Travel Diary- New York

June 2006- World Cup round the corner-consequently a quarter final defeat for England was looming large - Work was getting monotonous - Internal audit at work – I started questioning if I was getting enough satisfaction (and money) for the work I do-resulted in a move away from my then comfort zone of Pattamal Street and my first employer.

June 2010- World Cup round the corner-consequently a quarter final defeat for England was looming large - Work was getting monotonous - Internal audit at work – I started questioning if I was getting enough satisfaction (and money) for the work I do-resulted in a move away from my new comfort zone of The Somers Isles and my second employer.

How strange is that? So that’s the news- It will be newer pastures (and hopefully greener pastures) in Singapore around mid–july. The move just makes sense overall- it will give the wifey a better chance to have a crack at her career. –Closer to home- what not.

Obviously, trips to this side of the Atlantic will reduce considerably over the coming years; ARR was performing in Atlantic City and S has been inviting us to visit them ever since I got engaged. All of this provided us with good reason to visit the “Empire State”

Day 1- June 12th 2010 Atlantic City and ARR concert

Quite strangely our AA flight departed on time and we landed in JFK around half ten. R had sent us detailed instructions as to how to get to NJ- It essentially involved taking 3 different trains to their place. We took the LIRR from Jamaica station to reach NY Penn and then took a NJ transit to Seacaucus. We missed our train to Clifton from where R was supposed to pick us up- He had to drive some 20-25 KM to get to Seacaucus. We reached their house in NJ-which was very spacious and has a lawn on the outside for the kids to play. S had promised to make me Parrupu Urundai Kozhumbu whenever I visited her and she stuck to the promise. We finished the meal with Rabdi for dessert. We took a bus from NJ to Atlantic City-most of the roads in NJ are probably as bad as the ones in Chennai- but once you reached the highway you can clearly see why people in US like to do road trips- The roads are super broad and you can pretty much drive at 150 KM/hr. Reached the Boardwalk auditorium around 8.00 –picked up our tickets from the will call-quickly grabbed some dinner and took our seats.

By god there are about a billion Indians in the US alone- beyond a point on our way to Atlantic City- every car had some 8 people inside it- All of them –Our makkal- It was pretty much Kannum Pongal at Marina beach- Everyone was eating what I can only presume to be Puliodharai and Thayir SadamJ- The concert began at around 8.30 and ARR began proceedings with a very powerful rendition of a superstar hit song-“Athiradee Kalam” from Sivaji with some colorful lights and fantastic dancers- The arena almost erupted with the twin joy of seeing ARR and mental picture of super star walking down the stage- It was just pure magic-whistles screeching-people hollering –and we were just getting started. The ensemble cast included Hariharan, Benny Dayal, Javed Ali,Neeti Muhan,Blaaze,Shewta Pandit and ofcourse ARR. Most of my mates tell me Indian singers don’t take concerts too seriously with all of them trying to experiment- Whilst I am not an expert on the subject and they are all professional and they know what they are doing, I still want it to be as good as the original.

Rahman knew what songs to pick to get the crowd going-Kwajha mere Kwajha (Jodha Akbar)/Chaiyya Chaiyya (Dil Se- More on that later)/Range De Basanti/Thamizha Thamizha (Hindi Version with Hariharan doing his usual changing to Tamil half way through the song) /Pappu Can’t dance (Jaane Tu Na)/Hi Rama (Rangeela) and quite as expected he finished with Jai Ho and a soul stirring rendition of Vande Mataram. The highlight of the concert was a medley they did which involved Rahman playing the harmonium and the various singers’ sang classical songs to the tune of cine songs in various languages and various religion. My biggest gripe regarding the concert was regarding Chaiya Chaiya song- The song is just not the same when Sukhwindra Singh does not sing it. Call it a hyperbole if you want but it’s the same when Kurai Ondrum Illai is not sung by MS. The concert finished around midnight and we decided to spend the night at Atlantic City

Day 2 – June 13th New Jersey- Shopping and Dinner 

Woke up around half seven the next morning and was inundated with texts from my mates telling me how shambolic the “queens boys” were against “Uncle Sam’s soccer” players. Ah well some things don’t change- Got a train and reached NJ to spend time with R& S and more importantly the 2 kids. Considering this was a trip with the missus we had to shop- so spent the rest of the afternoon in a mall picking up clothes and what not. I was in charge of the 2 kids and had to hold the bags for the missus and S- Mental picture of poor husbands standing in Ranganathan Street whilst the wife’s were busy shopping for “Sneha Saree” and “Simran jacket” Ah the joys of a married man! R & S took us out for a dinner to celebrate my birthday the next day- We went to an Ethiopian Restaurant and we just absolutely loved it-for all the foodies out there (which is pretty much all my friends) this is one thing you should not miss. Their bread equivalent is an Injera which is like a crepe and is absolutely delightful along with the sides.

Day 3- June 14th-New York City

Yours truly was turning 28 and there was no disappointment this year unlike the last few years where at some point during my birthday I was depressed about growing old- maybe maturity had found its way somehow- Ah who am I kidding? We took a bus from NJ to NYC and decided to do all touristy things like click pictures in front of Times Square and figure out what the big deal about the busy New York streets is all about. New York is quite an unique place-whilst the normal” No time for the rest of the world” is frankly annoying- the sheer pace at which the life generally moves is quite staggering. The missus quips that it’s similar to Mumbai but I am sure there is an element of exaggeration in that-I have seen busy Toronto and London streets to a certain extent- but NYC is something else. Especially if you are from Bermuda where every thing happens at snails pace and you have time to greet almost everyone on the street.4 Years ago when I came to Bermuda- I wanted to work in the Wall street- My time in Bermuda has spoilt me and I am not sure if I really want it now. (I know the irony – Moving to Singapore might not be the best thing if I don’t want a busy life style- hey I like the role so I am going to give it a shot!)

We went to the usual places- Madame Tussaud’s/Empire State Building/Ripley’s Museum- The missus eyes absolutely lit up when she saw wax models of George Clooney and Brad Pitt- I could almost hear her say- with all this available in the world- look at what I picked? Tough luck sweet heart- Maybe another time

We came back at around 4.30 to spend more time with the kids- I have to make a mention about the 2 kids- They are such dolls- especially S1- so much maturity that sometimes I was ashamed thinking about how much of a brat I was when I was six/ultra protective about her little sister and has varied interests- I hear she is quite the tiger in academics too. Its speaks so much about the parenting of R&S. For some strange reason S1 seemed to love my slap stick humor- you cant blame her for she is bloody six and I am funny as f*ck- ok the second part was an exaggeration. I miss her now that I am back on the rock

S made Tacos and we had a quite and peaceful dinner with some wine.

Day 4- June 15th-back In Bermuda

Left their house around 12.30 in the afternoon feeling a little guilty about all the help R & S did during our stay. We had an absolutely cracking time and memories for a life time. Hopefully the missus and I would travel quite a bit in the coming years but sadly it won’t be on this side of the Atlantic. Singapore beckons!

Cheers

S

Welcome Home – Golden Balls

The prodigal son came home last night-a long overdue return to say a huge thank you to the 70-odd thousand who adore him and still treat him as their own-7 years after an acrimonious exit- Not on his own terms- But Becks was back- like he always is. A 25 minute cameo which included a rasping drive and a few pin-point crosses which someone like a Ruud would have safely deposited in the back of net- he was easily Milan’s best player of the night. To see Becks, eyes welled with tears and the stunning ovation from the red devil faithful- the ironic boos about his first touch and the inevitable “Fergie Fergie sign him up chants” was all pure drama and it had to bring out the feminine side in most people- well at least all hardcore fans. The man knew how to milk it too-after all has there ever been a bigger exponent of the self-promotion game? This is not to cast any aspersions on his true love for all things United- so much so that he found time to give his tacit support to “Green and Gold” campaign” to free United from the crippling debts- Deny it all you want Golden Balls- we know you are not that dumb.

As an aside, It was very disappointing to see Fergie act like a bitter old man- Its all well and good not wanting to get involved in a “media circus” involving DB- But the game was all but won- a few word other than- “he is a good crosser of the ball” wouldn’t kill you- After all the lad hasn’t had a bad word to say about you for 7 years despite having a boot kicked to his face- Roy Keane would tear you a new one if you did that to him- Show some class- Fergie- Its all well and good against Rafa and Arsene but against Becks????? You know he treats you like a father- Grow up Fergie- you can learn so much from our boy

Cheers
S

2009-The Year in review

As clichéd as it may sound- the year has flown by so quickly-I still vividly remember standing on the shores of south shore on the eve of new years talking about things I wanted to do in the new year and suggesting new year resolutions to S and the rest of the lot- This after the bat-shit mental dance routine we did with the boys- well choreographed but horribly executed by the crew- hey no complaints we had a cracking time. It just seems like an ordinary year from outside- with the usual joys in life –Liverpool fans claiming this is going to be their year/Indian cricket moving from being the most overrated to simply sublime in a matter of few months/Sunil Gavaskar spouting xenophobic drivel/ India judicial system taking ages to punish criminals for a crime against the state but I reckon the year had more action and drama than usual. This is a year when the world got obsessed with Facebook and twitters- People found an obsessive compulsion to let their friends and fans know about everything from the color of their undergarments to the frequency of their bowel movements- I thought I was self obsessed because I blog- Funny times eh?

The year got off to a truly memorable start even for a brown Asian guy with the Barrack Obama being elected the 44th President –the first African-American President of the United States. I don’t care too much for American politics but it is such a refreshing change to see the American president be able to successfully string a couple of sentences without looking like a – well “Bush”. The man has got a personality and a presence about him that you can even feel on the television- I don’t care what he is speaking every time he is on the television I pause for a few minutes to hear him speak. and speak he did a lot during the year. This is certainly not some blinded following because the world media made me believe so- I think I have a small man crush on him for the way he carries himself- Its got nothing to do with his health care policies/stance on war on terror. People were watching him with their jaws wide open as if they have never met or see a black man all their life. On the other side of the world journalists /common man were busy throwing shoes at politicians.

A R Rahman tried to steal the headlines in February with an Oscar award for his less than impressive compositions for a British movie with an Indian plot. Of course most Indians were offended that either their beloved Kamal Hassan has not won the Oscar as yet or SDM was not an Indian movie so ARR and us Indians should not be proud of his achievements. But the headlines for this month clearly belonged Mr Muthalik and his men who in an act of attention seeking behavior and because they are the moral guardians of all that is good and well in the society decided to attack women in pubs.They felt these women were bringing a shame to the famed traditions and customs of the “Indian Bahu”. Taking a leaf out of Mahatma’s books in an attempt to retaliate through non-violent means and borrowing an idea from the wonderful souls who thought it was an intelligent idea to send the pope condoms, the wonderful ladies – or the Consortium of Pub-going, Loose and Forward Women as they would like to be called thought it was a fantastic idea to send the man Pink Chaddis. The latest we hear is the pope has changed his ideas about birth control and HIV and Muthalik is so ashamed of himself that he is encouraging women all over the world to drink and is contemplating changing the symbol of his organization. Well done Gals. In other news -On the other side of the world journalists /common man were busy throwing shoes at politicians.

While the rest of the world was busy battling recession/depression the head honchos in the world of politics and business were busy buying jetliners/luxury suites and spending zillions on building statues for their kith and kin. A lot of them were apologetic but did not find the need to return the money to the tax payers who were made to pay for their livelihood and luxuries.

After 30 years of enthralling the world audience with some magical music/dance performances and enriching the lives of several drug dealers and quack doctors MJ breathed his last in June. A fantastic artist but a shame he will be remembered for his operations/drug use as much as he will be remembered for his music. Fans world over were heartbroken and took down quite a few internet sites while there were strong rumors of a lot of children breathing a sigh of relief- we are unable to confirm this. Common man and World journalists were busy throwing footwear at politicians while MS Gill and Suresh Kalmadi had a petition doing the rounds to make this India’s national sport to break cricket’s hegemony over hockey and Football. Lalit Modi was unperturbed as he was busy rubbing his hands and petting his cat and laughing like a maniac.

Delhi High court passed a landmark verdict in de-criminalizing consensual homosexual acts- This prompted men and women who were not even gay to come out of the closet- They just thought it was a hip thing to do and not to mention to earn a few hug from their hot female/male friends they couldn’t even get near if they were honest about their sexual orientation. In other news, SRK was completely outraged that someone had the temerity to frisk him – the Badshah of Bollywood at an international airport- A few days earlier Dr Abdul Kalam was frisked at an airport and the great man didn’t make a big deal out of it. Some men do have more class than others.

In October the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced that the 2009 Nobel peace prize award would go to a certain Barrack Obama. Conventional wisdom suggested that it was awarded for his public speaking skills before the committee came out and clarified that it was “for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples”. Widespread sniggers from the public at large were drowned in the deafening applause from the employees of dictionary publishing companies and the patrons of burger shop round the corner. Obama accepted this award in Oslo, Norway on December 10, 2009 with "deep gratitude and deep humility."

Oprah decided that she wanted to create the record for serving the longest notice period in living memory. She has decided to retire in 2011. It will be an absolute shame that we will no longer be able to see grown up men and women in the audience act like delirious maniacs-crying and laughing on national television just because Oprah decided to gift them a free pass for her next show. George Lopez in his late night show made one of the most astute observations – Oprah has spent the past 26 years interviewing some of the greatest minds in the world. Then one day she decides to interview Ms Palin and immediately considers retirement- Well done Ms Palin.

It also seems like a very bad year for the Gillette group of Companies – 2 of their 4 icons have been caught in transgressions that they regret- Thierry Henry did a Diego Maradona on the poor Irish to send the Les Blues to the world cup at South Africa while Tiger Woods was (allegedly) busy texting and emailing every good looking chic in Las Vegas about how needy and vulnerable he is. World media is closely following Rahul Dravid and Roger Federer to see if they are going to kill their pet hamsters in the coming weeks. Most golf lovers are outraged that St. Tiger woods has done such an act and are worried about the sort of role model that he will be to their kids. The world would be a better place if people stop expecting sportsman and actors to be role models to their kids- I want my kid to look up to me for a role model and not Cristiano Ronaldo just because he is brilliant footballer. But what do I know? -On the other side of the world journalists /common man were busy throwing shoes at politicians.

Finally to me, last year I was hoping that I will realize in 2009 that it’s not important to be RIGHT all the time- God sure has a wicked sense of humor- He made me meet my special someone and suffice it to say that I haven’t been right even once for the past six months. Like they say god has mysterious ways of workingJ-

Cheers
S

PS I know this is a satirical post but no post about 2009 is complete if I don’t make a mention about one of the most fascinating incidents that happened in the year- Hudson River Plane crash rescue act- Bravo guys!

Heartfelt condolences to three special people who attained heavenly abode during the year – Nagesh/D K Pattamal and R Venkatraman

Here is hoping the fans/followers of Barrack/Bush/Sunil Gavaskar/Muthalik/SRK/MJ and like won’t take offence to this post

….and Chandler has finally met his Monica

The gods were conspiring- keeping a couple of my very close male friends single for a long time; the Delhi High court was conspiring with its landmark judgment recently. For long it just seemed destined to happen- as Jerry and George contend and I agree -not that there is anything wrong with that. I was even contemplating my own “Sharath ka swayamvar” on national television but none of the producers seem too interested- What???? you cant blame me I am sure I am more likeable and interesting than Ms Sawant.

Then came along S – a cost accountant and a MBA and more importantly sweet, intelligent and very understanding. I promise I wont bore you with details of how magnificent S is and how rosy my life has been for the past few months (but hell yeah she is fantastic). S was born and brought up in Mumbai- (Ooi- You lot at the back I can hear all the sniggering about how much I used to hate Mumbai- When did I even say a that????- Mumbai is brilliant and have always wanted to live thereJ-) and works as a relationship manager in a leading bank in Mumbai. We got officially engaged today and wedding will be on March 22nd.

As boring as it might sound I am a person who likes a routine- I am looking forward to waking up next to the same person for the rest of my life. S brings a sense of method to all my madness – and by god there is a lot of madness that she has to deal with. I am slowly trying to adjust to the responsibility that comes along with being in a relationship and learning a lot of things the hard way (I know we haven’t even started living together and there is already so much work to do- I can only imagine what it would be like when we do get married). But I wouldn’t have it any other way and wouldn’t want to have this with any one other than S

Can’t wait for March

Cheers
S

PS: For those of you who have come up with the whole-“ S has lost a bet with her friends and as punishment they are making her marry me”- Haha very clever very funny- I am not that bad- Hope S agreesJ-

The Big Fat Indian Wedding

There are a few weddings round the corner in the family- P has found her prince charming and has been all smiles for the past few weeks much to the joy /relief of one and all in the family. My cousin A is about to get married sometime next year and some very close friends R and P are also about to take the plunge. As a natural consequence the number of conversations involving weddings have increased manifold. Most people are completely looking forward to the big idea whilst some are not so worried about the wedding and are more worried about the marriage. One such conversation with T leads to this remark from her “it’s such a sheer waste of money and is an annoyingly silly joke with the bride and the groom as puppets who have no clue why they are doing what they are doing! Silly ;) and the ever so subtle VAK man had this to say recently.

As my friends love to remind me – I can start an argument in an empty room – This subject has been evoking some strong and passionate responses- Do weddings have to be a fancy fanfare? I just thought I might add my side of the arguments (Why the heck do people refer to their opinions as $ 0.02- Is it because they know it’s pretty darn useless?). Let me start off by saying I love Indian Weddings- They are an occasion to celebrate and rejoice – not only for the bride and groom but for the entire family. There is hope for a long and a fantastic association not only for the heroes and heroines of the ceremony but for the both the families. Families have always been of paramount importance in Indian customs- How else do you explain the concept of arranged marriages?

Its is so easy for the westerner or the confused nouveau-rich middle class Indian to mock and scoff at the proceedings of an Indian wedding for being a pointless and worthless exercise- but we need to bear in mind that unlike the westerners our lives tend to focus on family rather than the individual. I remember Aishwarya Rai had a brilliant retort to David Letterman –

D (Trying to be smart) - I heard Indians live with their parents even after they are 18
Ash: yeah- At least we don’t have to make appointments with our parents to have dinner together

It has always been about the family – Every success is cherished with the family, every failure is endured together- comfort in numbers. It is a real shame that most of us are ashamed of our customs and traditions- For the last time- Just because you don’t understand something doesn’t make it wrong.

I am not saying that every Indian wedding should be done at the cost of making someone bankrupt- It is after all not a status symbol –Just because Karan Johar decides to get Kajol and Shahrukh married with 7,327 elephants,8,236 band masters and food enough to feed the entire African continent doesn’t mean you have to do the same. We have been accused of showmanship- but what the heck do you expect – It is a celebration and it is bound to go slightly over the top- That is not only an Indian trait- westerners are equally culpable.

I am all for fanciful and fat weddings as long as you can afford it- A son or daughter getting married is a once in a life time thing and people would love to celebrate what is essentially the core values and traditions that define the Indian society with family and friends by bringing them all together under one roof- It’s a time to party and party we will- completely oblivious to what the world thinks of us-

So bring on the 3 day events- 5 course meals-fun and dance- because WE ARE LIKE THIS ONLY and there is not a thing any of you can do about it.

Cheers
S

Viva Ronaldo - Obrigado pelas recordações

After 6 years of enthralling us, the fans of my beloved Manchester United and annoying the fans of Scum, Rent Boys and Le Arse with moments of sublime skill and sheer audacity Ronnie has decided to seek newer challenges in greener (and sunnier) pastures of Spain. United have accepted a bid of $ 130 Million from the Satan’s in Spain- a world record deal which will be signed sealed and delivered when Ron agrees personal terms in the coming days. Born on 5th February 1985 in Funcal on the Portuguese island of Madeira to an alcoholic father (who he dearly loved) and a mother who shared the same burning ambition as her son that he would one day play in the white of Real Madrid, he decided to further his footballing education under the tutelage of arguably the greatest manager of all time Sir Alex Ferguson and joined United in the summer of 2003.

Legend has it that- United were playing a pre-season friendly against Sporting Lisbon (Ronnie’s former club) and a spotty young kid was running circles around the likes of Gary Neville/Wes Brown and John O Shea and they came in at half time and pleaded with the manager to sign this bloke as they never ever wanted to play against him. Sir Alex was equally impressed and had instructed the devil incarnate Peter Kenyon (our ex-CEO) to not come back to Manchester without signing this kid. Ronnie joined us in 2003 and was asked to carry on the tradition by wearing the famous number 7 jersey previously worn by legends like George Best, Bryan Robson and David “Golden Balls” Beckham- Not an easy task for a kid from the Iberian Peninsula who is to play in alien conditions. He was seen as initially as a one-trick show pony that was more interested in the tricks and flicks rather the end product. He moved from strength to strength and was rightly won the prestigious Ballon d'Or seeing off competition from the little magician Messi. Later in the season he was crowned FIFA world player of the year.

Ronnie has achieved everything there is to achieve with Manchester United – a hat-trick of premier Leagues, 1 FA Cup, 2 League Cups, 1 Club World Club and the big one- UEFA Champions league. In this time he had also won the golden boot and the player of the season awards. No right minded fan would begrudge him as he pursues his childhood dream after everything he has done for us in the past 5 seasons. To top it all he is making us richer by $ 130 Million (which is higher than the GDP of the island nation of Kiribati) which is over and above all the replica shirts he has helped us sell in the past 5 years.

The audacious back heel against Aston Villa, the forty yard screamer against Porto and amazing counter attack maneuvers with England’s boy wonder will remain long in our memory. No amount money can help us replace a champion like you and it will be a shame that we will no longer hear the fans of scum try to belittle your achievements while craving to find a player like you to wear their jersey. Good luck son and thanks for the memories. You will be missed and will always be one of us.

THERE IS ONLY ONE RONALDO and it is not the one from brazil- That is the highest compliment any one can ever pay you as we all know how bloody good the magician from Brazil was. With stunning looks and a chiseled body, amazing skill and huge amounts of money- Most women want to be with you, most men want to be you and then there are some men who want to be with you.

Cheers
S

MyPL Dream Team

Last year around the same time my friend B (who btw celebrates his birthday today Happy Birthday mate) picked his IPL team of the year. To be honest he beat me to the idea but his team pretty much reflected my take on the team of the year. A year and Lalit Modi a few millions richer later I thought I will try a team of the year of my own. Plus I realized anything you write about the IPL will get you more hits on the internet than Ms Susan Boyle. So here goes my eleven:

Matt the Bat (Chennai Super Kings)

He has not played cricket for a year yet he comes out and bats as if he is playing with his kids in the back yard. Ultra consistent and showed amazing intelligence when he played the anchor role and carried his bat through against Mumbai Indians showing the world T20 is not all about wham bham thank you maam.

Gilly (Deccan Chargers)

I can’t get my head around as to why he chose to retire from International cricket. He is still one of the cleanest hitters of a cricket ball and the closest thing to Viv Richards. Led his side very intelligently so much so that most people didn’t even realize VVS was dropped as the skipper. He would be leading my side, it was a close call between him and Kumble but I have always believed wicket keepers make better skippers as they are constantly involved in the game and have a better understanding of the field placements.

Suresh Raina (Chennai Super Kings)

Mr. Gavaskar reckons Greg Chappell was the worst thing to happen to Indian cricket completely ignoring the irony that our man was instrumental in hiring Greg. I think the whole world has seen what Greg saw in Raina. He is a very intelligent batsman, more than capable to hold his own with the cork, electric in the field and every captains dream team mate. One of the very few Indian batsmen who adapted quite well to bouncy tracks in South Africa (along with Rohit Sharma)

Dilshan (Delhi Dare Devils)

I was very impressed with his capability to read the length early, a very Srilankan trait. Some of his strokes brought back memories of Aravinda Desilva in his hey days and I cannot pay him a better compliment than that.

ABD (Delhi Dare Devils)

Nobody turned on the screws in the last six over’s better than ABD. Made a stunning hundred against the CSK and formed an amazing partnership with Dilshan. Paul Collingwood is one of the best batsman in the shorter form of the game, but ABD’s form ensured that he did as much work as clerk in a government office in India.

Rohit Sharma (Deccan Chargers)

See above Suresh Raina part II

Ojha (Deccan Chargers)

Any left arm spinner who can keep Daniel Vettori out of the side has to be special (well from myPl XI atleast). Another fantastic season has earned him a place in the T20 world cup squad and we can only hope that he doesn’t follow Murali Kartik and drift away after showing great early promise. Left arm spinners like leg spinners have this charm and are wonderful to watch when on song.

Anil Kumble (Royal Challengers Banglore)

It may seem like another “Ryan Giggs for player of the year award saga” but Anil has been fantastic. Taking over the shambles from KP and instilling self belief in a rather poor Bangalore side is nothing short of fantastic. A special mention for having the courage to take on the challenge of bowling to Gilly - another example of him leading from the front. I haven’t had the privilege of watching Chandra/Bedi or Venkat but to me he is India’s greatest spinner by a country mile. He may not have the guile of Murali or the variety of Shane but he makes up for all of it with Heart.

Munaf Patel (Rajasthan Royal)

A real shame that he missed out in T20 world cup squad but the only consolation is that he is replaced by RP who has been an absolute revelation. If any one has any doubts of Shane Warne’s mentoring skills we need to look no further than Munaf. He bowled a fantastic last over against Mumbai Indians and was good enough to pick 16 wickets at average of just over 15 and an economy rate of tad under seven

RP Singh (Deccan Chargers)

A fantastic come back by a bowler who showed so much early promise, hopefully he can stay away from injuries and keep Zaheer Khan on his toes. There is so much to look fwd to if you are an Indian supporter over the next 5 years. A bowling squad of Zaheer/Munaf/Ishant/RP has to be every coach’s dream

Ashish Nehra (Delhi Daredevils)

Clearly the surprise package of IPL2. I didn’t realize he had picked up so many wickets. I also owe him an apology as I of the opinion he was hindering the progress of another young fast bowler. Another thing that he can be very proud of is he was indirectly responsible for keeping the legend that Glenn Mcgrath is out of the side. His wicket taking ability allowed Sehwag to pick Nannes ahead of GM as a gamble and one that actually paid of


Special mention to Fidel Edwards/Andrew Symonds/JP Duminy/Lasith Malinga/ Muralitharan/Jakati who were quite impressive

Let me know if you agree or disagree with my side.

Cheers
S