Musings about VVS Laxman

Laxman’s recent bravado’s against Sri Lanka and Australia have earned him tremendous acclaim and deserving praise from all quarters. It reminded me of a recent conversation with a colleague. It was a lovely evening during IPL season and the topic of Laxman came about. As usual Laxman was not in the picture in the shorter version and my colleague suddenly remarked “Is he really that great a player?” I politely retorted that Laxman has nothing else to prove and he has performed exceedingly well in Test cricket and his record speaks for itself. My response failed to create any impact since it’s quite normal for people to forget test performances in the dinge of the glamor surrounding the shorter versions of the game. Moreover Laxman doesn’t have a Marketing firm or an agent who would ensure his brand being recalled on the small screen.

I have also heard many say that apart from his monumental 281 Runs scored against Australia in Eden Gardens, Laxman doesn’t have other record’s to rave about. Or rather his 281 dwarfs the rest of his performances. He only has one other double century and 16 centuries. While it’s true that his 281 stands out in a class of its own and cannot be compared or replicated, there are many other crucial innings played by Laxman which ensured victory for India. Many of these scores are lesser than 100, but significant enough to ensure victory for India. For some one batting between positions 5 & 7, in 81 of the 114 Test Matches with an average of 52.28 runs playing in those positions, Laxman has indeed performed admirably. After all he was battling mostly with the lower middle order and the tail.

What would be the words that best describe Very Very Special Laxman? Reliability, Strength, Perseverance, Performance under Pressure, Performing against the Best, Wristy, Stylish, Genius, Gentleman, Serious and Brilliant are some of the words that immediately come to my mind.Definitely the words Flamboyance, Aggression, Petulance, Impatience, Emotional and Impropriety aren’t the appropriate words to depict VVS. His one and only misdemeanor on the field is his reprimanding Ojha in the Mohali test. The rude and violent world would consider his apologizing to Ojha immediately thereafter as extremely weak and comical.

As uncle and mentor who facilitated the process enabling him to fulfill his destiny, I can also say Laxman is a fantastic “Listener” with a tremendous “Passion” for the game. Apart from Self Belief it was his faith in his Cricketing Gurus (Coaches) and Sadguru “SAI” that saw him safely through all the pains, injuries, insults and travails. Lack and Struggle have only made him Stronger. Every doubt and fear has been replaced by a deep abiding trust as we behold the evidence of “SAI” all around VVS. As a proud uncle of VVS, I would like to share the links containing some of the lovely accolades and praises written about Laxman, after his recent knocks against Sri Lanka and Australia. I thank one and all for their support and good wishes to Laxman.

The genius and the doubter – Peter Roebuck

VVS Laxman is an artist whose strength lies not in his artistry but in his competitive spirit, a batsman who needs adversity to unleash the giant within

It was a thrilling end to a tight match. India had found their champion. Laxman had confirmed his standing in the game. His career has been a compelling tale of greatness remaining locked away in the mind till the call comes and then emerging and laying waste before retreating back into its shell. As far as cricket is concerned Laxman is a warrior by instinct and a man of peace by manner. The conflict has made his career fascinating and frustrating. His genius is peculiar and requires the most particular conditions. His greatness lies in the fact that those conditions are the toughest not the easiest. He is an artist whose strength lies not in his artistry but in his competitive spirit….

To read the full article please click on

http://www.cricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/480205.html

Always the artist, never the superstar – Harsha Bhogle

VVS Laxman inhabits a world of his own, an era of old-time virtue that we are reminded of all too infrequently these days

And he is understated - another disqualification from the world of commercial endorsements. When he uses the letter "i" it is only because it is in the middle of the word "win". He loves winning, he loves contributing to a win, but he is unlikely to be nudging someone to be in the first row of the photograph.

And so while the big cheques don't always appear, something else does: respect in his dressing room and in that of the opposition; like it does for Naseeruddin Shah, while the big cheques go to Salman Khan. But respect never goes out of fashion; it is something all performers crave, and he has it in abundance.

To read the full article please click on

http://www.cricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/480388.html

The steel beneath the silk – Sambit Bal

The splendour of his batting sometimes distracts Laxman's admirers from the mental strength that is such a big part of his game

But it will stand the scrutiny of time that not only have many of his runs come in tough situations but against the toughest opponents. No team has beaten Australia in more Tests than India since Laxman started playing, and to these nine wins, from Kolkata to Mumbai, Chennai to Mohali, Adelaide to Perth, Laxman has contributed over 1000 runs at 71.80.

And only a Test ago he guided India to a series-levelling win in Colombo, with an assured hundred in the final innings of the match, a feat so rare that it has been achieved only 63 times in the history of the game, which spans 1972 Tests and features 3396 hundreds in all. It is rare for a reason: a chase in the final innings not only requires the batsman summon all his skills for the pitch on the final is at its most demanding but also the mental faculty to isolate his batting from the situation while being always aware that his is the wicket that could turn the game.

To read the full article please click on

http://www.cricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/480141.html

A toast to Very Very Special Laxman – Soutik Biswas

Laxman is a cricketer's cricketer in many ways, and one of the greatest ever. Remember, he has an exalted place on Wisden'sTop Ten batting performances of all time for his epic 281 against Australia in 2001, an innings of Cecil DeMille proportions against the strongest side in the world in the most adverse of circumstances. In that list, he is in the company of people like Donald Bradman and Brian Lara.

To read the full article please click on

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/soutikbiswas/2010/10/a_toast_to_very_very_special_laxman.html

A batsman of imagery and imagination – Sharda Ugra

When Laxman takes the stage in his moment, he can conjure up the illusion that the crisis is not being tackled, it is being ignored

Never mind what he can do to his team's fortunes. This is a man who can make prime ministers run.

Sighted around the back of the pavilion at the 2004 Sydney Test, John Howard, then premier of Australia, suddenly broke into a trot, and his six bodyguards instantly switched to light-jog mode. A few minutes after the PA system had announced that the new man in was the one he referred to as "Laksmin", Howard made his way through a strolling, slightly puzzled crowd and towards his box seat. Affairs of state were going to have to wait.

If anything about Indian cricket could make Howard crack a smile today, it would have to be the news that VVS Laxman had steered the Indians through a nervy run-chase and levelled the Test series against Sri Lanka.

To read the full article please click on

http://www.cricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/471460.html

Mohali win one of India's greatest sports achievements, says Gavaskar

“The way it was achieved, when most of the major batsmen were out and eight wickets were down and India needed about 80-90 runs still to win... the way that partnership took place and took India close, I think it is got to be the greatest win and among the greatest achievements in Indian sports,” Gavaskar told NDTV.

To read the full article please click on

http://www.thehindu.com/sport/cricket/article816105.ece

The Magic of VVS – Ian Chappel

Laxman has hand-eye coordination that is the envy of surgeons, a competitive drive that his opposition dreads, and the kind of nous good captains need

Laxman's contribution to India's breathtaking victory went way beyond the runs he scored. His decision early on to put his faith in Ishant Sharma's batting ability played a big part in the gangling quickie's vital role in their match-winning partnership. Laxman has always been tactically aware; he would have been India's best choice as captain following SouravGanguly's successful reign. He will never captain the team but he'll forever be remembered as India's most prolific match-winning batsman.

To read the full article please click on

http://www.cricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/480644.html

Laxman deserves a Platinum medal – Sunil Gavaskar

If there were medals in cricket VVS Laxman would get a Platinum medal for his wonderful batting and the manner in which he shepherded two lower order batsmen to take India to an improbable win. He had a back injury during the game so did not bat at his usual number in both innings and came out with a runner.

To read the full article please click on

http://sify.com/sports/laxman-deserves-a-platinum-medal-news-cricket-kkkiRVfddfa.html

The man called 'very, very special' - Abhijit Majumder

VVS. Loosely named Very Very Special. What does it mean anyway in the hot, tumbling soup of Indian cricket?

A gross understatement, for lovers of art.

VVS Laxman will go down in history as a middle-order batsman who played a few matches beyond everybody's liver and spleen, even the mighty Sachin Tendulkar and India's most dependable batsman ever, Rahul Dravid, and won crucial matches for his country.

He is far more than that. Vangipurappu Venkata Sai Laxman is one of the best batsmen the world has seen. Ever. Let me tell you why. He never deserted art.

To read the full article please click on

http://www.mid-day.com/news/2010/aug/080810-vvs-laxman-103-runs-bad-back.htm

Laxman Parva - Arvind Swaminathan

VVS is a happy anachronism in a world bristling with crass industry

It is easy to recognise V.V.S. Laxman each time his toothy grin fills up half the front page. But is it all that difficult to imagine him as a doctor, which is actually what his doctor-parents wanted him to be? Imagine a mercenary hospital milking the masses. Imagine an emergency room full of flashy white coats discussing golf swings, luxury cars and country homes. Now, imagine the expert, called in to help only when a life has to be saved, making a ooh-inspiring cut here, an aah-inspiring stab there. Imagine.

Resident non-Indians who cannot utter Vangipurappu Venkata Sai without breaking into a grin have settled on ‘Very Very Special’ to work their way around his name. But if there is a full form of vvs that comes closest to capturing the essence of Laxman, it has to be ‘Very Very South Indian’. A quiet, understated, tough-as-nails winner like his other peninsular pals and peers: Anil and Rahul and Sri.

To read the full article please click on

http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?267405

WISDEN CRICKETER OF THE YEAR 2002 - VVS Laxman

http://www.cricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/154369.html

For two reasons at least, the second Test of the 2000-01 series between India and Australia, at Eden Gardens, will stand out among the most prominent landmarks in the game's history. India's win brought to an end Australia's awesome run of 16 wins, the longest ever, and no side following on as far behind as 274 runs had previously come back to win a Test match.

Victory against such heavy odds was too large a feat to be accomplished by just one man. Indeed, three architects went into shaping it: off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, whose 13 wickets included a first-innings hat-trick, VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid. To weigh importance of the roles played by each of them might seem unfair, but in truth India owed the largest debt to Laxman. First, he kept the jaws of defeat wrenched apart until they ached and became too weak to snap; and secondly, he scored his epic 281 in the second innings at a rate that left enough time for Harbhajan and his fellow-bowlers to finish the job.

The first Test at Mumbai had been won by Australia in three days. And when India were 317 behind with only two wickets standing at the end of the second day in Kolkata, the prospects of another premature finish were writ large. Laxman was 26 not out that evening. He was unbeaten also - albeit now in the second innings - on the following evening, and again on the one after, this time with 275, the highest Test score by an Indian. By then, it was India whose nostrils were filled with the scent of victory. Haste required by the impending declaration deprived Laxman of further personal glory, but his partnership of 376 with Dravid was India's largest for any wicket against Australia, and their second-highest ever.

Vangipurappu Venkata Sai Laxman was born on November 1, 1974 in Hyderabad, to parents who are both doctors - his father a general practitioner and his mother a radiologist. It was taken for granted that Laxman, like almost all members of his near family, would take up a profession that required academic excellence, and he was therefore sent to an appropriate school, Little Flower. His father was Laxman's role model and he always assumed he would become a doctor as well. But medicine receded into stand-by mode once he fell under cricket's spell.

Yet with sport not figuring in Little Flower's curriculum, Laxman's talent could easily have remained latent. It was spotted by a cricket-playing uncle during family games in his grandparents' back yard. Having learnt the basics from this uncle, he then went to St John's Coaching Foundation for more advanced tutoring, and from there graduated to playing age-group cricket for Hyderabad, beginning with the Under-13s.

As Laxman approached his 18th birthday, his head and his heart were both telling him that his future lay in cricket. The defining moment arrived when he had to choose between exams for entrance to medical school, or a place at an Under-19 national coaching camp. Looking back to that fateful day, he said: "I decided to give myself four years to make it in cricket, knowing that if I didn't, I could always go for medicine. My parents must have had many misgivings about my decision, but they gave me their fullest support."

He did not have to wait long to reassure his parents that he had chosen wisely. Already a full state player, he was picked for India in an Under-19 Test series against Australia, who had Jason Gillespie, Brett Lee, Matthew Nicholson and Andrew Symonds in their ranks. He made four big scores against them, with 151 not out his best, giving early evidence of his taste for Australian bowling (his average against Australia is currently 56.00). A call to full colours was only a matter of time, and while he waited he had an extremely successful Under-19 tour of England. He began the "Test" series with a century on a blissful Taunton pitch.

As Laxman grew to full strength, tall and elegant, and big scores became more frequent, his batting acquired a captivating splendour. His driving possessed a Dexterian majesty and his flicked drive through mid-wicket stirred the senses. He was capped in 1996-97, a winter in which India played home-and-away series against South Africa, followed by five Tests in the West Indies. Laxman played eight Tests during this span and passed 50 three times. Indeed, he was given a fair run, but without being allowed a secure place in the batting order; in the Caribbean, he found himself opening, a role for which he had no taste.

His Test career went into a trough and might well have ended on the Australian tour of 1999-2000, when India were whitewashed 0-3. But in his final innings there, at Sydney, he hit a sumptuous 167 out of a total of 261, from only 198 balls. It was, one thought at the time, the sort of innings a batsman plays once in a lifetime. And so it seemed it would be when he was dropped after India's Mumbai defeat by South Africa not quite two months later. His volume of runs in that season's Ranji Trophy, a record 1,415 with a record eight hundreds, might almost have been mocking him. In Hyderabad's semi-final against Karnataka, he made 353, his fourth score at the time over 200.

Laxman achieved little in his one Test when Zimbabwe visited, or for that matter in the first Test against the Australians. That Sydney century seemed a long time ago. But promoted to his favourite No. 3 position for the second innings at Eden Gardens, he bettered it handsomely, sustaining his brilliance for ten and a half hours, during which he faced 452 balls. Half-centuries in both innings of the final Test helped India take the series 2-1; they also took his aggregate for the three matches to 503 at an average of 83.83. Medicine would just have to wait a while longer for VVS Laxman.

Snorkelling and Fishing at Andaman – By Sai Ramanand

Snorkelling

Man was it hot that day, my feet were burning just walking to the beach. We were on Neil Island some 2 hour boat ride from Havelock island.

The boat ride wasn't that eventful I slept the entire ride..Well I did in any case don't know about my brothers or dad or mom, I was just too damn tired and the heat wasn't helping either. When we reached our destination we got in two cabs and drove to the snorkelling point.

It was a narrow strip of beach with slopping sand quite close to the tree line, there were many shells and a few fallen tree' in the way, there were many coral rocks in the way when entering the water and the waves weren't helping and without sure footing you would just lose your balance. Once you swim to deeper water.....what a sight it's not as great as the coral reefs on discovery channel but great to see with your own eyes, Wow seeing so many colours, life was a great experience and I and my brother Karthik were lucky to catch a glimpse of a sea turtle, all in all a great trip.

From Wikipedia - Neil Island is an island in the Andaman Islands of India. It occupies an area of 18.9 square kilometres (7.3 sq mi). The island is located 40 kilometres (25 mi) north-east of Port Blair, the capital of Islands. The island consists of five villages, which are numbered from 1 to 5. There is a lone jetty at Bharathpur, which serves as the only entry/exit point of the island. The population of the island has been estimated at 5000 to 6000. Agriculture is the primary occupation of the villagers, and the island supplies vegetables to the rest of Andaman.

Line Fishing

We Left from Havelock by dinghy at around 3:00 to 3:30 in the afternoon, an hour later we reached the fishing point, after we were told how to fish by Diya our guide, we lowered our lines. Dad was the first one to catch a fish not to mention the fastest catch, I mean come on I had to hold the line for at least 20 min' before my first catch but my dad catch' one in under a minute, the wait for the fish to nibble was a bit boring but it got exciting when the fish began biting.

The fish we caught were red snapper, white lip, grouper and Diya caught one that looked like a parrot fish to me. I caught at least 6 fish and my brothers Karthik at least 5 and Chandu 4 the small one' were released. We continued till sunset when we decided to return and the night sky came to life as we saw a sight impossible in cities and a memorable one the night sky filled with stars and I mean filled, shooting stars, the constellations etc but the crowning jewel was the north star who ever said this star was the brightest star in the sky wasn't kidding, against the black sky and its reflection on the ocean surface I could swear it looked like one of those old Telugu or Hindi movie set, it was as bright as the moon and the ocean wasn't quite it had it' own stars the phosphorescence of certain microorganism showed up when the boat broke the surface of the water it was like fireflies only these show up when the water' surface is broken. We had pizza for dinner that night funny that' the only sure thing I remember probably because it was so good, in the restaurant B3 a short walk from the Havelock jetty(where our boat docked).

UI 9th Batch (1985) Gand Reunion 2010

It was a wonderful reunion of our United India 9th Batch who completed 25 years of service on 6th May 2010. 21 of our 23 batch mates made it to Yercaud. After meeting all of them it was quite apparent that very little seems to have changed. Maybe energy levels were slightly lower (the only reason I couldn’t make it to the ......Seat trip on day one) and physically some of us may be disproportionate in sizes but I felt we were more or less the same and could relate to each other as we did in 1985. Infact Thomas was mentioning the same observation in the room.

I really wished Balaji remembered how he used to mimic some of our eminent professors at the learning centre. Sanjay made up for this disappointment with the familiar “MY FRIEND TOMMY”. Thomas losing track of the joke trail reminded me of “CONFUSION WORUST CONFOUNDED”.

I loved MV’s humour, PA being her normal self, Ani’s trade mark grin and giggle, Sashi’s candid retorts and Rama at her usual melodious best singing Awaaz de Kahahe.

Paru really took me back in time at Namakkal Narasimhaswamy temple. In my opinion the batch closely bonded due to the Leadership qualities of Saikat Guha (his initiative to organize our visit to Kodai, allowing us to purchase TT table, his People skills, and connectedness to Top Management) and when we all anxiously wanted Paru to get well soon and come back from the nursing home. Of course the “I read u listen” sessions from Institute Text books, Weekend home work assignments, comments such as “Cheddi Penke gumtahai” etc, etc gave a different flavour and added to the seriousness and brought the batch even closer.

At Namakkal, Soundarya strongly reminded me of our temple visit after getting the first Salary cheque. I really loved her making me light the Deepam.

The Meditation, Pranayamam, and Blue ocean Strategy sessions by Thomas and Anita are some of the other take aways. Of course some of us who require our evening fuel must thank Thomas for bringing high quality fuel from Dubai. Unfortunately I could take very few photographs, since I carried my son’s camera without the memory card. However Saurabh, Sashi, Sanjay, Rama and quite a few other batchmates came well prepared and I guess sufficient photographs and videos have been taken to reminiscence our experiences.

I thought I successfully managed avoiding Rama’s interview, until she took out the Video camera at the airport and ensured she recorded my little bit

Rajni and Vivek – we missed you

I am sure Ashok & Mani silently participated in the reunion from the Astral world

Driving through Maharashtra - An Experience

Driving through Maharashtra during my recent visit to Sani Shingapur and Shirdi was a different kind of Material experience , apart from Spiritual substance. First we drove to Sani Shingapur from Mumbai via Pune and Ahmednagar. Then we drove to Shirdi and on our way back travelled to Mumbai via Nashik. The infrastructure development is great (particularly the Mumbai – Pune express way and the four laning of the Nashik – Mumbai highway).What amused me was the number of toll gates located almost at every 50 to 75 KM’s which were levying varyied amounts of toll fees. The next thing that amused me was the “Village Ahead” signboards almost coming up once every 50 KM’s. The names of these villages would invariably end with Gaon, but you would find atleast one multinational having its factory located at these so called Gaon's. The extent of industrialization which seems widespread across the state is quite discernable. Comparatively AP seems to be far behind – both in Infrastructure development and industrialization. With all the politically motivated challenges currently crippling the State one wonders where we are headed for?