the legend of our time: AB de Villiers

Time and again, every decade, every era, every generation presents to us an indomitable hero, a true champion, a fighter,a winner who everyone around him and millions of them who watch them master their craft inspire masses to be one like them. We had Sunil Gavaskar, Aravinda de Silva, Vivian Richards, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Jacques Kallis, Chris Gayle, Ricky Ponting cricketers who revolutionized the art of batting and stroke-making. Abraham Benjamin de Villiers or more popular with the name AB de Villiers or christened by his fans as ABD is a phenomenal batsman who with his incredible talent and sensational batting has captured the imagination of an true cricketing champion with his amazing pyrotechnics and breathtaking stroke-play which makes him stand head above shoulders as the best batsman to have graced the game.

AB De Villiers

AB de Villiers made his debut for South Africa in 2004 at the tender age of 20. He took up the gloves from Mark Boucher to help the South African cause. Although it was not until 2005-06 that he was taken seriously into consideration. He scored enough runs vs Ind and SL to be in contention for the team. His innings of 217 vs India in sub continent conditions marked him as the only S.A batsman to have scored a double hundred in India showed his remarkable temperament to play the long format of the game equally well. His timing of the ball which is so sweet makes one sit up and watch him close. His power hitting is something that carves expectations of him as being a gargantuan figure. Only few people in this world caress the ball as gently and at will so much so that the opposition is left awestruck in admiration at his cricketing ability.

Although he suffered a blip in form in 2005 and 2006, he returned back as a champion cricketer post 2008.He was an exceptional fielder and had the knack of picking up the things at a breathtaking pace. He was and still is an invaluable asset to South African cricket and the cricketing community in whole. What makes de Villiers tick is the fact that he has this uncanny ability to watch the ball until the Nth moment and then change his stance to play outrageous shots with tremendous power and flair. His high back lift sets the tone for the bowlers to dance on his swansong. He is a live-wire when batting who keeps the scorecard ticking consistently and a cannon-esque figure when he decides to maraud the attack with his flawless hitting of the ball. He leaves the bowlers in shreds when he makes up his mind.

En route to the fastest 50 and fastest 100 vs West Indies

Usual business in playing exceptional shots !

No total is big or no figure is unachievable for ABD, be it hitting the fastest half century (in 16 balls) and fastest century ever (in 31 balls) in ODI's or hitting the maximum sixes in a World Cup tournament (37) anything is achievable for this prodigiously talented individual. He hits the ball sometimes lying down on the ground or while dancing down the track. He is an absolute joy to watch when it comes to batting and an astonishing fielder who takes incredible catches from never thought before positions and makes run outs the more watchable. He is a cricketer who is a fan's delight, adored by millions of South Africans and many more people across the globe for his fireworks display when he is on song. He is also known as Mr. 360 degrees for his ability to hit the ball in every nook and corner of the ground.

Mr.360 in the IPL

He led his team in 2015 World Cup to their best ever performance in the tournament finishing as semi finalists in an epic semi final v/s New Zealand that led to one of the most memorable matches ever played in the World Cup. A gut wrenching, heartbreaking epic semi final which left a lasting impression on the tournament. 

Heartbroken.. post 2015 World Cup Semis loss

Be it his match winning innings for RCB in the IPL or his heroics in batting for South Africa, he has always been a stupendous success in every aspect of the game. AB de Villiers before he made his debut was a tennis player, a rugby player, still holds 6 national swimming records at school level, is an avid golfer, a guitarist, an U-19 national level badminton player, He is a recipient of the prestigious national medal from the Late Nelson Mandela for a science project,played hockey and made into U-16 side of school and a singer who has an album to his name which was released this March. He is a man with exceptional talent and unparalleled verve when it comes to committing himself to the cause.

Special No.17

Players like AB de Villiers are hard to come by in generations, and there will be fewer as complete a player as he is. He is charismatic and casts a spell upon the opposition when he begins to plunder for runs. In the present era of cricket, he is the only superstar of the sport and he does carry it off exceptionally well. Players like him need to be cherished and celebrated since we are the fortunate ones who has seen the emergence of a star who is now a larger than life figure for millions who also surely knows how to be grounded despite his huge hiatus. Let us celebrate the living legend of our times.

Cricketing Legend

Cheers to AB De Villiers !

Love,

Ram

10-09-2015

..the feel of bowling fast and my fastest best XI

Hufff !! Puff !! Hufff !! Puff !! Gasping for breath. yet he backs himself up, goes back to the bowling mark again glances at the pitch where he ought to bowl. Sees the batsman and then stares back at the pitch. readying himself up, backing himself up this time again, to get past through the defences of the batsman. Now he is back at his line up, taking deep breathes just readying himself for the next thunderbolt coming out of his cannonesque arm. He now runs in charging like an angry bull, looking for the matador to challenge him, to out power him, to win over him. And then he has his jump timed perfectly by the time he reaches his crease, the jump which one expects to reach same the height an Ostrich would when running at its top speed and then he releases the bowl at a straight seamed position pitching it at the exact spot where he has desired to bowl. Now the batsman has to come forward to play this bowl which is coming at an unbelievable speed. The batsman sees the bowl changing the trajectory by the time it has pitched and come to him, in a matter of milliseconds he has to adjust his guard ,to defend, to survive and in a blink of the eye he has missed playing the bowl, now the batsman has to wait to hear the dreadful sound of the timber. All this while when the bowler is completing his follow through after bowling where exactly he has intended to bowl, he is watching with awe and an excitement like a 6 year old. Now he sees that the bowl has past the pads of the batsman, watching the track of the seam of the leather go uncluttered, going as straight like a bullet would and then he strikes gold when the bowl hits the top of off stump, there is a winning smile on his face, a dejected look on the batsman's front. He claps and throws his hands into the air announcing the world, to make a statement of how a perfectly planned operation would span out.

The next batsman is padded up, with fear on one leg and ambiguity on the other. The bowler who is bowling fast is now smeared with confidence and pride at himself, his pace has went up a notch for the next ball, but he has to bend his back and bowl another one again, with the same discipline, line and length to be successful again. Such is the state of mind that a fast bowler goes through every time he runs up to bowl.

The world has seen amazing quicks who have taken breaths away frequently and sometimes more than that.
Here are my XI picks :

Joel Garner was one such bowler who was ferociously quick and lethal when it came to bowling. Big Bird he was named, standing at close to 7ft tall he could easily bowl the bouncers twice the same height of Sunil Gavaskar. Gavaskar once when questioned on how it was facing the Big Bird had said that all he could see is thunderbolts of red colour coming from the sky, given his short stature. No one could face Joel's bowl, let alone hit him. Gavaskar said that there was no use of the sight screen at the back since the arm easily stretched beyond it.

And then came Michael Holding, who was named as the Whispering Death and who popularized bowling with the art of smelling the 'perfume of the leather', he was the best bowler of his era which included the greats of West Indies bowlers like Andy Roberts, Malcom Marshall and Colin Croft, he stood apart with his lethal bouncers which would leave the batsman in tatters. He had a niche bouncer which when pitched short would rise to the batsman aiming at his helmet with vicious speed but just leaving the batsman unscathed but not before allowing the batsman to sniff the leather ball he did just let go off. Also he bowled, what was called the over of the century in the 81' test to Geoffrey Boycott.
Over of the century in 1981 Bridgetown Test vs England.

Fearsome Four: Marshall,Holding,Croft,Garner

Merv Hughes was an intimidating bowler with long and hard moustaches who put the fear in the eyes of the batsman whenever he took the ball in hand. He was fairly successful, given the Australian pitches which aided his style of bowling, which was to bounce the opposition out while keeping the tabs on runs to a bare minimum.

Intimidation.. the weapon

If we are playing the game that the talk hosts do, where in I give you one word and you say the first thing that comes to your mind, I say Shoaib Akhtar you would say Fast. His name was so synonymous with fast bowling that he became such a obvious figure to represent Pak cricket, he stood for what bowling fast felt like to be. He would keep on running hard from his run up which would be just a few yards short of the boundary to charge in at the batsmen and bowl those toe crushing yorkers with tremendous speed. He always enjoyed bowling to the greatest batsman, always making a statement of himself that he is as good a bowler as the batsman who is facing him.

Rawalpindi Express @ 161 kmph

Brett Lee's action is such a treat to watch that one would love to copy his action to himself. The short jump just before the run up would set the tone for the visual treat that was to follow. The timing of his jump before the ball would have been released, the position of his left arm just above the head his right arm recoiled back like the moment before the bullet is fired and his landing of the feet to execute the covert mission which was under wraps all this while which would have a predetermined conclusion, as to bowl at the batsman with vengeance and furious anger. He is considered to be one of the great bowlers who held the legacy of fast bowling in Australia flying high.

Binga ! set to unleash the spell

Dale Steyn was and still continues to rule the world as the best fast bowler in the world, not because he takes many wickets but because of the extra edge that he gives to his team. His near to perfect bowling action infuses such a delight to watch him bowl. His bowling rushes the adrenaline flowing into you when you see the sight of the perfectly executed bowl. He has the soul of the warrior and a heart of a lion, surely it takes something more to bowl that last over in Semis of the World Cup and to accept the defeat in the eyes of billions who have idolized him.

Flawless action and a perfect release 

Wahab Riaz, his name deserves a special mentions although he is far from being called as a true legend of fast bowling. His spell that he bowled to Watson in the World Cup had everyone get up and pay close attention to what was the best bowling display in recent years. Although the Oz's are known to have a go at the opposition, to hunt them, to humiliate them all of this in their home, but watching Wahab's display of the bowling which terrorized Watson to his core, who simply did not what was more humiliating ? Throwing his wicket away, surrendering to the bowler or stand there in the middle and become a mockery of the world. He chose to be the latter, although he was convinced there was no answer to the balls bowled by Wahab in that spell. For 30 minutes, the world watched in awe of how a fast bowler from the sub-continent can wreck havoc on the Oz's in their own backyard. So venomous were the balls that Wahab bowled that every ball he bowled to Watson had the trademark of the West Indies legends of the 80's. Once the match was over and Pak had lost, the world had found a new hero of the World Cup, whose name would be forever etched in the memories of the people who watched this spectacle.

Those eyes.. speak a thousand words.

Other fast bowling greats who surely deserved the mention but were sneaked out by the above mentioned players were Waqar Younis, Javagal Srinath, Dennis Lillee, Jeff Thomson to complete my fastest best XI.

Although the life span of the fast bowler is very short, prone to injuries, frequent rehabs yet inspite of all these pains the greats have overcome the nature to carve a mark of themselves in a short but successful career. Cherish the fast bowlers of your era before they become history, they give us the zest to adore the game like no one.

Cheers !!
Ram

How different would your best XI be ?

of those travelling seven days... and more

Day 1 (or rather a prologue to Day 1) 22nd Dec 2013:

As we (me & my roomie Abhin) began our weekend long trip on Sunday 22nd Dec night to Konkan coast of Maharashtra we did not have a clue what was in store for us. The decision to go to Konkan coast in itself was so unplanned. Till the day before we left to Belgaum, I was of the impression that we were going to Wayanad,Kerala for 2-3 days for hiking. But the sudden intrusion of Konkan tour came out of nowhere. Anyway, we boarded SRS Travels bus to Belgaum and decided to take on the places we wanted to visit as they come. And we got set for an adventure worth remembering.

Day 1 (23rd Dec):

                                                        

                                                                                 Heralded the beginning of our trip @ Sawantwadi

Soundless buses of Maharashtra

7:00 am it is and we are in Belgaum bus stand. We both didn't knew where and when the next bus to Sawantwadi would be, upon inquiring we were informed the next bus would be in an hour. So we hurried up to rent a room in a lodge named Purohit Palace Lodge for an hour and we got ready for the bus. The ride to Sawantwadi was worth remembering again and again as the loosely placed glass windows made spectacularly terrible sound in unison. And then when we reached Sawantwadi in after about an hour and half, we didn't knew what to do and where to go there :)So we both, Mr. Nomads set off on an discovery mission. We discovered the road to palace ourselves and went to check the palace of its past glory. It was a dilipated sight to behold after seeing the state in which the palace was maintained. The rich and cultural heritage sight of the Bhonsle clan was terribly maintained. Sawantwadi has a rich collection of toys and handicrafts on display. Brushing aside our disappointments we left for Vengurla Beach. By the time we reached Vengurla, none of the shops were open that day and we were forced to subdue our hunger by biscuits for the lunch that day. The beach in itself was so clean, so pristine and also very clear in appearance. That it was observed as a bandh in Vengurla due to political reasons, on the entire beach it was just the two of us. Just the two guys on the entire beach, felt very awkward, but heyy who was to see us ;-)

Vengurla Beach..as seen through the eyes

After playing in the beach for an hour and half we left to Malvan via Kudal. It was about 8pm that we reached Malvan. Again we didn't know where to stay or whom to trust in that place. We went by the word of mouth to a place called Pearl Regency which was very close to the beach and had decent rooms. That night we slept peacefully after sumptuous dinner. End to a very hectic day :)

Day 2 (24th Dec):

We hired an auto to Tarkarli which was about 6 kms from Malvan and found the beach was not so well maintained. There upon arriving a local approached us for Scuba diving, after a bargain we both agreed on a premium for the dive. But then the Scuba dive was to happen after an hour and half, so we both thought of trying out water sports in the backwaters called the Tsunami island. The sports were fun and kept us occupied for a good 2 hours. And surprisingly the prices for the sports were dirt cheap when compared to the fares in Goa and other prominent beaches. After finishing the sports we quickly hurried onto come to the beach that took us for Scuba diving. I was excited,so was my friend, about to experience the things like never before. The boat came,, people got in and we were set for the first dive of our lives. There was anxiety and excitement all around. Me along with Abhin and another guy were chosen to go first into the waters. "The Chosen Ones", we were given instructions on diving underwater and signs one should use to communicate there.I was the second person to go after Abhin. The moment I went in, I felt like I was watching a movie underwater in high definition. I was so awestruck by the corals and the little plants underwater that they still continue to mesmerize me when I recollect the memories. I saw an eel and other vibrant color life underwater.

Tsunami Island Backwaters, Tarkarli

Snorkelling

Geared up

Sunset @ Tarkarli, Malvan

We were to spend about 15-20 mins in water 20-25 ft in depth with the coral and the unprecedented sea life below. Amazed and awestruck by the dive we were a happy species that moment. We returned back to the shore at about 7pm and we also had to get the recordings done underwater into memory sticks. It was very dark and late by the time we left for our room, than I was to notice that the people in Malvan were a good hearted, warm and very friendly for never for once did we get a feeling that we were being conspired or cheated in any way. The people there were more eager to showcase what they had to offer than to let us explore them. This air of openness did fuel positive vibes amongst us, it was indeed one of the best moments so far for us in the travel so far. And when we reached hotel, we went on a walk on the beach and spotted the fort in a far off distance, the place where we would go the following morning. Of the time spent so for I noticed that the people of Malvan are very humble and very honest, a trait not to be found in common nowadays.


Day 3 (25th Dec):

With bags packed we checked out of the hotel in Malvan to Sindhdurg fort, built by Shivaji Maharaj. It is situated in the midst of the sea. The insides of the fort was not noteworthy however the location of the fort certainly was.

Sindhdurg Fort

..feels good to be one amongst everyone

Beautiful view of the sea

                                                    
We left to Ratnagiri by noon, it was a tiring and a long journey to Ratnagiri. We reached there by 6 pm and as part of today's agenda we had planned to visit Ganapathi Pule and leave back to Pune by that very night. With the little bit of Marathi that I could understand and talk, we finally got to know which bus to be taken to reach Ganapati Pule. Planning had gone awry of ridiculous proportions. We went to Ganapati Pule that day and stayed there in a budget accommodation of about Rs.400 for a night and we just wanted that. After travelling all day in the local buses and experiencing Konkan Maharashtra in the bus. The transport in Maharashtra and especially in the Konkan region is poorly maintained that suddenly ordinary buses from Karnataka seemed to be so very luxurious. Food in Pule was lip smacking good, so we quickly lapped up what ever came onto our plate. Being tired from the all day journey, we dozed off soon after we hit the sack.

Day 4 (26th Dec):

The Ganesha temple is a Swayambhu Ganesha i.e the idol was formed naturally over 400 years ago. The temple is located in a scenic place with massive waves hitting the shores, but nowhere to be seen close to the temple.

Ganapathi Pule

After the visit to the temple we both decided to explore Ratnagiri as we did not know what to do  with the spare time we had since the bus to Pune was only by 9pm in the night. We had about 6 hours to explore.the place. We went to Thibaw Palace and Thibaw Point, both of them were sordid with none of us interested in either of the places and also the maintenance of these places fuelled to our damping mood. We hired an overcharged auto-rickshaw to Ratnagiri fort which was spectacular in its location and the view it offered. Standing on top of the fort, the sea stretched seamlessly while the sun shone upon it. A Marine drivesque stretch below the fort fascinated us with massive waves hitting the stones relentlessly.

View from Ratnagiri Fort

Marine Drive like set-up @ Ratnagiri fort

Walls of the fort

a serene Arabian sea

That night we left to Pune in a 2 + 2 sleeper bus, the first of its kind I had ever seen.

Day 5 (27th Dec):

We had hired a cab from Pune- Matheran and back to Pune the same day to make our scheduling better as Abhin would be leaving to Dharwad that night. So we had a quick breakfast roadside on the way to Mumbai-Pune Expressway and it was a sumptuous Poha and a kadak chai that started our day. The Mumbai-Pune Expressway is a class apart, with immensely wide roads and the surroundings of the highway. It made me feel for a moment that I was driving on European roads. It was the by far the best road experience I ever had. We reached Matheran by 10am and set out to explore the place on foot.

Matheran

Echo Point,Matheran

Right.. Hello World !

We covered reasonable viewpoints in a very short time, however our main agenda for the day was to do Valley Crossing between the hills, but to our dismay the Valley crossing was now been stopped due to environmental concerns. Half-heartedly we set out to explore other view points, where each of them offered similar view of the mountains. Matheran is the tiniest hill station in the world and also a place where only pedestrians and horses are allowed to commute, thus maintaining the serenity and keeping the place pollution free which made it an unique place to be at. Now the time was almost 7pm we were heading back to Pune and Abhin had to still search for reservations which eventually he didn't get. And this ended our 5 day long journey of exploring the Konakan and Matheran. Cheers to Abhin, Cheers to our trip !!

Day 5 (27th Dec):

After seeing Abhin off, I decided to go meet my cousins staying in Pune and with them I was to travel to Ambarnath to their place that very night and so the day ended with us reaching his place at 4 am ! The day which began at 6 in the morning and took us through the trekking in Matheran's woods a hike approximated to 15-20 km had finally ended at 4 in the morning. No more energy left !

Day 6 (28th Dec):

The day started on a slow pace and I was to leave for Bangalore that night. I was asked to take a local train to Sion from Ambarnath, where my pickup point would be. The thought of crowded Mumbai local trains gave me jitters and I was petrified of travelling in them, but to my surprise I enjoyed the ride. I could compare the local trains with those present in other world cities like Paris and Munich. Mumbai is a different place altogether, it has the charisma and magic in the air that makes it very special. I was in love with the city and  its sheer volume to serve innumerous people. Meanwhile I got into the bus which was an 18 hour journey to Bangalore.
And there I am sitting inside the bus, somewhere in the middle when everyone has slept reminding myself of the tour that I had witnessed and looking back at all the experiences with so many wonderful individuals and places, apparently showcasing a truly vibrant side of our nation which was truly a memorable experience.

Looking back at things in retrospection

Day 7 (29th Dec):

Finished an 18 hour journey, glad to be back in Bangalore !! Yayy !!

Cheers !
Ram 

of the living legend : Rahul Dravid

Rarely has a word so aptly been devised to represent a person who is very modest to call himself as a true Gentleman. Rahul Dravid is one such person and a cricketer, whose impeccable qualities on the field stands out as much as his politeness and charisma off the field. 

                 

He is so good as a cricketer, purely rating him in terms of technique and the ability to withstand tremendous pressure from the opposition that his wicket always makes for an invalueable asset to possess. He is one such player who is never hated by anyone in the opposition or any cricket lover for that instance. He was and still is an enormous asset to the Indian cricket and the cricketing fraternity.

His technique was by far the best amongst the test playing batsman, his cover drives and the cut shots that he plays through the offside are mesmerising where he takes that extra bit of time from the bowler as he watches the ball to turn/zip or seam and then execute his shot was a sight which would take your breathe away. His occasional leg glance which would involve anything on the middle or slightly on the leg to flick it or to pull, if it was short of length was technically the best by far. 

He is known to be a team person, one who gave his everything for the team. It is very hard to imagine a person who has sacrificed so much for the team, that if he was asked to bat at all the positions (from being an opener to finish at No.6 or 7) he would be ready to do so, if he was asked to keep the wickets because the team needed an extra batsman, he would do so. If he was asked to field at short leg long after he had earned the reputation of being a exceptional slip catcher, he would still do it because another player was too tired to field. 

 

The philosophy that mars Rahul is that he was ready to look bad for the team to look good. His outstanding days were when he wore the white jersey for India, be it the magical partnership with VVS Laxman at Eden Gardens,Calcutta in 2001 vs Aus or the 233 vs Aus in Adelade, he always gave us a reason to cheer for him, have expectations of him and trust him to sail India through.

                   

He was truly believed to be "The Wall" of India. His remarkable achievement though for me came in England 2011, where he carried his bat through the innings and made a virtual mockery of the hugely talented batsmen who were in his company. He was too good not to be counted amongst the greats. He always maintained a low key profile, even in his interviews to the magazines or the press he never outspoke anyone. 

Naysayers may argue that he captained India in 2007 WC to a disastrous result, however that would tell us he is human above all. He always lived in the shadow of Sachin Tendulkar and he never had the opportunity to show the world the legend he was. I think if he would have lived in an era pre-Sachin or post-Sachin, he would have outshone him easily. His life was never a fairytale and he got an ending that was not a fairytale one too. He was always this good guy from Bangalore whom every girl would want to take home to her parents, never misbehaved, never got angry at trivial stuff or at his critics. I think that is one virtue not everyone posesses and he was the paramount when it came to play for the country with dignity and pride. Almost every format he took part in he excelled. Be it having scored more than 10000 runs in ODI's and tests or anchoring the innings for Rajasthan Royals in IPL, He was the go to man of Indian cricket.

Sadly, he did not recieve the dearest adulation or the star studded farewell like Sachin or the near perfect farewell of retiring in front of his home crowd, he got out for 1 in his last match ever, 25 in his last test innings and 69 in his last ODI innings. More importantly he lost all of last matches played hence not allowing the fans to glorify his absence thereforth. But everyone who grew up admiring Rahul would agree that he was much more than a excellent cricketer, more importantly he was a gentle human being, sometimes so gentle that you would wonder if one has to be so pompous and exuberant for anything that one's achieved. He exemplified for being simplistic and selfless yet fighting hard for his runs. He continues to be remembered as a wonderful cricketer and more importantly a beautiful human being who continues to inspire generations ahead. Glad that I saw you play in your prime.

We will never forget you or your contributions to Indian cricket. 

Someday I wish to be as selfless and as giving as you.

Love,

Ram

19-11-2014

Nice to read what other cricketing greats think of him:

http://www.sportskeeda.com/slideshow/10-greatest-quotes-on-rahul-dravid-cricket-ideal-team-man?imgid=18988

http://www.scoopwhoop.com/sports/rahul-dravid-quotes/

What do you think of him uh ?