That's four in a row there is good.
They're going to blow next in the prodigal son turn Messiah.
Gets a second hundred in successive.
In their running romantic style, the whole of Bengal are on their
feet. Diego not that important.
He's gone the next ball. The dream has diminished for
Carlos Craft win favourable scenes here at the moment.
Welcome to the BCCI pod. We are recording this on
Saturday the 16th of May. We are recording this because
Saarthak Nebola key Why is bowlers for this IPL Saarthak
Nebola what is a Suryavanshi for this IPL or what'sel Nebola?
What is Rahane? I think quickly discuss Karne.
I think I am KKR's biggest fan. I have realized that I have
passed on this disease to another generation all together,
and that generation is now talking in you know, so I have.
Show him the good stuff. I have bro.
I have heard him tell like RCB fans in the building key.
Listen, you guys have won only one IPL.
Please don't talk to me. I have won three IPL's.
I'm like, OK, this is, this is nice.
This is nice. But RCB's also won 33.
IPL's right once are three. IPL.
'S. But would WPL, you know, please
like like Wobi or please like this gentleman who I'm talking
about, my son, he's also a very, very keen WPL fan.
He's going to tell key WPL I like competition hand, punch
team hand on all of that. So he'll probably school the
other other party before anybody tries to claim three IP LS on
that side. But it's been fascinating.
Like I have seen people my generation like being absolutely
disinterested and then like kids and everybody in their 20s being
as interested as as I was probably last year.
So there is probably some level of age catching up.
I also want to start the part by saying that at this point in
time, Nishant Jisko bought Zada Kuch Sunim Ilata for shitting on
PBKS in our mid season review watch Hasreah America.
So with that Sartak or Watsal Watsal, why don't you answer
first? What is a Rahane?
And then we'll get to. Sartak before.
Sorry, sorry Watsal, before you start, I just want to add one
more thing before you. Very crucial to Rahane.
Eden Gardens falls north of 60,000 people.
Today is a Saturday and less than 30,000 have turned down.
For a game that is very crucial. The floor is yours.
I mean, yeah, I think I would say that Ranek is one of the
reasons why so few people have also turned up.
And the other, the other being, I don't know, because of what's
happened here in the past couple of weeks.
I think there is just a just a bit of apprehension that people
are, I don't know, maybe apprehensive about going into a
match or stepping out maybe. But regardless of that, to
answer MB's question, Rahane is Rahane is an Indian concept, but
he is, I don't know, like how how he's managed to easel his
way so far and just keep on playing and keep on going
despite not performing for two seasons in a row and still
having people who genuinely think that he's he deserves his
place in the side and deserves to be captain of the team
assist. I yeah, I genuinely thought that
by this time, you know, Rani would be ousted from the team
and maybe someone else like Rink would have been made the
captain. But the fact that there we have
no standards and we just keep on sticking with the same old
formula, which never ever works on a consistent basis is just
yeah. And the worst part is this mini
kind of run that KKR has been in for the past two or three weeks.
It's just going to keep repose the fit and they will just yeah,
carry on with this shit show for another for another season till
it fails again and we go we go on that merry go round again.
Not a not a great time to be a KKR fan for anyone.
Do you reckon because there is one more season left in the
cycle and there are very few captaincy options that will be
available through the mini option, even within the teams
who are possibly thinking of, you know, refreshing their
roster for the next cycle, they won't get to fully refresh at
this year's later mini option and they'll hold on to a few
before the next option. They'll, you know, maybe do a
clear jettison, full jettison, clear out.
Do you reckon one of the reasons that they might stick to Rahane
is also because who else? I mean, literally anyone else
would be an answer to that. But like ultimately, ultimately,
you know, especially in T 20s, I think captaincy, it does play a
part, but I feel that it's kind of rated.
I mean, you really that these days with the impacts up, you
can change the game however you want and you can go in with
strategies and with the strategy time out as well.
The coaches can have an impact on the game from the outside,
you know, much like like far more than you can have on like
say a Test match or over there. But so I feel that as long as
you're pulling your weight as with your core skill set, I
think that really captaincy just for just for being a captain.
I don't think anyone deserves a place in this side anymore on in
the IPL or in T 20s generally. So I feel that I feel like you
can, you can like look to the future as well by investing in
Rinku. Like he's he's, he's one of the
senior players in his domestic side as well.
He's been a part of the Indian setup as well for, for 2-3 years
now. So like it would be, no, you
would be doing no harm by, you know, proposing faith in him and
just you, you're just not going anywhere with Ramani.
Like it's, it's not even a short term fix.
It's not even getting a short term success.
And for the long term as well, you're not building any player
or any leader that can, you know, take over the mantle also.
So I feel that it's it's, it's, it's a call that they have to
take at some stage, whether they do it now or they do it after
embarrassing themselves for another couple of seasons.
Yeah, I think then the like the next mega option they will clear
out because obviously Rahane also gets a year older.
He's no with all the respect, he's no spring shipping.
So I think they might be even a clearer space.
I also actually want to ask you about.
So when you enter a option with about 60 crores in your budget
and your total budget is 120 crores, what is?
And we all know, right, the IPL auction time is like applying
actual economic logic to it doesn't make sense and we won't
go down that route. But how?
How do you see as a KKR fan, what, 43 crores on effectively
two players, one of whom has had a history of not fulfilling both
his core skills and the other who has a long history of
injury? And then to add 9 crores to a
very, very decent bowler who unfortunately they couldn't play
for various reasons, right? How do you see but the first 243
crores? How do you see that kind of
spend on two players who were never going to fulfill 14
matches at the best of their ability?
I would say the green one, they were kind of like they didn't go
for him, but like any, any team with that kind of purse would,
would eventually end up going for him.
Even though they they flunked a lot of the budget on him.
I think they went way overboard. Even though Winky Mysore came
out after the auction and said that we weren't attached to
anyone. They were clearly attached to
him. They really made-up them.
Yeah. So they they definitely had
their mind made-up that come what may, we are going to, we
are going to get green with Patirana.
It was it was a gamble that they took.
And yeah, it didn't pay off. Like he's today, he's playing
his first game. So he's like been a non entity
this this season at least. Maybe if he does well in the
next season, maybe he is, he can be a retention candidate.
But again, I feel that his new bowl bowling really needs to
improve a lot and he needs to continue.
Injury record. Even at CSK.
He wasn't playing like he was a star at CSK, but he had an
injury record to kind of work through.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. So that, that certainly doesn't
help. He didn't, he missed the World
Cup as well, but I'm not mistaken.
So he he you can't, you can't rely.
You can't rely especially when you're investing so much in a
particular player. You can't rely on on some on
certain aspects. I feel that in the option they
did not address of certain areas, they went very light on
the lower order batting like I that is one thing that has
really like they didn't get a Russell replacement like that's
a huge hole that Russell has left which could not be filled
at all. They went for another, another
top order batter, top order batter who who wants to bat in
the top three or, or open at least or at least minimum at #4
not not lower than that. So and then that created a that
created a place that created a situation where, you know,
Rahane is just someone who is just there for his captaincy
because in terms of in terms of the top the top orders, like you
see, Cypher has just got like a couple of games and Fin Allen.
He was also dropped in mid in the middle, just just because
there is that Rahane sized elephant in the room that cannot
be shaken off because he's going to play every game because he's
the captain. So they did not address that
area. Just they just, they just went
with Rahman Pal. Rahman Pal is the only kind of
lower order batsman that we have.
And apart from that it's, yeah, it's a, it's a very haphazard
way of doing things. They did not they, they, they
thought that they could rely on Green's bowling more.
But he's just, he's never been AT20 bowler.
He's never done done very well with the ball at least maybe
he's had a couple of couple of decentish knots in the while
with the bad. But apart from that, he's he's
generally been the one in the other games as well that has
just killed the momentum. He's just taken too many balls
to get in. And yeah, he's just, he's, he's,
he's kind of, he's kind of just kind of taken the momentum away
from whatever, whatever the previous batsmen have come and
done basically in, in most of the games apart from like maybe
maybe one or two. So ultimately, ultimately the
and then of course, you have to say that they with the bowling,
they got very unlucky because we have a lot of injuries.
We've had a lot of injuries, like Akashdeep got injured,
Harshit got injured before. And.
The the. I doubt, I doubt do.
You mean happy? Do you mean happy is good?
Drink? Most of his, most of his.
Some leaders said no because he he bought most of his, he said
I'll pay 50,00,000 or whatever to whoever chops the owners
head, which is an incredible way to like function in our society.
So that's where that's effective.
New India, That's effectively the most of his discussion,
right for you. All right.
And he cannot participate and he's not going to get a game for
KKR, I don't think, anytime soon.
Right. I think before we move on to the
bell of the ball, I thought good time to talk about something
that I've been like terribly wrong about, but something that
that actually makes you happy. Because Bhuvaneshwar Kumar has
just like, like this is big 2026 and he is absolutely killing it.
And and you, you, you end up meeting people who are like, bro
movie, bro, bro movie bro. And I'm like, yeah, I'm like,
it's, it's insane. I'm, I'm so, so happy for him
because I am like this mascot for No Country for old men in
cricket. And, and I really, really
thought he, it's, it's coming to an end.
And then he rolls back the years him and Krunal for, for what
it's worth. Do you remember in during
20/14/15? And this is when Hoovi had made
his debut, Xiaomi had made his debut umesh Yadav was going
good, Varun Naran was still around.
I know a bunch of people, bunch of people around the Indian,
kind of. I think Pankaj Singh had gone to
Australia, England and the couple of others who had gone to
Australia for the 2016 series at the 2016 World Cup.
If you 2020 World Cup, if you look up India's World Cup, you
will find the name who hadn't played for India for a while.
That is Ashish Nehra. And the reason he got to playing
for India was because he, I think he started playing for
franchise. And the thing with some bowlers,
which was definitely true for Nera and his palm was that
they're exceptionally smart bowlers.
They're not just for, I'm not saying any of the newer crop are
not smart, but I'm just saying these guys were had like a
tremendous amount of smartness about their brain about their
operation. And Nehra's Mark 2.2 when he
played at the 2016 World Cup, I think he played a few seasons
for CSK. Then you could tell that this is
not improved, but this is a refreshed Nehra who maybe
doesn't have the legs as before, but he's become even more lethal
because now he's come with years of experience.
He knows exactly what to do. He's not overstretching.
He knows he just needs to bowl 4 overs and ball after ball.
He's landing it exactly where he needs to.
And I think that is the mark of that is the mark of a
tremendously aware cricketer who is, you know, he's been fit in
the last few years. He's bowled well, but not this
well. And I think what's helped him is
to have Hazelwood on the other end, Duffy, sometimes when
Hazelwood wasn't available. And so they took care of the
seam and they hit the deck stuff and who we could just bowl full
and you know, with with his wonderful team presentation.
But I think it's that I would not be surprised if especially
in the absence of Bumrah from at least the next few months, see,
I don't foresee Bumrah playing too many T20 series for India.
In the absence of Bumrah, I will not be surprised to see a few
bowlers being given a run. Obviously, a younger crop Prince
will play that Prince has not been selected into the NBA
sport. So I'm I'm expecting him to play
for like be in the sport for India.
I will not be surprised if Agarkar and Co, you know, have
an eye on Bhuvaneshwar. If he's bowling so well and he
can hold the bat, he's not your number 8 anymore.
But he's in a good #9 #10 so #9 so why not?
If the chance arises, if Siraj needs the rest, why not?
So amazing, amazing to watch. This reminded me of old Nehra G
it reminded me of Zach around 2013, 2014 ish when he had
stopped playing as much injury had taken over his body.
But just he almost kind of compressing how much you needed
of him made him that much more that much harder to play because
he knew he was just going to bowl forward and leave and he
was just doing a great job. So very, very happy for who he
deserves everything coming his way and even if it's for one
series and he he gets the India capital to be valued.
What about Krunal? I mean, yeah, the the spell he
bowled against MI was yeah, that was the last.
Like it reminded me of him. Like bowling in South Africa,
like in 2013. Was it when?
1818 Cape Town Day one. 2018 Cape Town Day One South Africa
with 30 for three. Then ABW comes out sports scores
I think 65 if I'm not mistaken and it's a 65 that only ABWS can
score. And on a different day in
Calcutta, Aravinda had sport just very similar innings where
he just hits a flurry of force. And again in the second innings
movie does well. And in the second Test match at
Centurion, the team management innings night.
And then in the third Test, he's man of the match, I think.
Shami is man of the match. Bumrah picks five, I think.
No, no, Bui Bui is man of the match.
I remember he picks. He scores a 30, takes a 3-4 in
the first innings and another 30 in the in the in in the last
innings. In the third innings, because
Shami Shami bowled really well, Bumrah.
Bumrah got a fiver. I say I'm not mistaken.
Bumrah got a fiver in the first innings but Bui second in.
Yeah, second inning, Shami had taken.
Yeah, Shami had taken a Pfeiffer, correct?
So, yeah, I mean very happy, very, very happy for a movie.
Lovely, lovely bowler thinking cricketer.
And I love what he said about he was asked in that interview of
about process, about motivation. That is like, no, you always go
to work. Adam Buzzwords.
Turning to SRH, any thoughts on how they have ended the reign of
Purple Patel and brought the new era?
I like, I like Saket very much, very, very much.
I love how much energy and Nitish is coming in with I I'm a
huge Ravi Chandran smart and fan huge is is.
Please tell me his name is Ravi Chandran Smart and I have not
gotten it wrong. It is.
Thank God. I'm a huge fan.
I've watched him a lot for Karnataka and across
competitions. I was, yeah, I was a bit
disappointed with a couple of his innings.
I think especially the last innings at 9 of 1314, he just
couldn't get it out of his bat. I felt like just he was not
getting getting his shots through.
Not very tough wicket though. Yeah, yeah, it was, It was.
And you can't tell like two innings is not a sign of
anyone's talent, right? You know, somebody's done so
well in domestic cricket and he's still young.
I hope they persist with him and I hope someone invest in him
and, you know, just push them into first team.
He's that good. He'll come good, but very good
team. I was very happy because I did
the preview for SRH with MV and one of my concerns was Unadkat
Hershel, Ishaan Malinga and Pat Cummins are not going to win the
get into the playoffs. I was tremendously wrong about
Ishaan Malinga. Happy to take egg on the face.
Cummins is Cummins but I did not see Prapulinga and Saket coming
like this. I did not see it at all.
So props to props to everyone at SRH and love love the look of
Saket and Prapulinga. I think they've done well with
regards to their batting as well if you think about it right,
Like especially Abhishek head class.
I mean that's all you need right?
At the end of the day, Ishan Kishan like goes without saying.
Classen is top. No, he's orange or abhi.
It's because isolation didn't score too many either one or
two. So classen is either one or two
in the orange cap. Size Size Size 1.
GAIL is 2, Classen is 3. Yeah.
For classen from #4 to get an orange cap is wild.
Yeah, but I feel that Classen is is evolved in a way he's not.
He's not the Classen that he was like during that World Cup run
that they had back then. He was, he was the main guy.
He was the one who was who had The Who had the true strike
rate, where The Who was taking on the bowlers.
Now he's become a bit more calculated.
He's taking, he's looking at the situation, he's playing to the
situation, which is of course, yeah.
I mean, SRH do need that from him like because that gives the
freedom to Abhishek and to Travis and Tuition.
Just go out there and just put your foot down basically from
ball 1 because they know that class and will play the
situation and we will do what's necessary to big A-Team out of
the world if need be. Yeah.
And he's obviously, I mean, you, you see how good a player he is.
He's played a couple of innings, like you said, he's where he's
taken his time before exploding. And then there have been a
couple of innings where he's come and he started talking from
very early. So he's been very good.
Abhishek's been really good actually.
I mean it's gone under the radar because obviously there are
newer openers who are like a decade young or two Abhishek who
have taken our breath away. But Abhishek gone really well.
He scored a lot of runs. I wish he bowled more.
I don't know if it's if it's just the design of the IPL with
its impact sub key. You know, the part timers don't
get enough opportunities. But I wish he bowled more.
It's always good to be multi dimensional as a cricketer
because even for India, you then add a dimension, you are a
bowler in the top order. It adds to the balance.
But he's gone well. Ishan's gone well, Classen's
gone well. In the couple of innings cameos
that you know Sir Leela has done, he's done well.
Shivang is really nice. I like the look of him.
And Harsh Dubai. Harsh Dubai has been creating
waves in domestic cricket anywhere.
Yeah, so. Moving to Gujarat Titans, since
they are playing KKR at this point in time, they are.
I mean, I think this is a advanced version of that 2016
template that SRH had where they had great bowlers, but they
would be happy to, let's say, defend 160.
Great bowlers bomb openers and that's.
It but but why it is elevated in terms of success for for GTNN
and let's say it goes further is because of the fact that Jason
Holder is also having his best season ever.
Yeah, yeah. Like I have this conversation on
a on a daily basis where my kid refuses to agree with me that
Jason Holder doesn't play this well.
Generally he's like, no, he's the greatest.
He's like 3 wickets today, 4 wickets today, 3 wickets today.
I'm like, bro, this is not normal.
But according to, I mean, if you're watching the IPL for the
first time and this is, this is what you see, then Jason Holder.
Is meant also we've been waiting for this Jason holder since that
W Indies series in 20/19/20. Oh man I have messages from that
test telling people bro this is the best test all rounder in
1919. Before, before the World Cup,
Yeah, he's four 202 not out in that barbarous.
He just. Discovered the reverse and that
just changed his career basically.
No, Also I think one of the reasons MB that you mentioned
why they're an updated version is so Sandeep Sharma has a skill
set out had in 2016 and the other bowlers had a skill set.
Rabada, Siraj, Rashid are extremely well-rounded complete
bowlers in the sense that they will give you a baseline of
seven on 10 on most pitches, if not all pitches.
They're not like Ahmedabad has been spicy this IPL.
I'll have to say this, the pitch has been really good from a
watchability perspective, from a contest perspective, bowlers,
I've got something out of it which has been there in this
IPL, but Robara, Siraj, Raja, champion bowlers and it helps to
have three bowlers of that pedigree.
Very few teams do, very few teams do and they've had to
sacrifice in the batting for it. Sorry, yes, press it 100%.
Very good backup bowler. Then you have Psych Kishore
playing today, who's such a wonderful spin bowler.
We've been impressed with Arshad, who's clocked, what, 155
at times this season. So yeah, they've got a solid
attack. It's the sacrifice in their
batting. But it's also really nice that
they gave Glenn Phillips a few games and they said, listen, we
we tried, it didn't work out. Now let's try out with Jason
Holder. We tried with, we tried with
this guy Shahrukh Khan. It didn't work out, so let's
give Nishan Sindhu who he's really good all rounder.
Nishan Sindhu will also bowl soon, if not this season, next
season. He's a lifetime spinner,
seriously. Good all rounder, can bat, can
great fielder. So looking forward to him.
Great team. I love watching that.
Yeah, absolutely. Any word?
I think, yeah, yeah, go ahead with that.
Yeah, but I still think that GD, the, the only place that they
will come short is again, you know, in those big day, in the
in the big game, in the knockouts, the Evan Galvis
effect will at some, in some part of their mind will
definitely be there. And Shubman Gill and Saisa
Darshan's minds when they take the crease to either chase or to
bat first, because their batting generally falls off a Cliff
after like after Holder basically.
So that is, that is wonderful. SI Evan Galbis effect drop?
What is the Evan Galbis effect? Who is an Evan Galbis?
Why is an Evan Galbis? And for that, for that, you just
kindly request Star Sports. We tweet Karenki.
Those are in this major World Cup final highlights.
I meant 2023. Sorry, 23.
So basically basically because they don't have the depth in the
batting that they will always in a crunch game, in a big game
that that is always going to play on the on their minds and
that little bit of doubt. Can.
Yeah, spell do, basically. Yeah, I, I mean, before we move
on to Vaibhav, Surya and sheep, I thought it's important to take
a moment out and and maybe smile and laugh both at Mumbai
Indians. Yeah, like.
By MATLAB 44 years now you you you were told that this is like
the greatest thing since sliced bread and then for years you've
also been told Ki Pakistan ET time PE ETI main saath captain
and it was a bad thing despite how entertaining they were and
now you come to. This where like there's just
like. Itna masala, itna masala like I
haven't been able to follow itna masala.
So I will depend on Sarthak and Watsal to tell me Mumbai Indians
and and how and how is the best league in the world like
surviving with two teams eliminated and and it's and it's
so bad that I that I realized one of these days early morning
watching highlights. Is that your table mate?
The Kate Vini 9th and 10th team cobot bar do hafta tournament or
9th and 10th team I? Mean, yeah, they they have I
really, I really don't know what to say about them.
They have everything. But then still, they have all
the resources, they have all, they have all the backing and
they have the richest man in India that is like not maybe the
second richest man in India who's like who's owning them and
who's who's been running them. And still they just find a way
to find a way to just, yeah, to just lose the plot.
Like, and they've been doing it for the past 2-3 years.
Like, I feel that they genuinely need a lot of change.
Like they need to freshen it up. They need to, they need to get
rid of, get rid of the couple of a couple of people who've just
who've just been there too long. They've just run their course.
I think that that is the only way that things can change.
Otherwise there is just so many eagles inside that dressing room
who do not who do not want to play as a team.
Maybe that that's the only thing that kind of makes sense to me.
Apart from that, I really genuinely can't make out why a
team that is as talented and has the tools that they have is just
by the way, I the one thing that I don't understand is why is
Bumrah still playing? Like why?
Why is the BCCI they do? Do they not care about in
cricket? Is it something like that?
Why? Why is he still being made to
play these dead rubbers and being made captain for no
reason? I really don't get that.
He's supposed to be one of the most prized assets that the
Indian team has. Why not just tell him to take
the last they eliminated anyways?
You're not gaining anything from it.
I really don't get why Bumrah is still playing.
He should just be poor to go on a vacation or something.
Yeah, that that will never happen and and we all know the
reason. Since so I think am I in 2020
was the highest form like the best T20 team you could assemble
along with W Indies between say 2011 to 2015 sixteen and
Pakistan between 2007 to 2010 ish.
They was as complete, all bases covered, everything sorted.
You know, just constantly high performing hitters, top order
hitters, spin bashers, lower order hitters, anchor players,
fast bowlers, mystery spinners. They had these teams had
everything. And since that 2020 season, MI
have finished 5th, 10th, 4th, 10th and 4th in the league
position. This year they'll finish I guess
9th, 10 something like that. If if things go better and I I
put this question on my Twitter and one of the responses to that
was that captain is a problem. And while sure he's not the
perfect captain, we all know how poorly am I handled it and
within the team handle, the team handled it when he came in 2024,
we saw it happen in in real time, how the rest of the team
reacted to him. We saw last year things improve
a little bit and we've seen it completely blow up this year.
And it it, it is very weirdly reflective of a team that that
is a little entitled and I'm not being disrespectful to players
there, but it just feels like they feel they should win just
by virtue of being around and it has shown up.
Sorry. Go ahead, please.
Yeah, that that is definitely the issue.
They are, they are just taking things for granted and the, the
core, the core of the team is maybe, maybe the success that
they've had together. It's just the motivation is just
not there. You know, just keep going, keep
going every year. Although the core that was there
in 2020 who were entering their peak, they weren't super young.
They were entering their peak years.
It cannot be the same core in 2026.
That means you are playing a lot of really old players.
I think a few is fine. Experience is always good.
As IPL has shown over the years, you've seen how experience
players add value. But to have a team full of them
is turning out to be a bit of a problem because you're not
getting that kind of pure explosive talent and like a
smattering of them. Also what is happening at MI is
very oddly mirroring what's going on at another comparable
super team across the pond in Spain.
Where I think Real Madrid show should not be, should now be
cast on stoplights or Colors series.
I would pay a lot of money to watch it everyday.
I would inhale it. Because, for the uninitiated,
Real Madrid player manager, press conference journalist.
President Unka coach, star player, one of the star players,
he's not even talking to the coach, he's talking to the press
saying real time big boss style show.
Because this is because these are all millionaires,
billionaires doing this nonsense.
And I'm not for one saying that MI dressing room is like that,
of course not. But it is.
When super teams collapse, they collapse.
Funnily, they don't collapse normally.
TFR few team, few results go wrong, few results go right,
just luck runs out. When super teams collapse is
always a bit something goes horribly wrong.
And what's happened with Hardik in the last few weeks has been
pretty terrible. He's by no means perfect.
He's not had a great season. Of course.
And it doesn't help that he wants to be in the center of the
camera flame. But he's an exceptionally
talented cricketer, and the decision to get him over to MI
was not his. It was a decision made by the
ownership. So to make him the scapegoat is,
you know, hitting a cardboard target, which is it's
convenient, but it's not the answer.
So, yeah, I mean, very, very funny.
And mega auction May I have no doubt that a lot of these people
will go. Yeah, they have to.
They have to. Move, they have to go.
It's time. OK, They have achieved a lot
together, but I can see like the two big ones have to go because
they're also going to be like really old.
And one of them is getting runs. He's still getting very old.
So he might not even play that that song.
The other one who's only slightly younger, he has stopped
getting runs. Only he's he's a watch
connoisseur these days, as our dear friend Envy has informed.
So he's probably, he's buying new watches or doing whatever.
But all jokes apart, he's not scoring runs at any runs.
So Kelega Com, Rickleton, Her Match, My Name and Namandir
batting very well, but dropping catches that if somebody drops
at a school ground, they'll be butchered for dropping those
catches. So lots of problems is the
coaching staff, does that need a refresh?
It's still the same people who are in the coaching staff.
Are they dated? It's OK to question them.
They're all legends of the game. But it's OK to question them.
No, it's OK to question key. You have been here for six
years. That's that's two cycles.
What's up? Yeah.
Why have we not had one good season where we are at least in
the finals? It's OK to question two of the
greatest battles to have ever played the game.
What in the MI coaching stuff that it's not going right?
What's up? So yeah, lots of change.
But do you think they'll take the call a year before the
entire season or like like this three-year cycle ends or or do
they I. Don't think it makes.
Sense it doesn't make sense Option that is the problem
Option the mini option replacement option both tumko
bade option MI car replacement will be big refresh like full
squad refresh over can. Somebody can somebody explain
what is this Harshdeep and Tilak thing that is happening?
Yeah. So 2-3 days, like so Punjab
played, Punjab played MI right. And a couple of days or the day
before Harsdeep, who is pretty, who's, you know, pretty frequent
with his reels and snapchats and what not, he and he has a level
of banter with his teammates and you know, India teammates and
all that. So he was, I think in a lounge
opposite the MI team and he looked up to Tilak Verma and he
said, Hey, Andre sunscreen Lagaya.
And he he said it in a way of yes, these were his exact words.
I'm not paraphrasing. And you could tell that Tilak
Verma, he smiled through it, but he wasn't chuffed.
With being called andhera obviously and it goes back to
what we are taught as good things to say and not OK to say
when we are kids. We just think that it's OK to
talk like this amongst friends when it's really not.
Any who one day passes by people have noticed this.
There is a lot of discourse E what is this for exist.
And then tilak Verma obliterates Punjab right?
That is 1L of ending secret. And Emma is reaction to this is
to put a video out where Tilak Verma holds the Maratha match
trophy and the Super Striker trophy and all that nonsense.
And it's dark in the photo in the video, sorry.
And it's like fading into bright, fading to brightness or
blowing up whatever. Sorry.
So. And the song they've chosen is
Channa Mereya's worst andhera Tera Manila.
I'm not making this up. I wish I was and we are still
not done MV and what's up? And our Shrutas and Shruti's
because the day after they are saying, OK, we'll do brand
placement. And one of the brands that they
work with is Plum skin care or healthcare, whatever.
And they have now taken the camera and spoken to every MI
player saying, what is your skin care routine sunscreen like?
I wish any of that was made-up. It is not.
And my read for this is Sabka phone chain low, Twitter chain
low or social media ban inside Sabka.
It's not just an Ashdeep. It's just like you're not
allowed on social media as a franchise like like IPL team
handle social media, team handle your social media.
You're not fit, you don't have the IQ points, your IQ points
barely match your shoes size. So it's it has to stop at some
point. Remembering Kunal Kamras golden
words which I can't say on the board but key.
Internet and that is like it sounds so I have a very weird
theory about Internet, right. I think people who are less
privileged should get free Internet.
People who want to buy broadband and Internet who and they're
waiting to buy it because they have the means to buy it right.
The moment you show that you have the means to buy Internet,
you have to go through a test, you have to go through an EQ
test, you have to go through an IQ test and only if you pass a
threshold are you allowed to have a connection Internet
connect up Internet to he allowed me and it's a very
cancellable thing and please cancel me if you want to all
good man. But it is what it is those who
are they just it is a suspect and the only way to clear this
aspect is to say boss, you have to be at least you have your IQ
has to be more than 20 man. It can't be in single digits
because this is what it then it comes down to the banter.
I think Ritesh last year he said he made fun of that.
Those side lead to Sambar song and that became a thing.
And it crosses the line very quickly between, you know, you,
you make banter as references. I can call you an old man and
it's not me being ageist or whatever.
I'll just call you as a banter and it will be set as a banter
and it will be over within 2 seconds.
But I will not call you an old man if I know A, you're
uncomfortable with it, B, if you I know you have a knee problem
or you know, you are old and you're facing or you're anxious
about, you know, age catching up with you, then I won't call you
that. So that's the context.
So to make remarks of someone's skin colour and to turn that
into a banterous moment, it says everything about the people
handling the franchise, what the franchise are OK with.
And it says horrible things about Ashley, by the way.
And he's followed up with somebody on social media, he who
wrote to him saying Buddy Kakaro, Aparbi, Rosabi, Karu and
Ashdeep responds to him was Jinke pass, you know, chewing
gum. So basically what he said was
he, you know, too Gharib to talk to me.
And Archdeep is a lovely person. If you've heard the Gaurav
Kapoor episode, he's clearly a lovely boy.
Not. Having I think I'll I'll among
the top three, I'll go on a tangent, please.
I'll go on a tangent but I say this to people randomly I think,
and I said this on the podcast also multiple times.
It is baffling, bizarre and very IPL that all these IPL teams
have no access to their own footage and that's the reason
why they end up having to make all of this nonsense content all
the fucking time. If they had access to their
content. I disagree.
Historic or otherwise. Many, I am saying many are bhat
kambanta. Bhat Kambanta.
If you look at like see if I if I have to look at a social media
that a social media or or let's say a online presence of another
board which treats it as an online presence like a social
media company. That's CA unko liye social media
he hai. They are not saying this is
online MATLAB, they treat it like that, but they do justice
to everything that they do, not just banter, not just
highlights, not just footage from the game, not just
coverage, everything. In this case, what's happening
is that, yeah, Team Kajo, social media, first of all, there is
immense pressure on them. Be there.
Bunch of them are, of course, terribly sexist, racist, Jobi.
Exactly. Somebody like Archdeep has to
essentially survive because he's essentially figured by social
media. And then he obviously sees how
the others are behaving, so this is what he'll do.
No, but then I wouldn't. I wouldn't remove agency from
Ajit chose to use those words. So I wouldn't, I wouldn't
absolve him because I'm not absolving him.
I'm not absolving him. I'm saying he's a no.
I know, I know. I'm just saying, yeah, I'm like,
I'm like, it just exaggerates. Of course, we are free to give
him all the leeway considering cricket is all is he all that he
has had and he has had no life outside of it and he has had no
education. He has had no social media
training for that matter, no understanding of privilege, no
understand all of that. Take it.
But I think at that level up he critical hecky by other two
social media use. Karena could be then.
You hit such a important point, he the moment.
You. Join IPL or you join the
national team, you have to undergo a rigorous media optics
training and I choose those words carefully.
Look, the BCCI or any IPL team cannot, It's not under their
purview to educate these 25 to 30 to 35 year olds.
Educate, you know, because they'll be like we are here to
play cricket, let us speak. But that is fine.
I'm, I'm not suggesting they should teach them how to be, but
the training that will happen has to be that what is OK to
say? What is not OK to say.
And now that you're here, you are wearing this training gear,
you're wearing this Crest on your left chest.
You represent a bigger entity than you.
So everything you say is also a representative of the team
Europe, the team whose jersey you're wearing.
And there are 10 some things we stand by and some things we
don't. So you are not going to say
XYZABCDEF and Overtime Kya Hoga. This will always be a be an
iterative process. Overtime Kya Hoga you will start
educating the younger people. Players would come in because
they'll be inquisitive and you will tell them.
I'm hoping somebody will tell them the bank calling Darren
Sami Kalu on Instagram. Even if you didn't mean to, to
be racist, right? It's just how you spoken to all
dark people all through your childhood.
You've not had the privilege of understanding that even
unconscious racism is racism and calling him Carlo is
unacceptable. It's not just a it's not right,
it's unacceptable. Similarly, skin tone this, that
and 1010 other things. And I think media training is
very important. And I just think that at the IPL
at least, and we are seeing it with the, you know, paper cheat
nonsense that's happening. Anyone suppose 10 tons, they
have a cheat available in their pocket to flash to the fucking
camera is the most like, just stop it when it's wild.
Anyway, we're seeing that it's 11 players just doing their
thing. Not all teams are as cohesive as
we would like that. So it's 11 individuals playing
that game. And Even so, once you do that,
you have to kind of they're also trying to be a brand.
So people have seen Dortmund social media where on the India
duo added Wheels, there is a tiger dancing on Gullah Borian
because they want Indian cliques and Indian audiences to
interact. And they're succeeding.
UNTS does the same, Liverpool does the same.
They've seen Ryanair and Wimpy's cut Twitter, how they handle
that on Twitter and the stuff they do.
So they want to be fun and quirky and banter and keep it
like light. So.
Allow them to be themselves, allow them to express, allow
them to be authentic. We want players to be authentic.
We don't want robots, but media train them.
Archdeep is hilarious when he's making self deprecating, self
deprecating jokes. He's hilarious when he's kidding
with other people. He knows how to take a joke on
himself. It's a rare thing in India, but
don't make jokes on other people's skin colour.
That's a novel. So that's media training.
It has to happen and I think BCCI will get there soon.
They'll realize this is a few lines have been crossed in this
year's IPL. The Ajdeep incident will not.
Even if they don't address it for what it is, they'll have
taken note behind the scenes, I'm sure.
Yeah. Why is bowling?
What is bowling? Why is it needed?
I agree for OPS at AAJ Kisco, yeah, yesterday they hit him for
four sixes on two different overs.
Man, he's not a bad. He's serious.
The other thing I don't like about the IPL is eliminate.
Eliminate team. He's not pride, not even vibes
teams or mini auction has been trying his best.
I'm saying in general those teams that are eliminated, not
in this particular case. Whatever happens, they will give
you maximum returns or, so I guess it's fine.
I gave. I gave that person the same
logic like at the end of the season, these all these teams
start playing jeopardy in in in in very, very weird fashions.
So I, I like I shouldn't be betting against anything at this
point anyway. It's like the whole situation is
cuckoo. But we we and and also both of
you, please take some time out to also laugh at LSG after you
speak about I can do an. Entire podcasting podcast
laughing on LSG because I'm a Bengali.
I'm a 3rd 4th generation Monbagan fan and the same owners
unfortunately. And Monbagan today is not
Monbagan alone. It's Monbagan Super chance and
again SG because initials. So I can, I can, I can do a full
podcast. But yeah, what is the bowler?
I I genuinely think we even though there has been resistance
from the teams and the captains about the impact sub and they
have been very outspoken, which I love that we this is not
right. I mean, guys are the impact sub.
I think what Murali said was so revealing of the resignation
that he felt being a bowler with 1300 international wickets who
saying that sixes and fours here by MATLAB, don't expect anything
else. This is it.
This is what the like this tournament has been designed
for. This is what you have been fed
all these years and suddenly you can't, you can't sound like just
wish for something else, right? And so I mean like this is it.
The moment we make it 150 + 149 match, sponsors will only go.
You will also not watch. And so it is like lap it up and
that's what it is. He asked the yellow pale the
They are 182 in 17 overs with the Titans.
Speaking of bowlers, Matisha Patirana lasted 8 balls then he
got injured. They are whacked, everyone.
Silly Finale Finale kidna 35 balls 93 four fours, 10 sixes
so. KKR hit two sixes today.
Yeah, I was and I was good. Tomorrow, my, my piece and this
is because we're recording on the Saturday night.
Subscribe tomorrow. I am writing exactly about this,
that how it's an inert product, incomplete product.
IPL, when you remove the central tension of cricket, the cricket,
the charm of cricket is in the back versus ball contest and you
remove that, it's an incomplete product.
And I watched the BC versus PPKS match at Portland.
I watched it fully. What bothered me was the end of
the game last 3-4 overs, how nonchalant it all was.
That OK, huh? We are chasing down the record
score. I mean, yeah, yeah, yeah.
And people just say, like, accepted it, that this is
normal, 265 can happen in 20 overs and someone will chase it
down with eight balls to spare, No worries.
And the other day I think also in BC versus PBKS match,
coincidentally this time at Punjab's home Dharamshala,
possibly Lungi and GD Boulders slower which beat shares.
Shreyas got fully beaten but he so he just extended his bat and
the ball flew off his bat into a six.
So something is not right. I mean you can't be fully beaten
by something. Play with one like leaned out
hand and then get a six for it. So Abhi who is going to break it
to Dumalji and JJ by can we have 180?
We don't need 150. Can we have 180 play 190 please?
Daiso, please. Let's not.
Let's really not. The problem, the problem here is
key. They don't want that, right?
Because if you see the marketing there, the marketing that
they're doing around this is like 250 scores are being chased
like, and the, the who's going to score the 1st 300?
And that's what they're marketing it on.
So like they're clearly they're clearly like oblivious to what
what people want and what people actually want to see.
It's again, it's the casual fan versus the die hard.
Really. I mean, the die hard cannot see
this as proper cricket. They cannot see this as.
Like something can also be like they will also learn to
appreciate because we were casuals at some point right when
we were starting to watch cricket.
Yeah, so we start we we fell into love with this ball.
And I believe the casual fan today can also fall into love.
They just cannot be fed a bar of toddler own after every meal
there is like then you Start Stop appreciating sweets only
because now you've been numbed to the idea of sweetness because
you've just had a problem after every year.
So I'll be we can pay if you somebody gets you an apple pie,
even if the apple buys from fucking big chill and Khan
market, you are not going to enjoy it because you're like,
this is not that fun. So I do think it's I don't think
they're even targeting the casual fan.
I think they're they're just almost saying that this
tournament started with a miss hit six.
Yeah, it was ignited by that shot.
It will forever the next morning, afternoon, sorry game.
Saturday afternoon, the team batting first for 2:40.
This is the first two of the first 3 knocks ever in the IPL.
The team batting second on the second mornings for two, 207
yeah. So they are like this, yeah,
yeah. It has always been this.
And when we are playing on in India, on the true pitches of
India, these are the sports that's going to be there and
deal with it, which which makes it a very inferior product.
It's weak cricket. It's.
Very weak. It's very weak.
It's like, yeah, as you said, it's just dopamine hit after
dopamine hit. And yeah, it's nothing.
Not you need, you need the you need the normal to elevate the
spectacular VCD. So that's that's.
Yeah, it has the 6th and a wicket is an event.
And by the way, it's not that just we're trashing batters.
So that Ahmedabad pinball test of 2021, it was hilarious
because those tests don't happen.
If you make them happen every week, that is also a problem.
No one can bat, only it's a bowlers word.
So the whole point is a bat is a conversation between a batter
and a bowler. An argument A4 is a definitive
statement in that argument, a wicket is a definite statement
from the other end. But either to everything is
happening in high pitch. And so in the DC versus PDKS
method court law, they face 234 deliveries combined, right?
Both teams together, 82 boundaries combined.
That's you're talking one every 4 balls, you're getting a
boundary that is mental and that should not happen.
It is not good. Just like a one every 4 balls
wicket is also not good one every like the the four has to
be on the fix has to be on here. The boundaries are short.
They are way they're using logs full tree trunks as a bat ball
Kasim has been flattened ball ache ache over swing cutter
swing bundle. Just hit in the light through
the line buddy. Just bounce.
Bin is a pillow. That's why I enjoyed the games
in Raipur a lot more. You know, the boundaries were
bigger. KKR played there, MI played
there, RCB, Virat Kohli really enjoyed it, like the match that
I watched. Yeah, exactly.
The the larger boundaries, you know, you can find gaps, you
can, you can the running between the wickets.
I mean, maybe we have maybe our generation has kind of been
brought up on that kind of cricket that maybe that's why we
appreciate it more. But generally it was a breath of
fresh air, like watching watching people manipulate the
ball into gaps and just, you know, just trying to trying to
play normal cricket now, not just the stick cricket version
that is just been going throughout the the idea of this
season. It's just been count constant.
And honestly it's just made me lose interest personally, Like I
can't keep. Like this is the this is amaze.
This is great. Stop what you're doing and watch
the ball. So like how long do you want me
to stop man? I will stop what I was doing
yesterday also. I am stopping today or tomorrow
also. You'll say the same thing
because the same thing is happening.
It's an infinite loop of the same melody.
You're just passing it from brass to woodwinds to strings.
You the melody isn't changing, the rhythm isn't changing, the
tempos isn't changing, and everything is in the highest
register. So what am I interested?
For here nothing. It is, it's just numb.
Like do you remember any shot? I watched the India England semi
final in Wankede Yeah, for the T20 World Cup.
Spectacular game to watch right? And it was my first time to at
Wankede core memory. But it was it will be a cold
memory because of the crowd and the atmosphere.
I don't remember anything of the cricket or much of the cricket
apart from those catches by Upsurf.
Yeah, and I may have faint memories of Sanju pulling and
hooking Jofra Archer, but that's it.
I have like this is also slightly blurred because it is
the same. Nothing about it was new versus
the games at the at the Modium this year.
They've been very good because the pitch has been spicy.
Rabada and Sriraj have found a lot of help.
Like you said, Raipur pitches have been good and that just
makes any sport fun. You don't want you don't want
the contest of who is the one who can hit the longest.
That's that's whatever it is, it's not cricket.
It's just become a video game for.
Me it is. It is completely.
And the batters are the worst off because they're super
talented batters. They're very, very, very good.
And they would also shine if you make the conditions tougher,
they'll actually shine more. They will play better innings,
They'll find a lot more gratification playing those
innings. And you, we will notice the
range of their talent. Now, if every ball is going for
A6, how am I supposed to see a range of what a Priyank Sharya
can do? Everything tells me he's a
phenomenal batter, everything about him.
But he's no one's asking him to play off truly phenomenal
innings. That is saying stand, hold, your
shape doesn't matter where the ball comes, just run your hands
through it. And he's because he knows that.
Even if it hits, even if he connects like 20% of it, it will
still go out of the bus, right? So.
And with the range hitting that it, it'll go for a six.
He's got a he's got the timing. He's got a special kind of
timing. The ball pings off his back.
I want to see a long Priyansharan where he struggles
and I want him to earn a six. And that will be the true making
of Arya. And I know he has it.
This is not a case of us doubting whether they have it.
We are quite confident they do. And which is why it's it makes
us angrier because you're selling the battles shot bowlers
for the second class. It is in Manila, you're selling
the battles shot, all of whom are phenomenal battles.
You think KL Rahul will remember that 152 for too long?
He'll remember it because he lost the game.
He'll not remember too many shots of it.
He'll cherish, you know, the, the century he scored in
England, the T 20th century he scored in England.
He'll cherish a couple of other innings that he may have played
for India or you know, Punjab or Delhi or whatever.
This is just even they feel lumbar.
I'm sure he because the players are going to get better.
They are going to get tactically smarter.
They're going to get more powerful.
Where does this end? And again, you know, the even
the bowling like the bowlers, I mean, I have no blame on them.
I really feel for them. But the lines that the 10, the
10 ball overs, the 11 ball overs that are happening on a regular
basis, the one it's just it's just a grind.
It's just AI am I feel for them. I am, but I will say this, I am
with bowlers, I am team bowlers all the time.
But it's not no ball need also Itna.
Why did not no ball AAP? I am not going to see someone
dishing out ten runs and over and be like you are a Kara
bowler and no, no, these are exceptional circumstances.
AAP Kitna no baller. Why darling, it's the next.
You actually bowled a 13 ball over that day.
I think this is in mid-april. I think what 13 ball 14 ball
over. He bowled that last over Boomer.
I think that they bowled couple of no balls and Sunny G in
commentary lost it. And for once I heard Saniji.
I was like, I hear you man. Because that is just Ek kitna ka
kya lines are and it's not a boom rapping.
This is clearly something that's happened to every bowler in the
IPL and a lot of it has to do with they have no options.
They've been neutered. The ball isn't friendlier to
them, the pitch isn't friendly to them.
The batters have assault weapons in their hand.
The boundaries are, you know, 10 meters away.
So where do they go? So I get that and I'm and I'm
fairly understanding of if they take longer but there discipline
and catching my God man, there is some work to be done there as
well. So basically every skill set has
deteriorated for me in the past two years.
Look at the fielding. I mean the amount of drop
catches, it's schoolboyish. The amount of the catches that
the catches are that that have been put down these days it's
like. Sorry, sorry, sorry to interrupt
man What's up? I just one start 58th match May
there were 178 drops. That's three drops every game.
That's. Insane.
I mean, how? Yeah, these things.
WPL, do you want us to really start having that discussion?
Because then it's 11:26 PM right now.
We'll be talking at least till 2:26 AM.
Yuki, WPL has the discourse against WPL has nothing to do
with WPL. It has everything to do with me
telling you very loud the point of the disposal.
WPL is for me to tell you very loudly in your face.
Tumare ghar PE Ake Yeah, I don't care about WPL.
And the moment you ask me if you didn't care, why are you in my
house, man? Why are you in my house at 10 AM
telling me you don't care? That's when I will tell you that
you should know that you are there only because of Jai Bhai
and our charity Boom. Back to Yeah IPL.
IPL may WPL kabat nicar. Baker they go.
Tum logi start, they go. Please do not.
It grades all of us and we can go on and on.
Yeah, either catching has been. Poor, yeah, like it has really
been that drops on catching. It's not just an IPL.
Thing, it's not just an IPL thing, even in the World Cup,
the catching was like up until the like towards the end, it
really got fired. So it's, it's across the board.
I, I don't want to mix up IPL in World Cup, but like across the
board in T20 cricket, I think the, the catching, the catching
element has definitely gone down.
It's not, it should be elevated, but it's, it's some of it's gone
down there. Will be very interesting threat
to ask a fielding coach if he can get hold.
He why like all like psycho Babble aside, why is this
happening? There has to be like some sort
of a, you know, logical investigative answer key across
the board. It's not that he can one player
having a bad game, one player just out of confidence.
Loose behavior, loose, sorry, you know, being very loose on
the on the field. I don't mean loose behavior then
very too loose on the field, not being switched on all that.
I get that's fine. But across the board I got then
there is a disease and it'll be cool to find out what disease is
this? How has it crept up?
Because these are all exceptional athletes.
Yeah. All of them there are very few
non good athletes who play all the time who stay on the field
all the time. Most of them are like top tier
athletes. So it's not their athletic
ability that they're not able to reach a catch or you know, the
catch is Shashank drop and he even if he ever listens to this,
I don't think he'll mind us saying it.
They were inexcusable. You cannot drop that catch and
if he if pointing out shares axed him for dropping four of
those catches five of those catches it wouldn't have been
around. He knows this.
His face said it that he knows it that a Kota tough catch drop.
Yeah yeah, hard catch drop yeah ball pace only cynical.
Yeah, just slip me drop coffee, but or a Kota Josh Namandi Ros
didn't drop ball play. The cat is Shashank has dropped.
Some others have dropped. You cannot drop those one
because ball papers are you have the time to settle down under
it. It's literally about just being
focused and taking the board and you're constantly dropping gaps.
There's something very wrong. I think before we move to final
predictions, which seemed like a very difficult thing to do
considering KKRL one again and GTA Lost is to talk about
Vaibhav, Suri Vanshi. I am amazed.
I am like, yeah, especially because I mean, we've all been
15. We've all, I know, I know
Tendulkar at 16, but like none of us watched Tendulkar at 16.
Videos on YouTube don't do justice to Tendulkar at 16
because I mean, YouTube generally doesn't do justice in
cricket, but whatever this guy is doing is just at some other
level. And, and I, and I know him Anish
wrote a piece as well, but that goes into data and everything
and, and, and we'll discuss that and, and hopefully with him,
Anish. But I, I generally tell people
it's not about the numbers, it's about how they made you feel.
And this is at many levels, you know, it's like that.
It's probably how and and probably at at much more
elevated levels at how a Sri Lankan kid would have felt when
Jay Surya was murdering Manoj Prabhakar in that 1996 World
Cup. But over and over again, High
school by Matlab, Matlab Matlab like the number of people I
mean, it's it's natural that we're all cricket nuts.
So so so over a period of my lifetime, the number of people
I've told Pivo opening swing bowler go off spinner mid game
Banaya people don't believe it. People like, what are you
saying? It's not possible like, yeah,
that that's exactly what was done.
But enough about Jay Surya. I mean, I'll I'll see the floor
to you guys and please talk about what we are seeing of 15
year old. I love Suryavanchi.
What is better than we think we use?
Yeah, I mean. That.
Is just he is he is something else.
I can't, I can't put into words the like.
The only thing that I look forward to is another game.
And it's been he's he's actually become like Sachin in the 90s.
Like how like how I used, like how we used, I used to hear
stories that I was too young, but I used to hear stories that
as soon as Sachin got out, the TV was, the TV was turned off
and like people stopped work. That's that's how it's gotten
with me with the web. Like you just know that.
You just know that the fearlessness that he has, he's
just going to go after every ball and he's just going to
treat every bowler and on the same wavelength, no matter what
kind of bowling he's facing. And to do it at this is age is
just, I mean, that there are no words and that you cannot, you
cannot describe it like in words that whatever, what, what an
impact he's had and what what like I say he's doing all of
this is just, I have no idea how how this thing is like how how
he's managing all this and how how he's doing all this is just
insane. He's be it pace, be it spin, be
it bounce, be it slower walls, whatever.
He's just going after everything.
And he's yeah, he's just, he's just bringing joy as and he said
he just makes you feel something different, something that no
other player in the IPL makes me feel at least.
Right. So yeah, I mean, and long may it
continue. And the best part about him is
that he pisses Robin at the ball, which makes mad even.
The single most important criteria for any emerging
cricketer I I genuinely mean it when I say that he's he's better
than we even imagined he was. Because the significance of
following up your first season, which is your breakout season
with an even better season. It's hard enough.
It's hard enough if you're 25. He turned 15 on the eve of this
year's IPL. He's just become eligible to
play for India to have a better season.
When you know every team tracks every sinew of your muscle move,
they know every single thing about you.
So for you to come out and do what you have done against
bowlers of world class caliber, AP Kitna, Filter, Lagogeki,
Bumrah injured Hazelwood are coming.
And it's not the ball is just, you know, trickling over the
boundary. It's going deep into the stands.
You can talk about boundary ropes for some sixes and you
know, too many sixes being there.
These guys hitting into the stands like what boundary ropes
are you going to go there? So no, I think I hope he
surrounds himself with good people, with people who impress
on him, that it will take very little for him to derail and
even like all he needs is he can keep his love for the game and
just good coaching however he chooses.
Too bad. And what ends up of his career
it it won't define him as success or failure.
That's not where I'm going with this.
But I hope he retains the love for the sport enough to keep
being Vaibhav Suryavanshi because that will mean for us
viewers we get to watch a rare, like a comet of the talent.
He's that rare. You like this shit doesn't
happen, then 15 year olds don't do this.
They don't do this to international class bowlers.
Ticket Domestic cricket May Hassan, Razani, Kuch Karbeya you
hear this, You hear that, but you don't hear 15 year olds do
this. To casually, casually big 2026
man Hassan Raza, drop Kardo. Like, I don't think I think I'm
about casually like Hassan Raza was like the number one question
for at least a decade. So no I I genuinely do believe
because we didn't see the CL core Test match in 89 and the
footage doesn't do it justice. And for then those who haven't,
who don't have context about this, it's the 4th or the 5th
test of the 89 series in Pakistan.
Tendulkar's debut series is 1616 in the house and early and India
batting. See Alco.
That time used to be a green top, not just little bit of
grass, full green. And in the Pakistani bowling
attack there was Wasim Bakar, Imran Khan, Muzad Nazar, Abdul
Kadir and India have to bat almost the full day to save the
test. Sachin gets hit in the nose and
he didn't have a grill on his helmet then.
It was just a skull protected heads helmet protector but no
grill in front of the face so it hits on his nose flush.
The physio comes out, he's bleeding and he refuses to leave
the ground. This is Walker's ball so it's
come at a pace. The physio stuff spotted into
his nose leaves and Sachin hits the next ball for a four.
He's 1st 44 and he saves the Test match for India
effectively. And he did that against a scary
bowling attack at the age of 16 on his first ever Test series.
In his next Test series, he went to England, where he scored a
century at. Then he went to Australia, where
he scored two centuries at two of the toughest pitches there,
or maybe one of the toughest. And then Sydney, which was maybe
friendlier but no less impressive obviously.
And the reason for saying all this is our reference to a young
kid, He absolutely killing it at the highest level.
Is this in Indian cricket? It was this because all the
greats that we've had since have not come at 151617 types.
They've been 18/19/20 types. If you So for him to do this, to
repeatedly do this, to do this as he's getting analysed and
studied and still not lose performance speaks great things
about him. Shashank Kishore's essay on him
for picking for monthly is something we've based in the
show notes. You must check it out.
Wonderful essay and it the his coaches tell a thing or two
about him. He why they treat him as special
RR. So I think it was Ruben Bharucha
who had told RR that set aside 10 cross were and RR is like,
are you mad? He's at that time he was 13.
He's a 13 year old what 10 pros? He's like no, just trust me on
this. Just set aside 10 pros is that
good? And he came for the trials to
RR. He faced first some bowling
machine and he handled them like a champ.
Then they sent Jofra or Jofra be some earlier.
So who's the passer by? Abhi Ghazi.
But become friends with one man from Bangalore, Joabi Europe
yoga by the way for a bit of his career now.
But be friends with him, keep talking to him and just be
yourself, have the love for the sport and there is really
nothing else to say, no words that can justify what we are
saying. And I just hope we keep watching
this shit and we don't lose him to anything.
Not fame, not injury, nothing. We just keep getting more of
this. But I fear that's exactly what's
going to happen eventually. Like that's he will get like I'm
not saying that he will change essentially, I hope he doesn't,
but like the India set up and everything will definitely have
a role and have an impact on. I have a very dear theory on
this. Exactly the point you made man.
My one worry not with Weber but around Weber is that he's the
first. The Indian cricket has never
known a 15 year old like this. And when they last saw a 16 year
old prodigy two things happened. They in cricket wasn't as
professional as mechanically good and managed.
And there was so many seniors in that team that they found a
protective cocoon around him. That team was packed with
seniors, right? And the team Tendulkar joined.
My worry with how Indian cricket handles Webber is right from his
training to his nutrition to how they how they almost mold him
and nurture him to become an Indian cricketer.
When they blood him in, when they, you know, tell him that
now is not the time, they don't have precedent for this.
So everything will be kind of them also trying, you know,
little shooting in the dark type scenes happening.
I hope they don't get it terribly wrong.
And especially I mean with the training and everything else.
I know sports scientists are there and they're professionals.
I get that, all of that. But I just hope this this
combination of age on your side and this insane talent is is too
rare. And I just hope they handle him
properly. OK, Now is not the time to play
a test. Take your time, bide your time.
Take two years, three years. Play a lot of first class
cricket then go and not to grind them out in first class cricket.
SA key do do play. It doesn't matter if you fall
sick, fucking keep playing. Don't do all that also.
So yeah, it'll be very interesting to see how Indian
cricket handles. And he's made the India squad.
So it's very clear the selectors have have not resisted or just
under 19 World Cup final May 8. So pitch up there on that.
So I put kind of Lena, but that's for the sport.
So I am I am very happy to see him in India.
I don't know if he'll get as much game time because a lot of
much more senior players are travelling in that spot.
But yeah, he'll he'll play for India soon.
Any thoughts on Punjab Kings winning five in a row and then
six in a row? I think 05:00 and 1:00 no result
and then losing 5, much to the delight of Nishant.
I mean, even in those games, like the games that they lost,
they played well in a few games. It's just that again, they're
catching them. The fielding has really let them
down very, very badly. And I I still think they're a
good side. I still think they do most
things right. It's, it's just, it's just once
you start getting into a rat, it, it is very difficult to get
out of. I still, I still think they'll
make the playoffs and I still think that they will, they'll go
deep in the tournament. I, I still think they, they're
doing most things right and maybe a bit of concern might be
there with shares. I think his, his form is kind of
tailed off a bit. He was really looking like you
conquered the world like at the start of the tournament.
Now it's just now it is it's gone back to the old stress that
he was like 3-4 years back, low strike rate and yeah, not adding
much value to the team. So hopefully, hopefully gets out
of it and he towards the end, maybe they peak at the right
time and they get over the line this time because I genuinely
think that they're a good side. But it's always nice when always
nice when Ponting is like kind of taken down a couple of
notches because of his overt faith in Australian players.
So that's always nice to see. But apart from that, I think
yeah, they do. They are a good side and
eventually I think they will figure it out.
That's but I mean, right now they've put themselves in a
situation where top 2 is looking a bit difficult.
So they'll have to do it the harder way if they want to,
like, win that. Win that top anything is looking
difficult, yeah. Now.
Now it's but now like today KKR 1, so maybe there is kind of a
window that opens up slightly. Well, I think GT will finish
talk too. They're they're doing well.
They just, they just gone into such a rut.
Punjab, their bowling was always a problem.
Even in the earlier games where they were chasing down like we
spoke about the DC game so much, they conceded 264.
So that's kind of a very crucial part of that game that they
conceded those many they've considered a lot throughout.
So the bowling is clearly not working.
And this troika troika of Stein is Dworschius Bartlett.
It hasn't returned as much as they would have liked gonna.
So even Jansen has kind of not fired.
No, he's there have been games when he's got pumped pretty bad.
I think the place a lot of too much faith in Jansen.
Like they want him to be the number 7 and then be a 4 / 4
over bowler. He's not a four over bowler
consistent for over bowler purpose of Africa in D 20s.
And even with the bat, I think he has a long way to go to be a
number 7 in D 20s at least or in any format, I would say.
So I think they placed a lot of faith in him and they went in.
They wanted him to be like the Russell figure, maybe not as
good, but like some some version of Russell that that Russell was
KKR. But of course he's not.
He's not nowhere near those levels right now.
So they really over, they went slightly too dependent.
They went slightly too dependent on it.
So I feel, I feel that is kind of that is kind of like hurt
them a little bit. And yeah, of course that they
did go light on the bowling and it's starting to show.
But I still think that eventually like and their home
form, of course their home form is very, very has not been very,
very good. So that is also concerned.
So maybe when they eliminated somewhere the playoffs from
maybe that changes a bit and that helps them a bit.
But yeah, overall I think they they they have done well and
they will, they have put themselves in a hole, but I
think they still have the players and they still have the
the personnel to turn it around. That's what I think.
Let's see what happens. Players, yes, definitely.
They've got enough match winners.
I don't I, I don't see how even if they make it to the playoffs,
how they how they go past the bowling problem because it's not
for the lack of half decent bowlers.
They've got an Ashley, they've got a Jansen.
Jansen on any given day can certainly on a good pitch become
the Jansen South Africa Jansen that we know.
Jahil has had a good season. Very insanely.
They didn't bowl him full in the last couple of matches and it's
just very they they seem to be also going through that mental
route of this confused decisions.
I think they've given up on by Shack a bit too early.
Yeah. So yeah, they're they're a good
team and I don't think have as Priyansh has, has he had a good
season? He's he's had a few matches
where he looked 1,000,000 bucks. I I don't know if he's had a
season like last year. Shares obviously has dropped off
a little. It's not helped.
Losing Josh Inglis has hurt them tremendously in the top order.
He was a big factor last year. So yeah, I mean, they could
still obviously make the playoffs, but they'll have to
fix the bowling. Otherwise, playoff debat.
It's waiting to be another massive chase.
And this iteration of Punjab, if they don't win anything, I think
then they should. They should either be delegated
or liquidated one of. The team, there are too many
teams who will say then what about us?
I mean this, I mean this iteration of Punjab, what what
what's else talking about? I think there's a lot to think
about pointing stint at DC as well, right?
Like he made it to the finals there as well.
Of course that didn't work out well because there was a all
time great MI team at that point in time.
And then I mean, last year RCB beat Punjab and this year they
were looking good. It's not that they weren't
looking good, but it's it's I think the same thing that Jared
keeps talking about. I mean, the fact that if a team
doesn't win a title, are they really bad?
And but they do go out of public memory and, and I think voila,
AD might have been taken down right?
Like the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, you don't win silver, you lose
gold. And that was taken down the Nike
ad, right? I I don't think that that genre
was not. About No, it's not just about
winning gold. Last year's Punjab team was very
memorable because they played so well and I do think the Punjab
fans, even though you know the most die hard, intense fans who
want a title, have been waiting for one for so long, they'll
remember the team very fondly. There is absolutely nothing to
be ashamed of. Even in the final they gave
their best, just didn't work out.
So last year's team was phenomenal, consistently great.
This year's team started like that, even better, and then has
completely tailed off because they haven't fixed their
building and the fielding has let them down.
Tremendous result. Any predictions or should we
move to what is now as the open-ended book format ending
reader so we will allow the listener to decide?
Prediction right now, if I have to make is the they're going to
go back-to-back, yeah. Yeah.
I think that's that's very, very fair actually, considering how
everybody else is going. And how balanced, grounded.
It's a great T20 team and it will be great even if you kind
of even if they make the playoffs and then lose, you
know, the first man and then get knocked out.
It's a very well built T20 team. Everything is covered.
It's remarkable the the change that move about and and the rest
of the RCV. Management Andy Flower Freddy
Build because somebody also made the point of you are always
pairing a tall guy with a short guy.
So the bowlers length has to change.
So it's Virat and it's it's Virat and salt salt.
I don't know how tall Wethel is or if he's that much taller than
Virat, whatever. Then there is Dave that who's
tall, particle who's short. Sorry, Dave, that who's tall and
particle, who's short, that's your top four.
And then to Allah then is Roma reshefa Tim David fit to kiss a
bacho with him Kahibi length, pidallo doesn't matter.
I don't think Jitesh has had a has a tournament he's going to
remember. But the rest of it is they have
bowlers to hit the deck and extract bounce.
They have two of them, so they have a choice to play both.
If the pitch is bouncing, they have a swing bowler who's
bowling like he's always been at his peak.
They have a leg spinner. They have a left arm spinner who
can also bowl bouncers and seam up.
They have Romaru Shepard who can bowl.
They can have Venkatesh here if they need to be pissed.
Stacked team man. This is how you build a team.
If they go back-to-back, Suyash Sharma might become the first
player to win three titles. back-to-back might.
I'm not sure again if I'm wrong. Baji did that.
Baji did baji no ha no I I 19/20/21. 21 was Chennai, 18 was
Baji, 18 Baji was with CSK and 18 no I don't think Baji then
Karan Sharma 1617. 17 RPS. I don't think anyone is done.
It is possible Nobody has done. We just, we just like.
You know, throwing names. He was at MI in 201718 methods
CSK 18 to 21. He was in CSK.
So he won three on the .16 with SRH, 17 with MI, 18 with CSK.
Yeah, good to solve, Curly. I'm crazy.
Yes, Yeah. So CS Sharma becomes.
He becomes oh also so yeah, nice, nice continuation.
If if RCB go back-to-back, he he.
Yes Sir. Say yeah, With that, we come to
the end of this episode. We wanted to discuss something
else, but I guess that's another episode altogether.
Thank you so much for listening. But behind recording.
Stop, Katya. Gets a second hundred in
successive. Dramatic style.
The whole of Bengal are on their feet.
Not that important. He's gone.
The next ball. The dream has diminished for
Carlos Bratwick.