Ahmed_B
March 26, 2007, 01:29 PM
Just a few minutes back, I was watching the TV Channel coverage of last night’s celebration in Dhaka streets. I must admit, that the hype and hangover that has been created from the group-stage results of the Tigers, has taken the whole nation to a land of dreams... atleast for now it is like that and will be like that for quite some time. If someone accuses them for making too much of just a sport, then he/she must have failed to realize how big a share the game of Cricket holds in stock-market of Patriotism among majority of the Subcontinent’s people, including Bangladesh.
But again, on the exact opposite portion of the spectrum, are countries like Australia, who have genuinely converted Cricket into a profession driven by patriotism rather a religion for worshipping. And then comes a man, who has taken up the challenge to stand in the middle and then bridge these two waves of extreme opposite frequencies. Yes, at this very moment, I would like to pay my outmost respect to this distinct and Genius individual, who has, to be honest, been the most successful among the group of Australia-based high-profile Coaches who had been training 3 test-status countries in the sub-continent. And that man is Dav Whatmore, the current Coach of the Tigers.
The reason for his success could be his sobcontinental origin, or it could be his adamant determination to bring out the believer in individuals. But irrespective of the cause, the effect is profoundly beneficial to the moral of more than 140 million people.
However, passion is certainly not the only highlight of his cricket-philosophy. Almost equally important to him is the value of forward-vision and serious contact with reality...this surely comes from his Aussi background. I know many of us fans believe in some other individuals who they think will be highly successful as BD coach after Dav is gone. But personally, I do have strong doubts about whether there is anyone else who can create such a sophisticated balance between the sensitive ‘National-pride’ issue in the subcontinent and the robotic player-making process with specific fitness-standards and expire-dates for each player, which seems to have taken the Australian team on top of the world for God-knows-how-long!
Take a look at the John Wright, Greg Chappel & Bob Woolmer Saga for cross-checking if you want!
So what might Dav be thinking right now?
Well, unlike the dreamy tiger-fans, to him, this is probably just a part of the process that Bangladesh are into the Super-8. At times, Whatmore must have been highly frustrated by the team’s performances in the past... but even in the current hyper-emotional environment for BD, his reactions are stunningly subtle which only gives a hint of how far this man is able to take his vision. “It is just one game, but it is a beginning...” was his reply to an interview after the Tigers had knocked down the ‘Team India’ straight back to earth.
’What more’ to expect from this WC-mission?
Inspired by the astonishing self-control of this distinct individual, I am honestly ready to give up my ‘Bangalee-style-daydreams’ for the current World Cup Showdown. Rather I am prepared to look beyond it and look long way forward.
Reaching the Super-8 was the mission of the campaign. But after that glory being attained, its now time to see these next 6 matches as a part of BD’s upcoming heavy-duty cricket schedule for 2007-8. Each match is important, not because it might take us to the semi-finals, but because these are the toughest-possible matches that you get a chance to play. These are the matches to judge how high you can stand under extreme circumstances and how far you are able to push the opponent to make them sweat.
To be honest, India was not among the most balanced teams in the top-8. They had major weaknesses in technique, form and confidence and the Tigers exploited them very very well. But we have 6 more matches coming and atleast 3 of them are against Aus, SA & NZ... teams who are at the peak of their form and BD’s match against SL actually exposed how disarray the young Tigers might look if an in-form team decides to stay all-alert and fire all guns in full power.
So lets hold back our hypes for the moment. Let the vision extend beyond the WC showdown... and let it be a beginning of the end. The end of helpless submissions.
Expecting them to reach any further stage in this very event, would honestly be a bit too much to ask for. But, I suppose, expecting one or two more wins in this campaign (other than Ireland, with all due respect to them) and thus making a statement for the upcoming home series against India is fair enough when you want to stay well-connected with the world of reality!
But again, on the exact opposite portion of the spectrum, are countries like Australia, who have genuinely converted Cricket into a profession driven by patriotism rather a religion for worshipping. And then comes a man, who has taken up the challenge to stand in the middle and then bridge these two waves of extreme opposite frequencies. Yes, at this very moment, I would like to pay my outmost respect to this distinct and Genius individual, who has, to be honest, been the most successful among the group of Australia-based high-profile Coaches who had been training 3 test-status countries in the sub-continent. And that man is Dav Whatmore, the current Coach of the Tigers.
The reason for his success could be his sobcontinental origin, or it could be his adamant determination to bring out the believer in individuals. But irrespective of the cause, the effect is profoundly beneficial to the moral of more than 140 million people.
However, passion is certainly not the only highlight of his cricket-philosophy. Almost equally important to him is the value of forward-vision and serious contact with reality...this surely comes from his Aussi background. I know many of us fans believe in some other individuals who they think will be highly successful as BD coach after Dav is gone. But personally, I do have strong doubts about whether there is anyone else who can create such a sophisticated balance between the sensitive ‘National-pride’ issue in the subcontinent and the robotic player-making process with specific fitness-standards and expire-dates for each player, which seems to have taken the Australian team on top of the world for God-knows-how-long!
Take a look at the John Wright, Greg Chappel & Bob Woolmer Saga for cross-checking if you want!
So what might Dav be thinking right now?
Well, unlike the dreamy tiger-fans, to him, this is probably just a part of the process that Bangladesh are into the Super-8. At times, Whatmore must have been highly frustrated by the team’s performances in the past... but even in the current hyper-emotional environment for BD, his reactions are stunningly subtle which only gives a hint of how far this man is able to take his vision. “It is just one game, but it is a beginning...” was his reply to an interview after the Tigers had knocked down the ‘Team India’ straight back to earth.
’What more’ to expect from this WC-mission?
Inspired by the astonishing self-control of this distinct individual, I am honestly ready to give up my ‘Bangalee-style-daydreams’ for the current World Cup Showdown. Rather I am prepared to look beyond it and look long way forward.
Reaching the Super-8 was the mission of the campaign. But after that glory being attained, its now time to see these next 6 matches as a part of BD’s upcoming heavy-duty cricket schedule for 2007-8. Each match is important, not because it might take us to the semi-finals, but because these are the toughest-possible matches that you get a chance to play. These are the matches to judge how high you can stand under extreme circumstances and how far you are able to push the opponent to make them sweat.
To be honest, India was not among the most balanced teams in the top-8. They had major weaknesses in technique, form and confidence and the Tigers exploited them very very well. But we have 6 more matches coming and atleast 3 of them are against Aus, SA & NZ... teams who are at the peak of their form and BD’s match against SL actually exposed how disarray the young Tigers might look if an in-form team decides to stay all-alert and fire all guns in full power.
So lets hold back our hypes for the moment. Let the vision extend beyond the WC showdown... and let it be a beginning of the end. The end of helpless submissions.
Expecting them to reach any further stage in this very event, would honestly be a bit too much to ask for. But, I suppose, expecting one or two more wins in this campaign (other than Ireland, with all due respect to them) and thus making a statement for the upcoming home series against India is fair enough when you want to stay well-connected with the world of reality!