Srikkanth to Pujara:
Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine. It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found. (Luke 15:32).
That 6,6,6,6,6,6 over in Kingsmead was surely more glorious than feeding pigs. Nor can one equate leading Kings XI Punjab to the swineherd’s job. Still, Yuvraj’s comeback story is very much cricket’s own Parable of the Return of the Prodigal Son.
Pray, he’s here to stay. Amen.
Five winters back, it took an abscess in Sourav Ganguly’s thigh to facilitate his Test debut. Now Ganguly’s exit should cement his place. Else, Yuvraj can go back and look after the pigs again.
IPL, I meant.
Eight years in the business and still a persona non grata when Test caps are doled out. We still don’t know what to do with him. Yuvraj is a busy man off the field but if he ever cares for the truth, he would notice that the accusing fingers are pointing back at himself.
But this was surely not to be the case. It looked almost a matter of destiny before the precocious prince became the lord of all he surveys. Accordingly, chrism was concocted and hymns were hummed. But the Prince who could be the King tossed aside everything and preferred to remain the perpetual pretender to the throne.
What went wrong?
A flawed technique is only the part answer. Even a technically-retarded Sadagopan Ramesh played 19 Tests from 1999-2001!
The demon lurks in the mind. The guy upstair stuffed so much talent inside that discipline had to be left out. It’s not an issue of ability but application. And the bedazzling success in the shorter formats probably blurred the road ahead.
The brevity of ODI/T20, where end justifies means, glosses over the chinks. Test cricket exposes them. It’s a subtler and crueler proposition which separates the wheat from the chaff and disrobes imposters of all their borrowed plumes.
Stuck somewhere between his potential and achievement, Yuvraj must consider himself lucky to have got another chance to banish the imposter and prove he belongs. If motivation runs dry, qualms should keep him on course. Sitting glumly on top of his run mountain, Cheteshwar Pujara has a genuine grudge after all. Much like the old brother from the Gospel of Luke.
Yuvraj badly needs to clear this Test. Else he can go back and feed the pigs again.
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15 comments:
next couple of series (coz i dont think eng will test him too much on our soil) will decide whether he will keep on self indulging in forever-adolescent or will become a man...
for which we all have been waiting...and still waiting...lets hope this time he proves all of us 'arm chair' pundits :)
SP, right you are. Home turf should not be a problem for him. Away series would be the real test of Indian cricket's near man.
Absolutely Bang on. I think more of the problems for YS lie in his mind and patience...His 2 hundreds so far have been magical and in situation when India were in dire straits!!
So the talent is right there,just tht he needs to apply it better...
Sam, he's too good to be dumped. But at times, he needs a kick on the back.
i'm curious abt the ys-msd equation. as also the ys-ys equation. if the first is good, the second can sort itself out. ys always needs a punch n a pat, ideally from the same guy, in straight down n dirty hinglish. all else, damn care.
NC, you hit the nail on head. He's like a director's actor, as good as the role assigned. He bloomed under SCG but didn't have the same chemistry with RD. MSD would be key to his fate and future.
Hey Som, nice way to start the post. YS will perform well in the coming series.....
Anony, he better. Already SP the Pujari is gathering sighs...I mean signs..and planning to submit a memorandum to Morgan and Lorgat for the injustice meted out to Pujara!
Hey Som, doesn't seem David Morgan and Haroon Lorgat will be able to change Pujara's fate though.
Some things for Yuvraj to ponder about...
That technically retarded Sadagoppan averaged over 40 in tests and was quite unfairly treated. Still even he was better than Yuvraj in making it count.
Sangakkara debuted around the same time as Yuvraj... both were seen as the promise for the future. Where is Sanga now in test cricket and where is Yuvraj.
All in the mind, which he needs to sort out. If he does come good, we have yet another explosive test cricket. How long now?
Pujara... the dark horse, remains in the dark.
Like you said Som, Yuvraj badly needs to clear this Board exam.
I hope he doesn't want to become an example to illustrate the value of effort alongside talent. I'm sure he doesn't want to figure in Ram aur Shyam fables in a negative way.
Scorpi, I think we tend to make too much of technique. If S Ramesh was technically challenged, I hardly cared because he got those runs. Similarly if Yuvi does not impress the puritans and still manage to score in Tests, I think he would settle for that. Well, Sanga is too cerebral, while Yuvraj is not adequately endowed in that aspect.
Oops, forgot Pujara (call it Chikatites). Scorpi, there is definitely light at the end of the dark tunnel.
Soulberry, the moron badly needs a friend, philosopher and guide who can drive home the point.
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