Desi Tamasha

You can call it "the game of glorious uncertainties." I just think it's funny. England lost every single game they played in Australia this season including a 5-match test series which they lost 5-0. Then they win 5 matches in the Commonwealth Bank Triangular series against Australia and New Zealand and they become champions. Australia loses this tournament at home for the first time in 14 years.

Does this change things for the World Cup? For one, it buys England some respect which is always useful. They did it without Kevin Peitersen or Michael Vaughan. Maybe all England needed to do was to get rid of Kevin Pietersen - disruptive influence that he'd become. Hopefully KP, now chastened, will come back and play a better game a la Ganguly.

Australia will have to play much much better, especially against S. Africa if they are to retain the World Cup. They'll miss Symonds and they may have peaked too early.

Labels: australia, cricket, england

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Two aliens were visiting Earth to research the local customs. They split up so that they could learn more in the time allowed. When they met to share their knowledge, the first alien told of a religious ceremony it had seen.

"I went to a large green field shaped like a meteorite crater. Around the edges, several thousand worshippers gathered. Then two priests walk to the centre of the field to a rectangular area and hammer six spears into the ground, three at each end. Then eleven more priests walk out, clad in white robes. Then two high priests wielding clubs walk to the centre and one of the other priests starts throwing a red orb at the ones with the clubs."

"Gee," replied the other alien, "what happens next?"

"Then it begins to rain."
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Hit a six off of a no-ball.

Labels: cricket, pakistan

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According to Akila, Leader of Opposition in India, Lal Krishna Advani thanked Pervez Musharraf for his support for Indian temple reconstruction in Pakistan and invited the President to visit Ajmer Sharif and Swaminarayan temple (Akshardham) in India.

Labels: politics, swaminarayan

Australia started at 170 for 1 in 30 overs in the first of the 3-game finals of the CB Series triangular, but finished the innings on 252, losing 6 for 23... Against England. Unbelievable. This is a wide-open World Cup friends!

Update: England have beaten Australia. Australia has peaked too early. If Australia does not come back fighting like crazy in the last 2 games, then that's it for them. Of course, they'll still make it to the semi-finals, but they won't have a chance against S. Africa.

Labels: australia, cricket, england

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Ricky Ponting complains that Australia is playing too many games against India and not enough against the other countries. Before this, he was complaining about too much cricket in general. I don't think there is too much cricket. A few reasons:

1. Australia could not play much cricket and be like New Zealand: a talented team that can't win on the big stage.
2. It's wrong to diss the Indian advertiser and the Indian viewer who are basically underwriting the whole cricket venture around the world.
3. There isn't too much cricket - NBA players play 80 games a year in regular season + the playoffs. From Cricinfo stats, it seems like the cricketers' workload is comparable - about 80-90 days of international cricket per year at most. It's harder for the bowlers, of course. But mature teams should be able to rotate their bowlers.
   

Labels: australia, cricket

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Pakistan scored 351-4 against S. Africa who are, to me, a shoo-in for the World Cup semi-finals. Even the finals. I wouldn't have given Pakistan a chance, but look at them today!

Labels: cricket, pakistan, s.africa

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Even after some of the most impressive reforms by Swami Dayanand Saraswati and others in the 19th and 20th centuries, sects like Swaminarayan and even the Sankaracharya of Kanchi hold some of the most backward notions about gender equality in the 21st century. A very sad story indeed.

Labels: sankaracharya, swaminarayan

After New Zealand's exit from the triangular tournament in Australia with a defeat against England, it is pretty much clear that they are not cut out for the big time. Two major reasons why they don't stand a chance:

1. They just don't play enough cricket. They can't deal with pressure and they fold easily. They don't have enough depth and one or two injuries or form issues are enough to break their rhythm completely.
2. They are a tiny country with not enough cricketers. They just won't have enough talent to compete at the highest levels.

So my bets for the World Cup semi-finalists based on current form are Australia, S. Africa, England and India.

Labels: cricket, worldcup

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There are a few new comments on my post on Pramukh Swami. Summary:

• BAPS is very active in social activities and is not just into temple building: point taken
  
• It is not a personality cult because Pramukh Swami quotes Bhagwan Swaminarayan: that one is silly, especially coming from someone who says he is not a follower
• Catholic Church has its own pomp and regalia: fair enough, but their institutions are stronger, succession plans are in place and are time-tested - BAPS does not even come close (time will tell, of course)
• Pramukh Swami is not a businessman and does not have a bank account: don't know about his bank account, but he personally signs for most big-ticket BAPS spending and has managed money very well; I think it's a feature of his papacy (as compared to that of Yogiji Maharaj, say) that they have raised amazing amounts of money and managed it highly effectively; in my definition, he's managed the business of BAPS very well and is thus a good businessman

My central arguments have not been answered: BAPS is a personality cult without much of a visible succession plan. Comparisons with Swadhyay Parivar may be inapt but they seem to be fair at this point.

So many courses online in China!
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Narendra Modi is flying high in Gujarat. But he has done nothing for the victims of the riots of Feb 2002. Rajdeep Sardesai has a report.

Labels: politics

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In my previous post, I mentioned that Pramukh Swami's throne looked a bit too ostentatious for an ascetic. Who are we to judge, you may ask. Fair point. But we're argumentative Indians and we like to nitpick.

No one disputes the good work BAPS has done, especially in times of calamities like earthquakes, floods etc. But it's hard to dispute that - to the outsider - BAPS seems to be a bit of a personality cult built around Pramukh Swami. That's understandable - given his influence and work - but also something the Swaminarayan sect should watch out for. See, for example, the rapid dissolution and disintegration of the once-impressive Swadhyay Parivar.

A related issue is the succession plan and the top-level leadership within an organization. For example, democratic governments and even the Catholic Church have very good succession plans and a very healthy system where successors are prepared and given due prominence. BAPS, afaik, has a very strong second-tier leadership also. But the outside world is not familiar with these personalities at all. To us outsiders, it seems to be all about Pramukh Swami and "his" massive fancy temples.

Labels: swaminarayan