probably, I became captain by default… Because nobody else wanted it..
Rahul Dravid had just given up the captaincy and at that time, it was probably too early for (Mahendra Singh) Dhoni to step in as the Test captain… Sachin (Tendulkar) also did not want it… So they looked around and said ‘ok, Anil is the only guy and let’s give it to him’.”
What he really meant:
“I was the only one in the Fab Five (Sachin, Saurav, Laxman, Kumble and Dravid) willing to take up the onus of leading the country. I got it not because they felt I was the most deserving candidate but because they felt they could not risk putting Dhoni in the hot seat for a tour of Australia right then. It was way too early and he could have fizzled out given the additional pressure. At least, that was the opinion of the then bigwigs (selection committee).”
What he definitely didn’t:
“I wanted it, though, oh , how I wanted it. And I made it mine and how. Success—thy name is desire.”
Darrell Hair: What he said, really meant and definitely didn’t
Darrell Hair thinks its hairy that Saeed Ajmal could bowl at 45 degrees or more for so long.
What he said:
“Well, every man and his dog would have known that.”
Darrell Hair is bemused with the recent crackdown on illegal bowling actions launched by the ICC.
The Australian umpire, who famously called Murali Muralitharan in 1995, said:
“Whatever they’re doing now, they’re doing 20 years too late. They had a chance in 1995 to clean things up and it’s taken them 19 years to finally come back and say they want chuckers out of the game. I can’t believe that Saaed Ajmal has been able to bowl as long as he has, and they say he is bending his arm by 45 degrees [the legal limit is 15 degrees] or something. Well, every man and his dog would have known that.
I suppose what it does show is the general weakness of the umpires over time to do anything about it.”
He added:
“People say ‘you should be happy with the way things turned out’…with the chuckers being weeded out. But it doesn’t give me any personal satisfaction whatsoever. All I was doing at any time was just doing my job and I think I did it to the best of my ability. The fact was that no other ICC umpires were willing to have a go. Ross Emerson was very adamant about his thoughts about chuckers but they soon put him into the background.
I suppose I was lucky I had a few games under my belt so they didn’t want to target me, but they certainly got him out of the way fairly swiftly. It’ll be interesting to see how many umpires are brave enough to get involved in it. I said it in the late ’90s that if something wasn’t done about it you’d have a generation of chuckers on your hands and now you have. They try to emulate Harbajan Singh and Saqlain Mushtaq and Murali and that’s the problem. The crackdown should have happened on those players and the ICC should have let it be known that it wasn’t acceptable.”
ICC general manager of cricket operations, Geoff Allardice, believes the game has reached a tipping point on this issue.
He said:
“The game had reached a tipping point on this issue, when many groups within the game felt that there were too many bowlers with suspect actions operating in international cricket.The most prominent of these groups was the ICC Cricket Committee at its meeting in June, when it observed the ICC’s reporting and testing procedures were not adequately scrutinising these bowlers. They weren’t the only ones talking about this issue, as similar views had been expressed by teams, players, umpires, referees and administrators.
Since that time the umpires have felt more confident to report their concerns with certain bowlers, and their concerns have been supported by the results of the testing of these reported bowlers.”
In India, the irrepressible Bishan Singh Bedi could not resist firing a few salvoes of his own at his favourite peeve.
He said:
“I would like to see what happens to Bhajji (Harbhajan Singh) and Pragyan Ojha, now that umpires are reporting bowlers for throwing and action is being taken against them.”
Bedi added:
“The rectification had to come from the establishment.It’s no doubt late, but better late than never.”
On the timing of the clampdown:
“Timing doesn’t matter for goodness. It was ugly to watch chuckers floating around – someone throwing javelin, some shot put and others darts.”
What Darrell Hair really meant:
“If you know it, your best friend knows it.Besides, should the umpire be looking at the bowler’s arm or at the batsman? How do umpires measure the angle with the naked eye? Trained dogs, perhaps? Something like sniffer dogs, eh? Can we umpires have compasses please?”
What he definitely didn’t:
“I knew it and I was labelled a dog for it, wasn’t I?
Kevin Pietersen: What he said, really meant and definitely didn’t
Kevin Pietersen is utterly professional.
What he said:
“The IPL is professionalism taken to its logical extreme. All the bullshit and hypocrisy have been turned off.”
Kevin Pietersen has extremely positive things to say about Indian cricketer, Rahul Dravid, and the Indian Premier League (IPL) in his autobiography, ‘KP: The Autobiography’.
Pietersen writes:
“Rahul was a great and heroic Indian batsman in his day. He is also a genius at dealing with spin bowlers. Our conversations and emails were a private masterclass from a genuine guru.
Rahul improved my cricket and helped me develop the way I think about the game. His generosity will stay with me always.”
Rahul Dravid, the former captain of the Indian cricket team also represents Karnataka in the Ranji Trophy (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Dravid emailed him thus:
“KP, you are a really good player, you need to watch the ball and trust yourself… Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t play spin, I have seen you and you can!”
KP says:
“My playing of spin has gone up a number of levels since I’ve spent time in the IPL, and in particular, since I’ve spoken to Rahul Dravid…In England, batsmen get taught to play with the spin against spin bowlers. In India, the best players of spin get taught to play against it.”
On the IPL:
“The IPL is the future… I could talk about money and the IPL all day to you, but for the friendships alone I would play for free.
I’ve built all my relationships with foreign cricketers while in the IPL. That doesn’t help in the England dressing room… there are not many of those friendships.
There is a culture in India that appreciates if you double down and go for the big shot. It’s a game of cricket, not economics. Not life or death. Take a risk. IPL crowds don’t want to see you batting out singles as you pick and choose which balls to hit. Life is too short.”
What Pietersen really meant:
“All the bullshit and hypocrisy is turned off. Including mine. Or is that especially mine?”
What he definitely didn’t:
“The IPL players, coaches and specially the co-owners are professional in all respects, even the betting. Oye Sressanth, tell them.”
Mario Balotelli: What he said, really meant and definitely didn’t
https://www.instagram.com/p/tH6yYELj0l
Mario Balotelli is gifted a banner.
What he said:
https://www.instagram.com/p/uAegyBrj39
“I have nothing to declare except my genious? Wow thanks to whoever did this. I know all of you expect more from me .. More gols expecially and more “genious” but give me time and I ll show is true.”
What he really meant:
“So what that I’ve scored only once in eight games for Liverpool so far. More such banners = more goals. And my English will get better too. If only goal-scoring were as easy as writing Instagram and Twitter posts.”
What he definitely didn’t:
“Now if only Antonio Conte (Italy’s manager) could read this. He’d soon learn how to appeal to me.”
Geoffrey Boycott: What he said, really meant and definitely didn’t
Geoffrey Boycott bats for Kevin Pietersen with both eyes wide open.
What he said:
“But all diamonds are flawed. They are not perfect and you have to learn to love and nurture a diamond.”
Geoffrey Boycott , in Kevin Pietersen’s defense, likens the South African born cricketer to a solitaire.
He said:
“I am not blindly sticking up for Kevin. But most very talented sportsmen are like diamonds. They sparkle and glitter and light up the game. They catch the eye and enchant the public. But all diamonds are flawed. They are not perfect and you have to learn to love and nurture a diamond. They have not done that with Kevin.”
The Yorkshire man is disgusted with the way the English Cricket Board sought to discredit Pietersen’s outbursts about the bullying culture within the English team by leaking a confidential document outlining his indiscretions to the media.
Kevin Pietersen after training at Adelaide Oval (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Boycott writes:
“Kevin is a sinner but he has been sinned against by the ECB. There are rights and wrongs on both sides and whatever Pietersen’s faults, the ECB is not blameless.
For me, it reached its lowest point on Tuesday when a ‘strictly confidential’ ECB document was leaked to the media. The points it contained were pathetic and it was a crass idea to put together such a report to try to trash Kevin. It stinks.”
He adds:
“Yes Kevin was awkward, difficult, different and at times his own worst enemy. But his record and his performances do not deserve a character assassination. The ECB should be dignified about it all and not try to belittle him.
I hope the ECB is investigating how one of its confidential documents reached the public domain. If it discovers someone within the ECB leaked it then they should get the sack. If nobody is sacked then we can only assume that the ECB was happy or even complicit with the document being leaked in order to denigrate Kevin.
Some of the points contained in this document are so trivial it beggars belief. He had rows with the captain and coach about the way the team were performing, that sort of thing has gone on forever. It is OK if it happens within the confines of the dressing room. You are supposed to have open discussion in the dressing room and get things off your chest. In fact, the way we played in Australia, I would have said some far worse things to my team-mates if I was still playing.
Another claim is he took some younger players out for a drink in Adelaide. Give me a break – drinking has always gone on and that should not be dignified with a reply. It was only last year after a drinking session we had England players peeing on the Oval pitch after an Ashes win and the ECB or Andy Flower did nothing about it. We had Andrew Flintoff full of drink and trying to ride a pedalo in the West Indies but it did not finish his career. We had Joe Root drinking in the early hours of the morning when he was attacked by David Warner during the Champions Trophy last year. On the field James Anderson uses personal abuse every Test and nothing has been done about it.
The report also claims Kevin looked at his watch and out the window during team meetings. He was probably bored to death. I am sorry but the ECB is making itself look like a laughing stock.”
Boycott claims that he is no stranger to blackballing tactics elaborating thus:
“The Yorkshire committee tried to do the same thing to me when they had an ‘in-depth investigation’ into why we were not winning championships. They tried to blame me for everything. They even got a tea lady at Warwickshire to write a letter of complaint saying I had taken the crusts off my sandwiches which had upset her.”
Geoffrey Boycott, however, does not mince words when he says that he found the ace bat sometimes displaying an insouciant nonchalance and lack of commitment to the national side.
He said:
“This is not a one-eyed support for Kevin from me but a defence of fair play. There is no excuse for some of his stupid shots when England were in trouble. He gave the impression, rightly or wrongly, that he could not care less. There was also no excuse for KP constantly agitating to play a full IPL season to earn his $2 million for eight weeks’ work. England compromised and allowed him half that but told him he had to be back for the first Test of the summer. England were right on that. He had been given an opportunity to play for England and he was contracted to the ECB on good money. Do not forget, his IPL deals only came about because he had been given the chance to showcase his talents by England.
Kevin wanted the penny and the bun. He did not want to give up anything.”
What he really meant:
“Diamonds are forever. But you have to know how to wear them and camouflage the flaws.”
What he definitely didn’t:
“You do know Pietersen’s originally South African? See, how I’m being clever here with the metaphor.”
Kevin Pietersen: What he said, really meant and definitely didn’t
Kevin Pietersen is no paperhanger.
What he said:
“Success papers over a lot of cracks.”
Kevin Pietersen does not regret his utterances about the culture of bullying within the squad despite the intimidation coinciding with English cricket’s most triumphant periods.
What he really meant:
“Success is rarely dissected. It’s a question of whether you want to get on with the party or not. Failure is lonely and a time for introspection. Besides, critics can hardly argue with favorable outcomes less they be termed ‘sour grapes’.”
What he definitely didn’t:
“I just wish I had published my biography at the apogee of my career. It would have been a real hoot.”
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Make Time For Sports. 