Calling Time

In action.

This is a bittersweet post. After almost 15 years in which cricket has been the central theme of my life, I have decided to retire from BCCI domestic cricket.  

At the outset, I would like to use this post to sincerely thank everyone who has been a part of my journey. From coaches, trainers, physios, fellow teammates, captains I have played under, administrators and selectors, thank you all. To my employers and sponsors BAS, thank you for the continued support.

Representing India and Maharashtra has been an honour, and looking back, I cherish every occasion I got to wear my country and state cap. The experience has helped make me the person I am, and for this and much else, I am sincerely grateful. 

Drained after one of the many Maharashtra training sessions.  

My first India Blazer

We try to play cricket like it is life-or death. We try to prepare like there's nothing else. We leave our homes, families, friends, comfort zones all behind, and chase leather like there's no tomorrow. But at the end of the day, we are taught to maintain perspective, be grateful, and remember that it is just a game. At the end of the spectrum, looking back, I can see how that statement stands true and false at the same time. 

True, because it is just a game. there are always more important things in life. A country at war, a relative fighting disease, a friend struggling with the loss of a loved one . We cricketers are incredibly fortunate to get to spend our days playing the game we love, often earning our livelihoods from it. As a player who has just lost a close emotionally draining game, its important to reflect on such things, and not let yourself be bogged down by the weight of defeat. It is just a game after all. 


False, because it is so much more. It is a family, within a dormitory, or a team bus, or a hotel terrace. It is a place we explore ourselves, often find ourselves, and even more often lose ourselves again. It is rivalry and friendship existing seamlessly in the same relationship. It is the ultimate learning process. It is said when the student is ready, the teacher shall appear. Thus cricket teaches so little to some people, and so much to others.  

With my inspiration, Jhulan Goswami, on my first tour. 

At the Chinnaswamy, a ground that housed many a camp and many a memory. 

It is this that I will leave behind. It weighs on my heart, but hey, it's just a game remember?

One of my favourite memories, beating the Railways in a Super Over in Pune.

Life offers few such experiences  that give us so much, and I will always be on the look out for new ones. There are a number of things that I want to devote my time to in this second innings of sorts. Who knows. Perhaps 15 years later, I will write about something else that has given me so much. Perhaps not.

Cricket has given me a chance to see some tremendous beauty.

At the SCG. After India, Australia is my favourite country.

Looking forward to where life takes me. 

The Big Barabati Bottle Theory : The Bollywood Infection

Salman as Prem, the quintessential hero the Indian  public wants to see.

Dont worry Cuttack!

So you screwed up. So you threw a few bottles. So you will probably not see any international cricket again in the foreseeable future. So what?!

In just a few weeks you will get to see Salman Khan returning to the iconic Rajshri Productions banner! Prem Ratan Dhan Payo will release in Diwali, and watching a magnum opus like that is so much better than those annoyingly unpredictable cricket matches! Right?

Right.

You see, for Indians, cricket is not just a sport.

It’s a movie.

Recently, I’ve been watching a lot of Salman Khan films. He’s our family favourite you see. Not just movies which have released recently, but even his hits from years gone by (currently we’re on Maine Pyar Kiya)! And the trailers too. All this overdose of a shirtless Prem serenading his helpless heroines makes me tend to see Bollywood in everything, and blame it for the country’s woes. And so I think i'll blame the Barabati bottle storm on Bolllywood as well. 

Except we all should. It makes perfect sense.

Like I said, In India, cricket isn’t a sport. We don’t go to the cricket to watch one team win and one lose. We don’t go to watch amazing skills on display (when mishits are going for six, I start to question how skills matter anymore.)

We go for the entertainment. We go to the stadiums to watch our heroes. Not watch our heroes play, but just watch our heroes, period. Even if the match were to be washed out, a glimpse of our stars strolling around the field would be enough to make it worth the while. A few autographs and selfies would be icing on the cake! It doesn’t matter how they play the cover drive. It matters whether they are fielding in a spot where we can scream at them to grant us a hint of a look, a shy smile, maybe even a wink.

Isn’t this like going for a movie? We go for the sake of our stars, not the scripts. We will watch Akshay Kumar no matter what, even if it’s in a debacle such as Tees Maar Khan.  We will wolf whistle Salman Khan, no matter how hollow the acting and the storyline, and no matter how terrible his haircut (Tere Naam). We will even watch a movie with an overused regurgitated story featuring a couple of debutants, just because our Hero has sung a song in it!

Even if the more evolved part of our brains demands that we walk out at the interval, the reptilian part of the brain will take over and make us wait until the item song at the end credits!

And that is why the bottles were thrown.

You see, in our movies, our heroes always win. Always. No matter what the odds, no matter how many thugs and goons stand in the way, the hero always wins. All he has to do is switch to anti-gravity combat mode.  The goons get beaten up, and the damsel in distress is rescued. Job done and good has prevailed.  Always.

Everyone knows that cricket doesn’t work the same way.

 Everybody except everybody that is.

Everybody had been waiting for the match to come to Cuttack for more than two months. Since the music was released, the premiere was all everybody could talk about. Everybody wanted to catch the first day first show, as there was no other. Everybody took leave from work. Everybody stood in line in the baking heat for hours to buy their tickets. Everybody paid good money for them. Everybody lined up at the stadium three hours in advance, just so they could glimpse their stars getting out of the bus, and walk the proverbial red carpet into the theatre.

The stage was set. The stars descended. Everybody greeted the hero’s entry at the toss with a raucous roar. The villain’s decision to field was even more welcome. The popcorn began flying. The theatre was packed. Everybody was on their feet! Everybody was already dancing in the aisles. India was batting, and everything was going according to script! Everybody was enjoying the movie so far!

But when the Indian batting order began its slide into the abyss at Cuttack, everybody got confused. “This wasn’t how things are supposed to happen!”” Something’s wrong!” ‘’This isn’t what I paid for! How can the villain be winning?’’ said everybody. ‘’How can the heroine not be saved?

 And worst of all, how can the hero die???’’

Finally, somebody among everybody couldn’t take it. 

So somebody decided to save the day. Inspired by the numerous comebacks his hero had made on screen, somebody decided to rise above his ordinary existence. Somebody decided that he would become a hero!

 Even better, he would step in and save his heroes from an ignoble defeat and certain death!  Somebody would thwart the villain, and ensure justice! The cheerleaders would be charmed by his courage and daring, and swoon in his arms! The portly policemen manning the boundary would genuflect before him in gratitude, Gandhi topi tucked under their armpits, hands folded in reverence. They would even insist that their rescuer receive the Man of the Match award for his services to heroism.

And thus, the first bottle flew.

And as a new hero was born, the masses followed in blissful blind adoration.

To Bash or not to Bash

This article first appeared in '' Seamstress '', my column for Wisden India

These are exciting times for the women’s cricket community. The inaugural Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) is set to begin in December this year, and England will launch the Women’s Cricket Super League in the English summer next year. The women’s game is about to pass through the alchemy that transformed the men’s game eight years ago, and enter the radical sphere of T20 leagues.

While the ECB’s Women’s Cricket Super League is still in its cocoon stages, the WBBL is already recruiting players for its eight teams, aligned to the BBL teams.  As the Kings XI Punjab showed in the previous edition of the IPL, recruiting the right team is the first step to success. To quote Ed Smith,’’ Once the players are out on the pitch, they are on their own- which makes it important to get the right ones out there in the first place’’. 

With teams allowed to recruit up to three overseas players each, a possible total of 24 overseas players may find themselves playing down under this Aussie summer.  As teams look to recruit the best possible international talent, five teams have already announced the signing of a total of 12 overseas players so far. Conspicuously absent from the list so far though, are any Indian female players, although Cricket Australia has expressed an interest in recruiting them.

It is a well known but little mentioned fact that the BCCI does not encourage Indian male players to participate in foreign domestic T20 leagues. While overseas players from all countries flock to the Indian Premier League, how many Indians have you seen in the BBL? Or the Caribbean Premier League? None.

All players require an NOC from their home boards before participating in any foreign competition, irrespective of format. The BCCI seems to reserve Indian players for the IPL however, and no male player has played in a foreign T20 league in recent times.

But with no domestic league to reserve their female players for, the BCCI stands to gain in a number of ways by setting a new precedent and allowing its female players to participate in foreign leagues:

1.       Higher standard of cricket:

Indian players will gain infinitely by the experience of playing in Australia, widely considered to have the strongest domestic competition in women’s cricket. And the WBBL will be an extension of that competition. With the influx of international players, the standard is likely to rise even higher.

2.       Exposure to foreign conditions:

The players would spend more than a month travelling the length and breadth of Australia, acclimatise to the foreign conditions, speed of the quicker, bouncier Aussie pitches and the nuances of various venues. They could gain crucial insights into the adaptations that are required to succeed down under. And all such experience will only be useful as and when India tour Australia. (Incidentally, India will tour Australia for a bilateral series immediately after the WBBL in January 2016.  An acclimatisation period could not be more perfectly timed. )

3.       Financial benefits :

Domestic female players in Australia have recently benefitted from a significant pay raise, and WBBL contracts are likely to add to their windfall.  Such opportunities will be few and far between for Indian domestic players. While the BCCI can offer male players high financial rewards through its home league, the lack of any such league for women in India means that the board would be doing a considerable disservice to the women if they are not allowed to participate in foreign leagues.

Although the WBBL overlaps with India’s senior domestic women’s calendar, the absence of some Indian stars is a small price to pay in the bigger scheme of things. If the advantages gained by playing in the WBBL translate into an away series win, then the absence of the players during the domestic season will be worth it. Players can always be selected by the weight of their performances in the WBBL itself. And there is no preparation like match practice. As for the ECB’s Women’s Cricket Super League, it is unlikely to coincide with any domestic tournaments.

These leagues could open up uncharted opportunities for the world’s most talented players. Here are some Indian cricketers who teams in foreign domestic leagues might be keen on recruiting:

·         Jhulan Goswami :

The spearhead of the Indian attack for almost a decade, Jhulan’s pace and accuracy have been an asset to the Indian team. Ubiquitously known as a fighter, she has single handedly bowled her team to victory on many occasions. More than useful with the bat down the order, she adds value to a team through sheer experience and fighting spirit. On the fast, pacy pitches in Australia, a number of teams would have on their radar the ICC’s top ranked ODI bowler.

·         Mithali Raj:

The undisputed queen of Indian batting. She is the archetype of class. The Indian captain is known for her silken touch and effortless timing, both while playing the ball in the air and along the turf. With more than 15 years of international experience behind her, buoyed by truckloads of runs, she would be extremely sought after by team scouts. She opens the batting for India in the T20 format, and will lend stability to any team she may be a part of.

·         Harmanpreet Kaur :

Her batswing clearly tells a keen observer that Harmanpreet idolises Virender Sehwag. And like him, she is known for her ability to clear the ropes. In addition, she has recently added accurate off spin bowling to her skill set, and gained a reputation as a genuine all-rounder.  Combined with the fact that she is an exceptional fielder,  Harmanpreet is a captain’s delight, particularly for the T20 format.

With the BCCI  having announced that contracts will be implemented for the women’s team as well, the participation in such tournaments is likely to be addressed in those contracts.  The new BCCI administration has already taken positive steps towards the development of women’s cricket. For instance : the announcement of an intention to contract players, addition of an U-23 tournament and a three day tournament in the domestic calendar. Will the BCCI break down the wall it has built around itself for the greater good of Indian women’s cricket? I am hopeful. 

All boundaries are conventions, waiting to be transcended. One may transcend any convention, if only one may first conceive of doing so. – From the movie ’Cloud Atlas’

Points lost, series won, best possible result

This article first appeared in '' Seamstress '', my column for Wisden India

How often is it that both teams can claim a series victory? Once too often for New Zealand, who twice in succession now have lost a series after winning the ‘series within the series’.  The visiting New Zealand team won two of the first three ODIs in this series, claiming four valuable ICC women’s championship points that pushed them up to fifth in the ICC points table. But like their last series against England, they went on to lose the five match ODI series 2-3 overall, this time India dominating the last two encounters.

There are though, many positives to reflect upon for New Zealand. After falling into the trap of playing safe in pursuit of a small total in the first ODI, they adapted admirably in the next two games. Their batsmen showed a positive and aggressive approach, not unlike that which the Black Caps team has made their own. The results showed, as they stumbled over their small target in the second ODI, and waltzed past it in the third. All-rounder Sophie Devine spoke about both the approach and the comparison in a post-match interview, and said there was no effort to copy the Black Caps. The White Ferns wanted to create their own style, and playing attacking cricket was very much a part of that.

 It was not just their approach, but also their shot selection and application that were impressive. They used the sweep to good effect to nullify the Indian spinners, and made merry whenever the Indian bowlers erred in length, especially fond of anything short. Sophie Devine’s display of footwork against leg spin in the fourth ODI was worthy of a batsmen brought up on the dust bowls of Chennai, not windy Wellington. Amy Satterthwaite too was impressive throughout the tournament; though she could not go on to register a big score. But in the absence of veteran Sara McGlashan, the batting seemed a little top heavy on more than one occasion.

Debutant Leigh Kasperek lent some stability to the lower order, and with ball in hand, the former Scottish international showed a willingness to flight the ball irrespective of the situation. She displaced incumbent spinner Georgia Guy from the starting XI with her all round potential. Lea Tahuhu also impressed with her pace and ability to pick up wickets in her second spells. And by the time the series had moved on, ‘’Don’t hit it near Katie Perkins” was probably the instruction in the Indian team meetings. The redhead-who set the tone for the visitors in the first ODI with a stunning aerial catch to dismiss Mithali Raj- underlined the effort the White ferns had put into their fielding.

If the White Ferns adapted their approach after the first match itself, the Indian batting unit was guilty of taking two matches more to learn their lesson. In the first three matches, batting first, the Indian eves had managed 142 all out, 163 all out, and 182/9. The batting was tepid at best, underlined by a dependence on boundaries and indolent running between wickets. It was not until they had their backs to the wall in the fourth ODI, having been set 221 as a target, were they forced to bat more positively. Beware the cornered tigers indeed. In the last two ODIs, the Indian side, for whom bowling had always been the stronger skill set, put in two of the most dominant batting displays seen from this team in recent rimes. A deliberate effort to dominate the bowlers, to use the flight offered by the spinners, to not let the part timers settle, and to run aggressively, could be seen. The likes of Smriti Mandhana, Thirushkamini, and Harmanpreet Kaur, who had played cautiously in the previous games, opened up and gave a full account of the panoply of their strokes.   The difference was so stark, it was almost as if we were watching another team altogether. One can only wonder wistfully what would the score line have been had this change come sooner.

On the bowling front, Jhulan Goswami showed no signs of the injury that kept her out of the Challenger Trophy just before this series, although the commentators did mention ‘pain killing injections’. She bowled with fire and accuracy, and was always given appropriate respect by the Kiwi top order, and often their edges. On a venue where the spinners and batsmen dominated, she along with Tahuhu showed the value of having a genuine quick bowler in the ranks.  India struggled to find a suitable new ball partner for her though, which meant spin almost always made an appearance within the first ten overs. And rarely did it disappoint. Rajeshwari Gayakwad made full use of the conditions on her home ground, and picked up wickets at crucial junctures with her efficacious left arm spin. As the series progressed, she became the go-to bowler for Mithali Raj, and was the only spinner to play all five matches. The Indian fielding however left a lot to be desired on a number of occasions, despite being punctuated by the occasional flash of brilliance.

With India due to travel to Australia in the Aussie summer for next round of ICCWC matches, this series win  against a quality New Zealand side will be a shot in the arm for the women’s team. Although India conceded four ICCWC points, coming back after being 1-2 down and dominating the next two games is a huge achievement. The ‘Women in Blue’ showed they have skills and pluck required to wrest the momentum comprehensively away from a side like New Zealand, and then to keep them on the mat in a decider. The self-belief gained from this performance is worth much more than all six ICCWC points that were on offer. Worst case scenario, India will need to play the ICC’s qualifying tournament to determine rankings before the World Cup, slated to be in England in 2017. More international matches against good teams leading into a World Cup can only be good news. If the Indian women can maintain this aggressive approach, and temper it with their abundant skills, wonders can be achieved in the forthcoming T20 series, and even down under.

It is also necessary to put this series win in another context : This series was the first home series to be broadcast live by the Star network (who are now the sponsors of the BCCI) and the first home series to be broadcast at all for many a year now. With the eyes of the world, and the powers that be at the BCCI upon them, it was important to put up a good show. With the new BCCI administration having recently singled out women’s cricket as an area that they want to develop, this performance is reassuring. It emphasizes the talent and potential that this squad has, and the impending contracts for women cricketers will go a long way in allowing the players to train professionally, which can only lead to an improvement in performances. Through this show, the Indian women’s team has shown the BCCI that the raw material exists, and with some smart investment, proper foresight, and a lot of hard work, the returns could be well worth it. 

T20 Season review

This article first appeared in my column ''Seamstress'' for Wisden India 

The T20 Women's domestic season proved to be closer and dramatic than  the One Day leg, punctuated by close finishes and the odd upset. The final winners though, were familiar faces, as Railways topped the Elite Division, and One Day runners-up Goa went one better in the T20 format to clinch the Plate Division title.

In the Elite Division, Group 'A' , played in Pune, proved to be the closest in the competition. It featured the teams that finished in the top four in the One Day format, along with minnows Gujarat. Odisha beat Maharashtra, who beat Delhi, who in turn beat Odisha again to open up the group. Railways stuttered in their matches against Gujarat and Delhi, until they were rescued in both games by the batting of Harmanpreet Kaur. She produced explosive yet mature innings of 81*(47) and 55*(33), and bailed her team out of high pressure situations. She also finished the highest scorer in the competition, with 262 runs from six innings. It took the last league match to decide who would proceed to the Super Leagues. It was a thriller, Maharashtra pushing Railways into a super over, and then proceeding to win it, thanks to the heroics of Smriti Mandhana, who along with Patil, scored 20 off the super over. Maharashtra Joined railways in the Super leagues.

In Group 'B', Punjab sprung a surprise by topping the group, winning all their games, mainly on the back of quick runs at the top of the order by Jasia Akhter. Madhya Pradesh were the second team to qualify.

In the Super Leagues, the other teams had a plan ready for Jasia Akhter, and thus tied down Punjab, who lost all their games. Maharashtra failed to repeat their upset performance of the league phase, as their total of 108 was not enough to stretch Railways. However, Smriti Mandhana continued her return to form against Madhya Pradesh, to make a chase of 105 against a good M.P. bowling side look easy. She scored an unbeaten 59 off 62 balls, to ensure Maharashtra finished second, and M.P. third on their home ground in Indore.

In the Plate Division, Karnataka, Goa, Assam, Andhra, Bengal, Assam, and Himachal Pradesh topped their respective groups and made the knock outs.

Goa were keen to avenge their One Day Plate Final loss to Andhra in the quarters, and did so easily with Shikha Pandey scalping two and then anchoring her side home in the chase. They then duly beat Assam to make their second final of the season.

Bengal benefited from contributions from their captain with bat and ball. Jhulan Goswami who finished the season with the lowest economy rate in the tournament (2.64 rpo), also finished as the sixth highest run scorer, with runs and wickets at crucial junctures. After making short work of Himachal in their quarter final, Bengal derailed  Karnataka in the semi final. Karnataka, who were chasing 101, imploded, losing five wickets for six runs, to finish on 88.

The final proved to be a thrilling encounter. Playing at home, the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata, Bengal got off to a poor start, losing four wickets in the first six overs. Three top order batsmen succumbed to Santoshi Rane's outswingers, before Paromita Roy and Jhulan Goswami stitched together a partnership. Bengal finally finished with only 79, but bowled tightly to have Goa at 34 for four in 11 overs. Jhulan had again delivered for her team, castling Goa captain Sunanda and the talismanic Shikha Pandey in the 11th over to tilt the balance in Bengal's favour. The pressure of seeing yet another title slip out of their hands almost got to the Goa batsmen, but the experienced Salma Divkar kept her head, and saw Goa over the line off the last ball, finishing with 31* off 30 balls. 

Awards in Women's Cricket

This article first appeared in '' Seamstress ",  my column for Wisden India

With Mithali Raj recently becoming the only the fourth female cricketer to be awarded the distinguished Padma Shri award, I decided to compile a list of all female cricketers who have won major government awards. The exercise took me firmly out of my comfortable world of flowing prose and into the unyielding and inflexible realm of statistics, but it  was an enriching one all the same. This post is dedicated to all those incredibly talented and hard working women who deserve every accolade they can get, and to the many more whose way these awards may not have come.

In chronological order:

Shanta Rangaswamy

Arjuna Award- 1976

Shanta was the archetypal pioneer, at a time when women's cricket in India was in its infancy.  She captained the country in 12 of the 16 tests she played, and 16 of the 19 ODIs. In an era where Tests were the prevalent and sometimes only format, she played an attacking and entertaining brand of cricket. The  Bangalore all rounder could be destructive with the bat, as well as with her big inswingers. In a playing career that spanned 14 years, she accumulated 750 runs and 21 wickets in her 16 matches.  She is now a senior officer in a nationalised bank and currently a BCCI selector as well.

Diana Edulji

Arjuna Award- 1983

Padma Shri - 2002

The first female cricketer to be awarded the Padma Shri as well as the Arjuna, left arm spinner Diana Edulji was another member of the pioneering women's test team. Hailing from Mumbai, she is India's highest wicket taker in tests, and is third on the all-time list, with 63 wickets in 20 matches. Known for her unerring accuracy, she was the cornerstone of India's spin attack in those formative years. She also led the country in four tests and 18 ODIs. Now as Western Railway's Sr. Sports Officer, she has helped increase the employment opportunities for talented women cricketers in the country, and helped shape the sports policy of Western and Indian Railways.

Shubhangi Kulkarni

Arjuna Award- 1985

Leg spinning all rounder Shubhangi Kulkarni scalped 23 wickets in the seminal home test series against the West Indies that the Indian women played in 1976. Thereafter, she regularly contributed with ball and bat, and sits just behind Diana Edulji as India's second highest wicket taker, with 60 wickets in 19 tests. Her greatest legacy though, may be that of an administrator. She was Secretary of the Women's Cricket Association of India in 2005, when India registered their best ever performance in a World Cup, finishing runners up in South Africa. Previously, she had helped ink a sponsorship deal with Sahara, who were sponsoring the BCCI at the time.  She also played an instrumental role in the talks preceding BCCI's takeover of women's cricket in 2006. She currently runs a popular sports shop in her hometown of Pune.

Sandhya Agarwal

Arjuna Award - 1986

With an astonishing test batting average of 50.45 in 13 tests, Sandhya Agarwal was Indian women's cricket's run machine. Opening the batting, her presence at the wicket gave the Indian batting much needed stability. With four test hundreds, two of those on foreign soil, she is just behind England's Janette Brittin (five), who holds the record for highest number of centuries in women's tests. The Indore born cricketer was also a crucial member of a strong Indian Railways team for most of her career. She is now involved with the women's wing of the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association.

Mithali Raj

Arjuna Award - 2003

Padma Shri - 2015

Mithali has been the face of women's cricket in the country for more than a decade. She has been the ever present silver lining  in an era of inconsistency for Indian women's cricket. Some of her famous exploits with the bat - her test double hundred at the age of 19 for instance- have single handedly raised the profile of the women's game in the country. Her heroic double ton won her the Arjuna in 2003 making her the first woman in 16 years to win the award, and her overall contribution has also earned her the Padma Shri, which she said took her by surprise, considering Virat Kohli was also in the fray.  In an era where one dayers and later T20 matches were the popular formats, her numbers are staggering. With 4888 runs, she is second on the all-time ODI leading run scorers list. She has led the team in roughly half of her 153 ODIs. With 1267 runs in 47 matches, she is India's highest T20 run scorer, male or female, ahead of Virat Kohli (972). This coming from a player who said in an interview recently, that it took her many years to actually start enjoying the sport!

Anju Jain

Arjuna Award - 2005

Wicketkeeper-opening bat Anju Jain was honoured with the Arjuna in the year that she helped the Indian team make the finals of the 2005 World Cup in South Africa. She was the mainstay with the gloves and at the top of the order for almost a decade. Her diminutive stature belied the power she could pack in her strokes, and lent her agility behind the stumps. The Delhi player was also a key member of the successful Air India team on the domestic circuit. She currently coaches the Assam Cricket Association women's team.

Anjum Chopra

Arjuna Award - 2006

Padma Shri - 2014

Anjum Chopra, with 2856 ODI runs, is India's second highest run getter, and also 10th on the all-time run scorer list. The stylish Delhi left hander is one of the most recognisable faces in women’s cricket, as she is a regular feature on television commentary for both women's and men's international games. Another Air India stalwart, her fluent batting style and safe hands in the slips were a prominent feature of her playing career. She led the Indian team to their first ever overseas test victory in South Africa in 2002. She also played an instrumental role in the historic away series win against England in 2006. She is now a professional orator, sportscaster and writer.

Jhulan Goswami

Arjuna Award - 2010

Padma Shri - 2012

Jhulan seen addressing the team in England, 2011.

Along with Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami's achievements have made her the poster girl of Indian women's cricket. Her height, aggression and pace have helped her captivate the imaginations of onlookers unlike any other cricketer.  With 167 wickets, she is no. 2 on the all-time ODI wicket takers list.  Since breaking into the Indian team as a precocious teenager, she has spearheaded the Indian attack for almost 15 years now. She bowled India to a famous test series win in Taunton, England in 2006, with one of the most clinical displays of fast bowling seen in the women's game. Her match haul of 10 wickets helped her claim the ICC cricketer of the Year award in 2007, the only Indian ever to do so. The tearaway from the small town of Chakda (in the outskirts of Kolkata) went on to lead the country in 42 internationals, including a third place finish in the 2009 Women's World Cup.

Audience episode 2: At the IPLagain!

This article first appeared in my column "Seamstress" for Wisden India

After a few years at the fringes, I was thrilled to find myself back in the NCA camp this year, which meant a month’s sojourn in Bangalore, one of my favourite places. On our first day, the NCA was off limits to us because of the security measures the IPL demanded. So we went to the hospital for our medical check-ups, which meant lots of waiting, giggling and gossip outside different departments. As we got back to the hotel tired and spent, wanting nothing more than a hot shower and full belly, I noticed a buzz spreading in the corridors outside.

Jhulan di was quickly going room to room, asking who wants to watch the IPL game happening tonight. It was Bangalore vs Chennai (Match # 20), a high pressure game, so almost the entire group was going.

As we joined the crowd that was slowly milling into the stadium, I could not help but wonder at the pull the IPL was creating (not to mention the traffic jams). Not even the Ranji trophy final, which was also held in Bangalore, compelled so many locals to turn up and watch cricket live!

That’s the thing about watching cricket live. It hooks you, comprehensively, especially if you are the type of fish that responds to the willow bait and leather tack. Watching a live cricket match inspired my first ever blog post, and set me on this path of writing. In short, it changed my life. 

For one thing, TV slows everything down! McCullum's sprints across the turf to reel in balls that are destined for the boundary come alive in jaw dropping fashion. As does Raina's exaggerated follow through when he bats. It’s something else. 

It's been 10 years since the T20 format pounced on us, and it has rivalled Indian politics for the number of scams and controversies it has endured. On the other hand, in terms of providing entertainment and spectacle, it has caught up with the Indian Film Industry, and in deed in the IPL's case, married it. Much debate has ensued, particularly in recent years, with the match fixing scandals and the commercialisation of the ICC further pushing home the reality that money is making the cricket world go around, and the cricket has been left behind. But has it?

I admit I had next to no interest in watching the IPL this year. I had had my fill of quality cricket on television with the World Cup. But that was not the only reason. I was disenchanted with the IPL. The outbalanced competition between bat and ball and the multitude of scams tainting it aside, I felt little loyalty to any of the teams playing, barring a sliver of affinity towards the King's XI (more because of the coaching staff than the players). So when I joined the throng to watch this IPL game, only my second ever live IPL game, I was going purely to watch cricket. I was trying to be a purist in my head, not a tourist, and to watch the cricket, not the cricketers. 

And the cricket was not absent. Yes there were cheerleaders (who were a distraction more than anything), and there was music and a brilliant live percussionist (which enhanced  the atmosphere really), but the cricket demanded to be seen, as pain demands to be felt (a team mate mentioned ''The Fault in Our stars yesterday""!). Starc sizzled, Chahal baffled, Raina was bold and the Chinnaswamy proved that it is woefully small as mishits went for six and middles went into the 1st tiers. Even though I missed the best of the match (Nehra's four-fer and Virat's fighting fifty) because we had training the next day, live cricket did not disappoint. It was the spectacle I came to see, and it would have been just as entertaining even if I did not recognise a single player or there was no music to bob my head along to. 

Is it the best way to promote the game? As Kathleen Galligan wrote in her highly insightful and entertaining column, "T20 is a good introduction to a sport that is otherwise long and complicated. If you would train for a marathon by first running short distances, surely you can watch T20 before taking on a Test match''. If you come to an IPL match and like I mentioned before, are the types who like the smell of the willow bait and leather tack, the cricket will hook you. The cricket mind you, not the format, not the music, not the melting pot that is the IPL. 

The IPL has the ability to pull in even those who come for the spectacle, for the music, for the atmosphere. It is designed for the masses of Indian viewers who come to watch the movies for the actors, not the story, for the item songs, not the dialogues. 

But if among this crowd, are a handful of observers, who will fall in love with the sound the ball makes when it hits the middle of the bat, or the whirr it makes when it leaves the bowlers hand, despite all the noise in the stadium, then cricket has won. It is an optimistic, naive and unrealistic notion, but I’m sure, among the crowd, is at least one little boy or girl, who will come back for another match, in another tournament, and another format, and maybe take up the game. And that’s a win for the game.