South Africa's redemption and date with destiny!

South Africa have perennially been the most unluckiest team when it comes to the sport of cricket. They have produced absolute genius cricketers across their rich history but when it came to world cricket tournaments, luck always deserted them. Due to apartheid, they were cut off from the cricketing fraternity for decades together deeming them not being able to participate in any of the first 4 ODI World Cups held in 1975, 1979, 1983 and 1987. Their casting away from the game also meant that few of their hallmark cricketers such as the Pollock brothers Peter & Graeme, opening batsman Barry Richards, all rounder Mike Procter and a slew of others got limited opportunities to represent the Rainbow nation and showcase their prowess on the global stage.

Once South Africa made their way back into the cricketing circle from 1991 onwards, ill luck has hit them constantly like a plague which just seemed unrelenting. It was almost a case of 'oh so near yet so far' every time that it felt like a farce with them repeatedly failing towards the final hurdle come what may. Also some of the consequences made it feel like as if there was an almighty's curse hanging on around this nation for eternity. This was however not resonated in the other sport which South Africa is passionate about viz Rugby where they were able to reel off 4 World Cup titles in which they always used to have that extra ammunition to win those major titles. The killer instinct and that lady luck was more prevalent with the Rugby team and an ample example of that was them winning the 2023 Rugby World Cup Quarter finals, Semi finals and Final all by a solitary point.

When it came to cricket, since their readmission, they have been one of the most consistent teams but without any result to show of. Apart from spells of bad luck, they've had a tough time dealing with their arch enemies from the Southern Hemisphere Australia especially and New Zealand to some extent when it came to knockout clashes. In every alternate ODI World Cup from the time they started participating viz 1992, 1999, 2007, 2015 and 2023, the Proteas were undone in the semifinals with luck also playing foil against them.

When it came to ODI World Cups, they had a sterling display in their very first major tournament viz the 1992 ODI World Cup held in Australia & New Zealand. In their semifinal encounter, they were robbed off against England when a despicable rain rule put paid to them going further in their frontier. With 22 required off 13 deliveries, rain intervention revised it to 22 off 7 and then finally 22 off 1 delivery which meant South Africa's stellar progress ended in a rather dubious and wretched way. This streak of bad luck that got implanted in 1992 just continued on and on across years and decades. In the 1996 ODI WC, they had an unblemished record winning all 5 games convincingly in the group stage only to play the lowest ranked side from the other group West Indies with Brian Lara scoring a brilliant century and knocking them out of the WC in the only match which they lost. 

1999 was the most hurting as they again had a seriously amazing campaign and went out on a tied encounter with the Aussies in the semifinals. They had the match in the grasp but unfortunate turn of events made them fall short in their progress yet again. The 2003 home ODI WC was a bitterly disappointing experience for them with rain again playing havoc and a wrong reading of the rules making them exit the tournament much to the chagrin of the home fans who were shattered no end. There was a misreading of the DLS par score which the Proteas thought was the winning score only to be later told that they ended up one run short marking a shocking exit from the tournament in the group stages.

The 2007 WC in the Caribbean again saw them through in their passage to the semifinals setting up a mouth watering clash with their hardcore rivals Aussies who were instrumental in knocking them out from the 1999 WC. It was a chance to avenge revenge but alas it was not meant to be as an invincible Australian side was just too strong on that day. In 2011 South Africa were the only side to defeat eventual World Cup champions India but came a cropper against the Kiwis in spin friendly conditions despite not having to chase a major total in the quarter final stage.

When it finally looked like the moment of reckoning was going to be fulfilled, South Africa were knocked out in the semifinals of the 2015 ODI WC in a clash of the ages against the hosts Kiwis. It was shell shocking to see their 2 marquee men Dale Steyn and AB Devilliers crestfallen no end. Here again it was a rain curtailed match which somehow played in the hands of the Kiwis. One would reckon that a full 50 over game could have had a different result but that's the way it is with luck and South Africa always going in polar directions. The 2019 ODI WC was a rebuilding phase with many of their senior pros not being part of the squad and it ended in a dismaying outcome where they couldn't qualify to the semifinals. This was probably the only ODI WC where South Africa were nowhere near coming close to being champions.

The 2023 ODI WC saw a familiar story unfolding. After a creditable run in the group stages, they set up a clash with the Aussies in the semifinals who they were facing for a third time at this phase. When questions were asked whether South Africa would be third time lucky, the same hoodoo transpired yet again. It was a double whammy as they not only lost to Australia their perennial rivals but also to rain with weather playing spoilsport as always is the case with them. Kolkata was in the midst of cold hazy climate with ball swinging in all directions and the Aussies exploited the early advantage by scalping quick wickets and putting the Saffers on the mat. Despite defending a low score, South Africa fought hard and made a meat of it but again it was the grit and resolve of Australia who are always known to be exceptional in such stages that managed to win a closely fought low scoring chase.

Apart from the ODI World Cup, this pandemic hex was evident in the T20 World Cup as well albeit not to the same extent in terms of foiled attempts. In the 2009 T20 WC, South Africa came in as firm favourites winning all their games setting up a semi final shootout with Pakistan. In a closely contested game, the Saffers lost out eventually falling short by 7 runs. The 2014 T20 WC semifinal saw them being gunned down by India courtesy largely a Virat Kohli chasing masterclass. The indisputable crowning choking moment was reserved for the T20 World Cup final of 2024. South Africa who were always vary when it came to knockouts and especially semifinals finally got a shot to play their first ever World cup final with their opponents being India. Chasing a target set of 176, South Africa were well on course and firmly placed to win with just a run a ball 30 to get off the last 5 overs which in general parlance of a T20 format or any version whatsoever is a walk in the park. But they bottled it up by choking at the most inopportune time with just 26 required off the last 4 overs. It was a fightback of epic proportions by India and South Africa's worst fears came compounding drastically as they lost this final title clash by a mere 7 runs. All those history of bad luck got accentuated and this almost felt like a God sent message that South Africa can just forever bid goodbye to winning a world title. It was just too hard to digest the pain for a South African supporter after all the years of extreme disappointments notwithstanding. South Africa's only triumph remained the title won in the inaugural ICC Champions trophy held 27 years back in 1998. At that time it was christened as the ICC Knockout. Since then 27 years have passed with no major world title of repute.

And then when it all felt lost, finally the moment of reckoning culminated and got conquered on 14th June 2025. It was the 3rd World Test Championship and it was the first time that the Proteas managed to reach the finals. The format of this test cycle has been questioned and debated a lot but South Africa did no wrong in managing to reach the final across 2 years of competing with 8 other teams in the competition. And guess what their final title rival was yet again Australia who have been their nemesis on multiple occasions across decades. This was seen as a David vs Goliath battle with Australia red hot favourites to lift the WTC title for a second time running. All of South Africa's heartbreaks with Australia have always come in the semifinals having lost the ODI WC of 1999, 2007 and 2023. In 2015 when an impending ODI WC final looked like looming large between Aus vs SA, the Kiwis came in the way and averted it. Thus for the first time, South Africa got to play Australia in a final but having known Australia's daunting record in finals and also their hegemony at Lords having hardly lost a test match there over the last century, it seemed too hard an ask to even expect for the Proteas to topple the men adorning the Baggy Green. Over the last 25 years dating back to 1999, Australia had won 9 of their 10 finals adding 5 ODI WCs (1999,2003,2007,2015,2023), 2 CT (2006,2009), a T20 WC (2021) and defending champions of WTC (2023). Their only defeat in the final over this period was to England in the 2010 T20 WC. 

South Africa however finally managed to have their slice of history which they had been waiting with bated breadth for 27 years. The Proteas eventually won a World cricket title after years of agony and pain. It came in the most purest form of Test cricket deeming it extra special. To add to the touch of magic was that it was against their greatest cricketing rivals Australia who have been one of the major adversaries in South Africa being traumatised down the years especially in global ICC events. Another tinge of icing was the fact that the weather for once actually saved them by enabling to bat on a Day 3 Lords pitch which had eased out with the sun shining leading to perfect batting conditions. It was however not all hunky dory as South Africa were shot out for a paltry score in the first innings conceding a good enough lead of 80 runs to the Aussies. In the second innings, with Australia reeling at 73/7, South Africa's perpetual woes of not closing out things came to haunt with the lower order contributing over 130 runs setting up a competitive target of 282 runs.

It was however South Africa's moment in the sun having gutted out and putting a performance of fine calibre shunting out the Aussie bowlers by having a remarkable Day 3. The resolute partnership between centurion Aiden Markram and captain Temba Bavuma blunted out the Aussies from making any sort of comeback. And when the final runs were scored, it sparked off a sea of celebration with an air of excitement that was palpable. South Africa had finally achieved their pinnacle moment of winning a World Championship for the first time ever in their storied cricketing legacy. It was also their first global ICC tournament victory which had come after 27 years in 1998.

South Africa's cricketing journey in the global stage is punctuated with acrimony aplenty with them being labelled as everlasting chokers. Two of their defining disheartening defeats came in the month of June, one being a year earlier to India in the 2024 T20 WC and the other being almost 26 years to the day in that epic semifinal showdown against Australia at Edgbaston in the ODI WC 1999. This victory ironically was also achieved in the meritorious month of June making the bitterness of the past deliciously extra sweet. This has been a long time coming and they deserve to cherish and celebrate every bit of this momentous occasion that will be etched in South African cricketing folklore. This win by South Africa is a story of redemption and hope for what the country has gone through all these years and it's befitting that they finally marked their date with destiny.

RCB's IPL 2025 triumph and the divine interplay of #9!

It was 18 years in waiting for the Royal Challengers Bangalore as they finally managed to win the coveted IPL title that had been eluding them for all these years. It was a testimony to the fans who have stood by the team through thick and thin despite the disappointments repeating time and again. It was also the moment of reckoning for King Kohli who has been the face of this franchise right from it's inception in 2008. 

18 years is a long period of time and he has been the one cricketer who has solely believed in this franchise and been steadfast in support of this team not being veered away despite all the tribulations that have come by. As ex RCB player Ross Taylor aptly put it "No one deserves it more than him for carrying on the hopes of millions of fans with unmatched dedication and belief". It was pretty emotional to see him running towards his better half Anushka Sharma soaking in the jubilation of victory. Also it must have been special to have 2 of his ex mates AB Devilliers and Chris Gayle in the house cheering him on to finally achieve this dream come true moment for RCB.

The streets of Bangalore have been lit with fireworks ablaze amidst the city congregating in unparalleled joy in celebrating this win for the ages. It is a city known for it's partying and rest assured that the fun will be lasting for a long time to come. It's a drought that has been ended and there is no second guessing on what this means to them. As a cricket crazy city who've lived on hope since time immemorial for this moment to happen, this is what they were all waiting for and you can expect Bangalore to be buzzing with an insanely electrifying atmosphere.

Hard work plays a major role and in RCB's case it has been evident the way they have played this year especially at venues away from home. There have been good performances put up by the team in previous seasons as well but the luck was always faltering upon them. It almost seemed destined that RCB were just not cut out to win. They have also been a side who have choked on the all important encounters giving their fans heartbreak time and again. Efforts apart, there is also some divine intervention required and this time it seemed imminent that God was willing to grant his blessings onto them.

In relation to this, it was hard not to notice a strange synchronisation with #9 in RCB's triumph which seemed to kind of indicate that destiny was with them. As per Numerology, No.9 which also includes numbers that add up to 9 such as 18,27 etc is represented by the planet 'Mars' and from an Astrology standpoint, the 9th is indicative of 'Bhagya' which means Luck, Destiny, Fortune. There were so many coincidences of 9's at play converging together kind of symbolically conveying that a higher realisation was with RCB this time in their quest towards their maiden IPL triumph.

It seemed even more evident when the dates of the whole tournament got changed more than midway through on account of unforeseen incidents which indirectly paved the way for everything to nicely fall in place perfectly for RCB. Signs play a role in pointing things out and it was vividly clear that #9 was coming to their aid and telling them that this was the year they were waiting for. Let's briefly look at the all the events inter-playing with the number 9 connection.

- Season 18 (1+8 = 9)
This was the 18th edition of IPL which saw it's script implanted in 2008. No.18 adds up to 9. In seasons prior, RCB had come close to winning on 3 occasions but each of the finals ended up in heartbreak.

- Playoffs Reached 9
Despite not winning the actual tournament, RCB have been fairly consistent in reaching the playoffs but without having the luck to go through further. This was their 9th attempt in the playoffs and the dividends finally yielded fruit

- Years since Last Final 9
The last time RCB had reached the final was 9 years back in 2016. They were also playing the final at their home stadium of Chinnaswamy but it ended in bitter disappointment with RCB missing out on crossing the finishing line by a whisker much to the chagrin of the partisan home crowd who were rooting no end. After 9 years they reached the final again and voila finally the dream was conquered.

- Date of Final 3rd June (Date 3 + Month 6 = 9)
This was another strong indication of RCB winning this time. The final as per the original roster was scheduled for 25th May but later got changed to 3rd June due to the impending border tensions and 3rd June when adding up the date and month is 9 which again proved to be lucky for RCB. Adding up of the date and month is also termed as "Achievement Number". In fact even a multiplication of the date and month would result in 18 which again adds up to 9. 

- Year of IPL 2025 (2+0+2+5 = 9)
Adding up of the digits of the year of IPL results in 9 which again brought fortune RCBs way.

- Date Month and Year of IPL (3rd June 2025 = 3+6+2+0+2+5 = 18 = 9)
This is known as the destiny or life path number where the date, month and year are all summed up to denote a number which is again 9 mysteriously signalling signs of positiveness for RCB.

- Jersey Number 18 (1+8 = 9)
RCBs talisman and legend of the game Virat Kohli sports a #18 jersey which is representative of RCB's number. Here also 18 adds up to 9 denoting a divine significance.

- Jersey Colour Red (Red = Mars = 9)
RCB adorns a jersey largely comprising of the colour 'Red'. Here again, the final was played on a Tuesday which is reflective of Red colour and ruled by the planet Mars which is again assigned Red and denotes No.9

- Day of Final Tuesday (Tuesday is ruled by Mars which is assigned No.9)
Conventionally not just IPL but across most sporting events, the final invariable always gets played out on a Weekend. As per the initial set up, the final was expected to be held on Sunday. But due to external circumstances, the schedules at the end got tweaked resulting in the Final being played on Tuesday. This day is said to be ruled by Mars and represented by #9 again bringing luck to RCB. All the 3 finals which RCB had contested earlier all took place on Sunday.

- Tithi Lunar Day of Final Navami (Representative of 9)
A Tithi Lunar Day occurs based on the angular distance that is created between the Sun & Moon as they revolve around the zodiac belt of 360°. Every 12 degrees of movement by the Moon away from the Sun gives rise to a Tithi and hence there are 30 Tithis (360°/12) in total with 15 being part of the brighter half or what is known as Shukla Paksha and the latter 15 being part of the darker half or Krishna Paksha. At the commencement of the final, it was the 8th Tithi in operation viz Ashtami. RCB didn't start off that well and it appeared like they didn't set a par for the course total. However miraculously things changed with the emergence of Navami Tithi from approximately 10PM with RCB seizing the initiative and exerting the breaks on the opposition eventually winning the match and the title.

Additionally to add to the list of significance is the Nakshatra (star of moon) that was in operation during the match which was 'Poorva Phalguni'. Though as per modern convention 'Ashwini' is said to be the first Nakshatra, but as per Classic Vedic Astrology (Atharva Veda), 'Krithika' is said to be the first Nakshatra which symbolises ignition of fire and 'Bharani' is the last Nakshatra on account of being ruled by Lord Yama who is the God of Death emblematic of a completion of life. If Krithika is indeed considered as the first Nakshatra, then Poorva Phalguni (Pooram in Tamil) would be the 9th Nakshatra again bringing into light the #9 significance. Also RCB's star player Virat Kohli was born in Uttara Phalguni Nakshatra. As per the sacred text 'Kumaraswamiyam', the 27th Nakshatra that adds up to 9 which in this case is "Poorva Phalguni" indicates "Abhishekham" or coronation that translates to good and auspicious things tending to take place and that's exactly what happened with him being blessed and conferred with an IPL title after years and years of toil and hard work.

In essence, it can be said that RCB deserved to win the IPL 2025 which is also reinstated and reaffirmed by all the divine patterns at play pointing to No.9 denoting auspiciousness. Finally that wish of "Ee Sala Cup Namadu" has transpired into reality.

Number Idioms and its analogy with Cricket

As a young boy growing up, the sport of cricket used to fascinate and always keep me hooked. I was never great shakes when playing the game myself but used to always observe the commentary rather keenly and any reference to numbers always had me up and about excited. 'Numbers' or rather the extension of it which is the 'Statistics' angle associated with it always made me adore the sport a wee bit extra and I loved to prize out all the records broken and milestones conquered.

For this particular post, I would like to highlight a few number idioms/phrases and connote it from a cricketing analogy. The objective is not to use it only under the context of cricket but even in day to day interactions. Numbers are immensely fun and you can play around with it in so many different ways. Listing below are few non exhaustible phrases involving numbers forming a numerical sequence.

Zero:

- Zero in on - Focusing one's attention
The team needs to zero in on their bowling strategy if they need to progress to the next stage

- Zero Hour - Time at which at which an activity is scheduled to begin
Too much of chopping and changing towards the Zero Hour doesn't bode well for the team

One:

- One Too Many - Going overboard with respect to something
One Too Many attempts at trying to be cheeky has eventually put paid to his dismissal

- All in One Piece - Safety, unscathed, unharmed
This absolute scorcher of an innings from out of nowhere has helped save the blushes and ensured that the team is back in the hunt 'all in one piece'

- Back to Square One - Going back to the beginning
The team just refuses to learn. Time and again the same mistakes are being replicated and they keep going back to square one. 

- Have One over the Eight - Too much of something
The way he has been wildly swinging his bat in all directions from the time that he has walked in certainly indicates that he's had one over the eight last evening.

- One flew over the Cuckoo's Nest - Insane, Losing the mind, Senseless
This kind of mindless slogging with complete lack of application clearly suggests a situation of one flying over the cuckoo's nest 

Two:

- Give Two Hoots about - To not care about something or showing lack of concern
He doesn't give two hoots about the reputation of the bowler that he is facing. If he sees it, he's just going to go hit it.

- It takes two to Tango - Both parties being equally responsible
The new ball pair have complemented each other beautifully well. They say it takes two to tango and in this case it's been aptly visible and on full display.

- Kill Two Birds with One Stone - Achieving two goals with one action
This ploy has worked wonderfully well. They have suckered in the opposition to fall in to the trap thus killing two birds with one stone 

Three:

- Get the Third Degree - To be questioned in great detail
The bowling has been so probing with no room for error whatsoever that it feels like the batsman will get the third degree if he gets anywhere near to the delivery.

Four:

- On All Fours - Down on your hands and knees
He is literally on all fours after having attempted that immensely tough shot

Five:

- High Five - A gesture of celebration by slapping each others palms with arms raised
The performance has been all High Five with the execution being spot on and going perfectly according to plan.

Six:

- At Sixes and Sevens - A state of confusion and disorder
The team have been at sixes and sevens in trying to deal with the seaming new ball. They have been all at sea with no application whatsoever.

- Six of one, half a dozen of the other - Two situations with same or equal outcome
The two shots were utter replica of one other with the same result obtained. One was a six of one, and half a dozen of the other

Seven:

- Seventh Heaven - State of extreme happiness or joy
The team are literally on seventh heaven having won 7 matches on the bounce away from home

Eight:

- Behind the Eight Ball - Difficult or disadvantageous position
The team have been way behind the eight ball and look completely lost in handling alien conditions

Nine:

- On Cloud Nine - Extremely happy or over the moon
The team have been on cloud nine after winning 3 trophies on the trot

- Falling like Nine Pins - Collapsing
Its been a collapse of epic proportions, they have been literally getting rolled over falling like nine pins

Ten:

- Ten on Ten - Something that is very good, Excellent
It's been a perfect ten on ten with respect to the captaincy especially on the field placement and strategy

Eleven:

- At the eleventh hour - Last possible moment or just before its too late
Making fresh new plans at the eleventh hour doesn't bode well for the team

Twelve:

- Bakers Dozen - Thirteen, Adding an extra
This impact sub player has been so effective in performing the role far more than expected of him thus making the team feel like having an extra cushion or a Bakers Dozen.

Nineteen:

- Nineteen to the Dozen - Talk incessantly without pausing
The Captain should be left alone to make the decision. Constant nineteen to the dozen advice from virtually everyone at the back end will bear no fruit.

Twenty Two:

- Catch 22 - Paradoxical situation where one condition prevents or overrules another condition
The team are in quite a Catch 22 situation at the moment. At one end, they need to keep the runs ticking on the board to get the score running but at the same time it's essential that they preserve their wickets and keep them handy at the back end of the innings.

Eighty Six:

- 86'd - Throw out, Removed or Dismissed
It's unfortunate that the player has been 86'd despite putting up a reasonably decent performance in the previous match

Using some of the number idioms above to spin a yarn with a cricketing equivalence:

England have been 'at sixes and sevens' trying to deal with spin and been getting rolled over like nine-pins. The batting has been absolutely deplorable with one too many needless hoicks putting paid to unnecessary dismissals. By not giving two hoots about the conditions have exposed them pretty badly. They have been way 'behind the eight ball' and look completely lost playing in the sub continent. Being completely under prepared and making changes at the eleventh hour isn't going to yield them any fruit. They are almost in a Catch 22 situation with any chance of a comeback virtually ruled out. It's just a matter of time before they are 86'd in this match and sent packing from the tournament. There also seems to be too much of interference playing along with the captain seeming to get nineteen to the dozen advice from everyone right from the players to the backroom staff. The Sockdolager has been landing stingily on their face too often now and they really need to do something to save face in order to avoid going back to Square One.

India on the other hand have been on Cloud 9 with plans executed perfectly and its been a High Five performance on all fronts. They have been a 10 on 10 with the new ball pair bowling a probing line and seizing the initiative upfront. The way the batsman have been clueless in picking length makes the bowlers feel like they are on seventh heaven. The spinners have wreaked havoc in equal measure with a Six of one and half a dozen of the other performance. England's ineptitude to handle the Indian bowling makes India look like a side blessed with a Baker's dozen. It takes two to tango and it can be said that both the pace bowlers and spinners have equally in tandem been the star performers in executing this demolition job perfectly. The only area which they need to zero in on is the lower order batting and if that also gets sorted out they will have an all encompassing team to compete at any level. 

CSK's IPL 2025 - A disaster that was waiting to unfold

Chennai Super Kings prior two seasons before 2025 fetched reasonably positive results and coming into IPL 2025, there was plenty expected of the men representative of a lion sized past and seeped in yellow to add another coveted title #6 to their lustrous trophy laden cabinet. 2023 witnessed CSK conquer title No.5 in a thrilling final for the ages with a sixer and a boundary scored off the last 2 deliveries to edge out defending champions GT and seal CSK an improbable win and cement their legacy as one of the greatest teams of the IPL which set foot since the summer of 2008. 2024 however didn't go all to plan but again it wasn't a horror show by any stretch of the imagination. They just lost out by a whisker in making it to the playoffs. With 11 needed off 5 deliveries to qualify against RCB, some caution exercised could have actually seen CSK crossing the line and you never know what could have happened in the playoffs. 

2025 was the IPL season consisting of the mega auctions. CSK have always been a tried and tested formula based team pursuing on with the seasonal veterans and not to take credit away, this approach has actually worked well over a period of time. Irrespective of the outcome of this season, they have been the most consistent IPL side in reaching the playoffs and have played for the big final prize on 9 occasions out of 16 events participated. (They didn't compete for 2 seasons between 2016-17 on account of being banned).

The T20 format however has evolved and it's seen as a young man's game with huge big hitting potential igniting euphoria and getting the crowd on to it's feet. The IPL as a brand has been all rizz and razzmatazz growing multi-fold in becoming a supreme cash cow generating gargantuan wealth and seen as one of the perennial events of the sporting calendar worldwide. The 2025 auction set the tone for an overhaul and it was the perfect opportunity for a team like CSK to seek some fresh blood and set the foundation towards planning for the future especially with their talisman MS Dhoni on the verge of retirement. This also proved a ripe opportunity to develop a solid grounding for building a renewed young side who would be ready to take on the mantle when the time eventually comes about. 

Coming into the auction of 2025, CSK was handed a purse of 120 crores and ended up retaining Jadeja (18 crores), Gaikwad (18 crores), Pathirana (13 crores), Dube (12 crores) and Dhoni (4 crores as part of uncapped player) with all of them accounting for a combined sum total of 55 crores. This still left them remaining with 65 crores to pick a cream of players from a multitude pool of both local and overseas talents.

CSK botched it up on 3 key parameters - Strategy, Combination and Performance. First up was the questionable decision to retain the 2 senior pro's Dhoni and Jadeja. The former was acceptable though debatable because he was the fulcrum who constructed the base of CSK and also considering the fan following the man commands, it would have been an outcry to see him represent any other side than his beloved CSK. Also at a prize of 4 crores, it's not like a huge step off the peddle anyways. However coming to Jadeja, surely there should have been more reasoning and thought process. Jadeja is an excellent utility cricketer but well past his prime and also a retired International T20 cricketer at the time of reckoning of the auctions. To give a slice of 15% of the purse to a retired cricketer absolutely made no sense. Even if they were hell bent on retaining him, they could have easily got him in the auction for around half the prize. This was an erroneous error on all counts. Retention of Ruturaj was a given considering he was the sole contender to fill in MS shoes and already made captain at the helm. Pathirana was a far cry of the performer that he was in 2023 with a rather hapless 2024 IPL season and with all due respect to Dube, though he can tonk the ball a country mile, he always has been someone who takes time to settle in and isn't the one who can just go all guns blazing. The other retention's can be contentious but Jadeja's especially at that prize was no doubt a blunder of epic proportions.

Coming to the actual auctions, CSK was caught napping with respect to the combinations. With them already retaining Jadeja, there was a heavy bid to bring on Ashwin to partner in crime and reunite the spin twins. The prize which they went for almost breaking the 10 crore barrier was again dubious but can still said to be justifiable. If they were anyways zeroing in on Ashwin, there was absolutely no need to also go in for Noor Ahmed. The latter agreed has been the better of most of CSK's performers this season but to spend almost 40 crores which is a third of the purse value of 120 crores on just 3 players with the same speciality of spin bowling made absolutely no sense whatsoever. It was a given that they were all expected to be part of the playing team considering the prize commanded but the decision holistically just felt ludicrous and out of sync. Since Jadeja was anyways there, it should have been clearly either a homecoming for Ash or Noor and certainly and undoubtedly not both. This was as illogical as it could get.

On the fast bowling side, the management hardly went anywhere close to bagging any marquee name. Someone like a Hazlewood or Starc could have bought in a marked difference. Even a localite like Siraj/Avesh/Akashdeep could have helped in a major way. The worst was however reserved on the batting front which is the genre that arguably defines a T20 game to it's zenith. CSK went in for old foes well past their 30s by picking the likes of Tripathi, Hooda and Vijay Shankar. This was as outlandish as it could get. The combination of the side appeared forlorn and all at sea. Power hitting which is a forte of IPL cricket somehow seemed to have been blanked out and blindfolded the management. Even on the All rounders set, they went in for a Sam Curran, someone not renowned to be a power striker and another well past 30 candidate in the form of Jamie Overton. One should seriously wonder what CSK were cooking at the auction as it was literally a nightmare unravelling of all sorts. It must be said, they just went absolute bonkers with their picks at the auction.

And now coming to the performance on the field, there was nothing much to write home about. Though they began well winning their first game at home against MI, it all went downhill from there on. The fortress of CSK which teams had been battling for years to breach managed to chop it down without even blinking an eyelid. All those proud home records were eviscerated and obliterated much to the chagrin of hardcore CSK fans. Ruturaj's captaincy in the initial games felt a lot left to be desired with tactics simply not in place and his usage of bowlers was bewildering to say the least. As CSK's outright best batsman, his ruling out of the tournament led the batting performance to crumble even further. It was a sad sight to witness a once champion side struggling to chase anything around 180 with absolute zilch batting firepower. For most other teams, it felt like a victory against CSK was a foregone conclusion and just a means of boosting up the net run rate a further notch. The performance on the field was just a reflection of the poor strategy set and the lacklustre combination laid out which just didn't inspire indication of any confidence. 

Even in the match to determine the wooden spoon, CSK were undone with some bizarre ideas at play by perking Ashwin & Jadeja up the order and preserving the so called big hitters at the posterior. Also, lesser said the better on the inability to pick up runs at the fag end of the innings. However, CSK put up their most commanding performance in the last match of the season by registering a comprehensive victory over one of the table toppers GT. This meant that they ended up winning both their first and last matches of the season but it was all mostly downhill in between. This also in eventuality, meant that a much fancied and ever loved cherished team like CSK finish a shocking bottom most in the standings. The 2025 IPL in effect was a damp squib and a season which every loyal CSK supporter would want to forget very soon. It was in essence a dream that dissipated even before inception.

On the youngsters side, CSK unleashed an imperious up and coming talent on the horizon in the form of Ayush Mhatre who was brought in to the fray when CSK were almost done and dusted in the season. On the international front, a major discovery was the dashing South African youngster Dewald Brevis. But even he was being made to cool his heels and brought in only when CSK were virtually eliminated from the tournament. Even someone like an Urvil Patel came in at the very last moment and played a rapturous innings from out of nowhere. There were a few others who didn't even manage to bag a game. It begs the question as to why some of these youngsters were kept in oblivion until the very end till it became too late to make any sort of comeback.

The underlying problem can accentuate and compound further as well. CSK had a great chance to make amends by playing well at the auctions but everything lies at the core and if that's brittle, things are bound to eventually fall apart. By laying down a cistern of players well past their prime and hardly exposing the young crop of players by giving them the requisite opportunities, CSK will have to play their cards very closely and cannot afford to have a single negative streak while planning for the 2026 season. CSK did bounce back remarkably well after a rather poor 2022 season to win the title the following year. In 2018, after being away from the wilderness for 2 years they came stomping back to win the trophy. CSK is known for making strong comebacks and the past is a firm indicator of that. Thus hope is still there but tough decisions have to be taken and the fans must stop hero worshipping individual players and back the team as a wholesome unit to the hilt. It may take even a year or two to rebuild but the faith and unity must remain in order to see the CSK franchise restore and re-conquer hallowed glory in the IPL seasons that follow.

Cosmic Connections surrounding India's Champions Trophy 2025 victory

India's victory over New Zealand in the final of the Champions Trophy 2025 final has given the nation much to rejoice and cherish. It was a fantastic win and India's brand of white ball cricket has certainly been top notch and of the highest order. Their fantastic streak in the white ball game just keeps extending from strength to strength. They have now won 2 major championships within a span of 9 months, first with the marvellous victory in the T20 World Cup 2024 in June 2024 which came after a period of 11 years without a global trophy followed by this scintillating win in the Champions Trophy 2025 in March 2025. The only blemish was the unfortunate defeat at the hands of Australia in the home ODI World Cup of 2023. Taking all these events in unison, India has lost just one match across these 3 editions comprising of ODI World Cup, T20 World Cup and the Champions Trophy.

India also becomes the first side to win the Champions Trophy 3 times. They also attained a unique record by winning all their matches in this edition despite losing the toss every single time which is indeed quite a rare feat. The Indian men's team now has a tally of 7 global ICC cricket tournament victories with 3 CTs, 2 ODI WCs and 2 T20 WCs to boot. Rohit Sharma has now successfully led India to 2 major titles only being behind MS Dhoni who won India 3 titles by claiming a T20 WC, ODI WC and a CT. The other captains to have led India to world titles include Kapil Dev who won India's inaugural ODI World Cup 1983 and Saurav Ganguly who helped India win the Champions Trophy in a shared encounter with Sri Lanka in 2002.

This Champions Trophy victory however didn't come in to be so easy. There were lot of hoodoo's and strange incidents playing against India while taking the field for the final. India's final record in global events especially when held on a Sunday hasn't been a rosy picture with many painful defeats coming on this day. Normally across history, finals of any global sporting event gets played on a weekend to attract maximum crowd base and viewership. In the initial days when the ODI World Cup started, most of the finals were played on a Saturday but however off late majority of the final clashes invariably tend to take place on a Sunday. Let's briefly look at India's record in all the major finals played across limited overs internationals spanning the ODI World Cup, Champions Trophy and T20 World Cup.

1) Saturday - 25th June 1983 - ODI WC - India won by 38 runs against West Indies
2) Sunday - 15th Oct 2000 - CT - India lost by 4 wickets against New Zealand
3) Monday - 30th Sep 2002 - CT - India won but shared the trophy with Sri Lanka due to wash out
4) Sunday - 23rd Mar 2003 - ODI WC - India lost by 134 runs against Australia
5) Monday - 24th Sep 2007 - T20 WC - India won by 5 runs against Pakistan
6) Saturday - 2nd Apr 2011 - ODI WC - India won by 6 wickets against Sri Lanka
7) Sunday - 23rd Jun 2013 - CT - India won by 5 runs against England
8) Sunday - 6th Apr 2014 - T20 WC - India lost by 6 wickets against Sri Lanka
9) Sunday - 18th Jun 2017 - CT - India lost by 180 runs against Pakistan
10) Sunday - 19th Nov 2023 - ODI WC - India lost by 6 wickets against Australia
11) Saturday - 29th Jun 2024 - T20 WC - India won by 7 runs against South Africa
12) Sunday - 9th Mar 2025 - CT - India won by 4 wickets against New Zealand

Thus looking at the list above, India have won all 3 events when it took place on a Saturday. They also won 2 trophies when it was played on a Monday. The CT 2002 was scheduled initially on a Sunday but the match got rained off and moved to Monday which again resulted in the match being washed off by rain enabling India to share the trophy with tournament hosts Sri Lanka. The reason why the inaugural T20 WC 2007 final was held on Monday was because it was a public holiday on account of 'Heritage day' in South Africa deeming the final to be played on a Monday. Any day other than a weekend hosting a final is something one will not see often and is indeed quite a rare occasion. When it came to Sundays, out of 7 Sundays in which India has participated in finals, they have lost 5 and going in to the match against New Zealand they were 1-5 on the descendancy during finals held on Sunday. Some of the most damning defeats also have come on Sunday including a defeat almost a quarter century ago to New Zealand in this very own Champions Trophy in 2000. Also both India's final defeats in ODI WC came against Australia and behold both being Sundays. The last Champions Trophy final in 2017 also saw India getting a pasting by Pakistan by being served a royal thrashing. The only Sunday win which India enjoyed was on a rain affected final match on a late London evening in CT 2013 when the original 50 over match got rescheduled to 20 overs where India just about managed to pip England despite being on the back foot for most of the match. Thus Sundays in general haven't been to India's calling when it comes to major tournament finals.

When it comes to numbers, this happened to be the third straight global cricketing event which happened to be played on a date involving 9 in some way. 19th Nov 2023 was the final date of ODI WC 2023 with 29th June 2024 being the final date of T20 WC 2024 and the current Champions Trophy final was held on 9th March 2025. India had lost the ODI WC final in 2023 played on a Sunday whereas they won the T20 WC final played on a Saturday. Coming to the CT final of 2025, it was again played on a Sunday somewhat being stacked against India. In numerology, the normal tendency is to add up the digits to make it all within the ambit of 9 numbers. The previous CT final was held on 18th June 2017 where the date equated is 9 (1+8) and India got a hammering. This particular CT final was also on 9th March 2025 equating to 9 thus giving the jitters a wee bit. 

Coming to months, June has been pretty favourable for India with them winning an ODI World Cup, Champions Trophy and a T20 World Cup in this particular period. They however lost the CT final of 2017 in June. September is a month where India won both their finals viz the CT 2002 (shared) and T20 WC 2007. 2 titles have come in March (CT 2025) & April (ODI WC 2011) though both these months have also witnessed the team losing a final viz ODI WC 2003 in March & T20 WC 2014 in April. India have however only lost finals when played in October and November. Hence it's 3/4 in June, 2/2 in September, 1/2 in March, 1/2 in April, 0/1 in October and 0/1 in November. With respect to the dates within the months, India has been super successful in the 3rd part of the month ranging from dates 21st to 30th with 5 of their titles coming in dates of 23 (23rd Jun 2013 CT), 24 (24th Sep 2007 T20 WC), 25 (25th Jun 1983 ODI WC), 29 (29th Jun 2024 T20 WC) and 30 (30th Sep 2002 CT). The only one blemish was another 23 with India losing the ODI WC final on 23rd March 2003. In the first 10 days of the month, the success has been reasonable with India winning 2 titles (2nd Apr 2011 ODI WC and 9th Mar 2025 CT) but also losing 1 final (6th Apr 2014 T20 WC). The days between 11th to 20th has been outright worst for India as they have lost all 3 finals played during this time (15th Oct 2000 CT, 18th Jun 2017 CT and 19th Nov 2023 ODI WC). In terms of numerology dates, #2 has been very good for India with 2 of the most memorable triumphs coming on these dates (2nd Apr 2011 ODI WC and 29th Jun 2024 T20 WC). The other 5 titles have come on #3,5,6,7,9. In terms of losses, 2 of them have come on #6 date (15th Oct 2000 CT and 6th Apr 2014 T20 WC) while others have been spread across dates of #1,5,9. 

Another cosmic connection at play happens to be the colour of the jersey. Ever since coloured clothing became a thing with Limited Overs Internationals beginning from the 1992 ODI World Cup onwards, India have largely sported a predominant colour of "Blue". Each of the planets ruling a day are generally associated with a colour and it might be strange but history has witnessed that specific colours worn on select days have had quite a say. Listing below the days which are ruled by the planets and the  associated colour

Sunday - Sun - Orange (Also can be copper color which is orangish red or reddish brown)
Monday - Moon - White (Generally said to be Milky White)
Tuesday - Mars - Red (Associated with Blood Red colour)
Wednesday - Mercury - Green (Shades of Green both light and dark)
Thursday - Jupiter - Yellow (Any type of Yellow or even Gold colour)
Friday - Venus - White/Blue (More of Curdish White and lighter shade of Blue)
Saturday - Saturn - Black (Pitch dark black or a semblance of a dark blue colour)

Generally, you would see that Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday ruled by Sun, Mars and Jupiter get along well with one another. Australia have been very successful in cricketing finals held on Sunday with the Yellow colour proving to be very prominent. Even the West Indies who normally wear shades of Red/Maroon have seemingly been reasonably successful in finals when held on Sunday. The colours of Wednesday, Friday and Saturday ruled by Mercury, Venus & Saturn are said to be more in sync with each other. Monday ruled by Moon tends to be quite neutral and gets along with both pairs in equal elan. There is a saying that Moon has no enemies. In the second set, Venus ruling Friday & Saturn ruling Saturday are said to be hardcore enemies with Sun who rules the day of Sunday but however this exception does not hold true for Mercury which rules Wednesday. Hence Green colour is equally prominent for both Saturdays and Sundays with the former perhaps being a touch more favourable. In fact South Africa who have won 4 Rugby World Cups have won all their 4 finals when played on a Saturday. They however lost the T20 WC final played against India on a Saturday. 

For India who sports significantly the blue colour, Saturdays have been very successful with them winning all their 3 big ticket final encounters. Even the odd Monday has proved lucky. However Sunday ruled by Sun hasn't really been to India's favour with Venus & Sun seeing bitter enmity. The one thing which worked excessively to India's favour in the CT final of 2025 is that their opponent New Zealand were donning black attire which again is very unfavourable on a Sunday with the enmity of Saturn & Sun being equally or more worse than between Venus & Sun. It would be very interesting to note that when the Kiwis toppled India in the CT final on a Sunday 25 years back in 2000, they were not wearing cardinal black and in fact had streaks of Green & Grey which tilted the tide in their favour. It must also be said that New Zealand's record has been pathetic on all the finals when they have gone with full black. They lost the 2015 ODI WC to Australia badly, had a massive heartbreak by losing to England in the ODI WC of 2019 on boundary count. This continued in the 2021 T20 WC as well when they lost the final to Australia in the UAE. Ironically, the Kiwis only major white ball cricketing triumph came when they were not in full black in CT 2000. The All Blacks are a successful Rugby side and all their 3 victories so far came when they played the final on a Saturday. Their 2 defeats in finals came to South Africa who wear green which was also on a Saturday. Generally it is seen that when a team wears a colour which rules that day plays against a team where the colour also happens to be favourable, the former tends to lose because of the colour being overbearing and working against it.

In this particular final of CT 2025, one advantage which India had was that New Zealand too wore a colour of Black which is completely inimical on the day of Sunday which played to India's advantage unlike the 2000 Champions Trophy final. It is been advised that Black colour especially has an extremely negative effect on Sunday. India obviously had the mastery of their squad working tricks on the Kiwis but no denying that this jersey colour effect also played against them. One other interesting coincidence to note is that in the T20 WC final 2024, the top scorer and Man of the Match was Virat Kohli for scoring 76 and voila the same thing repeated in the CT Final 2025 where the top scorer and player of the match was Rohit Sharma who also garnered the same score of 76 with the bat. 

Thus when you look at the overall scheme of things, these tend to be interesting takeaways. Whatever said and done, the skill sets, temperament and will to win is what reigns supreme and these things tend to take a backseat when the former tends to be paramount. However there is no refuting the fact that in sport, luck also does have an element and these superstitions and cosmic energies have proved to be of consequence at least as per the patterns at play and what history has suggested in the past.

R Ashwin - A true Son of the Soil!

'Wily', 'Guile', 'Skilful', 'Master Tactician', 'Craftsman', 'Mind Reader', 'Problem Solver', 'Homework'. These are some of the key words/phrases that characterises and symbolises Ravichandran Ashwin the cricketer. When the announcement of his retirement came along in the midst of an intensifying test series, it felt out of the blue and out of the box much like the man himself. 

Ashwin could have easily obtained and right royally deserved a farewell test to be played at home but didn't opt for it. He felt the time was ripe and decided to hang his boots. Ashwin's career especially as a test cricketer reeks splendour in every way and his records speak for itself. He could easily slot himself amongst the greatest 10 test cricketers that India has ever produced. Since the turn of this century, there has been no greater match winner for India than Ravi Ashwin.

The first step to assess the longevity of a cricketer is by determining the number of test matches a cricketer has played. There are less than 100 cricketers since the inception of test cricket to have represented their country in over 100 test matches and Ash is one of those to have this privilege. Getting 500 test wickets is like the greatest summit ever to be achieved by any bowler and Ashwin is just one of 9 cricketers to scale this monumental peak. He will end his career as the second highest wicket taker for India with 537 test wickets behind his idol Anil Kumble. As a bowling all rounder he was also no mug with the bat impressing with a tally of over 3500 runs with 6 centuries to boot. Coming to his core skill of bowling, he is joint second highest with Shane Warne in terms of 5 wicket hauls with 37 and the only bowler other than Muttiah Muralidharan to account for a whopping 10 wicket hauls in a test match on 10 different occasions. He has also been rewarded with 'player of the match' 10 times and is also joint highest ever on the 'player of the series' award which he has received on a eye popping 11 occasions.

Having mentioned some of his superlative achievements, one also needs to factor few other notable points which perhaps could have made his records glow even brighter. Considering all the entrants into the 500 wicket club, Ashwin was a delayed starter being the only one to don international colours after the age of 25. Thus, he certainly didn't have a head start by any stretch of the imagination and in fact was a late bloomer. It's really rare for a cricketer to make such inroads and strides after beginning their career in a relatively later time frame when considered with other doyens of the game. Another fact to ponder is that despite Ashwin logging over 100 tests with 106 to be precise, he missed about 30 of those especially the one's in SENA countries on account of not being selected. Thus, he could have easily added much more wickets to his tally if presented the opportunity.

One question which keeps pointing against Ashwin is his inability to counter foreign conditions and his potency being potentially negligible in alien territories relative to his supremacy at home. This is again questionable because in reality he never got much of a chance to showcase his potential. In the limited opportunities that he got he did what best he could. And there especially were some really wrong selection calls where Ash unfortunately got the rough end of the stick by not being picked in few very crucial games overseas. It's again not his fault that he was at his herculean best at home conditions and those criticising him as purely a home surface bully is certainly not vindicated. From times immemorial, batsman and bowlers are said to adopt to certain conditions better and truth be told majority of the greatest cricketers have a better home record than away. His record in India is simply impeccable and he has been the chief architect in India garnering 18 continuous series victories ranging at a stretch across the period from 2013 to 2024 and winning 19 of the total 21 series that he has partaken at home soil traversing over his test career from 2011-2024.

One has to appreciate how decisively and deceptively he exploited his skill sets to get bucket loads of wickets aplenty at home. Left handers especially fell to his trap many a time laid by his clever, cunning and cheeky tricks. He mastered the art of the carrom ball and had the wood over many of the best players through his armoury of excellence. Many a time he has simply rattled the opposition with his flight and guile paving the way for plethora of Indian victories.

Ashwin, the red ball cricketer deserves all the encomiums but it's well worth noting that he also had his moments in white ball cricket. He was part of the ODI World cup winning side of 2011 and also helped India win the Champions Trophy 2013 in England by bowling a terrific under pressure last over to seal victory. One would also fondly remember his leaving the ball stance with 2 required off one delivery and eventually hitting the winning shot against Pakistan in a game for the ages at MCG during the T20 World Cup 2022.

Tamil Nadu as a state and Chennai as a city is known to be culturally rooted and takes super fondness towards the sport of cricket. It's known to be immensely cricket loving and knows to appreciate greatness. The holied turf of the MA Chidambaram stadium has witnessed many a classic over the years. Ashwin himself has been a stellar performer at his home ground accounting for plenty of runs and wickets in the opportunities presented. There have been quite a few cricketers from TN to have represented India in test cricket but Ashwin easily goes down as the finest ever iconic cricketer to be produced from the soil of this land for his long lasting impact and reaching the pinnacle of greatness. It is but yet fitting that he has been picked by Chennai Super Kings at the auctions and will be representing his beloved CSK at the 2025 edition of the IPL. Here's hoping the farewell which he didn't receive in International cricket will yield to rousing receptions and chants of "Ashwin Anna" on his homecoming to Chennai.

Ravichandran Ashwin can truly look back at his achievements with pride and can walk back with his head held high for all the joy he has given to Indian cricket. It's a no brainer that the love he has for the sport will make him associated with it in some form or other with many young & upcoming talents getting benefited from his expertise. Ravichandran Ashwin has been a source of inspiration for cricket lovers all across the globe and with his departure from Indian colors, he can truly cherish by savouring all those memorable moments and reflect upon this 13 year fulfilling career with immense gratification and satisfaction. Go well, Ash!

The Fallen has Risen - India's comeback turnaround orchestrated by 3 Crusaders!

India's conquest over South Africa in the T20 World Cup final 2024 has given it's players and fans much to cherish and rejoice with the manner of victory making it all the more extra special. India clawed it's way from a seemingly improbable situation to register a triumph for the ages and one which would be firmly and proudly etched in it's folklore.

Thus ended India's ignominious draught of not winning a global ICC title for over 11 years and not securing a World Cup for 13 years and not claiming a T20 World Cup for 17 years. The margin was as wafer thin as it could get and the way the team fought like terriers to ensure that the team will not be undone yet again on the big stage in a mega tournament final clash marks signs of a truly Champion side and deservedly so.

The team has gone through a lot across the last decade with consistent performances across the board but all to no avail. The slip ups always tended to happen at the most pivotal stage causing heartbreak time and again. It almost seemed as if a curse was cast upon the Indian cricket team as something or other was always preventing them from crossing the finish line. All the talk of 'Its just a matter of time' appeared to be slashed across the backside since the victory was eluding them for far too long to even contemplate a justification of any repute.

The seed of this particular success was however not sown just now. In fact, there is a long inglorious history associated with it which goes back plenty of years where different outcomes of trauma germinated in indirectly influencing this win and making it a dream come true with redemption being obtained in it's truest essence. Though this victory is attributable to the entire squad including the support staff as each and every member contributed in some way or other to make this feat attainable but for 3 of the members viz Rahul Dravid, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, this achievement means just a tad extra special considering the pain they've gone through to make this happen. These 3 architects projected the path ahead, transpired to make it happen and inspired India's journey to glory. 

First let's transport back to 2022. Rohit Sharma was appointed captain and was the man in charge of leading his side in the T20 World Cup held in Australia along with Rahul Dravid at the helm of things as coach. India won arguably the match of the tournament against Pakistan with a spectacular showing thanks courtesy to a masterclass from Virat Kohli. All these celebrations turned bitter as just a few days later, India came a cropper being pummelled by the eventual champions England on a day in which they were served a royal drubbing. Things got worse for this duo as they again lost the World Test Championship final in 2023 continuing on from their defeat at the same stage in 2021. When it looked like sanity will finally prevail with India claiming a home ODI WC in 2023 especially after being the most dominant team throughout the tournament came yet again a day of utter disdain with a nightmare being unveiled on the most important day as all the efforts put in throughout the tournament yielded no fruit with a really savage blow being dealt in the final against Australia in front of a billion fans.

Let's now map back to 2014 and the T20 World Cup edition in Bangladesh when this unfortunate draught got implanted. India came in as heavy favourites having just won the Champions Trophy few months back in 2013 and were looking to win their 2nd T20 World Cup. They breezed their way to the final only to be undone by an unfancied Sri Lankan side who came remarkably well prepared in the all important final thus putting a dent in India capturing a major title. This horror run endured from then on for the next decade till 2024. One cricketer induced with misery aplenty happens to be Virat Kohli. He was unfortunate not to be part of the winning side in the 2007 T20 World Cup but he has always been the key performer especially when it comes to this format and more so on the biggest stage which is the World Cup. Both in the 2014 & 2016 T20 World Cup editions, he was the stand out player by a country mile but India as a team again diffused at the big stage losing in the finals and semifinals respectively. If the T20 format was his undoing in capturing a victory for his beloved nation, the despair only extended further with Kohli registering the highest ever total runs amassed in any ODI World Cup only to again be on the losing side in the final of the ODI WC 2023.

We will now go a step further way back specifically to 2007. The current coach of Indian team Rahul Dravid was granted the leadership role and expected to take India all the way after the shattering defeat encountered in the 2003 ODI WC final. When India was hoping to go one better, what ensured was the lowest ebb in India's cricketing history as they bowed out in the very first round causing utter humiliation and disgrace. The whole episode was taken so badly that effigies were burnt of the players by the general public. This turmoil and outcry led to Dravid being stripped of the captaincy in what could said to be the lowest point of his career. As a player, Dravid was a class apart and considered one of India's greatest servants but it was indeed sad that he could never be part of a world cup winning side. He did make amends by coaching the U-19 side to a world cup triumph after failing in his first assignment but striking gold on the second occasion. However one always felt that the man deserved a hurrah with the senior Indian cricketing side as well and when the chance came to take the perfect revenge by avenging the loss as a player in the WC final of 2003, the same story unfolded yet again 20 years later in 2023 as a heavily favoured Indian side had it's worst day coming to a halt on that ill fateful day in Ahmedabad. Dravid also decided to quit as coach after this debacle but was coaxed by the camp to stay on for another 6 months till the T20 World Cup 2024 which he reluctantly agreed.

For Rahul Dravid, to end his career as coach by leading India to a World Cup trophy is a perfect testament dedicated to his greatness and mental toughness. This was at the very same Caribbean 17 years prior in 2007 where he went through horror of the highest magnitude as captain of the Indian team in the ODI World Cup. Also in this particular ground Bridgetown, Barbados that hosted the finale, India encountered an abject shameful defeat in 1997 in a test match against the West Indies where they were shot out for a paltry 81 chasing just 120 with Dravid being part of the team and seeing the collapse unfold. Having been witness to so many regrets running across multiple years, this particular victory to give Dravid the perfect send off makes it so extremely emotional. He may brush this off as just another day as part of his duty but this redemption story certainly couldn't have been scripted any better. Witnessing him hold the trophy aloft beaming with pride unleashing emotions of every kind was truly a sight to behold. Similar is the case with captain Rohit Sharma. Anyone in his place could have just capitulated after what happened in the 2023 ODI WC final. But this man made Australia pay by playing a career defining innings against this very same team in this T20 World Cup by knocking them out and eventually leading his beloved side to a glorious triumph. He wanted this championship so badly and one could see how much this meant to him. Lastly for Virat Kohli to cap off his T20 career with a World cup title to go along with being part of the victorious ODI WC 2011 and Champions Trophy 2013 side places him on a special pedestal. He didn't really have the best of World Cups this time around but cometh the moment and cometh the hour, he showed his class by playing a responsible and crucial knock after the initial setback to eventually win the player of the match trophy in his last ever T20 World Cup match for the country.

The events that transpired on that eventful Saturday of 29th June 2024 at Barbados makes one believe that God truly exists as justice couldn't have been served in a more sweeter manner. The 3 visionaries deserved this redemption more than anything else and rightfully so. This also would rank tribute to being one of India's greatest moments in it's rich cricketing legacy and etched in memory as a day to remember for eternity in India's cricketing fortunes.

Cricketing Nostalgia Edition - Test Cricket of 2002, ODI WC 1999 & beyond

We were in the process of disposing off old items in the house when an old notebook running more than a quarter century caught my attention. I was quite fascinated to see that I had documented handwritten scorecard of all ODI matches played during the 1999 World Cup along with plenty of other notes pertaining mainly towards cricket, a bit of movies and some random scripts.

This was much before the advent of blogging came into existence. I recall around the late 1990s and early 2000s, most homes didn't even have a personal computer and it was only around the early 2000s that internet came into existence with the good old net cracker dial up edition which used to take quite a while to connect.

I had also incidentally penned a summarised version of the year 2002 that played out in test cricket chronicling on the major events that took place during the year. I couldn't beleive it myself that I took the pains to write about test cricket decades back when I was a wily teenager hooked on to the sport in a major way. Also looking at penning scorecards from cricket matches noted down from newspapers brings back a lot of vintage memories.

I am producing verbatim my write up of the year 2002 that was for Test cricket and sharing my hand written documentation of the 1999 ODI World Cup match played between India and Pakistan on the 8th of June 1999. A quarter century has passed since these events have occurred and looking back evokes memorable memories growing up in Chennai and falling in love with this wonderful sport of cricket.

2002 - The Year that Was 

2002 will go down in history as one of those years in which bat completely dominated the ball. It was also a year full of world records. Adam Gilchrist obliterated Botham's record to score the fastest double century. In a matter of few days, he found that his own record was broken by Nathan Astle. Incidentally Astle broke Gilchrist's record by 59 balls getting to his double ton of a mere 153 deliveries. Michael Vaughan scored the second highest runs in a calendar year ever with 1481 runs. The record still belongs to Viv Richards who amassed 1710 runs in 1976. If you thought test cricket was boring think again. Sri Lanka's 509 runs scored in a day against Bangladesh is the highest score scored by a team in a day in test history. Also other notable achievements include Inzamam Ul Haq's 329 vs New Zealand which was the highest test score ever by a Pakistani. The score also stood 10th on the all time list. Rahul Dravid became the fourth batsman in test history to score 4 consecutive hundreds in as many innings. Bowlers couldn't make much of an impact but still there were a few important milestones set. Muralitharan and McGrath became the 7th and 8th bowlers respectively to join the 400 wicket club. Muralitharan also equalled Hadlee's world record of 36 five wicket hauls. Shane Warne went second on the all time list for most wickets taken. Sachin Tendulkar joined the illustrious club of all those who have scored over 8000 test runs. He also went past Donald Bradman's record of 29 test centuries. Now he is in second position in the list of most number of centuries scored behind Sunil Gavaskar. For the first time in test history two teams India and New Zealand got bowled out for less than 100 in their respective first innings. In spite of this feat 2002 will be remembered as a year for the batsmen.

1999 ODI World Cup Scorecard - India vs Pakistan (8th June 1999)

Nostalgic World Cup memories recirculated after 23 and a half years

There are certain memories etched vividly in the mind and one such is the NZ vs Eng clash on Feb 14th 1996. I started following cricket seriously around the autumn of 1994 and the 1996 world cup happened to be my first big ticket tournament experience as a fan.

I was so excited about the Wills World Cup being staged in the sub continent and had done a thorough homework pertaining to the history of the past 5 world cups thanks mainly to a red covered book of Gulu Ezekiel 'The Story of World Cup Cricket' which gave a brief synopsis along with score lines of all the previous editions from 1975-1992.

The world cup in 1996 opened with the New Zealand vs England clash and as it was a school going weekday, I recall rushing back as soon as the last bell rang at 2:45 pm from P. S Senior Sec School, Mylapore to scamper home to watch a closely contested tussle which NZ held on to sneak through thanks largely to a platform laying hundred by Nathan Astle.

Over the years since 1996, England's performances have nose dived in world cups with them hardly ever putting even a meek foot forward whereas the Kiwis have consistently managed to get to a top 4 finish in most of the events gone by with even a final run finish in the last Trans Tasman edition in 2015.

And now almost 23 and a half years and 7 world cups later nostalgia is recirculated as these very same teams who I witnessed playing a world cup game for the first time in 1996 are locking horns with each other to earn their maiden World cup triumph. May the best team win!
#nostalgicmemories #beforegooglewasborn #preinternetdays #14feb1996to14jul2019 #longworldcupjourney #engvsnz #iccworldcup2019

The solar lunar atmospheric rise of Kohli!

Virat Kohli's run with the bat over the last year has been nothing short of path breaking and earth shattering. He has accumulated runs in gallons and gazillions and if one looks at his batting graph over the last year, it screams a phenomenal meteoric rise. Seldom has any batsman in any era enjoyed such a pyro technic run in both Tests as well as ODI form of cricket. While his test stats are daunting no doubt but these numbers have been matched in the past by other luminaries of the game but if you take his One Day International performances it's just mind boggling and beyond comprehension. He has electrocuted his way to glory by scoring runs at a razor sharp acceleration and his consistency is truly shell shocking.

This staggering run made me to also link it a bit with his astrological horoscope chart as I was somewhat curious to see how such a histrionic display could indeed be possible. Basically just wanted to see if there was any incentive that indicated the universe was also conspiring to make things happen in such an ecstatic fashion.

Before getting into the astrological stats, lets look at his bounty bag in ODIs and tests studded with diamond engraved shimmerings. I have purely taken into his account the runs he has scored since his last birthday ie the whole of the runs he has stacked up from his last Solar return (birthday) to the end of it which in essence could be attributed to his 30th year (5th Nov 2017 to 5th Nov 2018).

His ODI stats read as per below;
1202 runs in 14 matches out of which 5 of them were not out innings amounting to an unimaginable average of 133.5 runs per innings. This includes 6 three figure knocks of which two of them crossed 150. During this period he also scaled the peak of 10,000 one day international runs joining an elite list of batsman to have done so. Matches span across the period from Feb'18 to Nov'18. (No ODIs were played by India during the period Nov'17 to Jan'18).

The test stats read as below:
1673 runs in 13 tests and 23 innings out of which a single knock was a not out innings tallying up to a very impressive average of 76 runs per innings. This golden period has seen him score 7 hundreds out of which 3 came in back to back consecutive innings. The list also includes couple of double centuries to the kitty. India played 4 series during the period spread over the 12 month period between Nov'17 to Oct'18.

Now lets look at his horoscope chart. He is Sagittarius rising (Dhanus) with the following placements; Saturn in Lagna, Rahu in 3rd, Mars in 4th, Jupiter retro in 6th, Ketu in 9th, Venus & Moon in 10th and Mercury & Sun in the 11th. The current Dasa running for him is Rahu and almost his entire cricketing career has run in tandem with it's Dasa which has been extremely beneficial to him in winning lots of laurels. It's despositor Saturn is placed in Lagna itself. Rahu also happens to co-own Aquarius however the main owner still happens to be Saturn only. 3rd house represents courage, skill, strength, determination etc and Rahu has expounded all these significations which is very much apparent in his case. In Rahu Dasa, the sub Antar Dasa period running is Mercury which also happens to be his 7th lord and it's no surprise that his marriage also happened in this sub period of his 7th lord. Mercury sits 9 places (9th is supposed to be most fortunate house) from Rahu and is said to confer fortunate happenings and that's what has exactly happened.

For sudden exponential success, transits also play a role and hence we shall have a look at his different transit charts.

General Regular Transit:
Here we keep the Lagna and Moon as constants and the other major planets are reckoned from these points. The moon is the most important when seeing transits but the Lagna also has a role because mental and physical presence need to co exist for major events to take place. We mainly assess the strength of Jupiter, Saturn, Rahu/Ketu as these are the ones staying in a sign for a large period of time. Almost over the entire course of this period, Jupiter was transiting in Libra over the natal Sun and Mercury. From Lagna, Jupiter is in 11th enabling him to achieve his desires and also over current antar dasa planet Mercury which is auspicious. Also its presence over Sun gives it royal glory. Also Jupiter and Rahu the ruling Dasa planet happen to be in a trine to each other. Seeing things from Saturn's perspective, it has done one full circle of life (2.5 years * 12 signs) and returned back to its natal position. This Saturn return brings renewed changes and it has happened in the good for him. From natal Moon it's in 4th which isn't very good for comforts and lifestyles but from Moon 5th lord Trikona is Saturn and being in a 4th kendra takes away some of the negativity. Also Saturn both in transit as well as natal position is 11th from the current Rahu dasa which is a highly favourable position. Rahu/Ketu in transit is in 11th and 5th from Moon sign. Rahu already has been doing him wonders in this Dasa and his presence in 11th from Moon and that too taking its own nature has catapulted things in his favour. It has in a way offset the negative placement from Lagna where it's in 8th.

Tajaka Solar Transit:
This is the chart which is gathered by keeping the Sun in its exact longitude as of birth. It's like a new year and a new beginning. The Sun retains its place as per what it is in natal chart but the other planets may have a directional shift. Obtaining his Solar chart for 2017 (30th year starting), his Ascendant is Gemini (Mithuna) with Rahu in 2nd, Mars in 4th, Jupiter/Venus/Sun in 5th, Mercury in 6th, Saturn in 7th, Ketu in 8th and Moon in 12th. The most favourable planet for Mithun Lagna, Venus is sitting very favourably in its own 5th house and hence is very strong. 5th is a very important house for sports & entertainment and a strong 5th lord and house denotes intelligence coming out in full fervour. The Lagna Lord Mercury is in 6th which isn't ideal but even there you find that there is a parivartana (exchange of signs) between Mercury and Mars with some of Mars strengthening qualities falling to Mercury. Also the 9th lord Jupiter and 5th lord Venus are together casting a very auspicious yog and this has really helped him surmount exceeding heights. It is to be noted that the 9th and 5th are generally the most auspicious houses in a horoscope. Hence its interesting to see that his solar return chart was pointing in the right direction.

Tithi Pravesh Transit:
This is another transit chart reckoned from the tithi in which one was born. Kohli was born in the auspicious Eka Dashi Tithi with some remaining percentage. Taking the same Eka Dashi birth tithi with exact percentage remaining in 2017 as at birth, we find that his ascendant is same as his natal Lagna Sagittarius. His Tithi Pravesh chart is as follows; Dhanus Lagna with Saturn in 1st house, Ketu in 2nd, Rahu in 8th, Mars/Moon in 10th,  Jupiter/Venus/Sun in 11th and Mercury in 12th. Here you figure that the house of desires 11th has become very powerful with the presence of Jupiter, Venus and Sun. Imagine Lagna Lord (self), 9th lord (fortune) and 11th lord (desires) all sitting together in 11th granting him herculean power to go about with his duty. The 10th with the presence of Mars is also aiding since in natural kala purusha chart Mars gets exalted in the 10th. So in essence, the TP chart also shows that he would have a very promising year.

Hence all in all, even the stars seem to be aligned for Virat Kohli which has seen him raise his game to unprecedented heights. His natal chart with a strong Dasa and Sub Dasa running in addition to powerful transits, a royal solar year and an auspicious Tithi year has led to a rollicking spree of run adrenalin which has made his 30th year of life extremely memorable.

Virat Kohli Details:
Natal Birth Chart
DOB : 5th Nov 1988
POB : New Delhi, India
TOB : 10:30 AM
Ayanamsa : Raman 22-15-18.74

The Rise of Rahu!

Rahu is feared to be the most dangerous planet in a horoscope and it's Dasa is so dreaded that it instills and induces extreme fear among natives running it. It has destroyed many relationships and has literally crushed the confidence of people. But having said all this, Rahu can behave turbulently and can either make you reach the skies or literally pull you down to ground zero. When Rahu works well, the kind of success it can give is stratospheric and phenomenal. Usually Rahu is said to do well in the Upachaya (growth) houses especially 3rd, 6th and 11th.

I'm herewith listing the success stories of 3 of the greatest Indian batsman who achieved meteoric rise during their respective careers and the common Dasa which was running for them during the major period in which they achieved their cricketing laurels happened to be Rahu. All three of them happen to be world cup winners and have combined to score over 100 international centuries during their respective Rahu Dasa period.

The first name happens to be India's greatest test opener Sunil Gavaskar who was instrumental in winning test series abroad in England and West Indies and making India a force to reckon especially in the long form version of the game. He made his debut in Mar 1971 and retired in Mar 1987 and his entire career ran in tandem with Rahu Dasa (Dec 1970 to Dec 1988).

The second name is perhaps India's most loved cricketer of all time Sachin Tendulkar. Though the early part of his career was in Mars Dasa, it was during Rahu Dasa when his game trail blazed to an all together different level and he started accumulating centuries by the dozen. The pinnacle moment of his storied career was when he helped India lift the World Cup after 28 years. 1998 was the year when he shot himself to an elevated plane and which incidentally criss-crossed with the time Raha Dasa started. He debuted in Nov 1989 and retired in Nov 2013 and his Rahu Dasa ran from Apr 1997 to Apr 2015.

The third name is India's current cricketing sensation Virat Kohli, He was always known to be an up and coming talented cricketer but the levels he has reached in the last few years is nothing short of histrionic. His run scoring ability especially in the limited overs form of the game is tectonic and looks set to shatter more ODI records. He made his debut in Aug 2008 and his Rahu Dasa started running from July 2009 and will go on up to Jul 2027 when he may have already hang his boots. In this half period of Rahu itself, he has managed to make over 50 international centuries in his distinguished career.

Thus Rahu ain't all that bad when placed well and when it does perform, it can propel you to extreme heights that are totally unfathomable. Jai Ho Rahu!

P.S : I'm sharing the rasi charts alone of all these 3 cricketers along with some basic info. Ayanamsa used is BV Raman as it reflects the timing of events better however the planetary placements and ascendant remains the same even by using Lahiri or any other ayanamsa. Timing may be slightly off by a couple of minutes or so but the ascendant doesn't change.

Sunil Gavaskar: (10th July 1949, Mumbai, 20:42 PM) Capricorn Ascendant, Uthara Shada (Uthiradam) moon and Rahu in 3rd house of Pisces
Sachin Tendulkar: (24th April 1973, Mumbai, 13:00 PM) Cancer Ascendant, Poorva Shada (Pooradam) moon and Rahu in 6th house of Sagittarius
Virat Kohli: (5th November 1988, New Delhi 10:28 AM)
Sagitarius Ascendant, Uthara Phalguni (Uthiram) moon and Rahu in 3rd house of Aquarius

Reminiscing memories of the historic First T20 WC final 2007

When the announcement for the inaugural T20 World cup was made by the ICC for the event to be held in South Africa in Sep 2007, most of the senior rung of players decided to give it a skip allowing the youngsters to take center stage.

India was fielded with a young team led by the ebullient MS Dhoni and not many really gave them a chance considering the lack of big guns and inexperience in handling the big stage. But India turned the corner and really started upping the ante after a loss to the Kiwis in the super eight stages. They got through the semis where they had to overcome a mighty Aussie side filled with abundant talent. After up staging the all conquering Australians, India set up a mouth watering clash with Pakistan in the final.

The grand finale had a lot of topsy-turvy moments and when India put up a score of 157 on the board, it looked just about par for the course. India grabbed the initiative during the Pakistani innings with regular breakthroughs and looked like taking the game home only to witness a late flurry of attacking batting by the lower order to get Pakistan back on track.

It came down to the last over and the skipper was faced with a quandary of whom to hand over the ball and he gave it to an uncanny choice in the form of Joginder Sharma. He mixed up his pace but was carted for a massive six by Misbah to allow Pakistan to within just a shot away of the target with 4 deliveries still left. But then the moment of reckoning arrived as off the next ball, he tried to be a bit too cheeky going for a needless reverse sweep that went too aerial than expected handing an easy catch to Sreesanth causing an eruption of celebrations in the Indian camp.

Dhoni's uncharacteristic decision paid off and India had won the first ever T20 cricket World cup. It also paved the way for many more laurels and accolades achieved under the baton of MSD. This day 10 years ago, Sep 24th 2007 was truly one of the golden days in India's rich cricketing folklore.

Not Finishing the Job - India's cricketing story in Big Ticket ICC Events

It's not always that you come so close to winning championships. India have no doubt been good enough continuously coming to the final stages of ICC world events, but there is a thing called 'finishing the job' and we have failed at that miserably.

Since the WC win in 2011, the results in ICC events are listed below. After 2013 Champions Trophy, a big ticket victory has eluded India despite coming close on several occasions
2011 WC - Winners
2012 T20 WC - Group Elimination
2013 CT - Winners
2014 T20 WC - Runners-up
2015 WC - Semi finals
2016 T20 WC - Semi finals
2017 CT - Runners-up

We handed the 2014 T20 WC final to Sri Lanka in a platter through a horrendous batting performance by getting an abysmal score of 129 off 20 overs having lost just 3 wickets. Then again in the semi of the T20 WC 2016 vs West Indies where we spilled regulation chances, not doing our basics right and allowing them to chase over 190 preventing us from having a shot at the final at home.

And today's result is the culmination of all disappointment. First it was against Pakistan and more so in an ICC world tournament final. We allowed them to bat first when we should have stocked up and put the runs beyond their wherewithal. Instead we bowled and did that despicably without any planning and leaking runs by the second. And when the batting was expected to come up trumps, we just caved into pressure and fell off even without offering a fight. This will rank as one of the most embarrassing defeats for India.

Sorry, if we are to compare ourselves to the Aussie team of yore, we are just not there. That ruthlessness and killer attitude just didn't come up when especially needed. Personally am extremely disgruntled and no amount of our past ICC tournament wins against Pakistan is going to be of any solace.

As a hard nut Indian cricket fan, defeats hurt but this one is just too personal to swallow 😐.