Wasn’t picked after stepping down as captain
I can watch “Gangs of Wasseypur” any time of the day. It serves as a distraction. The mayhem in the film has worked for me whenever cricket has brought me on the edge. Part 1 or Part 2, it really doesn’t matter. So, when we crashed out of this season’s IPL I needed some diversion again. Reading, meeting friends, sleeping, meditation… nothing was working. That is when a brand new Blu-ray disc of part 2 was summoned. I was confident that Wasseypur’s commotion will choke my internal turmoil. But for the first time it failed.
Nawazuddin Siddiqui plays gangster Faisal in this film. His family prods him to take revenge for the killing of his grandfather, father and brother. Faisal turns it around big time for his family. As I was drifting with the story, the whole turnaround by Faisal reminded me of my own expectations to turn it around for Delhi Daredevils. It may seem weird but, believe me, mind is a strange, little devil. It can even give war lessons in an art gallery. The film had to be paused at 26 min and 11 sec as I was again getting sucked into my worst ever IPL season.
A lot of people asked me why I didn’t play after stepping down from captaincy. My reply is simple: I would have played had I been picked. A lot of people also ask me where did we go wrong. It is simple again: injuries to key players like Rabada and Morris, inability to build the right team combination, certain players not clicking, the team not playing important moments well and also the inability to handle pressure are all reasons for our failure. I have believed it is bowlers who win you games whatever be the format. I think we lacked there.
It is widely speculated that I am retiring from the game and contesting elections in Delhi and District Cricket Association. Both are not true. I am still keen to play and win games for my teams. Currently I am in Chandigarh for family reasons and will then go on a short vacation. But before that, I will be following the playoffs. KKR take on Rajasthan on Wednesday. Well, I am firmly in the KKR camp. Besides my emotional attachment with my erstwhile team, I think the ‘purples’ have the experience of playing big games. I have liked the way Dinesh Karthik has led the group. I have loved the way he has handled Sunil Narine and Kuldeep Yadav’s bowling. I get a feeling it could again be their day.
Rajasthan have my favourite player, Sanju Samson. Sanju knows this ground well and can counter the KKR bowling.
I also caught a glimpse of Tuesday’s women’s exhibition match on TV. I think BCCI should be lauded for this one. It is a smart way of initiating a probable franchisee cricket for women. It may be some distance away but at least the initial voices are good. My cousin was not convinced though. He shamelessly pointed out “a total of only three sixes” in the women’s game and resumed Gangs of Wasseypur Part-2 from where we left.