Any sportsman will have his share of ups and downs in his career and some just fade away into oblivion after facing a drop in form. This feature is more prominent in cricket, where one needs to concentrate on the game for much longer duration (than in any other sport) during the course of the match. Now-a-days, we label Sourav Ganguly and Virender Sehwag as the great come back men of Indian cricket as these cricketers have resurrected their careers with wonderful performances against the Aussies down under in the recently concluded test series. However there were cricketers in the recent past who, not only made valiant come backs but also played a calm and significant role in javelining the Indian cricket to the present dizzy heights. Given below is a brief description of one such cricketer.
Indian cricket was in a fix in the early eighties because, for the first time, it appeared that it’s batting started to revolve singly around that genius, Sunil Gavaskar, as the other stalwart, Gundappa Vishwanath suddenly lost form after his valiant double century filled knocks against the visiting Englishmen in the1981 series. At the same time, another gritty player was rediscovering his magic touch in the domestic matches. He was tearing the bowling attacks to shreds in the Ranji Trophy matches. He was previously felled by a bouncer in a test match against West Indies some three years back and later dropped from the side. He was none other than Mohinder Amarnath.
Those were the days when radio was the only means of having first hand information about what is going on in a test match and so when India went to Pakistan in 1982 for a five test series, all young boys like me were depressed to hear about the way the Indian batsmen surrendered so meekly against Imran Khan and his men and the bowlers were flayed by Zaheer Abbas, Javed Miandad and Mudassar Nazar, in the first two tests. Though Gavaskar was our favorite, we wanted some one else to fire and most of us pinned our hopes on Gundappa Vishwanath, but suddenly, he lost his touch and was out cheaply to Imran several times. Imran took forty wickets in the series as he sent several batsmen scurrying back to pavilion with his ferocious pace, swing and cut. The tour was a big disaster as most Indian batsmen failed to negotiate the Pakistani pace men. One man stood like a colossus amidst ruins and he was Mohinder Amarnath, as one commentator after the other gave a vivid description of how he stood up and hooked and pulled (the two most romantic shots in cricket, which are an epitome of bravery and grit) the Pakistani pace men. He scored more than 500 runs in that series but more importantly, scored a hundred in his first match on his return and then followed up with several beautiful knocks in the innings that followed. Thus from being a doubtful starter, he became a saviour and an important member of the Indian team.
Next, the tour to the West Indies followed sans Gundappa Vishwanath and against the fiery West Indian pace bowling of Holding, Marshall, Roberts and Garner, the Indian batsmen failed miserably and again it was left to Mohinder Amarnath to salvage some pride. He again scored more than 500 runs in that series as he stood like a one-man-army against the West Indian Pace quartet. Again he proved that it is the hook and the pull which are going to be the answer to “fight blood with blood”. Though he was supported ably by Sunil Gavaskar in that series, the other Indian batsmen failed and the tour proved to be a disaster.
Mohinder, who was affectionately called Jimmy, had his most glorious moments in the 1983 world cup in England. He made an important 26 in the low-scoring final against West Indies and bowled beautifully to claim 3 wickets with his slow medium stuff in that all important win and whenever, the recorded match is shown in T.Vs one can relish even now, his slow, slumbering walk and run up to wicket and that slinging final swirl of his arm to deliver the ball. He was rightly the man of the match and pinnacled in his come back bid.
The next series against the West Indies at home proved to be a big disaster to both him and the Indian team. The very shots that earned him name and fame, the hook and the pull, deceived him very badly, as he scored a string of zeroes and ones and his series scores of 1, 0, 0,01,0 resembled more like a Delhi Pin code or a phone number. As the main pillar cracked the slab caved in and thus the series was won very easily by the West Indies. He was again dropped.
As it turned out that his career was about to end, he was selected to tour Pakistan in 1984, as the selectors might have thought of giving him one last chance. Now there was no Imran but the other bowlers like Azim Hafiz and Jalaluddin were deceptively quick. Again, when he took guard there was a big hush amongst our friends. He scored a laborious century but cemented his place in the Indian team up to the World cup in 1987.In the mean time, he played a key role in 1985 Benson and Hedges World Series cup win, the Series victory against England in England in 1986 etc. After the world cup in 1987, he was again dropped but later on returned to play significant innings in 1990 against the visiting Kiwis and was again dropped finally for the tour to New Zealand as the selectors preferred youth over experience and there could be no more come back after that as he reached 40 by then. Thus the sagas of one of the greatest come back man of Indian cricket ended.
Thursday, 20 March 2008
Saturday, 15 March 2008
A Providential Escape:A story of a small kid
Just like every morning, Raja, the shepherd, took his flock of sheep for grazing in the open fields on the outskirts of his village and after letting them loose, he was about to sit on the wall of the well which dried out long time back, when he heard a groaning sound from inside the well. First he ignored it out of fear and later on he started peeping into the well with a lot of hesitation. He noticed that it was a wailing for help by a nine year old boy. He slowly went down the steps of the well and brought the boy up on to the ground. Once on the ground, he asked “what is your name?” The boy did not respond. Soon he recognized that the boy fell unconscious and that he was badly injured. He took him home, cleaned his wounds and went out to bring a doctor from a nearby village and on not finding him, returned home dejected only to be told by his wife that she saw the photo of the child in the news on television and that he is the kidnapped son of a wealthy couple. So, after the boy regained consciousness, he took him to the police station to avoid further trouble. On seeing the boy in the hands of Raja, the police inspector, Suresh, heaved a sigh of relief and embraced Raja for his act of bringing the kidnapped child to the police station. An excited and dumbfounded Raja enquired the police officer about the story of the kidnapped boy. “Wait let me ring up my higher-ups and the parents of the boy to inform them about the tracing of the boy and then I will tell you the story”. So after doing this he ordered a cup of coffee for both himself and Raja and started narrating the story.
“Stephen and Sirisha were post-graduates in management. Both of them rebelled and married against the wishes of their family members. Their family members did not try to reconcile with this event and because of their wealthy and influential background tried to scuttle their relationship by exploring all avenues. I came to know that Sirisha’s family was more aggressive and tried to silence Stephen at least on two occasions, but he being a black belt Karate fighter and Sharp shooting pistol champion, proved to be more than a match for the henchmen of Sirisha’s father. I was told that on the third occasion, after a big fist fight with the goons of Sirisha’s father, he drove his Gypsy at hectic speed to his father-in-law’s house, quickly approached him and shouted at the peak of his voice by pointing a gun at his temple, ““I am leaving you just because you are Sirisha’s father”” .This enraged the joint family of Sirisha’s father with whom his younger brother Prakash also lived. Later, Stephen announced to Sirisha that they are going to migrate to a foreign country where they will be safe and secure. Sirisha readily agreed. So they migrated to New Zealand.
For some period there was a lull in their lives and both of them lived cozily .They had a son and named him Bright. After earning a huge fortune with their talent and hard work for ten years, they decided to return to the country of their origin and hoped that both their families would reconcile with new developments. Back home, their respective families increased their rivalries, incurred heavy business losses and started blaming each other for their woes. However, Sirisha’s father secretly opened a channel and blessed his daughter and her family after coming to know of the latest developments but soon passed away to heavenly abode. The mantle of hatred was taken up by his brother, Prakash and Sirisha’s younger brother, Aryan. Prakash harboured nefarious design of aiming for two birds with one shot-eliminating Aryan and gobbling up their wealth. So he deliberately continued the rivalry on one flimsy pretext or the other. Prakash planted in Aryan’s mind that both Sirisha and her husband were responsible for the present plight of their family and that he ought to take revenge.
Bright was frequently advised by his parents not to venture out of the flats that they are residing and go far away after school hours as danger was lurking around. One day, Bright did not heed the advice of his parents and wandered out along with his friends to play a cricket match. At this juncture a jeep came and he was whisked away by Aryan and goons in front of Bright’s friends who reported the matter to Bright’s parents. Two days later, after coming to know of the story of hatred between the families from Bright’s parents, the police have come to a conclusion that it was Aryan and his henchmen who kidnapped the child. My dear friend this is the story of the kid.”
Turning to the child the police inspector asked “By the by, how did you land up in the well and who threw you in?” The child replied that he fell accidentally into the well when he was trying to escape as he saw that Aryan was rebelling against the gang after a long fight and chase in the bushes, as he came to know through the messages on the cell phone to one of the goons that his uncle was plotting to kill him also. Aryan left him there to survive on his own depending on his luck and escaped into the jungle.
Immediately after finishing this story, the police inspector heard the sound of helicopter and a posse of cameramen and others. Bright’s parents and a host of important police personnel and people’s representatives descended on the police station as the case attracted the attention of many. The boy was safely handed over to the parents. The police inspector remarked that they now have to catch Aryan and Prakash.
“Stephen and Sirisha were post-graduates in management. Both of them rebelled and married against the wishes of their family members. Their family members did not try to reconcile with this event and because of their wealthy and influential background tried to scuttle their relationship by exploring all avenues. I came to know that Sirisha’s family was more aggressive and tried to silence Stephen at least on two occasions, but he being a black belt Karate fighter and Sharp shooting pistol champion, proved to be more than a match for the henchmen of Sirisha’s father. I was told that on the third occasion, after a big fist fight with the goons of Sirisha’s father, he drove his Gypsy at hectic speed to his father-in-law’s house, quickly approached him and shouted at the peak of his voice by pointing a gun at his temple, ““I am leaving you just because you are Sirisha’s father”” .This enraged the joint family of Sirisha’s father with whom his younger brother Prakash also lived. Later, Stephen announced to Sirisha that they are going to migrate to a foreign country where they will be safe and secure. Sirisha readily agreed. So they migrated to New Zealand.
For some period there was a lull in their lives and both of them lived cozily .They had a son and named him Bright. After earning a huge fortune with their talent and hard work for ten years, they decided to return to the country of their origin and hoped that both their families would reconcile with new developments. Back home, their respective families increased their rivalries, incurred heavy business losses and started blaming each other for their woes. However, Sirisha’s father secretly opened a channel and blessed his daughter and her family after coming to know of the latest developments but soon passed away to heavenly abode. The mantle of hatred was taken up by his brother, Prakash and Sirisha’s younger brother, Aryan. Prakash harboured nefarious design of aiming for two birds with one shot-eliminating Aryan and gobbling up their wealth. So he deliberately continued the rivalry on one flimsy pretext or the other. Prakash planted in Aryan’s mind that both Sirisha and her husband were responsible for the present plight of their family and that he ought to take revenge.
Bright was frequently advised by his parents not to venture out of the flats that they are residing and go far away after school hours as danger was lurking around. One day, Bright did not heed the advice of his parents and wandered out along with his friends to play a cricket match. At this juncture a jeep came and he was whisked away by Aryan and goons in front of Bright’s friends who reported the matter to Bright’s parents. Two days later, after coming to know of the story of hatred between the families from Bright’s parents, the police have come to a conclusion that it was Aryan and his henchmen who kidnapped the child. My dear friend this is the story of the kid.”
Turning to the child the police inspector asked “By the by, how did you land up in the well and who threw you in?” The child replied that he fell accidentally into the well when he was trying to escape as he saw that Aryan was rebelling against the gang after a long fight and chase in the bushes, as he came to know through the messages on the cell phone to one of the goons that his uncle was plotting to kill him also. Aryan left him there to survive on his own depending on his luck and escaped into the jungle.
Immediately after finishing this story, the police inspector heard the sound of helicopter and a posse of cameramen and others. Bright’s parents and a host of important police personnel and people’s representatives descended on the police station as the case attracted the attention of many. The boy was safely handed over to the parents. The police inspector remarked that they now have to catch Aryan and Prakash.
Saturday, 1 March 2008
Why Playing second fiddle is so crucial for success?
There is a famous proverb that “there is a woman behind the success of every man”. What does this mean? In simple terms it means that to achieve any goal what one requires is a good and selfless subordinate. Successful people pick their parents, better-half, fiancée, lover and so on as the reason for their success. Given below are some examples (both from History as well as mythology) where people achieved stupendous success because of the role played by selfless subordinates-
1) Lord Ram was ably supported by his brother Lashman and Hanuman in his conquest of Ravan in Ramayana.
2) Pandavas were guided and goaded by Lord Srikrishna in their fight with Kauravas in the Kurukshetra war in Mahabharata.
3) Chandragupta Maurya was guided and supported by his able minister Chanakya in his fight with Nandas and the subsequent establishment of Mauryan Empire.
4) Akbar was able to stabilize his rule after securing it from a group of warring nobles due to the able support of his mentor Bairam Khan.
5) Chatrapathi Shivaji drew inspiration and the trait of fearlessness from his mother Jijibai.
6) Srikrishnadevaraya defied several attacks from Bahmani kingdoms and Gajapati rulers due to the timely interactions of his minister Timmarusu.
7) Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of India, was able to unite the country into one nation at the time of Independence from a group of 525 princely states and British ruled territories due to the untiring efforts of his Home Minister Sardar Vallabhai Patel.
8) Cricket matches were won like in the case of India versus Australia match in Kolkata in 2001, when Rahul Dravid deliberately played second fiddle to a rampaging V.V.S.Laxman which finally turned out be an epic encounter and Indian victory.
9) The India versus Germany hockey match in Germany was another example where India was trailing behind Germany 1-5 and Pargat Singh, the Indian back, after defending the Indian defense valiantly for some time, launched himself into an attacking mode and scored a goal by dribbling it from his position in the back, which finally inspired the Indians to first equal and then overhaul Germany.
The list will go on but the most important thing to understand from the above examples is that when any project is sought to be completed successfully then someone has to play the second fiddle invariably. It is not that people will themselves volunteer to play second fiddle. It is either the circumstances or the role defined in the job or willingness of a superior to deliberately play the second fiddle in the best interests of the organization that will catapult any person to play the second fiddle. Therefore playing second fiddle is important for the successful completion of any project because
1) It ensures the timely achievement of the stated goals.
2) The jobs will be done with clinical precision as there will be two complementing heads thinking about a single task in unison.
3) Any thing in the universe needs a spark to ignite. So even though the mind is exceedingly sharp and intelligent it needs a spark or a catalyst to kick start the thinking process and widen the horizon and this can be done only with the help of a trusted confidante who is willing to play the second fiddle.
4) It gives ample rest and relaxation to the number one of an organization so that he can feel sufficiently recharged for the next part of the task.
5) It ensures a smooth transition in times of an emergency arising out of the sudden disappearance of the number one of an organization.
The above readings do not mean that all and sundry can play second fiddle to perfection and organizations should be wary of certain things like
1) The person playing the second fiddle almost invariably volunteers himself into that position and therefore it is very difficult to ascertain the motives. These motives include the fear of non-acceptance of his action of assuming the number one position by the majority of the people, possibility of leaving that organization in the near future and because of the unflinching love towards the organization a burning desire arises to see that some one has to be groomed. So it is necessary for the number one in an organization to ascertain the motives before starting to allow anyone to play the second fiddle.
2) The person allowed to play the second fiddle must have a calm temperament and sound health as both of them are essential attributes for a positive thinking.
3) As in any other situations honesty, integrity and a wise head are the other essential features.
4) In some situations the person playing the second fiddle must be reminded of his role very curtly and also to limit himself within that. So broad minded ness is essential and they should not be sensitive.
Thus it can be seen that it is a great thing to be number two also.
1) Lord Ram was ably supported by his brother Lashman and Hanuman in his conquest of Ravan in Ramayana.
2) Pandavas were guided and goaded by Lord Srikrishna in their fight with Kauravas in the Kurukshetra war in Mahabharata.
3) Chandragupta Maurya was guided and supported by his able minister Chanakya in his fight with Nandas and the subsequent establishment of Mauryan Empire.
4) Akbar was able to stabilize his rule after securing it from a group of warring nobles due to the able support of his mentor Bairam Khan.
5) Chatrapathi Shivaji drew inspiration and the trait of fearlessness from his mother Jijibai.
6) Srikrishnadevaraya defied several attacks from Bahmani kingdoms and Gajapati rulers due to the timely interactions of his minister Timmarusu.
7) Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of India, was able to unite the country into one nation at the time of Independence from a group of 525 princely states and British ruled territories due to the untiring efforts of his Home Minister Sardar Vallabhai Patel.
8) Cricket matches were won like in the case of India versus Australia match in Kolkata in 2001, when Rahul Dravid deliberately played second fiddle to a rampaging V.V.S.Laxman which finally turned out be an epic encounter and Indian victory.
9) The India versus Germany hockey match in Germany was another example where India was trailing behind Germany 1-5 and Pargat Singh, the Indian back, after defending the Indian defense valiantly for some time, launched himself into an attacking mode and scored a goal by dribbling it from his position in the back, which finally inspired the Indians to first equal and then overhaul Germany.
The list will go on but the most important thing to understand from the above examples is that when any project is sought to be completed successfully then someone has to play the second fiddle invariably. It is not that people will themselves volunteer to play second fiddle. It is either the circumstances or the role defined in the job or willingness of a superior to deliberately play the second fiddle in the best interests of the organization that will catapult any person to play the second fiddle. Therefore playing second fiddle is important for the successful completion of any project because
1) It ensures the timely achievement of the stated goals.
2) The jobs will be done with clinical precision as there will be two complementing heads thinking about a single task in unison.
3) Any thing in the universe needs a spark to ignite. So even though the mind is exceedingly sharp and intelligent it needs a spark or a catalyst to kick start the thinking process and widen the horizon and this can be done only with the help of a trusted confidante who is willing to play the second fiddle.
4) It gives ample rest and relaxation to the number one of an organization so that he can feel sufficiently recharged for the next part of the task.
5) It ensures a smooth transition in times of an emergency arising out of the sudden disappearance of the number one of an organization.
The above readings do not mean that all and sundry can play second fiddle to perfection and organizations should be wary of certain things like
1) The person playing the second fiddle almost invariably volunteers himself into that position and therefore it is very difficult to ascertain the motives. These motives include the fear of non-acceptance of his action of assuming the number one position by the majority of the people, possibility of leaving that organization in the near future and because of the unflinching love towards the organization a burning desire arises to see that some one has to be groomed. So it is necessary for the number one in an organization to ascertain the motives before starting to allow anyone to play the second fiddle.
2) The person allowed to play the second fiddle must have a calm temperament and sound health as both of them are essential attributes for a positive thinking.
3) As in any other situations honesty, integrity and a wise head are the other essential features.
4) In some situations the person playing the second fiddle must be reminded of his role very curtly and also to limit himself within that. So broad minded ness is essential and they should not be sensitive.
Thus it can be seen that it is a great thing to be number two also.
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