Apart from the one Ashes Series in 2005, it is hard to really believe that in the last couple of decades The Ashes have been the real pinnacle of Test Cricket. It was the best period in the cricketing journey of Freddie Flintoff and a shaky Australian team that resulted in an Ashes Series that was worth remembering. Otherwise, the contests between India and Australia have pretty much occupied the slot of being the best cricketing contests with pure adrenaline, great skill level and some controversies put together. There are many reasons why the Border-Gavaskar Trophy has grown into being arguably the definitive Test Series in the last two decades.

Australia and India are two nations with cultures that are quite exclusive and different. Their cultural and geographic uniqueness have shaped the cricketing contests between the two nations into battles of grit, endurance, skill and art of winning. Test cricket finds its true identity in these contests. Australia is the best team of this generation by some distance, but India is the team always cutting that distance in half. Australians love to dominate and India has always refused to lie down and submit. Even the conditions in both nations are so different from one another that Australia struggle in the dust bowls in India while India struggle with the pace and bounce down under.

Yet, there is one other great and simple reason why the India-Australia contest is the modern Ashes. Both sides simply sport the greatest players of this generation who show-off their best skills when pitted against one another. The two greatest players of modern cricket went eye-to-eye in these contests. Shane Warne and Sachin Tendulkar brought the authenticity of greatness and an air of immortality to the battles. Then there were the supporting cast in the form of Ponting, McGrath, Laxman, Dravid, Ganguly, Steve Waugh and Anil Kumble. If cricket were the silver screen, that would be an awesome collection for sheer supporting-cast.

The generation that electrified cricket is slowly giving way to a new act. As the curtain rises on the 2008 series, one cannot but feel that the curtain is falling on the careers of the heroes of the past. But instead of looking beyond the series, let us look at tomorrow. The first test at Bangalore could end up in a draw, despite all the hoopla around it. Scattered showers are being predicted for all five days and that is not good news. Add to it, the fact that India has never won in Bangalore their last 13 test matches. The signs are not good for the Indian side.

Overcast conditions would mean advantage Australia. Their steamers will love gentle breeze and cloudy skies. But if India does manage to win the toss, then they will try to bat once and bat big.

Pre-Series Blunders:

India: Dropping Ganguly out of practice matches and playing him against the Aussies is not a very clever move by a long stretch.

Australia: Dropping Andrew Symonds (Enough said)

Match Breakers:

Virender Sehwag: While all the concentration would be on the Fab 4 in the middle order, Sehwag could hold the key for India. An early onslaught and a great start would very quickly put India in driver’s seat.
Matthew Hayden: The Aussie opener loves to score big against India and you would expect that the top heavy Aussie batting line up would depend on him a lot. If he sets his mind on a big one, it could be curtains for the home side.

The Hits:

Sourav Ganguly: He is on his farewell tour and when a man knows that this will be the last chance at glory, then he is all the more determined. There is no one more dangerous than a man who has nothing to lose- Australia might find this out soon.

Stuart Clarke: Much like McGrath, he will trouble the Indians by stifling them and choking them to death.

The Misses:

Ricky Ponting: There is no reason to believe that Ponting will struggle against turn once again. If he does, then his team could find themselves in deep trouble.

Rahul Dravid: It has been long since ‘The Wall’ has got his act together. He will be playing on home turf, but might still fall over to pace and accuracy.

Turning Point:

Sachin Tendulkar: If he has a series against Australia like he normally does, then back India to win this one. If he fails, then it might not just be the turning point of this series but also face of Indian Cricket.

Win Percentage for First Test:

India- 70%
Australia- 30%

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It looks like all of a sudden our country is surrounded by troubles of all kinds. I would not blame it on coincidence rather I’d say ‘this was bound to happen’. Amidst the terror threats and natural disasters, India is now faced with yet another problem. Yes, the retired folks either have no or insufficient pensions. As a result, they are compelled to return to work. And the problem does not end there as companies are only willing to bet their money on the young blood. Blame it on the changing lifestyles that the much revered PFs are falling short to make ends meet for the aged but there are others who do not have children of their own to look after their needs as they enter their golden years.
This reminds me of countries like Australia and Japan (I’m sure there would be others too). The infrastructure of the two countries includes looking after those who can’t look after themselves. Japan offers a monthly allowance for children while the Aussie law tells the country’s treasurer to shell out a neat pocket money to the unemployed. Similarly, India should also take up responsibility of the elderly amongst other worthy candidates of special concern like children, unemployed etc. In other words, we should reach a situation where people are no longer scared to age because the government will provide for them.
Yet another issue that needs urgent attention. Please do not ignore this time too.
Via ibn

Australian mobile network giant Telstra is all set to offer the Apple iPhone 3G now. The company will launch the handsets in the coming month of July and is all set to become the third mobile carrier to offer the iPhone. Telstra has also announced its pricing details for the device. It has announced two-year plans starting with $30 dollars per month. Another plan costs $80 a month. The upfront costs for 8GB and 16GB handsets are $279 and $399 respectively. A $100 a month plan is also being worked out.

Facilities available with the fast 3G wireless technology include maps with GPS, support for features like Microsoft exchange etc. so that people can have access to a revolutionary phone, a fabulous internet device and a widescreen iPod in form of a single iPhone. As per David Moffat, consumer group managing director of Telstra, the 3GiPhone will run on the company’s Next G network. The company being a hugely popular network provider in Australia wishes to provide a superb iPhone 3G experience to its customers

(90%+ of Australian population). The news however is coming after making us wait for sometime due to the ongoing imbroglio with Apple over accessing Telstra’s content services via the handset. Still, I would say better late than never! J

Via SMH