India goes GaGa over the IPL SaGa

A shrewd combination of sports and entertainment - thats how our Defence Minister put IPL. Prefectly right! And that is what sells. Thats the reason why the whole nation is going GaGa over the IPL Saga.

How IPL can help Indian Cricket?

By now, probably everyone realizes that IPL will bring loads and loads of money to BCCI. Thats fine! But the question to be answered is "How will IPL help Indian Cricket (apart from financial power)?". In my opinion, IPL will help in the following ways:

• Indians have been nuts under pressure (specially the old force). Everyone remembers how they lost to Pakistan in Chennai when Sachin got out. Its just one example. Yes, some in the new generation are changing it fast. IPL will only make this process much faster. Indians cannot handle pressure for long. That is why they are not best in Test, close to Best in One Day and Best in 20-20. With 20-20 success, Indian players will learn fast to handle pressure for longer durations and intelligent players will quickly carry it to the longer version.
  
• Platform to perform. With each player winning matches for their teams in IPL, intelligent players will start doing it for India also. And with time, players will realize that it is a team game after all. No dependency on only Sachin or Dhoni or Yuvraj.
• Lots of options. It will keep players always on their toes i.e. if selectors are intelligent enough to use the options.
• Gives more power to the buerocracy. This does not sound good because people sitting outside the field will start calling the shots. Something which ICL scores over IPL. With so many players to choose from, things happening outside the cricket field can spoil it all. And thinking about how things work, this has more than 50% chance of happening.

Why I am a big fan of Sachin Tendulkar?

If cricket is religion, then Sachin is God. These superlatives apart, why am I a big fan of Sachin Tendulkar. Is it because he made India do the Impossible? Partly yes. But that part is only a drop in the ocean.

On Republic Day this year, Indian team was in Australia for the Tour Down Under. The national anthem was played and the cricketers stood as respect to the National Anthem. TV footage showed that only Sachin Tendulkar was the person who was standing in Attention AND SINGING THE NATIONAL ANTHEM.

Now this makes me bow down in respect for that person. Of course he would not have assumed that someone is watching. Otherwise all would have been standing in Attention. BUT HE WAS DOING THIS FROM HIS HEART.

What can a game of helicopter teach you?

Helicopter is a game that involves flying a helicopter through various hurdles which keep changing their positions and shape. As you move the helicopter from the left of the screen (if you are facing the screen, then your left) to the right, the hurdles will keep coming towards the right and you need to survive them. Game ends if you touch the hurdle or any of the top or bottom of the tunnel you are flying through. So what does the game teach you:

1. Life is full of hurdles and the fun is to keep escaping them unhurt.
2. Concentrate - The more you do, the farther you reach.
3. Never say die - There would be some hurdles which would seem impossible to cross. If you concentrate, then there is a good probability that you will cross them. But it is important that you do not loose hope. Many times my game ended as soon as I crossed the hurdle which I never thought I would be able to.
4. Keep trying - Of course some hurdles in the game can NEVER be crossed because there is no space to fly. BUT then it is not your fault. Keep trying and next time you might just by lucky.
   
5. Expertise is not developed in a single day or a couple of tries - You need to learn the game and it will take time. Do not loose patience.