Chinmay Chakravarty's Blog: CHINMAYC BLOG

New Zealand, among other teams visiting India, made the Indian spinners look useless once again on their own home turf. The coach keeps on wearing that ominously 'gambhir' countenance, but is hardly 'gambhir' about such core issues. Such is his obsession with all-rounders! Anyway, congratulations to the young NZ team for registering their first ever ODI Series win in India, after the previous consecutive 7 Series losses, and following it up with their first ever Test Series win on Indian soil about a year back! The way Daryl Mitchell played is inspirational for all cricketers; he kept consistently on building partnerships with Will Young one time and with Glenn Philips the next. Bravo! 

Alas! Gone are the good old days when Virat Kohli hit a ton Team India used to win the match hands down! Alas! Team India superstar flamboyant batsmen or most of them continue, however, to fail in crunch matches when a win means a Series point! 

High time Head Coach Gautam Gambhir understands that his coveted all-rounders can deliver only freak feats occasionally, if at all! For example, what exactly is Ravindra Jadeja doing in his supposedly young team filled to the brim with youngsters with all-round abilities? Why is Bumrah rested again and again? Why is Shami ostracized? He must remember the upcoming T20 World Cup is not the only challenge (IPLalized?), for the ODI World Cup also looms large early next year! Hark! 

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In theincreasingly tense geopolitical situation in the Indian subcontinent, I thinkit’s time to take some bold Cricket decisions by the BCCI in active consultationwith the ICC and the Government of India, and not dillydallying with the issuesinvolved nor allowing the overwhelming commercial angle win every time which inturn leads to absurd hypocritical scenarios as we’d recently witnessed in thegames between India and Pakistan in the Asia Cup-2025 the winner's Trophy of which is still eluding India. In the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup-2026we’re set to behold more games in and off the field with Bangladesh beingliterally taken over by the radicals and the violent upheaval there leading toatrocities on the minorities, mostly Indian Hindus. What followed in the mostpopular game of cricket in India is obvious: the outrage in the social media cryinghoarse over retaining Mustafizur Rahman in Shahrukh Khan’s KKR franchise forthe IPL-2026 thus pressuring the BCCI to order KKR for Mustafizur’s release. Andwhat followed in Bangladesh is also obvious: telecast of the IPL matchescompletely banned, and more ominously, Bangladesh refusing to travel to Indiafor the T20 World Cup and asking the ICC fins alternate venues for their matches.We just cannot afford to witness another edition of the ‘no-handshake’ gameswith one more playing nation added. We just cannot go on watching the eternal clash of politics, diplomacy and cricket. 

We also cannotjudge what’s right and what’s wrong in such a charged situation. While wecannot blame the Indian social media outrage or the overall animosity betweenthe two neighboring nations, we cannot also blame the tit-for-tat by Bangladesh.Sport is basically a recreation, played mostly between friends or betweenfriendly rivals in the true spirit of the game. And then look at the situation,not just in the Indian subcontinent but also across the world—wars that neverseem to end; conflict after conflict; attacks after attacks; and arguably themost powerful leader of the world who’s been crying pitifully for world peaceall the time suddenly deciding to raid a sovereign nation, overrule its regimeand kidnapping and airlifting its President over for supposed trials. Pray! Whyshould we pretend and play on? 

If one seesanother nation as a confirmed enemy then cut off all ties, including all kindsof sports activities—let it be bilateral or multi-nation world tournaments. Therefore,instead of carrying on with the absurd mock dramas the concerned top controllersof India, Pakistan and Bangladesh must find a way to stay away from playing thegame of cricket with each other anywhere in the world, till the easing ofanimosity, if possible at all in the long term. You must call a spade a spade. Don’tbeat around the bush in search of a chimera of peace and friendship! The historyof the Homo Sapiens over the millennia is all too clear! Anybody listening?

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What I’d consider mostremarkable is that it wasn’t an elaborate whole dream of a particular night,but it was a series of quite a few dreams, consistently dealing with the samequestion whirring in my head, spread over several nights. I can’t explain whyor how this is possible, and I don’t need to, for this whole exercise is not aboutdream analysis, but about something more important! And due to this importantsomething I went to bed searching solutions for my query over the past few nightsand perhaps my dreams got naturally shaped as per my requirement, so to say. Anyway,after a lot of beating around the bush my dreams started getting more to thepoint and relevant, and last night I got my solution. I’ll tell my boss tomorrowand I’m sure he’d jump for it.

I don’t reallyknow why there’s been such an urge in everybody’s mind nowadays for things thatare distinctly different—normal mundane things that we do every single day, butnow we want to do or accomplish those with a resounding difference. Just perhapsto kill the ennui of routine or doing things the same way every single time, I muse!The surprise element is basic to any of such differential ventures, myintelligent mind grasped this long back. Like the online grocery stores thatused to take more than a day to deliver home now shows the doorstep deliverytime to be just five minutes, or anything of the that kind for that matter!

My shopkeeper bossof late has always been telling me: high time we change the way we deal withour customers. He was so eager, so enthusiastic or rather so desperate that I hadto take him seriously, and accordingly I began to search for ‘how to bedifferent’ day and night, the relentless pursuit obviously penetrating mydreams too. I’m now focusing on the solution I achieved from my last night’sdream, I watched as it just happened in front of my closed eyes and remember everydetail clearly now.

The moment acustomer appears on the entrance engage two ever-ready guys, like bouncers in abar, to grab him/her, lift them over the counter and seat on a cushioned chair;then plug in all the devices around into every possible pore of his/her body;and feed into him/her all your novelties that you’d want to. Mind you, all theaction must be completed in a flash, before the customer had time to expresshis/her appreciation or displeasure or nightmare.

Yes, it soundsreal exciting! The surprise element must continue to work—with a returningcustomer the guys may now lift him/her upside down like in a yoga position, puthim/her on the velvety chair head first and then the plug-ins, starting withthe feet this time. Thus, the enticed customer must be served with a surpriseevery time s/he returns.

My boss wouldinstantly point out the additional expenses for putting up those chairs atthose cozy corners, a few more gadgets and for employing a few more guys. I’dpoint out the assured results that are sure to accrue, apart from helping thecountry to make strides in ultimately solving the looming problem ofunemployment. There’s always the possibility of a much less productive or afully negative result that could never be ruled out; but I keep telling my bossas well as myself that my dreams are always there as the last resort. 

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How we enjoyedplaying cricket and also watching it in bright sunshine on a chilly winter dayfrom the early seventies till Commerce took over the game, converting it to anall-season affair and making no difference between day and night! Well, there’snothing we can complain about! It’s the need of the times and the people goingthrough with less and less time for the olden charms of life, sports or nature!We’re here talking about the 4th T20I match between India and SouthAfrica, and it’s that form of cricket which is, in fact, the result ofcommerce. Actually we, the kids, in the early seventies also played limited-oversmatches having no inkling of the transformation coming in the later decades. Nowadayswe get to play or watch only the long-format Tests and domestic matches in pristineconditions of wintry sunshine, with all one-day and T20 matches almost entirelyconverted to day-n-night affairs. Ruthless experiments are also going on toconvert the classical Test Cricket too with a string of successes across theglobe.

The said 4thT20I match between the visiting South Africa and the hosts India in Lucknow istaking place this very evening, that is the 17th of December, 2025. TheIndian cricket mandarins must’ve been aware of the thick of winter in thisNorth Indian city and still, Commerce forced them to stick on! How could theynot anticipate the dew and the fog? Yes! The match is getting delayed becauseof the layer of heavy fog over the stadium, packed obviously with revelingcrowds. The umpires are inspecting the conditions—the fog and the wet grounds—againand again; however, how do they know the fog is going to lift off late into thenight rather than thickening further? Well, nobody knows at this moment! Maybe Commercewould win over Nature, one more time! No! we’re not complaining!

Our rather uncouthuse of the word ‘Commerce’ brings us to the superhit show of Kaun Banega Crorepatithat started in the year 2000 and has entered its 25th year thisyear, with the Star of the Millennium Amitabh Bachchan as the beloved host. We’reactually crestfallen to witness, particularly in this silver jubilee year, howCommerce has influenced the show in many more ways than necessary and has almosttransformed it. Yes! We’re pained to behold the following: the show organizersinvariably make the 83-year-old megastar literally run into the show from the wings;with the increasing number of sponsors the hapless butever-confident-n-superlative host has to mouth the lines every time therespective sponsors need to be brought around—in every episode of the showevery single day; the excellent quiz show, overlooking the gambling part, ofthe formative years is no longer there, with badinage, interactions andpersonal anecdotes/stories dominating; and to add more horror for us purists,Amitabh Bachchan, of late, has started inviting members of the family of the winningcandidate along to the Hot Seat which transpires that the hot seat is no longera hot seat, it’s a hot bench and with more and more personal stories to unfold.No! we’re not complaining. For it’s for us exclusively that Commerce has beendoing all that!

Meanwhile, the umpireshave inspected again, and delaying the toss again, tossing it further into thelong night with the paying revelers waiting and enjoying in the stands. Let’ssee how it proceeds! However, it doesn’t necessarily imply loss of sleep for uspurists!

For some info atleast: India leads the Twenty20 International Series 2-1. And the hosts havenever lost a bilateral T20I Series since 2015.
Breaking News! The match has finally been abandoned! Nature Wins against Humankind!https://chinmaycwrites.blogspot.com/f...

 

VVIPs areundoubtedly the highest privileged class possible in India, if not in manyother countries too. VIPs are a bit lower in the ladder and they aim atqualifying fast for the path to the immeasurable favors adorning the highestclass. With much easier access to big money these two privileged classes aremushrooming, pushing the ‘useless commoners’ to the lowest possible depth ofdeprivation and the consequent depravity. Any celebrity, be it the sports stars,the movie stars, the politicians or the industrial/commercial giants or themost powerful bureaucrats or even the organizers who always rub shoulders withthe former segments, becomes a VIP and with more efforts involved in the processbecomes the VVIP. Nothing is impossible for the VVIPs: want to enjoy a bigevent at your convenience for which the useless commoners, obviously, expressthe primary craze along with paying for it? No problems! You can have a darshanany time any day, just express your intention to the equally empowered to letyou in! Want to attend the biggest dinner ever organized? No issues! You’ll getyour free entry passes and constitute an integral part of the ‘invited’! TheVVIP organizers in Kolkata understand this very well, but went a bit too far indemonstrating their obsession to selfie with Lionel Messi and in their indomitablegreed to tinkle the box office vigorously, thus causing a Messi Mess andcausing a palpable embarrassment to the Mamata government there!

Useless commonersor not, the Kolkata people as well as that of West Bengal have always beenvocal in their love for the game of football, not only loving it but alsoproducing great footballers over the decades and giving some credence to anormally listless Indian national football team. The VVIP organizers understoodthis very well and therefore issued tickets in abundance to let in the crowdsto the stadium where they wanted to usher in the legend Lionel Messi. And theyhad the dare to call it a personal event!

However, they hadto cater to the other VVIPs and even the normal VIPs thus allowing them toenjoy the huge opportunity to meet Messi and have precious selfie moments withhim. And the combined might of the ‘invited’ VVIPs was so mammoth that theyliterally and fully sealed up Messi within them while the great footballer wasushered into the stadium packed with the expectant and paying crowds.  Initially enthusiastic and hurraying thelegend, the hapless crowds soon realized that they entirely failed even tosight their icon, forget about the player waving at them. The Messi-obsessedVVIP organizers along with their cohorts didn’t bother to present Messi to thepaying admirers, not bothering too about the most necessary parade of thelegend round the stadium.

The deprivedcrowds resorted to depravity now, the only thing the useless commoners arecapable of at any given point of time. They ransacked the stadium and the restis history.

The embarrassed MamataGovernment did some damage control by arresting the chief VVIP organizer andassuring the deprived people refunds of their ticket money. But who’ll recompensetheir real loss? And that too thanks to the whims and fancies of the VVIP class—aclass always rubbing shoulders with the ruling VVIPs?  In India, all political parties have to agree thatthey have no disagreements with their rivals as far as patronizing the VVIPclass is concerned. Whatever they say while coming to power about ending allVIP and VVIP privileges, the practices go on unabated and even with greatermenace for the useless commoners. The Culture must be checked and preventedfrom spreading for their own good in the coming times!

Lionel Messiproceeded to the national capital Delhi later for a similar stadium appearanceand the event went off peacefully. Perhaps the VVIP organizers there along withtheir equally empowered ilk learnt from the Kolkata Messi Mess and allowed the fansto have good views of the legend! The legend there circled the stadium andwaved at the crowds. But the moot point is why go on promoting the privilegedfurther and using the unprivileged often-unemployed useless commoners only forthe revenues, the brownie points and votes?

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Called theLifeline of the Greater Mumbai region, the Mumbai Suburban Railway has so faronly around a hundred AC trains—divided between its Western and Central lineswith not a single rake available for the Harbor line at the moment. The firstAC Mumbai local train was brought into service in 2017 by the Western Railwayline while the Central Railway line had to wait till 2020 for its first ACrakes. Then the Pandemic delayed all proposals for more and more AC rakes andonly this year there was some news of more than 200 rakes to be inducted. There’dbeen   suggestions that all the localtrain services be made airconditioned while a few leaders opposed this bysaying only the regular services needed to be increased substantially. The pricedifference is obviously a factor here, for the fares for the AC trains are nearlysix or seven times more than the regular fares as opposed to the contention ofthe Railways that the AC fares are more or less equal to that of the non-AC trainsor rather will be the same once all the non-AC services are withdrawn. Whateverbe the facts or the viewpoints, one thing is certain that the ‘comfort’ debatebetween AC and non-AC services is no longer valid, and the plain fact beingthat Mumbai, the financial capital of the country, needs the AC rakes in thelargest possible quantity possible in view of the constant overcrowding with peoplehanging out, the increasing number of deaths of passengers and the climatechange and global warming factors that make AC train services an absolutenecessity. Our story here brings out that aspect loud and clear.Tired andexhausted after a full day out, we thought of trying the AC local trains in theevening after dismissing the app cabs for the surging fares that happen every eveningthanks to the endless traffic jams, particularly on the Eastern highway, and thanksagain to the endless construction works on the Metro train line, new flyovers orrepairs thereof and the compulsive digging-up of the ‘service’ roads whichhappens rather ceremonially at least twice a year in every nook and corner ofGreater Mumbai.

Yes! We wereconsidering the ‘comfort’ factor for the simple reason that we never had a rideon the AC local trains before. The lady at the AC ticket counter of the Matungacentral station was very courteous and pointed out that there was an AC trainat 6.39 pm to Thane which suited our purpose perfectly. Although we found theticket price more than seven times higher than the regular fare the comfortfactor prevailed over us.

With about half anhour to wait, we seated ourselves cozily at the station benches and I treatedmy wife to steaming glasses of teas and boondi laddoos.

Various regularlocals kept on passing on both sides of the tracks to various destinations. As the6.35 pm overcrowded regular local to Thane station came, halted and left, wereadied ourselves for our AC train.

Seconds and minutesticked away; but there was no train or even announcements to that effect. Some otherregular trains kept on coming on the opposite track. Our natural thought was thatit was the delay factor which, in fact, distinguishes the Central Railway lineof the Mumbai locals. The indicator board finally showed a 6.47 pm Kalyanlocal, and then the announcement said it was a Kalyan AC local. The ‘comfort’urge within me speeded up my reflexes: perhaps the courteous lady at thecounter misinformed us or that the said Thane AC local got cancelled or that itgot merged into the Kalyan local; and in each of these possible cases we had totake that train lest we missed out on the AC trains altogether. Paying theprice already it was a terrible thought to have at that moment. So I rattled upmy wife into rapid action too and raced up to a convenient coach for the doorsto open.

To our horrors, wefound the coach filled up completely with people and we had to struggle hard tobreak through that human wall to reach the somewhat quieter insides with those ‘cushioned’cozy seats, overburdened with human beings. We somehow managed to stand by athree-seater and the packets I carried in my hands didn’t make me feel anybetter.

Sion and Kurla, twoof the major junctions in the central route, were the next stations. And ateach platform of those, huge crowds greeted the AC train while the slitheringcrowds within struggled to get down. Fortunately, by the arrival of the secondof those two junctions we managed to seat ourselves even as my wife began toworry almost to death about how we could possibly manage to get down at ourstation which is another major junction where even more crowds would be eagerto board.

A few young girlswith backpacks were standing on her side, most likely office goers returninghome now at that prime rush hour, and she got into a conversation with one. Thegirl tried to reassure her saying that a lot of people of the coach too would begetting down at Thane and it’d not be too difficult to join in the flow ofhumanity out. She also pointed out that they preferred to board this train,because the extent of over-boarding is quite a bit less here thanks to the closingautomatic doors than the regular trains and consequently lesser chances ofaccidents, injuries and deaths.

She is absolutelyright, I thought as I know very well that scores of Mumbai local train passengersdie or injure themselves on a daily basis in accidents, falls andstampedes/suffocation. At least such AC trains reduce the risk somewhat, I musedruefully, even as I too started worrying about breaking out of the coach withmy weary body only temporarily rested on the cushioned seats.

As instructed bythe working lady we got up at the previous station to our destination andjoined the unevenly hard-pressed line of human flesh leading up to the door. Thehelpful lady indicated my wife to stand squarely behind a tall muscular manahead so that he’d act as the juggernaut to break through the human wall and alight!I smiled in spite of myself in charge just behind my wife and with my righthand on her shoulders so as to propel her through as well as do the best toself with my left hand carrying the packets and pressed to my smartphone thatalso needed quite a lot of protection. The hordes of lunging crowds greeting ourtrain at the Thane platform that I sighted through the glass windows and the airconditionedgusts of air around me chilled both my body and mind in the most undesirablemanner, shattering the ‘comfort’ factor fatally inside me.

As the automaticdoors opened the lunging crowds filled up both the sides of the exit leavingonly a tiny trail for the ousted in the middle, ready to burst in, while the unevenlyhard-pressed line of humanity within launched itself into a seething breakdanceto see light outside of the doors. At the last step on the way to light I literallypushed my wife to get her through the middle trail and in that process I nearlygot caught into the surging flesh of humanity as to my horror again, I discoveredmyself as the last passenger to alight.

In my last-ditch effortto break through the middle trail I got swayed to my left and was nearlycrushed against the train even as the packets in my hands flayed helplessly inthe air. Luckily again, a few young working ladies in front of me made the tiniestof openings to me and I took the fullest advantage of that to break through—outin the welcome open air of the platform, still in a single piece, my mobilesafe in the pockets and with my relaxed-now wife beaming at me!

Satiated sort ofbeyond measure we did have our first ride in a Mumbai AC local! And we reconfirmour belief that all Mumbai local trains ought to be made airconditioned, atleast for the reduced risk of dying, if not for all the reasons cited above. Andof course—the Mumbai Suburban Railways should always keep in mind that trains mustnot only run in a timely manner but also in more numbers during the rush officehours; special or AC trains should never get canceled; and the Railwayofficials should always give correct info and guidance.

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A Hero adoration, fascination and love for whom never left my heart—frommy childhood days to the present day. Yes, the Hero for me! Embodiment of aperson I could trust and depend upon since my tenderest years! Let it be just ascreen person or an image only, he lived in my heart like the dearest member ofthe family! Yes, he's been family, also like a father figure, like my ownfather! A protector, the He-Man who destroys evil with his bare hands; an umbrella thatcovers the weak or the vulnerable at every dark corner; and the Hero whoconquers all obstacles and hurdles with smiling ease! Dharmendra! The nameitself is a legacy and the countless images that follow and immerse the legacyin colorful vastness! My heart housed in an ageing frame now is still immersed inthe legacy! What a hero Dharmendra (1935--2025) has been! Almost hero-worshipedhim @5 and still adoring him @65, and mourning his loss today with aninconsolable heart! Kudos for one of the greatest movie heroes of world cinemaof all times!

A few days back rumours about Dharmendra'sdemise flooded the social media and even some irresponsible mainstream media.So much so that Hema Malini had to post clarifications about his wellbeing andlater his successful homecoming. But alas! The Hero could hold that Destinyback only for a few days more, finally calling it a day at a Mumbai hospitaltoday. After nearly a 7-decade long career in Indian Cinema during which henever called it a day as long as screen performances were concerned. His threebrilliant actor sons, Sunny Deol, Abhay Deol and Bobby Deol adored and lovedhim as much, often bringing him in a movie project for the love of hisnever-fading screen presence. Not just his sons, but many other top actors alsobrought him in for the unique opportunity to perform with him. A Legend!

No! It's pointless to write about his career and work! It's availableeverywhere in huge and loving abundance. I'll only write about a simple feelingabout him in me when I was a primary school child. My father used to send us,with an escort, often to the movie houses for mostly action-adventure moviesinvolving King Kong, Dara Singh and, of course, Dharmendra. My younger brotherand I wept in the theatre when we watched Dharmendra getting stabbed and dying,writhing on the floor in pain, in that particular movie in the early sixties.But toward the end of the film we erupted in ecstasy when we saw him active andalive again. In that tender age we could hardly decode a flashback! Yes!Flashbacks can really help now and forever! We can fly far back to Phool Aur Patthar or Satyakam or Mera Gaon Mera Desh or Anupama ;move forward to Aankhen or Raja Jani or Pratiggya or Sholay or Hukumat ; and back and forth to numerousothers like on a time travel! Forever Dharmendra!
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His house was less thanhundred meters from ours and in the same lane, that is to say, in the immediateneighborhood, and therefore, he could pass as one of our neighbours in thestrictest sense. However, our relations with him hadn’t been as good neighbours,it was a doctor-patient relationship. Per our information he rented this flat forhis practice while his family lived in the parental house in a nearby locality.Unless in an emergency, he went back to his family every night. At times, his wifeand son came over to live with him. The flat is a one-bedroom affair: a smalllobby greets you in from the main door and as you turn to your right to enterhis little chamber you find straight ahead the kitchen slab which looks hardlyever used staring at you while the room on your left you’re sure is thebedroom; as you pass the door of the chamber you find a few chairs and a tablepropped up against the wall on your right and in front is the interior of theroom containing the doctor’s paraphernalia including a longish bed for patients;and sitting on a chair you can easily notice the movements in the lobby and entryor exit from the curtained bedroom on your left as well the treatment process infront of you.

That evening I went therewith my wife. Yes, she’s been the patient over the years, mainly for sometherapy sessions while I’ve been the attendant cum bodyguard—my wife havinglittle faith in male therapists. His wife happened to be living with him atthat time, and in the lobby my wife chatted with her for a few minutes whilethe doctor readied the straps and the machine and I watched sitting in one ofthe chairs. Sideways, I also noticed the curtains of the bedroom completelyclosed as my wife entered the chamber.

After putting the strapsin the right places and timing the machine the doctor occupied the revolvingchair by my side. I heard sounds of some utensils from inside the bedroom andthought his wife must be busy. All of a sudden, the doctor rose from his chair,passed me and disappeared into the bedroom. Moments later, he emerged frombehind the curtains with a small steel bowl and a spoon in his hands. He satdown quietly by my side and started to eat, taking spoonfuls of something intohis mouth at quick intervals.

I felt ill at ease,because I don’t remember this kind of host-behavior in my insignificantlifetime. I’ve been used over the decades to the saying that if somebody eatsalone in a group it’s always the eater who feels shy and hesitant. However, whatwas happening at that instant was its exact opposite—the host eating inabsolute bliss while the others fidgeted. Well, it’s only me, I thought, and notmy wife who looked completely absorbed welcoming the soothing waves sent intoher body by the machine; perhaps she resorted to that oblivion in recognitionof the unique spectacle unfolding.

The doctor finishedeating and deposited the utensils inside, and resumed his seat. After a fewminutes I thought I heard a soft moan-like sound the meaning of which I couldnot decipher—but obviously, it was coming out of his wife’s vocal chords—and thedoctor responded immediately. He rose, passed me and disappeared behind thecurtains. When he emerged again he was carrying another bowl with anotherspoon. He resumed his seat by my side and started to eat.

I tried my best to switchoff my smelling device so as to deactivate my sniffing ability—a move extremelynecessary under those special circumstances, for if you get the fragrance in, salivastarts accumulating in your mouth that you cannot gulp down without making asound, howsoever subtle or suppressed. This happens to me, if not to others aswell, on such occasions, irrespective of whether I’m hungry or not. I didn’tknow what he was eating each time, and I never wished to know. I didn’t disturbhim either, as he seemed to be enjoying the dishes immensely.

For the remainder of thetime with the doctor that evening my mind went into an overdrive, perhaps moreso since my other sensory organs were switched off. Why was he doing that blatantact in a land known for exemplary hospitality? I gathered a few possiblereasons, but no definite conclusion.

Maybe he was very hungryand didn’t have enough time for the evening snacks, but before leaving home mywife informed him and he asked her to come in ten minutes. Maybe as a doctor herighteously differentiated between a normal visitor and a patient or attendant;that while all are visitors, some of them are guests who only get the privilegeof being entertained. However, I visited doctors’ residences quite a few timesand they always have a separate chamber for patients with a secretary sittingin the passage used as the waiting room, and they never ate there. Most importantly,why did the doctor eat there in front of us and not inside with his wife, forduring that time the machine was taking care and he didn’t have a pressing needto be present? I had no answer to that. Anyway, why should we waste our timeand energy over such inanities like that?https://chinmaycwrites.blogspot.com/f...

My source who happens to be aresourceful domestic help of the owner of the building block where I’ve renteda flat with my family informed me the other day that in the vacant flatopposite to mine a youngish individual had moved in. To my immediately obviousquery he replied with a smile the said individual is not a bachelor, but has agood family with a working wife in their native place, and on being transferredthe individual has rented the flat. Okay, no bachelor parties to disturb us orthe family of the owner, I thought with a relaxed mind, yes, the owner as I knowhim for several years would never invite trouble by letting the flat to justanybody. I wanted to meet my new nextdoor neighbor as we’re are used to, our old-fashionedor rather rustic ways, in our long history of cultivating cordial relations with our neighboursas well as with the respective owners. However, luck didn’t shine on me forquite some time.

Several days passed, still no sight ofthe new neighbor. Then, fortunately, just before the start of the Durga Pujacelebrations I happened to confront him as he was moving out on some errand atthe same minute I did. He was a tall, slim and simple-looking guy with a thinmoustache, adding a rather insignificant detail to his plain face, and probablyin his early forties. He accosted me with a smile and held the small metalsliding door that provides exit and entry into the passage and which thesafety-oriented owner always insists on being kept locked all the time makingkeys available to all the resident families, open for me to pass.

As we walked through the lane toward themain road I started an exchange of greetings with him and a brief conversationensued till we parted ways at the main road. I was happy to learn that hisfamily of wife and two kids was coming to him for the Puja holidays, and I promptlyinvited them to our house. He smiled nodding in acknowledgement and said thathe was at that point of time going to the nearest LPG agent for an urgent gasconnection. I understood the necessity and wished him good luck.

The Durga Puja holidays came andpassed. During those five days I had no information as to when his family came andhow they were putting up or if he managed to get the gas connection. Unfortunately,my source had also gone to his native village to spend the holidays with hisfamily. However, I came to recognize the tell-tale signs that the members ofhis family had indeed arrived and were enjoying: at the somewhat relaxedmorning hours every day when we come out to visit the nearest Puja pandal wefind a huge lock on his door which remained like that for the rest of the day; andduring late night when I check the passage before shutting the door for thenight I find a heap of shoes and sandals in front of his closed doorway. I washappy they were enjoying together in the new city and perhaps it was theirfirst Puja tour. From our own experience I was certain they must’ve booked avehicle for their tours on a daily basis.

I had no knowledge either which dayfollowing the holidays his family left. One morning while going out to collectthe newspaper I found his house locked with the huge lock and not a single pairof shoes or sandals was there to be found. I surmised he must’ve accompaniedhis family back to their native place and would maybe return soon to resume hisforced bachelorhood. I smiled to myself, not exactly knowing why.

Just before closing thedoor I instinctively looked at the passage separating his main door from mine. Includingthe staircase going up to the owner’s residences the distance was barely seven or eightfeet. I locked my door to it, sat down at the dining table chair and started readingthe newspaper.https://chinmaycwrites.blogspot.com/f...

Rohit Sharma is among themost aggressive yet elegant, correct and stylish, not to be called pinchhitters, openers of Indian Cricket, starting with Farokh Engineer (mostly in TestCricket those days except for the World Cup-1975), on to Sachin Tendulkar, SouravGanguly, Ajay Jadeja, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and concluding withYashasvi Jaiswal. They’ve always been a delight to watch and the early fall oftheir wickets cast a doom for cricket fans invariably, often for the team too.Rohit Sharma has excelled in the limited overs format (making his debut in T20Iand in ODI in 2007) with quite a few world records for most runs in T20I, mostsixes in international cricket, most double hundreds (3) in ODIs (One Day Internationals),most centuries (7) in Cricket World Cups, most centuries (5) in a single WorldCup for which he won the ICC Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Year in 2019 and theindividual record of the highest 264 runs in ODI cricket. A player of such immensetalent and potential could not be ignored for Test Cricket for long, and Rohitmade his Test debut in 2013 under a trusting MS Dhoni and became a deservingall-format cricketer. But for his frequent loss of form at various junctures,like in around 2009-10 due to which he wasn’t selected for the historic WorldCup-2011, the Hitman, as he was fondly called in the white-ball cricket,would’ve gone on to break many more world records.

As keen followers ofcricket, including this writer, we cannot keep our eyes off from Rohit once hecomes in to bat and on that particular day when he gets going, his antics withthe bat get fascinating and too good to believe. His innings are pureentertainment in cricket batting display, not just raw hitting, but sound copybookstyle attacking aggressive batting. I often tended to compare his delightfulbatting with Virender Sehwag and got my full vindication in what Sunil Gavaskarsaid about the Hitman:

The standout performer in both the limited overs series and the T20 serieshas been Rohit Sharma. Like Virender Sehwag before him, he is unstoppable oncehe gets going and like Viru he has an appetite for big hundreds. When Viru usedto get out looking to hit another delivery out of the park, there used to beconsternation around the ground, just like it is when Rohit gets out to aseemingly casual shot. If Rohit can turn his white ball exploits into red ballcricket, he will be the most destructive batsman in the world after VivRichards and Virender Sehwag.

No doubt Rohit Sharma was appointed a regular all-formatcaptain of Team India in 2022, following Virat Kohli. During his short tenuretill 2025, Rohit has the highest success rate percentage of 75 among IndianCaptains, followed by Kohli with 68% and MS Dhoni with 55%. His tenure includesthe triumphs of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup-2024, the ICC Champions Trophy-2025,the Asia Cup-2018, the Asia Cup-2023, and he was also a member of the teamwinning the ICC Champions Trophy-2013. He also had a stint as Team Captain inthe away Test Series against South Africa in 2018 due to Virat Kohli beingrested and under his leadership India won the Series 2-1. He led Team Indiafrom the front in the ICC Men’s World Cup-2023 with scintillating individualscores thus contributing for his team remain unbeaten till the Final; andunfortunately, he narrowly missed scripting his most deserving achievement.Various commentators made various observations about that fateful Final againstAustralia that includes pitch errors, a few players’ motivation factors andIndia’s batting order decisions.

There’s been lot of joy among the Indiancricket fans with the announcement of Team India squads for the upcoming IndiaTour of Australia, for Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have been selected for theODI squad. It’s almost like the last opportunity to watch those two legendaryinternational batsmen in action. With Gautam Gambhir, the Indian Head Coach,nurturing and already building a young Team India of the future, it’s highlyunlikely these two superstars would be retained for the World Cup-2027 as bothof them will be turning forty years of age that time around.

As we’ve mentioned earlier Rohit’s frequentloss of form affected his otherwise stupendous cricket career with roadblocks.His disastrous batting form in the home Test Series against New   Zealandin 2024 in which India got whitewashed 0-3, a rare drabbing in decades, and the1-3 loss in the away Test Series the same year against Australia proveddefinitive as far as his Test career was concerned. Meanwhile, Head CoachGautam Gambhir has launched himself fully in the act of ending the so-called‘superstar cult’ within Indian Cricket and providing avenues for young cricketerswho have done excellently in the IPL and in domestic cricket. With ChiefSelector Ajit Agarkar giving full backing the two greats were dropped from theTest cricket team against England this year. Anticipating the move Rohit Sharmaas well as Virat Kohli announced their retirement from Test Cricket. They’dalready retired from the T20I format following India’s triumph in the T20 WorldCup-2024. The current churning in building a young team is very much similar toCaptain Cool MS Dhoni’s efforts to ease out the greats of Ganguly, Dravid andTendulkar. Perhaps the same thinking has been applied to another aggressivebatsman Surya Kumar Yadav (fondly SKY) who’s already turned 35 keeping him ascaptain of the T20 national team as long as he succeeds in winning and notconsidering him for either the ODI or the Test teams. Well, inevitably enough,the process of elimination and elevation seems to be in full swing for thevision of the World Cup-2027. With Gambhir’s apparent adoration for ShubmanGill, the later seems to be the obvious choice for the all-format Captain forTeam India in the near future, closely following which ‘vision’ he has beennamed the India captain for the ODI squad against Australia replacing RohitSharma.  

But of course, cricket fans are most likely setto go on watching these two greats in action in the future versions of the IPL.Rohit also has one of the most successful cricket captain careers as Captain ofthe Mumbai Indians IPL Franchise winning five Champion titles during 2013-2020,equalling the record of the MS Dhoni for the Chennai Super Kings Franchise. Inthe last IPL Virat Kohli had finally asserted himself for his RoyalChallengers, Bangalore Franchise helping it win its maiden Champion title.

Maybe all is not over yet for Rohit and Virat.We’re set to watch them in the ODI Series against Australia that starts 19thOctober, 2025. It’s their performances there that’d matter the most. If theyare able to reproduce a streak of their masterclass vintage innings yet again,they might as well get back into contention for the next World Cup in spite ofthe Vision or at least for more of the ODI series to unfold in the near future! 

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