The Sky'er' is the limit

I remember the first time I played with a cricket ball, sometime when I was 11 or 12 in a 7A vs 7B match, scoring 10 odd. Back then,while fielding. the sight of the ball hurling towards you, at presently innocuos speeds, would cause you to move your hands away from the ball in the last second- obviosuly a very very stupid thing to do. The high catches were especially scary. I remember how I'd wriggle my hands in pain, thanks to some awful catching technique.

The catches weren't even remotely high back then. It's just that we were scared- and scared as hell. Personally,a lot has obviously improved in the 13 yrs since then.

So has the equipment( though I haven't used this stuff and would love to). Check this thing out- it's called the Fusion Skyer- a new and revolutionary practice bat, made from some patented German rubber cut into a smaller bat two-thirds the size of a regular cricket bat.

The rubber apparently causes the ball to bounce off the surface to all kinds of heights, aiding fieldsmen to practice at par-match conditions. It apparently helps for infielding as well, with the ball traveling at great speeds for just the smallest of touches. And at under 1 Kg, sounds like cricket's own ping-pong paddle.

The catch here is the price. Each one of these costs an estimated $160. There is a cheaper version called the Skyer Boom that comes at an estimated $50, but is obviouly not as effective as the regualr piece, and comes in a terribly gay pink.

By the way, remember the kinds of suggestions that would keep passing around in our schooldays about Jayasuriya's bat having a spring in it that helped him hit sixes( or still worse, those contact lenses he wore to make the ball look like a football :D ). Well, here it comes my friends.

And oh yes!! There's another reason to like it. It's orange :-).

Whatever...

New reason to like the Indian Railways and Team India

I have always liked the railways in India. Now, I have a newfound reason to like them.

Photo Credits-http://chennaidailyfoto.wordpress.com
I picked this image up on Ram's blog, and found this ticket vending machine painted in Orange and Blue. Now, that's cool.

That's no it. It gets cooler. The Indian team jersey is also Orange and Blue now. I guess it's now time for the Men in Blue to be called the Men in Orange and Blue.

The University if FLorida is in Gainesville. The Gatornation is everywhere. Or, so they say .

Whatever....

The beginning of the end

This post is dedicated to my closest inner circle of friends- the people I have had the most fun with, hung out the most with, played the most with etc. etc.

"Deepak, Anuj just got engaged. He's getting married soon", said Harsh over the phone- WHAATT? That was a little incredible, given the fact that all these guys had bluffed me a few months ago that Sid was getting married.

This time, sadly, it was true. Sad, not because the wedding is happening- It's cool that it’s the first wedding in the bunch. Rather, it's sad that it marks the beginning of the end of all the good times we had together. And with a couple more weddings (and God knows how many over that) lined up for later this year and next year, it certainly makes for a recipe for the end to be scripted.

Guys, I won't have a chance to lock Anuj's grandma up in the loo again. We wont have a chance to take a pic of Kundra (you know what I am talking about :D). I cant spit out a whole bottle of water on Sid. No more teen patti while Kundra and I sleep and get pillow bashed . Anuj, save that door latch dude :D .

Sourav gone. Sachin, Dravid and Zak will be gone very soon I guess. The people that made your childhood- your friends and heroes, wont be the same any longer. It's a very stark realization that it's all coming to an end.

Whatever...