Dear Readers,

As promised here are the answers to some of the questions you'd asked.

Posted by: Chintan Shah on February 24, 2009 11:00 AM

Hi Aakash,
I’m a big fan of your articles on Cricinfo. I was trying to find your book in local bookstores but could not get it. Maybe I didn’t try enough, but I would surely buy it soon.
My Question to you is about our domestic cricket scheduling. County cricket has four tournaments just like we do, they also have a two-tier approach, plus they have Twenty20 tournaments too which we do not – in our domestic circuit - thanks to the IPL. Why can’t we have a schedule just like them? The counties play four day-games in a week and play a one-day match over the weekend, that way both the Ranji Trophy and Ranji one-dayers can be held together. Similarly, the Duleep Trophy needs more matches, it simply cannot be a knockout tournament.

Dear Chintan,
We used to follow a similarly formatted schedule earlier i.e. playing a one-day match a day before the longer version. But all this changed when the Elite and Plate divisions were introduced in the Ranji Trophy. The old zonal system continued for the one-day tournament, though. Hence, it isn’t possible to hold both formats in the same week. I won’t be surprised to see the Elite and Plate divisions introduced soon in the shorter format as well.
Yes, I completely agree that there could be more matches in the Duleep trophy.

Posted by: Angi on February 24, 2009 11:20 AM

Dharamsala is a beautiful place - wonderful scenery and locations.
I'm a bit curious to know one thing: when did you first debut in the Ranji Trophy? I mean, did you represent your school teams first and then some clubs - basically, how did you get noticed?

Dear Angi,
I made my first class debut in 1997 against Services.

Yes, one needs to play for the school team, then some club and eventually in age-group tournaments for the state. One must do well enough in the age-group tournaments to get noticed and picked to play for the state team at first-class level.

Posted by: Vikram Kewalramani on February 24, 2009 12:31 PM

Hey Aakash,
Love your book. I live in Canada but I made sure that I got one sent to me as I thoroughly enjoy reading your posts.

According to you, what is the difference in pre-match preparation between a Test player v/s an above-average Ranji player for the same game? (Let’s say a Laxman versus a Mithun Minhas.) Or to compare Apples with apples (how do you/ Gambhir differ in preparation versus a Rajat Bhatia/ Minhas? )
Thanks,
Vikram

Dear Vikram,
Many thanks for your feedback and I appreciate the effort you made to get hold of my book; and I’m glad that you liked it.

There is always some difference in the way each one approaches and prepares for an event i.e. a match in our case. Some players like to bat for hours prior to the match and on the eve of the match, they simply refuse to leave the nets. Then there are some who don’t bat in the nets at all especially on the eve of the game. They prefer to have a few throw downs instead.
Some people give a lot of emphasis on visualization and try to simulate the match situation before the game starts.

In the end, it’s all about what works for each individual. There are no fool proof methods of preparing. As they say, if you’re not prepared to succeed you must be ready to fail. Hence, prepare we must.

Posted by: Raghu on February 24, 2009 3:18 PM

Aakash, saw your scores in the tournament, looks like you’re on a purple patch, hope you continue making the big runs.

Here's my question - I am sure its hard to adjust to a higher level of the game when you take a step up but how difficult is it for a player to adjust to a lower level of the game after having played at the highest level? For instance you have played in the best of the grounds and against the best bowlers in the world in Australia, so how difficult is it to adjust to the not-so-great grounds and face lower quality - if I may say so - bowling in domestic cricket.

Dear Raghu,

Thanks for your wishes.

Well, it doesn’t take me a lot to adjust to domestic cricket because I’ve been around for a while. I played quite a few seasons in this circuit before making it to the top and therefore it doesn’t come as a surprise. Yes, the difference does seem more blatant when you’ve played at the top.

Posted by: Ravi on February 24, 2009 4:19 PM

As usual, a nice article from you Aakash. Nowadays I’ve got so habituated to reading your articles, I am checking for one everyday when I logon to Cricinfo.

You’ve hit the nail on the head regarding scheduling. As you said the elite/plate should be introduced here to bring out the best out of the players. But why is it that players get selected in the ODI team based on their performances in four-day games instead of the shorter format?

Dear Ravi,

Yes, there’s some food for thought in what you say. As I’ve said earlier, I won’t be surprised to see the Elite and Plate division system introduced in the shorter format as well.
Yes, it does seem a little unfair to select players to represent India in the shorter format based on their performances in the longer format, but that’s where the selectors come in. They’re the ones who decide whether someone is suited for the shorter version or not. Since they’ve played at the highest level, they generally tend to get it right.

Posted by: Denzil Correa on February 24, 2009 4:54 PM

Hi Aakash,

I am a near regular follower of your blog and most articles on Cricinfo. I would like to know whether players’ opinions are taken into consideration while deciding the itinerary. In international cricket, the two member boards sit and decide the itinerary. Who decides the same for the domestic matches?

All the best for your one-day campaign. If possible, can you explain how teams qualify for the Ranji one-dayers?

Thanks

Dear Denzil,

Thanks for your feedback.

No, the players’ opinions aren’t taken into consideration while chalking out the schedule for the domestic competitions. There’s a valid reason for that. There are 27 teams playing the domestic circuit and it’s impossible to have a representative from every team on board while chalking out the itinerary.

The top two teams from each zone qualify for the Knock Out one-day competition.

Posted by: Aditya on February 24, 2009 4:57 PM

Hi Aakash,

Beautiful post again.

I had a question for you: Just like you discussed about cricket balls in your two previous blogs, can you give us insights into a batsman's gear such as bats, pads, helmets, etc? I know there are English and Kashmir willow bats. Which ones are better and why?

Keep writing,
regards,
Aditya

Dear Aditya,

Thanks for your feedback.

The bats made from English willow are much better in comparison to the bats made from their Kashmiri counterpart. The difference lies in the climate in which the tree is grown. The climate in Kashmir gets hotter in the summer and hence the wood gets dry as compared to the region in which the trees are grown in England. The wood from England is less dense and has more moisture when compared to the willow from Kashmir which is more dense and dry, and hence makes the wood heavier, which isn’t ideal for a top quality cricket bat.

Posted by: Satyanand on February 25, 2009 4:10 AM

Hi Aakash ,
I have always wondered why the domestic matches are not popular ,whereas the IPL seems to be such a success. If we ignore the four foreign players per team , it would basically boil down to a majority of Indian players.

Most Ranji matches nowadays are playing to empty stands . Any thoughts on how to improve the attendance? For one, I think the State/Club youth teams can be encouraged to watch and learn from the matches (at least).

Dear Satyanand,

At the risk of sounding bizarre, I think that we might have to make the Ranji trophy matches day-night affairs. It wouldn’t be a bad option to start the game under lights at 3pm. This would mean that the second half of the day's play would be at prime time and I’m sure that people in this country would like to watch live cricket even if it’s a domestic match.

Posted by: Akash on February 25, 2009 11:41 AM

Hi Aakash,

Very good one mate.

A request for your next blog: is the money earned through domestic cricket sustainable? Can all domestic cricketers earn enough for sustenance of their families or they have to alternative work during off season......after they retire ...etc?

Dear Akash,

The BCCI must be given credit for pumping in the money for domestic cricket. Nowadays if a player plays an entire season of domestic cricket he makes enough money to maintain a decent lifestyle. Besides that, most first class cricketers are working for one organization or another and are therefore drawing a comfortable monthly salary from their employers as well. So they don’t really have to work in the off-season, but they are required to turn up for the matches their respective organizations play during the off-season.

I'm sorry for not being able to answer all the questions as that's a slightly difficult task on the blog. So in the meantime please browse my website which is called www.cricketaakash.com and feel free to ask questions and give feedback.

Cheers.

Posted by: Raghu on February 24, 2009 3:18 PM

Aakash, saw your scores in the tournament, looks like you’re on a purple patch, hope you continue making the big runs.

Here's my question - I am sure its hard to adjust to a higher level of the game when you take a step up but how difficult is it for a player to adjust to a lower level of the game after having played at the highest level? For instance you have played in the best of the grounds and against the best bowlers in the world in Australia, so how difficult is it to adjust to the not-so-great grounds and face lower quality - if I may say so - bowling in domestic cricket.

Dear Raghu,

Thanks for your wishes.

Well, it doesn’t take me a lot to adjust to domestic cricket because I’ve been around for a while. I played quite a few seasons in this circuit before making it to the top and therefore it doesn’t come as a surprise. Yes, the difference does seem more blatant when you’ve played at the top.

Posted by: Ravi on February 24, 2009 4:19 PM

As usual, a nice article from you Aakash. Nowadays I’ve got so habituated to reading your articles, I am checking for one everyday when I logon to Cricinfo.

You’ve hit the nail on the head regarding scheduling. As you said the elite/plate should be introduced here to bring out the best out of the players. But why is it that players get selected in the ODI team based on their performances in four-day games instead of the shorter format?

Dear Ravi,

Yes, there’s some food for thought in what you say. As I’ve said earlier, I won’t be surprised to see the Elite and Plate division system introduced in the shorter format as well.
Yes, it does seem a little unfair to select players to represent India in the shorter format based on their performances in the longer format, but that’s where the selectors come in. They’re the ones who decide whether someone is suited for the shorter version or not. Since they’ve played at the highest level, they generally tend to get it right.

Posted by: Denzil Correa on February 24, 2009 4:54 PM

Hi Aakash,

I am a near regular follower of your blog and most articles on Cricinfo. I would like to know whether players’ opinions are taken into consideration while deciding the itinerary. In international cricket, the two member boards sit and decide the itinerary. Who decides the same for the domestic matches?

All the best for your one-day campaign. If possible, can you explain how teams qualify for the Ranji one-dayers?

Thanks

Dear Denzil,

Thanks for your feedback.

No, the players’ opinions aren’t taken into consideration while chalking out the schedule for the domestic competitions. There’s a valid reason for that. There are 27 teams playing the domestic circuit and it’s impossible to have a representative from every team on board while chalking out the itinerary.

The top two teams from each zone qualify for the Knock Out one-day competition.

Posted by: Aditya on February 24, 2009 4:57 PM

Hi Aakash,

Beautiful post again.

I had a question for you: Just like you discussed about cricket balls in your two previous blogs, can you give us insights into a batsman's gear such as bats, pads, helmets, etc? I know there are English and Kashmir willow bats. Which ones are better and why?

Keep writing,
regards,
Aditya

Dear Aditya,

Thanks for your feedback.

The bats made from English willow are much better in comparison to the bats made from their Kashmiri counterpart. The difference lies in the climate in which the tree is grown. The climate in Kashmir gets hotter in the summer and hence the wood gets dry as compared to the region in which the trees are grown in England. The wood from England is less dense and has more moisture when compared to the willow from Kashmir which is more dense and dry, and hence makes the wood heavier, which isn’t ideal for a top quality cricket bat.

Posted by: Satyanand on February 25, 2009 4:10 AM

Hi Aakash ,
I have always wondered why the domestic matches are not popular ,whereas the IPL seems to be such a success. If we ignore the four foreign players per team , it would basically boil down to a majority of Indian players.

Most Ranji matches nowadays are playing to empty stands . Any thoughts on how to improve the attendance? For one, I think the State/Club youth teams can be encouraged to watch and learn from the matches (at least).

Dear Satyanand,

At the risk of sounding bizarre, I think that we might have to make the Ranji trophy matches day-night affairs. It wouldn’t be a bad option to start the game under lights at 3pm. This would mean that the second half of the day's play would be at prime time and I’m sure that people in this country would like to watch live cricket even if it’s a domestic match.

Posted by: Akash on February 25, 2009 11:41 AM

Hi Aakash,

Very good one mate.

A request for your next blog: is the money earned through domestic cricket sustainable? Can all domestic cricketers earn enough for sustenance of their families or they have to alternative work during off season......after they retire ...etc?

Dear Akash,

The BCCI must be given credit for pumping in the money for domestic cricket. Nowadays if a player plays an entire season of domestic cricket he makes enough money to maintain a decent lifestyle. Besides that, most first class cricketers are working for one organization or another and are therefore drawing a comfortable monthly salary from their employers as well. So they don’t really have to work in the off-season, but they are required to turn up for the matches their respective organizations play during the off-season.

I'm sorry for not being able to answer all the questions as that's a slightly difficult task on the blog. So in the meantime please browse my website which is called www.cricketaakash.com and feel free to ask questions and give feedback.

Cheers.

Dear readers,

Walking out to defend a modest total against Bengal in the quarter-final of the Vijay Hazare Trophy, I told my players that we needed to give it all we had, to ensure that we get another opportunity to walk on to the cricket field as a team. A loss in that match would’ve meant the end of the road for Delhi. We had an early start to the season because we had to play a couple of extra pre-season games as a reward for winning the Ranji Trophy last season. So our sojourn together was quite a long one, where we saw more lows than highs, especially when compared to the previous season.

When you know that it’s all going to end, albeit only for a few more months when the drama would begin once again, you want to hold onto it for as long as possible. It might sound a little clichéd and inspired from the movie Chak De, but our last 47 overs on the field (the match was reduced to 47 overs a side) reminded me of that ‘Yeh 70 minute’ speech that Shah Rukh Khan gives his players before the finals.

Of course, the cricket was not going to stop with this game and most of us were going to represent the North Zone and play in the IPL, but it’s never the same. It's the fact that we were not playing for Delhi that would be missed most. Sadly, we faltered and the sand that we were desperate to hold within our fists slipped away right in front of our eyes, and we felt helpless.

Anyhow, life moves on, and we’re in Cuttack for the Deodhar Trophy. I’ve been to Cuttack a few times in my cricketing career but the last time we came to play a Ranji Trophy game was a decade ago. We’re staying in the same hotel in which we stayed back then. It’s called Dwaraka and is right beside to a cinema hall. There are two big open drains in the vicinity as well.

Nothing has changed in the last decade including the state of the rooms. The placement of the television set is so peculiar that it’s nearly impossible to watch it if both of us, my roommate and I, are lying in our respective beds. The bed sheets are invariably dirty and a look at the bed cover might make you feel like throwing up. It was badly stained with oil marks and looked as if it hasn’t seen the laundry for quite some time. Unfortunately the plight doesn’t end here. There was a cockroach found in the food ordered by one of my teammates.

What bothers me more is that Cuttack is not an off-beat venue and has been hosting international matches for quite some time. Of course, the international teams don’t stay in these hotels and I’m not even suggesting that they make us stay in five-star hotels (though why not), but I do believe that there could at least be an effort made to improve the state of the hotels. After all this is the premier domestic tournament.

Do I need to mention that the bus that brought us from the airport in Bhubaneswar, which is about 30 km away (an hour's drive), was not an air-conditioned one? It’s pretty hot in this part of the country and an air-conditioned bus is a necessity rather than a luxury. This is a domestic tournament and so is the IPL but there’s a huge difference in the treatment meted out to the players in these two tournaments. No wonder all the players are eagerly awaiting the IPL.

Cheers

	The damage in the attack on the Sri Lankan team was limited because the bus was able to move, once the driver got going © Getty Images

Dear readers,

This post is not about domestic cricket or perhaps, not even about cricket, but about the prevailing circumstances in the game and our society in general. Today, this piece appeared in the Hindustan Times and I felt the need to share it with the people who follow my blog here. So here goes....

The terror attack in Lahore brought back memories of the time I spent in Pakistan during the 2004 tour. The security blanket thrown around us was unprecedented. Our team bus was part of a convoy that had a fire brigade, an ambulance, and helicopter surveillance along with quite a few police vehicles.

The roads were blocked and it was virtually a traffic free zone when we moved. We were briefed on the security protocol and were not supposed to leave the hotel without informing security personnel. They in turn would accompany us everywhere but only after they figured it was safe for us to do so. Otherwise, we stayed put.

Again, an armed guard always sat on the team bus during our Under-19 tour to Sri Lanka over 10 years ago because of the heightened threat from the LTTE. If someone had to get off the bus even for a bit, the guard would first decide if it was safe to stop the bus there, then get down himself to assess the situation, before letting anyone else get off. At that time, going anywhere on your own was out of the question. But still, it wasn’t anywhere near the kind of security arrangements we saw in Pakistan in 2004.

Then there was Guyana. This time, restrictions were imposed not because of terrorism but simply because of crime. We were told people got killed for even $10 so it was advisable to hide gold chains, mobiles and watches whenever in public. Kenya was much the same.

Yet, despite this all, we never once felt threatened. The thought that we could actually be targets never crossed my mind, so much so that a few mates and I actually played hookey and went shopping in Pakistan without telling anyone. We were duly served notice thereafter, obviously watched 24x7.

The Delhi blasts came and went and somehow, life went on. But the events of 26/11 in Mumbai changed it all. For the first time, I thought, ‘this could happen to me, my family, those I love’. I still go to movies, malls and crowded markets but to say that I’m not concerned would be untrue.

The damage in the attack on the Sri Lankan team was limited because the bus was able to move, once the driver got going. But I wondered about the horrific consequences if it had been stuck in a jam.

Last summer, my IPL team, the Kolkata Knight Riders, took about an hour to get from our Delhi hotel to the Feroze Shah Kotla, our bus moving at a snail’s pace because of the massive traffic jam. In Kolkata, we were always provided a traffic free zone through which the bus whizzed by as part of a small convoy. It wasn’t always so elsewhere.

I expect things to be different now. In another world, things like jams wouldn’t matter. Now they do. Life and cricket’s landscape have irrevocably changed in the year gone by.

Cheers.

Dear readers,

We’re in Agartala for the knock-out rounds of the Vijay Hazare trophy. For those who are not aware Agartala - the capital of Tripura - is located in the far east of India. One needs to take a flight from Kolkata and fly over Bangladesh to reach here. We realised its proximity to our neighboring country as soon as we landed. The network for mobile phones, if not selected manually, tends to log onto Grameen, the telecom service provider in Bangladesh. So if you’re not careful you might end up paying a lot of money for making and receiving calls under the international roaming rates.

Personally, I like coming to the smaller, lesser known places in this vast land. Only cricket could have given us the opportunity to travel all over and get acquainted with various local cultures. There’s something peculiar about the houses (on the outskirts) in this part of the country. Since land is not at a premium the houses are built on a big compound with enough space for a garden. Invariably there are a couple of coconut trees in every compound and the boundary walls are made of bamboo. Those bamboo boundary walls – some of the smaller shops have them too - make a statement: we trust each other. It reminds me of the tradition in a small island called Nevis in the Caribbean, where locking your car is taken as an insult by the others.

The houses in the city center are just like any other across the country but the houses in the outskirts tell you a different story.

We were in for some excitement as soon as we landed. Imagine if someone tells you the booking you made at a local hotel has been cancelled and that the local association has booked our rooms in a different hotel. If that someone also happens to be the liaison officer, you tend to believe it. There’s only one decent hotel in this city and to be told that we were not to stay in that despite booking well in advance left us quite red-faced. We called up the officials in the Delhi association responsible for making the arrangement and even they weren’t aware of the cancellation. We then called the hotel itself and were duly informed that the booking was well in place and they were waiting for our arrival.

We were stunned at this revelation but it didn’t end here. We told the liaison officer what had happened and asked him to take us to our preferred hotel but he didn’t; in his defence he was just following orders, and he promptly took us to a dingy hotel in the city. We had to argue, and quite vocally too, that we should be taken to our desired destination, and eventually we got our way, but the whole thing smelt of conspiracy. Had we not asked our association and the hotel people we would have been forced to stay in a below par hotel. We struggled to comprehend the reason behind their lie. Perhaps the hotel we were asked to stay in had some arrangement with the local association. But we will never know.

The good thing about playing in a smallish center is the interest it generates in the locals. Even though the ground on which we played Railways was not the ideal ground to field in, we saw the lighter side of our plight. We were having bets on fielding the ball without fumbling, and a misfield wasn’t regarded with contempt but as a reason to laugh. To cut it short, it’s bumpy and rough. But there were people on the ground to watch cricket and that was a pleasant sight. Even though it wasn’t a big number, to people like us who are so used to playing in front of empty stadiums, even a few hundred can make a difference. The local cable channel had been advertising the event and, of course, the entry was free for all.

We have a three day break before the quarter finals and even after taking a day to recuperate from the match fatigue, we have enough time and days to look around and know this place a little better.

Cheers