ICC Champions Trophy 2013: India v/s WI - The Quick Flicks

It’s still early days in the final edition of the ICC Champions Trophy, and already I see some similarities in the way the Indian squad has performed in 2000 and 2013. In both cases, the team came into the tournament with the spectre of match-fixing hovering over them like Voldemort’s Dark Mark, and turned in match-winning performances to re-ignite people’s faith in cricket.

Here are some of the snapshots of today’s game against the West Indies:

Johnson Checks In

With Gayle dismissed early, fellow opener Johnson Charles stepped on the gas as he launched a spirited attack on the Indian bowlers. The way he bats, I’m reminded of former WI blaster Ricardo Powell, who would always reserve his best for India. His mini-assault on Umesh Yadav nearly reduced the Vidarbha pacer to tears – in fact, I thought Yadav was going to unload a bucketful. After all, you don’t expect a batsman with his first and last names in the wrong places (shouldn’t it ideally be Charles Johnson?) to hammer your bowlers all over the park, do you?

All Hail The “Sir” Of Team India!

5/32 – I haven’t seen those figures since the legendary Sachin Tendulkar bowled a magical spell against the might Aussies in 1998. But when you have Lord Sir Sri Sri Ravindra Jadeja in your side, you might as well forget about Sachin (blasphemous, I know). Our eponymous hero seems to have perfected the art of breaking partnerships just by being on the field. He bowled, and five WI batsmen surrendered their wickets. He fielded, and Dwayne Bravo directed his pull shot straight into his hands. With such magical performances on display, there was only one thing left for me to do – chant the powerful mantra :”Hail Sir Ravindra Jadeja!” 108 times.

Sunil Narine – Demystified

The only thing mysterious about WI bowler Sunil Narine is the secret of his mohawk cut and how he manages to maintain it. He tried to give SRJ the charge while batting, and skied a simple catch to Dinesh Karthik. While bowling, he did pick up two wickets, but Dhawan and DK played him easily, and his stock deliveries were negated by their risk-free approach. I sometimes think that the reason he has been de-mystified is because of the copious amounts of gel he may be using to keep his mohawk in shape. It thus becomes that much harder to grip and turn the ball. Oh well, better luck next time Sunil, and go easy on the gel if you want to take wickets consistently.

Hit A Six, Score A Hundred. Hit a Four, Score a Fifty

Probably very few matches have seen a hundred and a fifty scored in consecutive overs with a six and a four, respectively. Shikhar Dhawan and Dinesh Karthik, by playing these respective shots, etched their names into the rather short elite list of players who have achieved this feat before. Free, uninhibited and with just eight runs needed to secure the win, you can always count on your set batsmen to pull this kind of stunt.

While India progress to the semi-finals with a game to play, West Indies will lock horns with SA for the last semi-final slot from Group B. After all the match-fixing allegations and hullabaloo, India’s consecutive wins might just have brought cricket back from the “dead”, so to speak. The tournament is on!