Sans Cricket :-(

I hate not being able to watch Sachin blast away Lankans.... I really do...
What a comeback by The Master Blaster... Welcome back Sachin we were all missing u so much....

They dont show Cricket in Denmark not on any channel.... isn't that amazing... could a sports channel even think of operating in india and not show the cricket matches... (OK OK!! Leaving DD Sports)

And for the 16 of us who are in this project www.cricinfo.com is our hope.... refreshing the browsers every now and then .. or better still getting a ticker on your desktop... and stay abreast with the game... but come to think of it Cricket is much more than a game ... its a passion... a movement ... a thinking... Remember the Ad... Eat cricket Sleep Cricket Drink only COCA
Some random cold drink company trying to encash on the cricket fever in India...

Talking of Cricket related ads ... cricket stars have been the brand ambassadors for many companies... I love the Adidas Ad in which Sachin is shot using numerous cameras... another fav is the Coca Cola Ad with the sound track of “Dum Mast Kalander” sung by NFA Khan... the whole city painted in the crimson hue... Red clothes . Red chillies.. Red walls... Red buildings...and to top it ... the eight octave voice of NFA Khan..(May his soul rest in peace) Lovely!!!!

My very early initiation to watching cricket started when I was very small.. my mom, being more enthusiastic about cricket than my dad, would put an alarm to wake up early mornings to watch the matches happening Down under.... in school we used to carry small transistors which would be switched when one class ended and the teacher is yet to come... During lunch time our princi used to switch on the TV in his room and raise the volume a little so that the students could gather outside his room n watch the match... the lunch break was the most awaited moment on those special days... During Grad we had a dhaba near our college where almost all the guys would assemble to watch the match... I bet the dhabha owner did 500% business than normal on those days ... so on days there was a match I would either be at the dhaba or better still at home... We often used to bet during these matches and the method was also very unique... lemme explain how...
Lets say we are betting on Dravid... now we mutually agree upon a score which I think he would be able to make and the other guy thinks he wont .. lets say 60. Now if Dravid makes 110 I win 50 bucks and if he makes 10 runs I lose 50... this way the stakes never got very high .. but no matter who lost.. the money eventually landed up in the Dhaba owner's pocket...
Post grad it was no different...It only got crazier

Even after I started working my enthu for the unofficial national game of India didn't go down. On days when there was a match I would reach office at 3 pm after watching one side play 50 overs and the other side play 5 overs or something... like many other colleagues ... Inside office it was again www.cricinfo.com … we had a site which used to stream video which we used to watch during world cup
When it used to be a day-night match ... we would reach office at 7 am and get off at 3 to watch the match..... while in office frequent trips to the pan-wallah/canteen would ensure that I was updated about the match....

Life sans crickets is not the same anymore.... although u get to see read the ball by ball commentary it can never match the excitement of watching the match... the sound of timber hitting leather is just so esctasic... The way the hands go up in the air when the ball goes past the rope... the "oooooooooohhhhhs" which some when the bat misses the balls n nests in the keepers gloves...

Song of the Day : Koi lauta de mere beete hue din!!!