mahendra singh dhoni

Fanning the Spirit of Cricket: Mahi lights the way

If the Spirit of Cricket were a kite, then we all know who should be holding the strings, sending it soaring into the stratosphere.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni made Indians (and connoisseurs of the game) proud with his decision to rescind the contentious appeal made against Ian Bell at the break of tea on the third day of the third Test at Trent Bridge on Sunday, the 31st of July, 2011.

The contrast between the two sides was not more readily apparent than last evening.

One side has gone to town with allegations about ‘bat-fixing’ with Vaseline to fox ‘Hot-Spot’, the other exhibited that the spirit of the game was more important than winning at all costs.

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

What he said:

"Dhoni has made mockery of Test cricket by bowling (himself).”

Kapil Dev is less-than-enthused over Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s decision to be the spare bowler in Zaheer Khan’s absence due to a hamstring injury in the first Test at Lords.

What he really meant:

“First he took away my glory at being India’s only World Cup winning captain, now he wants to bowl medium-pace as well. Where will he stop?”

What he definitely didn’t:

“Dhoni da jawab nahin.”

Daryl Harper: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

What he said:

“It’s about as common as Indians eating beef burgers."

Australian umpire, Daryl Harper, takes a huge swipe at Indian cricketers— simultaneously defending his track record, following the criticism directed at him  by the Indian captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni. In a series of caustic remarks—interpreted by some as having racist overtones— that included “I should never have applied the laws of cricket to Indian players.", the Australian let fly letting Indians know how he felt about their accusations. Harper says that the ICC  proved that 94% of his decisions were right and that his mistakes were as rare as Indians eating beef.

What he really meant:

“That’s how strongly I feel. So there!”

What he definitely didn’t:

“I’m a vegetarian.”

“McDonald’s have offered me a job—in India.”

Gary Kirsten: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

What he said:

“I want to go to war with this guy.”

Gary Kirsten is so impressed with Mahendra Singh Dhoni that he would not mind charging off to war, as long as he has the Indian skipper by his side. Kirsten feels that he was the “inspiration” to the Indian squad because of his work ethic whereas Dhoni’s “presence” was the calming influence.

What he really meant:

"Mahendra Singh Dhoni is the best person to have beside you,  watching your back in battle.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“We’ve read ‘The Art Of War’ like a zillion times.”

Mahendra Singh Dhoni: Protector of the “endangered” (Satire)

RANCHI—

In breaking news, it is learnt that India’s cricket captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, was approached—jointly—by the West Indian Players Association (WIPA) and the West Indian Cricket Board (WICB) to become the brand ambassador of Caribbean cricket.

The  bodies-at-loggerheads—through Dhoni—seek to drive home the message that West Indian cricket is under threat of slow extinction and needs revival to  promote continuation of a joyous, carefree brand of island cricket.

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Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Aircel 3G and DRS

Mahendra Singh Dhoni is sold on 3G and has us sold too.

Pity he cannot make up his mind about DRS.

Team India for West Indies ODIs announced: Gambhir leads

A point of similarity between Gabriela Pasqualotto and Mahendra Singh Dhoni:

Until today, the two were content playing the game “Maybe I will, maybe I won’t”.

Pasquallotto, of course, was referring to whether she’d make her story public to the tabloids.

She will—if she’s paid and if she’s allowed to write it herself. Fair enough.

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Random cricketing thoughts on the IPL and beyond

The Ducksworth-Lewis method of calculating second-innings totals has come under the scanner.Mahela Jayawardene and Stephen Fleming criticised the system as being ‘unfair’ and not really suited to T20 cricket.

Brickbats are justified since T20 is a racier, pacier form of cricket compared to ODIs, which are in comparison relatively sedate.

Franchise owners, at the IPL auctions, took player availability into account while making their selections. No team wished to have key players missing during the critical part of the tournament.

Cricket World Cup 2011:Team India are champions of the world

 

“We are the champions – my friends
And we’ll keep on fighting
Till the end
We are the champions
We are the champions
No time for losers
‘Cause we are the champions of the World”

Freddie Mercury’s lyrics may seem trite and overused. Yet they never fail to send out the right message.

Team India are champions of the world.

Nothing and no one can take that away from Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his boys.

BCCI takes nutritional issue with MS Dhoni (Humour)

It has been learnt, from undisclosed (unreliable) sources, that the meeting the selectors (namely Krishnamachari Srikkanth) and a BCCI official had with Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Gary Kirsten last week was not about team selection (as widely reported in the press) but about nutritional matters.

The BCCI is worried that about the type of endorsements Indian cricketers have taken on  and the non-salutary effect it has had on their diet and hence their on-field performance.

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