Harsha Bhogle - The real gem of cricket

Harsha Bhogle: The voice of cricket

When we talk about cricket, the topics generally discussed are batting, bowling, fielding or even cheerleaders these days. But one aspect of cricket which is followed but never discussed is commentary or analysis, which I love to the core. In this section too, we have many greats who actually help us understand the game and situations of the match and also entertain us, such as the likes of Ravi Shastri, Sunil Gavaskar, Alan Wilkins, Geoff Boycott, Navjot Singh Sidhu, Ian Chappell and Sanjay Manjrekar. Even their articles are very interesting to read. But the most simple, yet attractive commentator and analyst, is Harsha Bhogle.

Harsha, a Chemical Engineer and a PGPM by qualification, played cricket for his school, college, and also represented his university. Being an accomplished amateur cricketer, the way he reads the game is just phenomenal. His control over speech and way of presentation is even more impressive. I may occasionally miss a cricket match but if I know Harsha is commentating, I will never miss it. I love his commentary to the extent that I even missed a chance to go to the stadium just because I would miss Harsha’s commentary.

Many fans follow cricket for their favourite players or their favourite teams, but Harsha is one of those commentators who is followed by his fans just like a cricketer.

He makes you sit and watch the game on television while he is in the commentary box, irrespective of whether your favourite team is playing or not. Harsha never uses big phrases or adjectives to describe a shot or a delivery. He just uses simple language, but with his very own flair, makes it attractive. We call it ‘Harsha’s way’.

The way he speaks will make you feel the actual atmosphere in the ground, with a touch of simplicity. His words would make simple incidents memorable which you would’ve otherwise forgotten under normal circumstances. The best example of this is the six by Sachin off Dilhara Fernando, when Harsha said “this shot is for 24 runs” the moment Sachin connected the bat on the ball. When others use clichéd terms and expressions to describe a shot, Harsha makes his own terms.

For Sachin’s cover drive, “absolute textbook stuff” or “straight out of the coaching manual” are not unheard of, but Harsha comes up with gems like “open textbook, turn to page No. 32″. Both sets of words depict the same emotion but what Harsha’s words are remembered by people along with that shot. Harsha has that touch of glamour which makes the description even more attractive. A few years ago, when Laxman was playing all the delicate and delightful flicks, Harsha said, “I wonder if there will be one shot in the future where Laxman hits a boundary but the bat doesn’t make a sound at all.” An absolutely phenomenal line from Harsha. Simple and short, but unique and brilliant.

Harsha is also a tremendous analyst of the game of cricket. He analyses all the aspects of the game. Sometimes I wonder; for a man who never played professional cricket, how can he talk about cricket so beautifully?

When we follow a newspaper or a website for an article, we generally hate if it’s too big, but for me if the author is Harsha, I don’t miss even a single word of it. The quality of the analysis is at such a level of attractiveness and completeness, that you feel bliss reading it. There are many ex-cricketers who finished their successful playing career and are analysing and commentating now, but Harsha Bhogle analyses better than all those cricketers-cum-experts. There are many experts, but Harsha is in a class of his own.

If Sachin can produce the best shot ever and Murali can produce the best delivery ever, Harsha can describe the best shot and best delivery in the best possible way ever. He plays with words and has conquered lots and lots of cricketing hearts.

If Sachin bats, Wasim swings, Warnie spins, Jhonty fields, then Harsha talks.

There are lots of cricketers worth watching in the world, as watching them is pure pleasure to the eyes. Similarly, listening to Harsha Bhogle is pure pleasure to the ears.

Take a bow, Harsha!

For more on Harsha Bhogle, check out this article: Why India loves Harsha Bhogle