For centuries no one would have imagined that cricket played in the colonial tradition would be mixed with a generation of rapid-fire One Day Internationals (ODI) and Twenty Twenty (T20) that recently culminated in the T20 World Cup international competition played in Sri Lanka this year. Neville Cardus, the famous author with literary finesse described cricket as a game that proceeds for hours to a rhythm as lazy as the rhythm of a airless day…. we stretch ourselves on deck-chairs and smoke our pipes and talk of a number of things.”
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Pavilion Parade by M V MuhsinArchive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
December 2nd, 2012 by Admin
Golf in a hurry…. on your marks, Set ‘n’ go! First, Cricket in a hurry. And now Golf in a hurry!
One of the remarkable things in life is that there are so many seemingly unremarkable people who are truly remarkable. B.A. ‘Baba’ Sadar is one such person.
Next weekend, at the age of 86, he will be the oldest of old students of Zahira College participating in the celebratory “Zahira Walk 2012” as the school in Maradana, rich in tradition, shines the calming crescent light on its 120 year history and its personalities.
He walked, yes Walked, some 5,700 kilometres (3540 miles) on foot and went through six countries. The journey, the trip, the trek, the voyage or odyssey or pilgrimage — call it what you may — took him 314 days. Every journey it is said should have a destination. For Senad Hadzic, the 47 year old Bosnian, it was his ‘Pilgrimage to Mecca’ which ended last month as Muslims world over celebrated , in the Abrahamic tradition, the obligation, if one can afford it, of performing Haj.
Hadzic did not have the funds to make this pilgrimage. But he was determined not allow affordability – he had only 200 euros — to stand in the way. So with a 20 kilo backpack, he set out on this journey.
Barack Obama is the ultimate three point shooter, commented former Chief of Staff and now Mayor of Chicago Rahm Emanuel. How true, especially as he proved his charisma and skill in the US elections last week.
On the night before the US elections, challenger Mitt Romney made a calculated decision that he would jet into three battle-ground states on Election Day for a last minute push for votes given the prediction that the final result will be a virtual toss up.
Obama, under equal if not more pressure in the stakes, had to weigh his challenger’s move and options. Should he also go out and campaign or…….?
If there was a beauty contest for idyllic settings between Sri Lanka and New Zealand, as the two teams were set to face off in the ODI in Pallekele, it was a close call. Pallekele is nestled in the bosom of the lush green Kandyan Hills. New Zealand has spectacular rolling hillsides and well groomed playing fields. Both locations feast the eyes and are the envy of any cricket fan. Torrential rains are an act of God and that should not get in the way of us admiring nature’s gifts.
If Sri Lanka rugby had a Hall of Fame, there is no question that Ashroff ‘Ashy’ Cader will be in it, occupying the very front row. And if among those celebrities there was one who is admired for his leadership as the Captain of the Ceylon Team for his prowess, finesse and style as a No. 8 forward, and for his debonair and dashing looks, it has to be Ashy Cader. He was such a complete player and the heart-throb of generations of ruggerites.
The Gayle led rap ‘Oppa Gangnam Style’ dance routine featured in last week’s Parade drew much attention going by the feedback received. As we write again the number of hits on the U Tube site for the Windies World Cup victory lap dance continues to rise and now stands 175,511.
Saji Cumaraswamy, who lived at Cross Street Kandy, but now a distinguished Grandma resident in London writes “I do enjoy their game, because they enjoy it so much themselves. A story. 1940s. The West Indian team passed through Colombo on their way to Oz, I think. Always by ship, in those days. They played some exhibition matches with a few local teams. One at Asgiriya which was then a delightful country-club pitch. The great three W’s were there-Weekes, Walcott and Worrell. We all went to see these amazing guys. Very festive atmosphere. Weekes went in, smashed his sixes, and came back. Walcott followed— same story. Then everyone looked for the more diminutive Worrell. He was discovered, in a stupor nursing a hangover— or to put it bluntly, drunk as bat, in the dressing room. It was hilarious! “
You can call it ‘Gayle Gangnam Style’ or ‘Oppa Gayle Gangnam Style’ that Windies dance routine at the T20 World Cup which has had 129,345 hits on U tube at this point of writing, and still counting.
However, U Tube notwithstanding, there is no substitute to seeing it live, as this columnist did with delight and relish at the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo last Sunday.
The adoption of the hottest dance sensation of South Korean Rapper PSY’s steamy and rendition of ‘Oppa Gangnam Style’ meaning “Big Brother is Gangnam Style’ lifted the spirits of the capacity crowd of the 35,000 capacity crowd—largely Sri Lankans—even as they left the stadium stunned and dejected as fortunes changed so swiftly.
In Sampath Perera’s dictionary the word ‘Cricket’ starts with a capital ‘D’—whatever way one may spell or pronounce it. And D –stands for Discipline. Two incidents bring this to life.
Sampath was coaching a school team—Trinity in this case– and dress code and demeanor were aspects that he drilled into the youngsters. But the guy with the pony-tail would not relent: the youngster believed it was ‘cool’ and had pleaded that his parents too were ‘cool’ with it! Not long afterwards as the team sat in a circle on the grass doing their stretches, Sampath comes over and clips off the pony tail using grass clippers! Message delivered; end of story!!
The Asgiriya Cricket ground is known for its resplendent setting nestled in the Kandyan Hills, lush green with fresh air. Such is the tranquility that it exudes that it’s hardly the place for a fire to be lit. But for Niroshan Dickwella, the Trinity cricket captain and this year’s Observer-Mobitel Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year, March 10 was a veritable cauldron. As the fire of excitement was being kindled in the dying minutes of Kandy Schools’ Big Match between St. Anthony’s and Trinity, the pressure cooker was at its tempest, and an important call had to be made by Dickwella. Much was at stake: reputation, leadership, history and records and the renaissance of Trinity cricket.
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