3-Ts

"But it's the third T - the Temperament - that has let him down, once again. Not surprisingly, it happens a lot with people who are talented because everything seems to be far too simple to them. Temperament is a sum of many character traits like discipline, controlling the impulse, rational response to pressure etc., developed over a period of time, which needs awareness and knowledge of your own craft. Since most of the times the only thing such talented players need to do to score is to just turn up for the match, they tend to underestimate the importance of processes and structures"

Here's Akash Chopra's article on Rohit Sharma. The article is not that thought provoking, but I like Chopra's characterization of temperament. Nice!

Leadership and Aggression

"He could never be accused of over-attacking. Ironically, South Africa have used the same ploy for much of their existence, and it regularly works against lesser teams. Problems arise when the opposition is just as strong as, or stronger than, the team employing those tactics. Against top-class sides, captains have to provoke a mistake rather than expect they'll occur purely as a result of patience."

Here's Ian Chappel talking about Strauss. His views on leadership (specifically captaincy) are always very insightful

World's only hand written newspaper

Here's an interesting article on the daily newspaper that is hand-written. It is incredibly difficult thing to do...perhaps the effort is even questionable but certainly the dedication / passion to keep this tradition alive is praiseworthy!

The Great Soul

Here's a nicely written article condemning the ridiculous ban imposed on Joseph Lelyveld’s ‘Great Soul.’

But, sadly, this book ban is not an isolated incident. We, in India, tend to get too emotional and too attached to things that we find it impossible to accept any objective analysis that offers a contrary view no matter how nuanced it is, how scholarly it is. But, after all, who wants to pass up an opportunity for a nice little drama.

Respect

Here's MSD's winning hit. What a moment!

Jeyandra Nagar becomes Heritage!

This blog has largely been impersonal, but sometimes it might not be too bad to make a little exception.

My parents live in a tiny hamlet that is surrounded by a forest, a lake and green fields, not too far from the city of Chennai. Life in the hamlet is as exciting as that of Goscinny and Uderzo's! There may not be wild boars and Roman camps surrounding this place, but a creative person with a sense of humor will find a lot of content here to fill up a whole new series. It certainly has its heros, villains and tall tales all ensconced in largely natural settings!

When it was founded, it ambitiously anointed itself as Heritage Jeyandra Nagar. But it only recently lived up to its high prescient epithet. The Archeological Survey of India (ASI) recently discovered that these parts of the world were megalithic sites and classified them "heritage sites." While some roads here seem like they are indeed a direct inheritance from the stone ages, it looks like ASI dug a little bit deeper, in more ways than one, to back its claim. Here, here and here are some reports on ASI's findings. Touche, says the ASI to Jeyandra Nagar's visionary founders.

This is big news. Not everyday will someone tell you that you are living at one of the cradles of human civilization. This is exactly the kind of news one needs to overcome the a wee bit of a drawl that can sometimes creep onto day-to-day life. The new-found excitement is palpable. But one's appetite for "breaking news" is insatiable, especially if one is on top of it -- quite literally in this case. Stories are fast being conjured up and the rumor mills are working overtime. Some claim Platinum deposits, and some uranium. A local newspaper claims to have evidence. Some talk about a political conspiracy. Property rates are fluctuating as wildly as the temperament of a highly emotional adolescent. People fear confiscation, others dream about big bounties. Now you know why Goscinny and Uderzo would have loved this place!

Blackberry Boys

Here's a new Blackberry AD. Nice!

I'm addicted to the berry these days

Isn't to err human?

Is Amir a victim or is he a criminal? There is no right answer to that question, but here's an excellent perspective by Rahul Bhattacharya!

"Dishonesty in life is dishonesty in life. Dishonesty in sport is dishonesty in all we'd like to believe about life. Take that away and there's not much in it."