Mumbai Indians in the IPL final but Tendulkar might be injured

Mumbai Indians were playing Bangalore Royal Challengers in the first semi final of IPL. I am sure Bangalore were hurting that the semi finals which were supposed to be hosted in Bangalore were rescheduled to be played in Mumbai for security reasons.

RCB started quite well with getting quick wickets of Tendulkar, Dhawan and Nayar. But the middle order which was considered to be Mumbai Indian’s problem area rose to the occasion. Keiron Pollard the giant from Trinidad and Tobago hammered his way through the Bangalore bowling to score 33 runs of 12 balls.

RCB started the chase well but fell flat towards then end after the first 9 overs. Mumbai Indians probably have the best attack of the tournament and chasing 184 under pressure was a little too much for them.

I think today Royal Challengers were royally beaten by a very good side who have won 10 games in the league phase.

Sachin Tendulkar injured!

Sachin Tendulkar still the highest run scorer for Mumbai Indians hurt himself by having the webbing of his hand get split while attempting a catch of Rahul Dravid. Split webbings usually are not very major injury but can be quite a problem for a batsman to grip the bat properly. Being a Mumbai Indians supporter and Sachin Tendulkar fan I hope five stitches  do not trouble the great man on 25th of April playing the IPL final.

Mumbai Indians have also secured their place from Champions League.

Dhoni goes berserk and Chennai Super Kings go into IPL Semis

Today’s IPL match between Kings XI Punjab and Chennai Super Kings was crucial as CSK had a good net-run rate but needed to win this game to keep that run-rate higher and also qualify for Semis. Kings XI Punjab did put up a strong total of 192 and looked like causing a upset.

It was almost an upset had it not been for MS Dhoni’s superb display of going berserk while batting. At one point CSK needed 52 runs of 24 balls. Chennai won the game with two deliveries to spare. The last over left Chennai to get 16 of 6 balls. Dhoni hit 4-2-6-6 to walk away with the match and also end up securing a Semi Final place.

Chennai Super Kings are the second team behind Mumbai Indians to secure their place in Semi Finals. Considering the other two spots are still open and only two matches are left to be played, shows what a competitive league this has been.

Chennai Super Kings are also the only team in IPL to have qualified for Semi finals in every edition. This I guess makes it one of the most consistent side. If Delhi Daredevils beat Deccan Chargers they will also qualify into the Semis and join CSK as only team to feature in all Semi final line ups of all editions of IPL.

Who is in the Semis?

Mumbai Indians are through with 20 points. CSK, RCB have got 14 points and will qualify thanks to a great Net Runrate. Delhi play Deccan and the winner will end up with 16 ponts and will be through.
Kolkata will hope Deccan lose badly so that if they win big against Mumbai tomorrow, they will qualify for the Semi Finals.

So who do you think is your line up for Semis? And more importantly who will win IPL 2010?

Mumbai Indians dent Royal Challengers Bangalore net runrate

I grew up in Mumbai and have stayed for most part of my life in Mumbai, so saying my favorite IPL team is Mumbai Indians is a given. But I like Royal Challengers Bangalore as as team which has a great balance. It has my favourite fast bowler Dale Steyn and also one of the world best all time great all-rounder going by the name Jacques Kallis. Not to forget greats like Kumble and Dravid are also part of RCB.

Today was surely not a auspicious day in Bengaluru (Bangalore) with a crude bomb going off minutes before the game in a generator room. The match was delayed by an hour but did take place.

Mumbai Indians posted a considerably large score of 191/4 and restricted RCB to 134/9 and winning the match by 57 runs.

RCB were favorites to get into Semi finals as they had a very high net-runrate. This loss to Mumbai Indians was disastrous and leaves them with a net Runrate of +0.219. It was at a comfortable +0.467.

The Semi Final battle has really warmed up and I think RCB might just still make it and we might have a Mumbai Indians vs Royal Challengers Bangalore final. What do you think? Do drop in your comments.

IPL in Multiplex & on HD at home! Wow!

With a thumping response to it’s first two editions of the tournament, IPL’s 3rd edition is doing equally great or may be even better! TRP ratings for this years IPL remains on top as expected!

IPL has already created a scary buzz amongst the Motion Picture business. People are hard to find in theatres to watch new movie releases.

After finding a solution to watch IPL matches on desktop and laptop through Youtube,  someone now tries to find a solution for the movie theatre owners.

IPL  tied up with UFO movies to broadcast live matches in multiplexes! I am sure, watching IPL live matches on a huge screen with no commercial breaks does sound to be fun! But will this idea get sold as expected? I have my doubts, except for semifinals & the final match!

Another good news for the HD TV owners with SUN DTH installed is that they can watch IPL matches in HD format. SUN DTH is offering HD subscription through which they are broadcasting IPL matches in HD format in association with the official broadcaster Sony’s Set Max! These matches also are without the commercial breaks!

Discovery Channel is also available in HD (16×9, 1080p) on SUN DTH. This looks like a beginning of a new High Definition television viewing era in Indian television history. There are constant technical trials going on for High Definition broadcast in India. I will be posting details in another post on DW very soon!

But for now let’s enjoy IPL in much bigger, clearer & un-cut picture! 🙂

Mumbai Indians in Semis while others in knockout situation

The good thing about IPL is that there are no structurally weak or strong team. You do not have poor or weaker on paper. Their weakness or strengths are revealed only during the tournament and that’s why predicting things are very difficult.

A couple of days ago Mumbai Indians beat Rajasthan Royals to be the first team to make it to the Semi-finals of IPL. This is Mumbai Indians first time appearance in IPL semis. The only team that has never been in IPL semis would be Kolkata Knight Riders but they are still in with a slim chance.

Mumbai is through, who will be next ?

Now that Mumbai Indians are through who will be next in the semi-finals. The tournament has become a virtual knock out and every match will see a new drama unfolding. I think previous post written by Rahul Bansal makes it quite clear that he does not think much will be done by Rajasthan Royals who he thinks are only good to play ‘Oongli Cricket’ (Idea), but they are surviving in the top four but will have to win all matches.

The Points Table as on 12th April 2010

This leaves RCB, DD, RR, DC with 12 points and CSK and KKR are tied at 10 points each. Today evening’s match Kolkata Knight Riders will plays against Chennai Super Kings and chances are one of them will be knocked out. 😉

So who do you think will make it to Semi-Finals. Do drop in your comments to play the guessing game. 🙂

Credits: IPL

Rajasthan Royals should play (idea) “oongli” cricket!

After watching pathetic fielding (dropped catches, missed run-out chances and countless misfields) and poor running between the wicket, by Rajasthan Royals player, I strongly believe that Rajasthan Royals players have some serious issue with their bones and muscles.

If by any chance, they can move atleast their finger (“oongli”) smartly, they should play “oongli” cricket! 😀

What do you think???

Link: Idea Oongali Cricket

(Disclaimer: Do not think that I am fan of Rajasthan Royals. I am fan of kolkata knight riders and that too for only DADA aka Saurav Ganguly!)

Don Bradman’s tormentor Alec Bedser dies

Alex Bedser is not exactly a popular name for most cricket fanatics and many would not have even heard the name. But in his time he was on of the best bowlers around in Cricket and it was a reputation he polished further by taking Don Bradman’s wicket six times in a single test series.

Alec Bedser was 28 when he made his debut against India in 1946. This was quite unfortunate as he did play for nine more years with 236 wickets from 51 tests. As a fast bowler playing he was playing since the age of 28 which meant he was playing Test cricket well after his peak which is usually early to mid twenties.

Unfortunately World War 2 was taking place in those days and Bedser lost many of his Cricketing years. When he retired he was the highest wicket taker in Test cricket.

In the glitz and glamour of today’s cricket not many would remember a 91 year old ex-test cricketer but Sir Alex Bedser was someone who truly deserves to be remembered. Afterall not many bowlers could really boast of taming Bradman six times. Sir Alex Bedser died after a short illness on 4th April 2010.

Link: Wikipedia | The Corridor

Who will make it to IPL semi-finals?

IPL has reached the stage where the points table is taking shape and the men from the boys are being separated quite drastically. Mumbai Indians have left their last two year’s dismal performances far behind and have won all but one of their seven matches. Mumbai Indians do look a certainly to get into the semi-finals unless ofcourse they ended up losing every game from now on.

Bangalore Royal Challengers and Delhi Daredevils are the other three teams I feel will make it to the Semi-finals. Both teams have decent balance and even though they do not have as good a record as Mumbai Indians but Delhi Daredevils with 12 points and Bangalore Royal Challengers with 10 points are pretty much a certainty. DD and BRC might not make it if one of their teams does hit a roadblock and just about loses every game which is a little difficult to imagine.

That leaves the 4th place up for grabs. We can count Kings XI Punjab because they have had a disastrous IPL with only 4 points until now.

So now it leaves Chennai Super Kings (8 points), Kolkata Knight Riders (8 points), Rajasthan Royals (8 points) and Deccan Chargers (6 points) as teams which can take the 4th place. I personally back CSK as they are already at 8 points and look strong with the resurgent form of Murali Vijay scoring and surprising many who thought he was only good for Test cricket.

So who do you think will make it to IPL semi finals? Do drop in your comments and let me know.

IPL comes out with a comic book version of IPL 2009 Final

The Indian Premier League has done something again that is quite unique. They ave produced a online comic book which covers the 2009 Final between Bangalore Royal Challengers and Deccan Chargers. This is quite interesting and is one of the many unique features of this year’s IPL. Some of it has been getting active on social networks to reaching out with the world with You Tube.

You can view the comic page by page at IPL website. The illustrations are done wonderfully and does capture a lot of the drama and interest that goes on behind a final match. The illustrations are done by Campfire.

I liked the look of the comic and a lot of good detailing had gone into it when it came to the visuals but I felt the drama behind the match and the individuals who make it happen was not so prevalent.

Do look up the comic and go through it. Drop in your comments with your views.

Is Ricky Ponting’s famous look-alike George Bush?

Ricky Ponting has become someone everyone respects as a cricketer. He might not have a lot of fans in India and the sub-continents in general but certainly all his rivals respect his ability by wildly celebrating everytime he gets out.
Recently Australian media was singing praises that a Ponting would be very hard to come by again and once he retires Australia would lose a great captain and a legendary batsman. Agreed they might not find a replacement but a remarkable look alike has been found. He is no other than former US President George Bush. 😛

Look at the image above and there is a marked resemblance between the two. It is strange in a way; Bush was the leader of the most powerful economy which is now a bit in shambles while he left office and similarly Ponting was the leader of the most powerful cricket team which has dipped down considerably from its previous glories.

Hope you enjoyed the look-alikes, do drop your comments of more instances of cricketers and their famous look-alikes.