Kumble Wins. We win

Published on Yahoo! Cricket, December 06, 2010

Elections in any democratic society are at a fundamental level exercises in hope: Hope for the future and for the betterment of the current state and lot.

November 2010 provided a cogent example in India, as the state of Bihar went to the polls to elect its state legislature. Slyly alluded to as “Darkness” in Aravind Adiga’s White Tiger, Bihar as a state has long been representative of the regressive extremities of the rule of law, anarchy and divisive politics and violence – all of which have subjected the majority of the populace to abject neglect and hopelessness.

Where did opinion go? (Cricinfo)

Published in Cricinfo Magazine, February 2010

As 2009 drew to a close, an atypical cricket-related comment emanating from unusual quarters startled and delighted us, and provided a much-needed giggle. A phlegmatic observation by Phil Stoyanoff, the curator of the McLean Park cricket ground in Napier, illustrated a quality cricket has lost in recent times. Questioned about his insistence that the pitch he had prepared for the deciding Test against Pakistan would produce a result, he said, “Yes, because both sides have such bad batsmen. That’s my honest opinion – they’re useless.”