Pirate of the Caribbean

I will miss everything - the big back lift,the crouched knee, the guillotine blade of the bat coming down on the ball ,the brilliant follow through and the ball whizzing away to the boundary. World cricket and I for sure will miss the genius that was Brian Lara. He was every bit the real 'Pirate of the Caribbean', he stole runs,records and people's love and affection. The game will be poorer having lost two of its most charismatic players in Brian Lara and Shane warne within the span of three months.

My abiding memory of Lara would be the 153 he hit at Barbados during the 98-99 series with Australia, probably the greatest chasing innings ever. West indies didn't have any business sharing the series 2-2 but Lara made it happen single-handedly. I vividly remember him having an argument with McGrath after the latter felled him with a vicious bouncer and immediately retorting with a rasping pull shot the very next ball. And i cant forget the winning boundary - a thundering cover-drive off Gillespie, and the subsequent emotional Lara celebration. That was truly test cricket at its supreme best.

Lara played every concievable type of innings, Epic record breaking innings , match-winning fourth innings thrillers,last man blazing streaks and match-saving ones. He was like the actor who can play comedy, tragedy and drama and pull- off each one with consummate ease. Batting became an art form when he was at the crease using the bat like a paint brush. He indeed embodied the gay abandon spirit of West indian batting. He was so much similar to the two other west indian batting greats - George Headley and Gary Sobers - similar in style to sobers and in accomplishments to Headley. If headley was nicknamed 'Atlas' for bearing the weight of the West indian batting on his shoulders probably Lara deserved a similar title.

Whatever be the criticisms regarding his leadership skills he will go down in history as one of the true all-time greats to have graced the game. The breathtaking records set by him will take some beating and he will forever be remembered as the mortal who flirted with immortality.

Road to Perdition?

If you were an avid Indian cricket fan, the happenings of the last fortnight or so at the 'Carnival of cricket' would have made you really depressed. The worst part was the fall out that resulted in the aftermath of the debacle and believe me we haven't heard the last of this fallout. The fallout has made one point clear - Let alone winning as a team we cant even lose as a team. The mud-slinging has well and truly begun and it will continue until India wins against some other team (even a win over Canada will do) and every thing will become hunky-dory again and we will again get behind our 'stars' for the 2011 world cup and the cycle will repeat.

So where is Indian cricket heading? If Indian cricket does not wake up from its slumber we might well be on the road to perdition and might well be doomed in the future. These are some of the steps that should be taken to prevent this 'apocalypso':

1. Improve domestic cricket and more importantly improve the selection process so that talent does not miss out.

2. Rid Indian cricket of the politicians and 'honorary' officials and get in more professionals and run it like a private limited company.

3. Stop focusing on the star system and make an attempt to gel as a team, this applies as much to the players as to the general public.

Until the above steps are executed with sincerity Indian cricket will surely be on the road to perdition with no way back, just have a glance at hokey for a chilling reminder of this.