Cricket: Amar’s Chitra Katha

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Day 13 of my Cricket tuition: I’m feeling a bit woozy from all the head-spinning developments regarding certain tragic events of this World Cup. Surely there is no better moment to focus on sweeter aspects of the game, specifically how an essay penned by my erstwhile intern Amar Shah showed up on ESPN the other day. I felt nothing but consummate delight when I followed the link which was submitted repeatedly to the bunker’s hotline; there in baby blue, with his gorgeous wife too, the boy whom I had been surprisingly fond of, even before we had ever met.

It was 2002 and Amar Shah was a student from the University of Florida. I was in a windowless office at Preston Gates, near the White House. I began receiving persistent instant messages from someone with a memorable, if young-sounding screen name. Typical questions about what his internship would be like and how he should prepare gave way to actual conversation and fellowship. Who was this kid? That first day of our program, I remember that though I was excited about finally meeting all of my interns, I was extra-curious about the one who would later jump up in a hyperactive and spontaneous moment mid-orientation and show off how he already knew not just our names, but our AIM screen names, as well. And I thought he had just been chatting with me. ๐Ÿ˜‰

That summer, I held his hand as he crushed on the unattainable: a girl so stunning, she looked as if she had stepped out of a Moghul miniature. I fretted over him while he bounced around the Hill; I kept him company when he was the last of my baby birds to fly away, that tear-drenched August day. It was fitting that Amar’s would be the final flight to leave DC; it was a small comfort that I had a few extra hours to spend with someone I had grown so attached to, someone who since then has always made me proud. It turns out that in an odd, small way I am AKKA to the world, as my horoscope spookily predicted I would be way back in 1989, in Seventeen magazine’s deluxe astrology section which was published in honor of that now-ancient new year. I fuss over everyone, I worry about them, I boss them around, I pinch their ears…but most of all, I love and never forget them, nor do I pass up an opportunity to brag about them as if I were their PR rep, as if they were my own.

Amarshah, I always knew you’d be huge. I just didn’t think you’d convince such a dime to marry you and grace your side while you did it. ๐Ÿ˜‰

Cricket’s Yogi Berra, Navjot Singh Sidhu, once warned, “Wickets are like wives — you never know which way they will turn.”
Perhaps that’s why my wife Tejal threatened to take off the Indian cricket jersey she had reluctantly worn when she saw the line in front of the NAZ8 Cineplex. I had woken her up at 5:30 a.m. on a Saturday to venture to Lakewood, near the city of Artesia, which is known as the “Little India” of Southern California. We were set to watch the India versus Bangladesh ICC World Cup match on the big screen with a movie theater full of wicket-crazy cricket nuts. By all accounts there was no better place in America where a cricket fan could go to experience the visceral feel of a real match. Plus, it was free. But now, with the sun still yet to rise, and a cold chill in the air, my wife crossed her arms and nudged me in the chest.
“We look like posers,” she said. “We’re the only ones wearing these shirts.”
She let me know that my brilliant plan of wearing the sky blue, Sahara-endorsed jerseys that I brought back from India was a stupid idea. Though the crowd was mostly Indian-centric, everyone was clad in coats, jeans and five o’clock shadows. Tejal also pointed out that she was the only girl.
When one of the men in line saw us approaching like a pair of twin Smurfs, he blithely commented that Tendulkar and Dravid had arrived, referring to the last names of legendary star Sachin Tendulkar and captain Rahul Dravid.

Any article which references the smurfs is genius. Read the rest at ESPN. I’ll just sit here like a properly chuffed elder sister, gloating about how fabulous Amar is while you do. He’s a little bit of perfect, isn’t he? ๐Ÿ™‚

196 thoughts on “Cricket: Amar’s Chitra Katha”

  2. Why Jay Gatsby, as I live and breathe…

    Hush little baby, don’t say a word– no one here knew of my totalitarian past as an absolutist monarch. ๐Ÿ˜‰

  3. Anna u a hero! just cause u atleast

    trying

    to report on something which matters so much to us foolidh little

    FOBs

    !!!

  5. as Steven moffat would say…Brilliant!!!!!!! dear anna, I am lovin every one of ur post. Now whos ready for INDIA vs SRILANKA!!!!!

  7. When one of the men in line saw us approaching like a pair of twin Smurfs, he blithely commented that Tendulkar and Dravid had arrived, referring to the last names of legendary star Sachin Tendulkar and captain Rahul Dravid.

    Aw, how corny is that, turning up in matching (baby blue) jerseys; they had the snark coming.

    Let’s get the match on!

  8. Why the World Cup must go on

    I was expecting the “Woolmer would have wanted it to go on” line but all that lofty respect and spirit of the game mumbo jumbo aside, it should go on for all services workers and peripheral, yet important, laborers whose wages and livelihoods depend on the World Cup. I’m sure they’ve been waiting for this event for years.

    I’m sick to my stomach and can’t enjoy any of it but there’s more to an event like this than the fan.

  9. The World Cup should go on — but it’ll be hard to enjoy it as much after all this. That article in the Guardian is the first one I’ve read that explicitly states that members of the Pakistan team must also be under suspicion — and a quick survey of my mates said the same.

  10. Zaheer is taking some time to get into his rhythm. This is his chance to redeem himself, though I don’t like the constant comparisons to the 2003 final at Cricinfo.

    Agarkar bowled a tight over, though I’m still sceptical about him.

  11. Urgent: Can anyone recommend a strong viewing location in Edison, NJ (or similar Indian-heavy area) for the rest of today? Thanks!

  13. Siddhartha, don’t know for sure but I would bet any restaurant in Edison would show the match.

    Assume everyone saw Shashi Tharoor’s lament about Americans and cricket in today’s NYT? The self-congratulatory tone fell a bit flat as he didn’t acknowledge Woolmer’s death.

  14. I’m interested in any other viewing option in NYC area to stop in on today — homes, bars, whatever. If there are people with opinions or commentary to share I’ll interview them for a radio story. I’m particularly looking for India supporters today since it’s looking like today is absolute must-win. Email me with any leads. Thanks!

  17. Siddhartha, South Asian student groups at Columbia or NYU will probably be your best bet, they are sure to have arranged TV transmission of the match and will have lots of pontificating opinions to offer.

  19. re: Edison, NJ: You might want to reach out to the Edison Cricket Club and see if they have any good leads.

    Siddhartha, I have more-than-average knowledge about cricket in New Jersey; I’ll email you off-blog with some ideas.

  20. The final, on Saturday, April 28, will take place in Barbados, but friends of mine in New York are already planning a World Cup party at the home of an expatriate with a satellite dish. The party will be attended by a raucous group of Indians and Pakistanis, Bangladeshis and Brits, Australians and Zimbabweans. But of course there will be no Americans.

    shashi tharoor article This sticks out to me from the first paragraph. No Sri Lankans in the party? C’mon bro? Either Jayantha Dhanapala has gone nuclear or Shashi is not taking any prisoners this time!

    Sri Lanka accused India of sabotaging Jayantha’s candidacy for Secretary General post by fielding Shashi Tharoor and actively campaigning against Sri Lanka.

    Don’t be hating………!

  21. I just took a quick glance but it looks like Bro Shashi is hating all around. On Sri Lankans, definitely — good catch, Chandare. And especially on Americans. Bro Shashi might now be hip to the idea that there is a growing community of South-Asian-Americans who have loyalties on both continents. It also says that Bro Shashi has a forthcoming book called “The Elephant, the Tiger and the Cellphone: India, The Emerging 21st Century Power.รขโ‚ฌย At a minimum, that’s a clumsy title and haven’t, like, five other people already written basically the same book?

  22. Jayawardane gone to great catch by Dhoni.

    Are there really enough desis in the US who are loyal to cricket still, what about the second gen? I don’t think I could bear it if a child of mine was more interested in baseball than in cricket. ABDs, how do you and your parents feel about the game?

  25. SP you mind reader, I was wondering about ABDs and 1.5ers myself. We can’t help it khoon mein kharabi and all, but what gets some of you non DBDs interested in the game?

  26. Siddhartha, Once caught Shashi on C-SPAN Book TV, promoting his last book(Nehru?).He sounded great.Haven’t read anything by him yet though.

    This damn match is cutting into my workload!(60/2)now.

  27. A Brit-Irish friend and I will be on the 12.01 train from Penn Station to Metropark. Anyone want to meet us, just holla.

  29. SP Are there really enough desis in the US who are loyal to cricket still, what about the second gen? I don’t think I could bear it if a child of mine was more interested in baseball than in cricket.

    Oh, come on SP! I already pointed out that cricket has a long history in the US, and even today it’s not insignificant, and growing strongly. The other side of this is that baseball is also played in India. Amateur Baseball Federation of India Yes, even I played it! OK, someone had to show me what and how, and it was just a couple times, but still! My guess is WW-II American GIs took it there, and so it was big in areas where they were stationed in large numbers – Bangalore, Calcutta, etc. Today, with all other kinds of American influence in India growing, I expect baseball in India will also grow. In fact, visiting ABDs could spread it there!

    Tharoor’s article was incomplete for not having mentioned Americans’s cricketing past and present, and baseball in India – creating a bigger disjuncture between the two sports cultures than actually exists, and which is, moreover, probably not going to be sustained very long in a globalizing world!

  32. In fact, check this out

    Link

    Seeking to draw Indian cricket and U.S. baseball together, Mr. Pyatt concluded his remarks by announcing that the U.S. Embassy has agreed to meet the Indian parliament for two matches of friendly competition; one game of cricket, and one game of baseball. “My hope is that through baseball and cricket, we can learn a little more about each other, enjoy some friendly competition, and just have fun” he said.

  33. Well yes, cricket has a long history in the US, but I’ve yet to meet people who are US-born and are really into the game. It would be hard to, without the supporting nationalist culture around it, I suppose, not to mention the facilities, and social acceptability factor (does any sport bring out the snickering in Americans as much as cricket?) Nice to hear that there are some ABDs really interested in it, though. Similarly, the few kids I know who have a baseball bat and know a little bit about the game back home tend to have family in the States, but their interest in the game is generally quite fleeting.

    Ganguly brought in for an over to unsettle the Lankan batsmen, predictably. Must get Tharanga. He’s getting a bit too comfortable.

    YESSSSSS SAngakarrrraaaa ouuuuuuut!!!

  35. Holy smoke, there really is something here! Ok, no threadjacking, no more from me here on this…

    Link

    As part of its Envoy Program, and in conjunction with FIRST PITCH: THE US-MANIPUR BASEBALL PROJECT and the U.S. Embassy in India, Major League Baseball International (MLBI) will send Envoy Coaches to five cities in India, including Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Calcutta and Imphal in Manipur. Envoy Coaches will begin a series of clinics and camps for local baseball coaches and players from Nov. 4 to Dec. 8, 2006, it was announced today.
  37. Abdabdabd!!!

    If you say that really fast, it sounds like kabbadi! kabbadi! kabbadi!

    We can’t help it khoon mein kharabi and all, but what gets some of you non DBDs interested in the game?

    1. It’s a medium for desi fraternity among the boys of all ages — basically a boy’s club. They see their dads get really into it and they think it’s the guy thing to do.

    2. It’s a bit of a novelty. They like being into something they know is inaccessible to their baseball-football-white bread-and-kool aid friends. If you bring samosas and Gatorade or Taco Bell in between overs you’ll make life-long cricket players out of them.

    3. Can’t really tell you much about how to get girls into it. Usually, when ABD girls are into cricket, it’s in the way that Anna is into it. They generally just want to learn the rules so they can know what’s going on when they watch it. Sometimes it’s prompted by a crush on a player (pro or amateur :). In any case, it’s a safe space, and a platonic way to have an “in” with the guys, which always feels like somewhat of an accomplishment for girls (the way a guy would feel if he suddenly had an in with all the girls because he was into makeup or something else that’s “girly”). Sure, they get infantalized, but they also get showered with attention and made to feel all special, like the little baby sister, so most of them consider it a fair trade-off.

    (Yes, I’m gendering. But I’m not making any assumptions, I’m just telling you how gender is relevant, for better or for worse.)

  42. (Yes, I’m gendering. But I’m not making any assumptions, I’m just telling you how gender is relevant, for better or for worse.)

    Nice observations, Shruti, but let’s not forget Women’s Cricket, or Women’s Baseball either!

    Gender is not irrelevant to my interest in Ozzie Vice-Captain Lisa Sthalekar!

    I know, I know, there’s a match going on…

  43. Nice analysis, Shruti. I broadly agree. The father-son bond, the family bond, brownitude, resistence to American singularity (there’s soccer for that, too)…anything both Jamaicans and Australians do gotta be cool. Off to a cricket party folks; its time to get the kingfisher on. Go India! abdabdabd!

  45. The gender observations are pretty accurate. Though I’ve frequently watched matches with older male relatives of the “bhagao saale ko” school where I’ve had to explain things to them. And it’s very different when you’re playing cricket with the boys, they don’t cut you much slack then. The importance of sex appeal coughIrfancough must never be underestimated, especially in reviving the interest of those put off by the match-fixing scandals.

    A good example of the desi male comfort zone with Pretty Little Things Trying to Understand the Game was when Mandira Bedi was recruited to add a little oomph to cricket commentary on Indian TV – all the (overwhelmingly male) ‘experts’ (whether on TV or just in living rooms across the nation) loved to make fun of her ‘basic’ questions and girliness but of course they wouldn’t want to bring on a real woman expert like, say, an ex-cricketer – no, the arrangement whereby they indulgently explained the game to the Little Woman while reinforcing their sense of superiority, enjoying the eye-candy, and shaking their heads at the idea of a “bimbette expert” suited them just fine.

  47. Well yes, cricket has a long history in the US, but I’ve yet to meet people who are US-born and are really into the game.

    Two of my best gora friends, both born and raised in the Midwest are cricket obsessed. I think this can be explained by their anglophilia but still quite interesting. One spent some time and India, and my friends invited him to watch a game. Later, they told me they were amazed by his knowledge of obscure players and matches from the 1960s

  48. I don’t think I could bear it if a child of mine was more interested in baseball than in cricket. ABDs, how do you and your parents feel about the game?

    If I have boys, I will name my children Malcolm Marshall Chandra and Sie Vivian Richards Chandra, to ensure that the glorious sport is always with them

    Purnima Rau Chandra does not have the same ring

    India letting it slip. Not good.