World Cup T20 Finals- End of over 19- Pakistan 145/9- 13 runs required from 6 balls– Misbah on strike- Dhoni gives the ball to Joginder Sharma and I cry out of exasperation. Though a die-hard MSD fan, I can hear my Mom swear! Seriously, how can he ask Jogi to ball after what-you-call a very disappointing bowling attack. And to top it all, he has now given a wide and Misbah has hit a Six!! Brilliant. Though we are fuming red, the feeling is more of extreme sadness. We have lost all hopes. Just 6 needed from 4 balls now. My fingers and toes are crossed, and I pray out loud for India to win. Misbah goes for the scoop shot and the ball is straight up in the air and Sreesanth takes the catch. I scream and I can see Mom standing on top of the sofa set. She is jumping with joy and I join her. Such is the passion and craziness that we have for this “un”official National Sport. (Dad waking up from his sleep and shouting at us is a completely different story though). 🙂
Ours is definitely a cricket crazy nation. No doubts about it. Even if you say, you are not a big fan, may I ask, why did you stop watching cricket when the Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar retire? Or at least why do you groove when Star Sports sing, “ ♬ ♬ Kanna Keep Calm, watch Pepsi IPL on Star Sports. Coooom… ♬Forget it, Doesn’t your heart swell in pride when Team India lines up for the National Anthem?
Or didn’t you gasp for breath at MSD’s winning shot for the World Cup Final??? Didn’t you at least shed a tear seeing India as the World Champions? Or didn’t your tweets always say, “Bleed Blue”?
Cricket is definitely not sex-biased. You can’t assume that we ladies do not know anything about cricket. Look at me and my Mom- we do make it a point not to miss any of Team India’s matches. We forget all difference of opinions and get together when Team India is on the ground. And then came the IPL and we have our favourites. Mom and I have become foes when she picked her favourite as CSK (quite obvious!) and I sided with RCB.
Oh yeah, the Red Devils will definitely take the cup this time! Who else can compete with the super smart Virat, the magnanimous Gayle, the all rounder Yuvi and the fabulous AB.
I can go on and on about my favourite team and cricketers. But, I have had my downs as well. I had to coax and butter my parents to allow me to watch the World Cup 2003 where India fought with Aussies in the final. It was my Class 10 Boards, and I had to promise them that I would score 85%, else they could unsubscribe the Sports Channel forever. Though India lost miserably, I had to keep my word.
I can go superstitious enough to walk out on a match for the fear of my team losing because of me watching the game. I have even asked my friend/Dad/Mom/husband to leave the room just because Yuvi’s wicket was fallen the moment they stepped in.
I had to even pay from my pocket money to subscribe to the Sports Channel in the earlier days. Dad never wanted to watch matches. He was too comfortable with the News and even the Soap operas in between 😛 But, it was never a big sacrifice for me. And I guess, it never will. I’ve now coaxed my hubby to get the HD channels on our brand new LED TV. And God, it’s so fun sitting glued to the StarSports HD.
And then came the match in the stadium near by my home. I was adamant and uncompromising so as to watch the match live. It was a working day and my hubby darling had no intention to take leave. I had even stopped cooking and performing other household chores. I so badly wanted to watch the match, whistle, howl and do anything and everything seeing my favourites on ground. But, no, none of that happened and I still nag and bully him for not taking me when we had a chance.
Thus, my extend of making sure not to miss a shot goes back to the conventional approaches of taking sick leaves and of course lying to your friends/hubby. Gone are the days when I gaped at the electronics store on every traffic light, or pestered friends for the score. I have now very smartly installed the StarSports.com App in my Android.
Believe me, when I say it’s a life-saver. Imagine if you are stuck in a party, in traffic or at work and you have no way of finding out the score. Worse case, imagine the power had gone off while in the middle of a nail-biting match. StarSports.Com comes into rescue. The Deferred Live feature helps you watch the match. The commentary can challenge Sidhu or Ravi Shastri. The Action Recaps and Zip Clips helps those who missed the match live. Talk about the fastest scorecard, live in HD, Rewind and Replay actions and following the game wherever you are– they are just the icing on top.
Star Sports has evolved so much. It has emerged as the No:1 sports channel by delivering multiple channels as Star sports 1,2,3&4 and HD channels HD1 & 2.
Apart from these coolest features, I love the “Keep Calm” moments, the Fours, the Sixes, Wickets, the Best Catches etc. And this music video has become the Anthem. 🙂
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrI2UXW9icA
So, all I want to say is, ♬ ♬ Kanna Keep Calm, watch Pepsi IPL on Star Sports. Coooom… ♬ ♬
This post is a part of Cricket just got better! Activity by starsports.com in association with BlogAdda.com
S(t)ri says
Brilliant post!!!!! All the best, I hope you win the contest!!! 🙂 I loved the way you have used apt pictures and written the post right from your heart!!! 😀 😛
Shalzzz says
Aww.. ur words mean a lot, Sri 🙂 Thanks Hun <3
Nisha says
Hey.. that’s a great post. It seems genuine and sweet and crazy all at the same time. All the best for the contest 🙂
The Kanna song has indeed stuck. I can hear it in my head all the time!
Manas Mukul says
I am just happy that there is one more die hard fan in the female gender 🙂