Sunday, December 30, 2007

Openings for openers!

It was 2049. 5 days away from what would be 2050. There was a festive atmosphere everywhere. Millennium celebrations half a century ago were what it was being compared to. Things had changed it seemed from then but not everywhere. Boxing day cricket test match was still being played in Australia. Test cricket had not disappeared nor become completely outdated . It was apparently played then in outdoors on green grass and mud pitch! Decisions were manually given by people called "Umpires"!. Thank goodness cricket is no more crazy.The newly constructed Ricky ponting indoor stadium in Melbourne was going to be used this year. The game was being played between AUS ( C- ) vs Bharath (erstwhile India). Among the 52 teams Aus had they decided it was enuf to field AUS ( C -) to do the job.
The game started at 2:30 IST ( to cater to the huge bharath audience) . There was a huge bharath contingent to watch the match. Bharath players were having a second homecoming or so they felt.
.By, polling (through several means!) it was decided that bharath team should play first. The pitch was also decided by the polling to be little soft with some artifical cracks on the otherwise clean synthetic surface. Saffron coloured bharath players came out to standing ovation. Bharath openers were smiling and waving to the audience. They had been selected though a nationwide talent hunt. They had enthralled the audience on small screens for long but it was the first time they were going to play in a real cricket match. Bhrath players finally took guard of their stumps. Who among the two will be play first was also decided by voting. The AUS ( c- ) team bowler who was silent through the fanfare for the last ten minutes finally came into the scene . He bowled the first ball an out swinger, the bharath player had a go at it but the pink ball's trajectory never intersected his wide bat. The tale of woes continued the ball and bat seemed to have a fall out with each other.They never seem to meet. After about an half an hour, a straight ball was delivered to the glee of our talent hunt wonder but the weight of the time had worked on our half-brained wonder he hit it straight to the only fielder(13th man) stationed outside the boundary. ( To some who are not aware of this new rule the 13th can also now field outside the boundary)!. That was it!..one had perished.. The other wonder got out the next over to a bouncer which did not bounce. The 40 some bouncers which did bounce had ensured that his head always ducked. So it was over both the openers had perished. In the drinks break an ad came out "openings for openers....."..Next year's talent hunt had already begun.....