Naveen's Journal

Perhaps I wrote my previous post (WTF!) too early! Continuing its assault of emails, the count reached a phenomenal 207!! Way to go Calcutta Telephones Click on the following image to get an idea:

(Click on the image to enlarge)

I guess the guys at BSNL need a good sleep! I opened my mailbox a while ago to be shocked by the number of times the payment notification mail had been sent by their mail server. I know that it is an automated process but something is going amiss big time. Just imagine the magnitude of bandwidth and network resources this dirty exercise would have consumed, as the same would be have occurred for all customers who have opted for email notifications (and by conservative estimates, it should run into lakhs). Thank God for Gmail, which has a conversation view which condensed the whole mess into just 2 rows, else 3 pages of my inbox would have been gulped by the same trash! WTF!

It was an occasion which probably comes once in a lifetime – India vs Pakistan in a World Cup Cricket Final, and no one would have dared to bite the nails in the solitude of their living rooms. So all gathered at Rahul’s place at 5 PM sharp to cheer up Team India. I left office at 4:30 sharp hoping to beat the incessant rain and reach on time. With knee deep water logged at most places, I still managed to enter the arena 5 minutes before the start of the extravaganza, and boy, was that place prepared for the match! The Indian Tricolour donning the front wall, most were dressed in blue (so was I) and eyes fixed at the idiot box as the Indian warriors descended the pitch. Each shot was followed by deafening shouts of cheer and every wicket brought pin drop silence in the room. Pulses raced as close calls were made and after a rather decent start, India started to lose it in the later stages. With the fall of Yuvraj, dejection loomed on everyone’s face as a winning target seemed more difficult.

As everyone waited for the final overs to see India make a match out of it, a thunderous bolt in the sky set the cable signals off and alas, we were left with no coverage of the match! Before we could even think of rushing to someone else’s place to catch the action, we were given a harsh reality check by the incessant rain outside – the whole of C.I.T Rd submerged in waist deep water! Even the car could not be taken out, nor was any conveyance available. So the final 7 overs we just managed to cover through live scores from the internet.

But at no cost we could afford to miss the 2nd Innings. So after the cable operator confirmed a non-resumption of services indefinitely, we set out to Nivesh’s place in heavy rainfall! A 100 meter distance was covered in about 15 minutes, as the guys had cartons over their heads. With the cellphones, wallets and other belongings already back home, no one cared getting drenched any more. As a bunch of 8 guys, with water dripping from all over them, entered the living room, we all erupted to see the back of Pakistani Opener. But soon Imran Nazir sent Sreesanth’s over for a toss and gloom prevailed. Each wicket was then cheered with a frenzied fanaticism as we inched closer to the victory which had eluded us for so long. Towards the end of the match, everyone was on the edge of their seats and every bad ball by Joginder Sharma was greeted with curses and abuses from me! But as it was destined, India won sending all of us rollicking over one another!

The scenes and sounds from out on the streets were unimaginable, as hoards of men, women and children took to the roads-turned-canals with trumpets, drums, whistles and ever-lasting songs of victory. Victory never tasted so sweet, with the victim being Pakistan and World Cup coming home after 24 years. On a day when it rained more than 200 mm, and it still continued, all of us set out for a victory lap and the scenes were amazing! Saffron, White and Green seemed to be the only colours around as we waded and chanted, giving the odd ambulance-stuck-in-water a much required push. Pictures and Video (apologies for poor picture quality, but its just a cellcam!) follow, as I was the only one carrying his stuff

Download Frenzied Celebration in Muddle!

Yes! The dream has finally been realised, after quarter of a century – in a manner almost identical. Only the stage is different, as are the protagonists. 25th June, 1983, English Summer producing the best of One Day cricket, who would have given the Indian daredevils under Kapil Dev whisker of a chance to beat the almighty West Indies to lift the World Cup of Cricket? Similarly, MS Dhoni went to South Africa with an inexperienced, young but inspired bunch of lads to compete against the might of Twenty-20 powerhouses such as Australia, England, South Africa and Pakistan. And let alone redemption of the pride lost in West Indies earlier this year, no one cared to care much about this TEAM. But they themselves cared, and cared so well that the Indian swansong still continues even after 24 hours of the historic World Cup triumph against arch rivals Pakistan.

The architects of the emphatic victory were energetic, confident, young, talented, and above all, proud. Proud of being at the big stage against all odds.

Gautam Gambhir once again showed pure class by knocking a flamboyant 75 en route to providing once again a solid start for India. In the absence of Virender Sehwag, and with wickets regularly falling at the other end, the dashing Delhi opener held fort at one end and denid Pakistan a run over the Indian Team. Along with Gambhir, if there was any other man who can be singled out for his contribution to the win, he is Irfan Pathan. The mercurial all-rounder tore apart the Pakistan middle order with 3 quick and important wickets and sounded an astounding comeback into international cricket.

Yet the Pakistani team also deserves equal praise for the manner in which they fought the battle. Accurate bowling restricted India to a modest total below 160 and then they came out to bat in a positive fashion. Imran Nazir stroked the ball beautifully but it was poor shot selection by Pakistani batsmen that took the game away from them. RP Singh was special in this tournament, with miserly bowling and wicket taking knack. It was left to Misbah ul Haq again to get Pakistan to the shores, and boy did he make a match out of it! With late strikes by Yasir Arafat and Sohail Tanvir, he ensured that it would be a cliffhanger, as 13 were needed from the last over. A poor Joginder Sharma, who perhaps has learnt bowling in an altogether different school was entrusted with the hopes of 1 billion Indians, only to send them on a toss by starting with a wide. A shocker followed as super cool Misbah despatched a pathetic full toss over the ropes. With 6 required off 4, the last thing that was required was a poor ball, and bingo! Joginder obliged by bowling another help yourself full toss outside the off stump. Only this time Misbah had made up his mind too early to clear short fine leg and mishit the ball to Sreesanth, thus handing the victory to India.

Huh! 5 runs was the margin of victory, but no one will remember that. The bottomline reads,

INDIA – WORLD TWENTY-20 CHAMPIONS!

Slashdot Reports:

“Gmail was launched on April 1, 2004, and has revolutionized the way many of us use email. The interface has remained largely untouched since it launched, but get ready, it’s soon to undergo a change in what they describe as a ‘New Version’. …..”

So do we have in store another Google masterstroke? What more an average email user could have asked for – unlimited storage space, free POP access, super quick clutter free interface, among a host of others. Gmail has evolved into a lot more than an email service, as much as, not having an @gmail.com address being almost a blasphemy. And integration with other Google Services is just the cherry you’d want on your cake. I just can’t wait for the new version to come out, and the feature I’d want to be on top is a little more colourful interface (a true MS fanboy I am!). Remains to be seen when it is rolled out for public in general.

It doesn’t get bigger than this. The stuff fairy tails are made of, rather, epics. Yes, we have an India v Pakistan on cards and that too in a World Cup Final! Having all the ingredients of a spine chilling contest, this game is surely going to be a folklore in days to come. After their dramatic exit from the fist round of the ICC World Cup 2007 in West Indies, earlier this year, who would have given either of these two teams any chance of making it to the finals, more so in the absence of key players from both sides. But not only have they romped their way till here in great fashion, they have played the most fearless, confident and entertaining cricket of the tournament. When the match gets underway at Jo’burg later this evening (5:30PM IST, Noon GMT), the hearts of 1.33 billions Indians and Pakistanis would skip many beats, and no matter how cool and calm the players claim to be, the collective pressure of millions of supporters would surely be telling on their faces. After all, legends have been written on one of the greatest rivalries in any sport. This match is going to make a few guys hero, and perhaps a few, villains (and FF corrects me on this misspelling!), but no one can deny that both are winners in their own rights. Had it not been for the traditional rivalry, they would have got a warm welcome home after a loss also, but now stakes are different. All I want is a great contest to happen, with India coming out winners .

Man I need to rush early from office to grab a good seat at Rahul’s place today where all our boys would gather to cheer the Men in Blue.

Cheers!