Are we seeing a BCCI Carrom Ball? - Part 2

Everyone will indelibly remember the dismal performance of our Indian team in the 2007 WC where they had to exit in the very first round after a shocking defeat to the Bangladesh team. But, the 2007 edition was also the one where ticket sales and viewership plummeted in the Caribbean Seas due to several reasons most notably being the ironclad fact that the Indian team's sudden departure from the Calypso. I am not making this up. When India exited the 2009 T20 WC, TV viewership declined.

                                                Check out Anisha Motwani's comments

Similarly, the viewership skies upwards to Exosphere @ Superman's flying speed whenever there is an Indo-Pak clash.

  288 MILLIONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN cortexes hammered in by the ads

But, when you have watched that match closely, you would have found that the Pakistani fielders dropped many catches off Tendulkar. I am 110% positive that everyone would have heaved a big sigh of relief and cheered the Little Master like me whenever the fielders spilled their chances. Sadly, there is yet another spin to it. I did not take it seriously when news broke out that the match was fixed. However, 6 years has passed since the massive emotional event and many a pattern has been established which will certainly sow the seeds of suspicion in the minds of any logical, reasoning and rational person. I shall furnish out the pattern but kindly read the explosive article before it. 

                                                             The article is a nuclear drop..!

The pattern is as follows as compiled and curated by me from extensive research:

Tournament	Year	Hosted By	Finals
Champions Trophy	2013	England	India Vs Eng
World Cup	2011	India	India  Vs SL
World Cup	2015	Australia/New Zealand	Australia Vs NZ
Asia Cup	2013	Bangladesh	Pak Vs Bangladesh
Asia Cup	2014	Bangladesh	SL Vs Pak
Asia Cup	2016	Bangladesh	India Vs Pak
T20 WC	2012	Sri Lanka	SL Vs WI
T20 WC	2014	Bangladesh	SL Vs India
T20 WC	2016	India	WI Vs Eng

A back of the envelope calculation reveals that in the major tournys played since 2011, it is more than 50% of the time that a host team has featured in the finals barring their winning/losing the game. Not to mention that SA, WI and Aus tri series held @ WI in 2016. No Surprises. WI was in the final and it was against Aus.

Also, Afghanistan was 2-0 in the series against Ireland held in India. Suddenly, Ireland won the next 2 matches and it went into a decider much like the India-Australia test series. I am not undermining Afghanistan series triumph or India's victory or the heroics collectively exhibited by the Men-in-Blue, okay Men-in-White! 

But, with IPL around the corner, a massive win against the Number 2 team as the mighty Australians will categorically, convincingly and markedly increase the market value of the ads and the players for the next one year especially with the Champions Trophy around the corner and the Indian Team's stellar success under Kohli's positive aggression  leadership in this season.

Economic Times ensured that my workload is reduced by half in breaking down these indisputable and irrevocable numbers.

  

TARGET: 1300 crores in 2017

Though Kohli might have missed out in the Oz Series, it is really unfair of some critics to pan him down when he has splendiferously delivered his goods consistently. It is only when you get out onto the field and play under the duress of the grueling hot sun that people will understand the tremendous difficulty.

I have not played cricket on a professional level yet I have experienced the scorching torture of the sun sapping away the heat from your body and wearing you out like how Dravid makes the bowlers tire. It is the same as saying that writing a blog is extremely easy. But, when you actually sit down to type out or write an unbiased, neutral and objective write-up, then you will know the travails and how arduous it is to bring out the entire thought process revolving around a theme to the fore.

Need I say more.. or lessssss?  That's a solid, textbook defense to Doctorate providers

In this case, this blog is about the fact, using hard core facts, as to whether the ICC, BCCI and other cricketing bodies are hand in glove with each other by misusing, abusing and exploiting the keen, honest, genuine and earnest sentiments of cricket lovers just to extend their personal cash reserves at our expenses - Financial, Mental, Physical and mainly Emotional cost. 

I am neither a big time nor a small time conspiracy theorist. In fact, I used to wonder how the real CTs work. All I have done here is to present the current situation AS-IS with the help of figures, tables, numbers, quotes and established patterns.

I leave it to you to better discretion and bright minds whether the matches are being fixed by the upper rungs in the hierarchy and we are all made fools in one go by the complete Cricketing Bureaucracy.

                                                              

                                                                   X---Concluded---X

Disclaimer:

This blog is not intended to discredit, disgrace, disrepute, malign or defame BCCI or ICC or any other Cricket Board or any player in any manner whatsoever. I have said and presented the data as clearly as possible allowing no room for any misinterpretation. Any wanted, warranted or unwanted conclusions or inferences derived is solely the reader's responsibility and not mine.

PS 1:

Kohli will achieve even greater heights as a captain if he abstains from repeating the same antics as his opponents by firmly setting a better example to our team and millions of youngsters who see him as their idol just like MSD. Some might perceive his mirroring of the opponent's rile up, mock or taunt to be childish and immature when he is way beyond that. Why to get an unnecessary bad name when you have excellent qualities?

PS 2:
I am neither suffering from apophenia nor banged my head against a wall to conjure up the data to suit my theory.

PS 3:
I am not saying by any stretch of imagination that I am ONLY factually right or realistically wrong. The data is accessible for you to verify, cross-verify and validate.

Are we seeing a BCCI Carrom Ball? - Part 1

The moment when a person tells us "Well. And That's My Theory" especially underlining the word "Theory", most of us give him/her an ugly, cold, distasteful and a revolting look but disguise and sugar coat it by saying "Ah! Fantastic One" and then back talk by saying to anyone who is within our earshot "He/She and their stupid theories" emphasizing again on the word "Theory".

Almost everyone has developed a natural sturdy aversion or strong mutinous reaction whenever someone mentions the "T" word in the mainstream to the extent that it has percolated to the core where many raise their eyebrows and give a disdainful smirk when they hear the "T" word even in a scientific context. You don't have to believe me but how many of you have said "It's just a theory. Forget it". That's the level of deep negative connotation the word is disgustingly inbuilt into your conscious and subconscious perceptions just like how many have primed and equated our own ancient, insight rich and wisdom sated Shastras and Vedas as humbug when in reality the Vedas and Shastras are nothing but science in its pure and distilled form. How do I explain it further?  There is an excellent video which echoes my thoughts concisely and precisely:

You surely don't want to miss this good 7 minute mind-altering and thought cleansing elementary video

So, it is established now that a "Theory" is not bad at all if it is based on solid data, evidences and proofs that are empirically tested and available in the open universe around us. We will go down a level further in the escalator about Conspiracy Theory (CT). As how I see it, CTs expand our thinking process that challenges the conventional and prevailing information which are gluttonously fed to us on a consistent basis by the media** who always try to divert our focus and attention from the main, existing and real issue which actually happened thus distractimg us like a sexy Item Number wherein the Femme Fatales set the stage on fire. No, they are not Hanuman Bhakts!

Condoning my worst possible PJ, Conspiracy Theories are the ideal fodder to titillate a dull and boring conversation. The veracity of CJs are undoubtedly questionable. Nevertheless, the possibility of its existence is true as there is an element of infinitesimal probability involved though smaller than the smallest bacteria! If you are an open-minded person, that specific CJ should be explored for testing their validity, however wild or unimaginable. You should not forget that a great scientist as Galileo was branded as a heretic as his idea was against the appeal of the masses when he propounded that the Earth revolved around the Sun which was later proved to be true. Inference, the MAJORITY at that point of time were WRONG as far as this significant point was concerned. The popular is not always right. And the right is not always popular. History has proved us time and again.

How does theory and conspiracy theory are pertinent to a Cash Empire as BCCI? I will get to it soon. Before that, let us try to answer a few tough, hard and necessary questions so that we smoothly embark on this journey together.

Why do you watch a cricket match?
a) You love the sport - Cricket.
b) You couldn't become a cricketer. So, you give your ideas, tactics and strategies whenever you watch one.
c)  For a particularly successful team or an outstanding individual or a glamorous host like Mandira Bedi.
d) Dad and Granddad says/said so!
e) My friends are seeing it. I will also see it to not to be left out. Peer Pressure.
f) National Sport or Most Followed Game and It's my goddamn brilliant country that is being represented. I want them to win at any cost.
g) Your husband/wife/BF/GF/Crush watches. So, you mimic them - whether you know the sport or not!
h) A combination of the above reasons.
i) Any other reason apart from the specified. Well, I couldn't think or imagine anything further!

The next extremely important question:

When will a person definitely watch a cricket match?
a)  A series is evenly poised like 1-1 and the match heads into the decider.
b) A hotly contested game or series having lots of twists and turns like a thrilling roller ride irrespective of the outcome.
c) Semi-Finals and Finals especially when the match is held in the host country and the hosts are in the Semis and Finals.
d) Forced to watch due to 'n' number of reasons.
e) For bet's sake or have lost a bet.
f) You can add more reasons when you are absolutely sure as to when a person would not miss a match even if their lives depended on something else.

Why am I giving a detailed exposition on the mechanics as to the whys and wherefores to a Cricket Match?

Simple. As you all know that BCCI is a private organization who controls and coordinates the cricketing activities in our cricket-crazed land of 1.3 Billion population. From a Business Standpoint, 130 crore** ardent spectators, who are internally drenched with intense and deep reverence for a sport like cricket, is simply too good an opportunity to miss out for earning the top dollars, Okay rupee! So, if a person can figure out, just like how I did, as to what motivates and propels the passionate aficionados to compulsorily make them to enjoy a match, the authorities in the top echelons can wallow in and swallow the money by emotional extraction and exploitation from the people's love for the Gentlemen's Game.

Now, people who hate and abhor Marketing and Advertising will cite that the ads on the TV or over the Internet also force the consumers to purchase their products by persuasive messages. Unfortunately, that is a common misperception just like the "T" word.  Marketing respects the free will of the individuals and gives the complete freedom to the customers to buy or not to buy an advertised product or service unlike in the earlier situation where all of us might be forced against our free will to watch a match just to fill in the coffers of the already deep pockets of BCCI.

"Are you suggesting that BCCI fixes the matches played by India"? I can hear your mind voice shrieking like a banshee through my screen. It will be answered soon.

                                                               
                                                        X---To Be Concluded---X

media** ---> Not all media are biased, prejudiced, stereotyped, mislead or cherry pick in their attitude when it comes to reportage of disseminating essential information to the public.

130 crore** ---> Likewise, not all the 130 crore Indians will like or love the game of Cricket. However, there are countless Indians living across the globe who sacrifice their sleep by either waking up early or staying up till late night due to time differences to catch their favorite team hitting the turf instead of them hitting their sacks. Basically, the entire world may be enslaved at the smartness of the shrewd and astute BCCI.

For more on Kohli's leadership and the concluding part which includes the Earth Shattering Indo-Pak WC 2011 Match Fixing Report, you are merely one click away.

                             Are we seeing a BCCI Carrom Ball? - Concluding Part  😎 😊😊

Logan - Eternally Adamantined in our Hearts! - Part 2

Though Deadpool was R-rated as well, the funniness and quirky nature of the character of the protagonist saw to it that the blood and gore was seen in a lighter vein, pun intended, unlike in Logan where it was a savage carnage at its violent best.

Undoubtedly, it was Hugh Jackman (HJ) who carried the entire film on his shoulders, okay claws! as the tired-of-life, vulnerable and when-will-I-die Logan and also as the short-cropped, mean killing machine X-24. I couldn't believe that HJ was only 48 yrs old on seeing the beefy and hulky X-24. It was really astounding and amazing to watch him in such a way at that age. He is indeed a source of enormous inspiration to all those who hit the gym regularly.

Just check out his workout regime here:

                                                    Wolverine Body Build Up

The Oscars have always given the cold shoulder to superhero genres but if one person who is deserved and merited to warrant a nomination from the superhero genre, then it has got to be HJ for the way he had given a stellar acting with his physique and expressions for both the roles in his swansong despite battling a cancer. Also, let me break up some numbers as to the revenue generated by the X-Men Franchise:

a) X-Men Franchise (10 films including Deadpool ): $4.6 Billion

b) Deadpool's Cume: $784 Million

c) Only Featuring Wolverine:  3 Films
d) B.O. Total of The Wolverine Spin-offs: $790 Million (excluding Logan's collection)

e) Weekend collection, Logan: $237 Million (and Counting!) 

There was time in the past when our batting maestro, Sachin Tendulkar, was the face of Indian Cricket.

Likewise, HJ was the darling of the masses in the X-Men Franchise. So, Yes. The Wolverine has been chiefly instrumental and played a pivotal force in garnering close to $4 Billion when we do simple math here with HJ cashing in on approximately $1 Billion single-handedly. What more could the Oscar committee require than these mind-boggling numbers and a person who has given his everything for 17 solid years especially in his curtain call 'Logan'. This should at least convince the jury of an exception clause, pun intended, for the Best Actor Nomination as HJ has worked himself to the bones, literally!

Can there be another Sachin? No. Could there be a Messi in future. Def Not. Any possibility of another Fedex? Hell Negative. But, Wolverine? Certainly Yes as the producers will surely want to rake in the extra moolah on the brand. Unfortunately, whoever reprises the role, they would have an extremely hard time convincing the fans that they are The Wolverine!

Just like the Adamantine structure that is ingrained into Logan's body, the image of HJ as the Wolverine is strongly, deeply and fiercely engraved in the sands of time for the fashion in which he has lived and immortalized the character. 

Mathematically speaking,

                                                   Wolverine = Hugh Jackman. Period.

How the Undertaker uses his signature move "The Last Ride" to create the right impact to win on a high, when Laura changed the "Cross" into an "X", the last possible chance to see the man don the ultra-sexy hairdo with his awesome sideburn and beard also got buried in the ground but not without entertaining everyone to the core in his Last Ride.

R.I.P James Howlett.

You are not just a survivor anymore. But, A caring leader.

                                                          

                                                                    X---Concluded---X

                               

PS:
I am neither a Marvel or DC fan but a neutral spectator who loves good superhero movies like the Dark Knight, Avengers 1, Captain America 2,3, Deadpool, Ant-Man, Guardians of Galaxy and watches other superhero movies with the hope that they are good!

You can check out my reviews of:

a) X-Men Apocalypse
b) Captain America Civil War
c) Suicide Squad

Logan - Eternally Adamantined in our Hearts! - Part 1

                         
                              Hugh Jackman - You are inimitable. Adios The Wolverine..!

This lump-in-the-throat tribute video was not made by me but a fan in the DC and Marvel world. It summed up superbly the wonderful journey not only for the Wolverine but also for each and every one of us who had assiduously followed in his footsteps.

Now, let us begin here......

Just imagine a scenario where there are no rules and laws in our present society and the world. Confusion and chaos will definitely ensure that anarchy ensues in an uncontrolled and rampant manner. But, being an idealist, I shall you give one more scenario. As there are no rules, laws and bye-laws to guide the proper actions of a person, it means that the freedom is at the mercy and behest of an individual and they can do whatever they seem and deem fit to be appropriate, right and falsely right as per their whims and fancies which is solely based on their strength of morality, intensity of character, degree of actionable actions and depth of personal integrity.

Yet, when all the people consciously choose to make good use of their unchecked and unsuppressed liberty for the betterment of others and also for themselves in the process, it is only then that our society has really reached a level of pristine evolvement and personal progress wherein the person is not only self-aware, self-reflective and self-corrective but also truly independent yet dependent in terms of emotional, physical, psychological, spiritual, financial and material wealth. Some might aver that this is impossible to achieve but as I see, it is difficult but certainly not impossible as only an idealist can help others to grow and prosper. So, how does freedom fit into the context of a movie as Logan?

Simple. For close to 2 decades, Wolverine has enthralled us on the big screens with his ripped bod, menacing expressions, snazzy looks, brash behavior along with those uber-cool claws. You simply cannot hate this guy how much ever mean or grumpy or cynic or sarky that he is on the screen while it lasted.

Still, I had always felt that this is one character in the X-Men series which was utterly under utilized by not realizing the character's fullest potential. I couldn't pinpoint and articulate the reason accurately until Logan was released last week. Oh. Man. And Woman. And Gawwddddddddddddd.

The moment the director was given the go-ahead to do a R-rated film, Mangold had the complete latitude to stitch together a hardcore bloody, realistic, violent and tear-jerking storyline to give an immensely fitting farewell to one of the most stylish characters in the X- Men franchise.

Unless and until that absolute and unlimited creative freedom hadn't been dictated to the director, Mangold wouldn't have been able to given us such a beautifully crafted, engagingly brutal, rib-tickling and ossumatic gripping emotional adieu which ended not just mine but also your 2 decade long fervent fandom with the Wolverine and his strong-headed antics. Mangold - You are indeed a Man of Gold! to unleash the latent feral power of the beast in its raw and uninhibited form which was exactly how the Wolverine should have been portrayed since his journey began in the 2000s.

Everyone knew that Hugh Jackman has finally hung up his shoes, Okay claws!, before we stepped into the theatre. So, the element of surprise that he will be dead in Logan is completely annulled. But, how it happens is wonderfully presented in an exciting, exhilarating, wowing and tearful manner. I had the slight apprehension that Logan might take the road of X-Men Apocalypse or its other contemporaries with their mindless, thoughtless, meaningless, purposeless and needless orgy of VFX vomit on the silver screen. Luckily, sanity prevailed upon the director and his team by seeing to it that the CGIs lucidly blended with the screenplay instead of conspicuously standing out like a sore finger!

Likewise, Mangold had the tension and suspense build up, slowly and steadily, and piqued my curiosity to the point my mind voice was shouting internally "What the hell is Laura's specialty?". And when Laura emerged from the ramshackled warehouse throwing the severed head, it was one of the most badass scenes in a while. I was one amongst the many who hollered in the theatre when her two sets of claws were shown for the first time.

Speaking of  Laura, the cute little devil has given a splendid performance on par with Lyanna Mormont from the Game of Thrones. I wondered for a moment what would have happened if there had been a cross-over then and the duo had met! Similarly, the way by which she was playing around with her colorful pink shades to infuriate Logan was too good. Extra hats-off to Mangold for imagining and executing such a scene to create pure humor at the right places.

As we are on the topic of humor, Mangold also made sure that the comedy is situational-based unlike Deadpool which heavily relied upon profanity, obscenity and expletives. Take for example. The scene where Logan asks Prof. X. whether he had his medicines in the car. It did not just evoke laughter but also showcased a tremendous sense of emotions underlying the scene where it seemed like Logan saw Prof. X as an aged father more than a mentor and the latter saw him as a son than a mentee. Similarly, where the kids trim Logan's beard and he sees himself in the mirror was not only scream-worthy but also a fan delight.  Also, the scene where Logan learns that Laura could actually speak was priceless or the manner in which he takes a dig at the X-Men comics to name a few hilarious of them.

                                                                  X---To be concluded---X


PS:
If you have been wondering and searching where Sachin and FedEx are on this blog, they are in:
                                                                             Part 2