Dudurudh

Over the years , tika-taka whether by barca or the Spanish national team , has bored me to levels unimaginable . So much short passing that in the final analysis , that graphic of passes completed looks like a board scratched with chalk by a mischievous young kid .It's a simple game . They pass the ball around , draw the opposition midfield out of position and their midfield maestros find a pass straight to their forward , who has the monotonous job of kicking the ball past the keeper . It's a challenge playing that way and both these teams deserve credit for playing that way no matter what the situation . To stick to your philosophy in any situation is commendable . But that strength is perhaps their greatest weakness . The incapacity to adapt . The reluctance to change . The inflexibility within . Both barca and Spain are dependent ,heavily ,on xavi and inesta for those lovely throughballs . Barca have messi to finish the move off while Spain have quality in Torres and vi...

Over the years , tika-taka whether by barca or the Spanish national team , has bored me to levels unimaginable . So much short passing that in the final analysis , that graphic of passes completed looks like a board scratched with chalk by a mischievous young kid .It's a simple game . They pass the ball around , draw the opposition midfield out of position and their midfield maestros find a pass straight to their forward , who has the monotonous job of kicking the ball past the keeper . It's a challenge playing that way and both these teams deserve credit for playing that way no matter what the situation . To stick to your philosophy in any situation is commendable . But that strength is perhaps their greatest weakness . The incapacity to adapt . The reluctance to change . The inflexibility within . Both barca and Spain are dependent ,heavily ,on xavi and inesta for those lovely throughballs . Barca have messi to finish the move off while Spain have quality in Torres and v...

I've said this before in a post and I'll say it again . Petrol price hikes are good . I don't intend to defend anything this government might have done or , for that matter , might not have done . But let's just put this price hike in perspective . Here's a bunch of people ( a very very large bunch ) spending lakhs of rupees on cars ,polluting the skies , crowding the roads ( yes me included ) . Popularly misnamed , the aam aadmi . Now that bunch , obviously , wants petrol to be available in every ration shop at 10 liters for 20 bucks and service with a smile . Here's the counter argument . The supreme court of India made it mandatory to teach students from class 8 to first year engineering a subject by the name environmental education . And for 6 years student learn that fossil fuels are the worst enemy of human kind even ahead of the late Osama bin laden . For that reason it is great that petrol prices are up . Simply because , like i've said in a previo...

I've said this before in a post and I'll say it again . Petrol price hikes are good . I don't intend to defend anything this government might have done or , for that matter , might not have done . But let's just put this price hike in perspective . Here's a bunch of people ( a very very large bunch ) spending lakhs of rupees on cars ,polluting the skies , crowding the roads ( yes me included ) . Popularly misnamed , the aam aadmi . Now that bunch , obviously , wants petrol to be available in every ration shop at 10 liters for 20 bucks and service with a smile . Here's the counter argument . The supreme court of India made it mandatory to teach students from class 8 to first year engineering a subject by the name environmental education . And for 6 years student learn that fossil fuels are the worst enemy of human kind even ahead of the late Osama bin laden . For that reason it is great that petrol prices are up . Simply because , like i've said in a...

Trailing 3-1 in the champions league tie against Napoli , an FA cup replay with birmingham , languishing in lowly 6th in the league and a group of players that for some reason looked extremely disjointed . That was the state of the club when roman abramovich raised his axe for the 8th time in as many years . The squad dint change. Roberto de Matteo was promoted to the role of interim manager . Close to nothing else changed other than that . No additions to the team , no dismissals either . But in the next 21 games Chelsea football club under the inspired guidance of roberto de Matteo turned a season on its head and left on lookers shocked . It was a display of togetherness , a single minded resolve to change , the battle of emotions that wasnt seen in this side at the beginning of the season . It's brought home the one trophy our great owner has been craving . The one trophy that has eluded the club . The champions league . Against all odds , from trailing 3-1 to napoli , 0-2 with...

Trailing 3-1 in the champions league tie against Napoli , an FA cup replay with birmingham , languishing in lowly 6th in the league and a group of players that for some reason looked extremely disjointed . That was the state of the club when roman abramovich raised his axe for the 8th time in as many years . The squad dint change. Roberto de Matteo was promoted to the role of interim manager . Close to nothing else changed other than that . No additions to the team , no dismissals either . But in the next 21 games Chelsea football club under the inspired guidance of roberto de Matteo turned a season on its head and left on lookers shocked . It was a display of togetherness , a single minded resolve to change , the battle of emotions that wasnt seen in this side at the beginning of the season . It's brought home the one trophy our great owner has been craving . The one trophy that has eluded the club . The champions league . Against all odds , from trailing 3-1 to napoli , 0...

Using public transport can , apart from saving a lot of money , throw up a lot of interesting stories to tell . What may ,from the outside , seem like a monotonous , boring ride , actually is a very entertaining journey ! You'll see lots of different types of people. Old , young , new born , loud , shy , funny , serious , suspicious and so on ! You may find nothing in common with them except for your destination , but you might actually have a lot of similarities . You just don't know what yet ! It's about half past 7 on a pleasant wednesday evening . An old rickety bus squeaked to a stop in front of me . It's almost full . There are a couple of vacant seats at the back  . Vacant seats are a rarity in the late evenings , so it's probably my lucky day,  I thought to myself . The conductor walked up to me as soon as I got on to the bus , not allowing me enough time to claim my seat before someone else did . I forced my way to the...