The Big One.

Okay, brace yourselves. This is going to be an extremely long post.

Last night was the build-up to one of the most important nights in cricketing history. For the first time ever, 2 South Asian nations were going head-to-head in a World Cup final. Big news indeed.

For the first time in my life, I was going to watch a final where India was one side and my friends' team the other. I didnt know any Sri Lankans back in 2007, or earlier. But now I have Sri Lankans friends. I was camping out on Twitter the entire day, looking at tweets and what people from either side of the sea had to say about the match. There was a lot of wit, a hell load of tweets and just, an amazing virtual experience (both bad and good) on how technology has revolutionised the game. You have the people who think that their score updates are important, you have the witters (that's witty tweeters. how cool am i?!) who more often than not have something really unique to say and you have the fans- the ones who gloat, the ones who fear, the ones who pray.

So first up, the match analysis.

Sanga said that the Indians were the favourites going in, they most probably were, given the backing even cricketing legends gave them- be it Ranatunga, Kapil Dev, Sir Viv, what have you. But I am of the opinion that they were also the underdogs. Its simple. No cricket team in the world faces as much pressure as does the Indian team. And only because of 2 entities- fans and sponsors. Intertwined these 2 entities play an extremely crucial role when it comes to advertising revenue and viewership. Its one of my favourite topics to debate and discuss on, because its so pluralistic and people dont often see beneath the team. Do I personally like the Indian team? No. They lack a great amount of sportsmanship and have egos the size of a boy I know. I know this is no reason to hate on a team, but I have expectations if you're playing a 'gentleman's game'. Yaanyway, India was the favourite yes, but I feel like Lanka had the upper hand. Why? Because first, there was relatively less pressure on them as opposed to India. Secondly their road to the finals was well-designed and brilliantly chartered. Easy victories where their skill as a well-rounded team came into focus lead them to a deserved place in the finals. Last, they're a much better unit than India is at the moment. They field well, they have world-class bowlers and batsmen, they can attack, and most importantly, they can handle pressure.

And given that they came into the finals pretty much free of drama, like a free breeze, the pressure was definitely not on them. So it's a surprise really when their fielding turns out as sloppy as it did last night.

The match started really well. I lost hope when Mahi lost the toss, because from what I have seen, India isnt so good chasing. So Sri Lanka comes out there, India fields exceptionally, gets important wickets, bowling's tight, everything's right. And then comes Mahela. Everything said and done, at the end of the night, man deserved serious props and perhaps a trophy too, for the innings he put up. So well designed and wisely played, uff. Then comes in Nuwan, who supports him brilliantly, goes off to make way for Perera, who further dents the damage inflicted upon the Indians. Their powerplay runs were I think the most painful, and as the first innings came to a close, you could see the big wide grins and smiles from the Dark Blue dressing room. Totally confident and all that (like you know, you can tell from their faces, 'guys, we got this').
Come back into the game 2o minutes later, and what do you see? o for 1. Soon, you lose ST at 28 for 2. As much as I was rooting for ST to go out in style, may I please take this moment and say, thank God there was no century for him (yeah, I kinda believe that thing they say). 2 major wickets so early on into the game and against such a credible bowling side. Gah! Gambhir comes in and just handles the situation, sticks on for such a long time only to lose his wicket in the most dastardly and unwise fashion, making way for Yuvi, who ends the World Cup finals in partnership with his skipper Mahi. Injuries dog both D & G, but they manage to get the better of it- Mahi doing a little better than Gauti. Perhaps the best visual I've seen all year was the grab of his eyes, just watching the stitched ball mosey its way out of the field, and that cool walk, like he's part of some Western, just short of blowing the blade of his bat like they do guns in those climax scenes. I was also rooting for double M to go out in style, preferably with a wicket in the last ball of his ODI career ever. But that was not to be. Instead there was a hail of misfielding from their side. All said and done, a great match between 2 deserving teams.

So there you have it. The World Cup final. Now for the stuff that matters to me. Before I begin, I'd just like to say, I'll finally be able to tell my children that I watched the World Cup finals where India emerged victorious, and in the technological context of Twitter. This was the first big cricket match of its scale in sight of social media. After all, it's going to be old hat by the time they're all born and whatnot.

What I Loved

. Rajnikanth.

The match stopped mattering after I saw the crown on his head.

. Malinga.

It takes great character to smile at your opponent and appreciate their talent, someone who is hitting you for a 4, at a crucial time like a last ball. For that spirit Lasith, take a bow (if it was upto me, I'd give you a Sportman Spirit of the Night Award).

. Nuwan Kulasekara, Thilan Samaraweera, and Younus Khan.

For being the three men in the world who smile no matter how embattled the situation you're facing on field is. The world lacks men like you.

. Dhoni.

For sticking it out, for the tremendous amount of pressure you had to swallow, the other speech and defences you'd have had to prepare if you hadnt won the game, for playing a wise innings, and for that speech.

. Virat.

Yes, I know what you're thinking, but only for one reason. Perhaps the best line of the night, for saying, "He has carried the nation on his shoulders for 21 years, I think its time we carried him on ours".

. Sachin Tendulkar.

For being the majestic human being that he is- giving credit where it was due. For thanking the coach, the support staff, Mike Hall, everyone. Humility is what makes a legend.

. Aamir's Khan moochi.

Mangal Pandey 2: Rise of the Rebels is it? So Veerapan, so awesome.

. Preity Zinta's tricolour fan.

She's such a fan, she brought a fan!

. Sonia Gandhi on Delhi's streets celebrating the win.

I kid you not. There's even a picture.

. Rahul Gandhi.

. Munaf Patel.

For that wide gum-bearing smile when called upon stage to recieve his medallion and the reluctance to get off the stage, in those pants and those flip flops. How innocent.

. Gauti.

For doing what he did.

. Simon Taufel.

Marry me. Also, at the end of this sentence you will realise that Aleem Dar looks alot like Waqar Younis.

. Sehwag.

For the hilarious accent and speech at the end of the match, the whole 'dont give him a free hit' jibe directed at Taufel and for opening the medallion receiving ceremony without any care for alphabetical orders.

. Christina Jayawardena.

For three things. The paper to her face in fear of what might become of her Mister and whether he'd manage to reach the half-century mark, for encouraging him to 'staaay thaaair' as he made his half-century mark, and for the love and support as he ended his run. I dont think I've ever seen a wife so in love. Mr. Mahela, you're a very very lucky man.

. Players thanking Gods.

The milestones you achieve with faith. Harbhajan Singh thanking his Gurus, Malinga and MM with the white thread tied around their wrist.

. Two legends shaking hands and sharing encouragement before the match began.

. Junior MM.

For wearing a Chennai Super Kings shirt. Cutest thing ever.

. The Indian team.

For finally shutting Kapil Dev up.

. Mahela.

For everything and more that he's done in the match.

. Nasser Hussain.

For shutting Sanjay Manjrekar up and telling him not jinx the game, and also stating the whole Sachin's Ton Curse.

. Sachin being carried.

I must confess, the only thing that I was concentrating on was to make sure his crown jewels wouldnt get ripped apart. The most sweet thing were the 2 little Tendulkars, Sara and Arjun, who joined their Papa for a tour of the grounds.

. The Indian team in tears.
Emotional excellence guys.

. The DJ.

For playing one song, Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar's Yahan Ke Hum Sikandar. I know why you played it, but it was the best song in the circumstances.

. Vande Mataram.

You could hear everyone in the stadium singing along to it.

What I Didnt Like

. Double M.

I didnt want him to go out the way he did. I was hoping for something mind-boggling. As I stated earlier, a wicket in the last ball of his ODI career would have made it fantastic. I didnt like seeing a legend leaving that way. Anti-climatic yo.

Double M's send-off.
Dear Sri Lankans, I apologise. We know better than that. And if you feel like that send-off, the oblivious-ness of the Indian crowd was unbecoming of us neighbours, we apologise. MM deserves a long standing ovation, salutes all around. I am sorry you had to see him walk off into the dressing room in such a pathetic fashion. Rest assured, I too was rooting for him. I too wanted him to take a wicket (it would have been great desi drama if he'd gotten Tendy out!), and I too wanted him to be sent off as a legend. I am sorry that didn't happen, and I'm sorry the crowd didnt acknowledge through applause what a star like that means in a match like that.

. Virat.

OYEAAAAAAAAAAAAAH. He may be a member of India's youth playing in the squad, but I assure you, Indian youth are not like that. We have manners, we know how to respect the game, and we dont behave like children. If this is what anyone thinks the face of future Indian cricket looks like, I hope to prove you wrong. We have Raina's and Chawla's as well, all boys who're growing into capable men with substance.

. Jai Ho, Chak De India.

If I have to ever hear the 2 damn songs again in my life, I will barf on my best shalwar.

. De Ghooma Ke.

Because its the most ridiculous jingle to come out of the Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy camp, I think this deserves a hate post of its own.

. Russell Arnold.

Dear Kumar Sangakarra, as much as I love you and would like to devote myself to you, I must ask you to retire at once and give a glimmer of hope to Sri Lankan commentary. It was like nails scratching on a chalkboard to hear Russell Arnold commentate. In a god-damn final. Please do us all a favour and lend the mike your voice.

. Saurav Ganguly and Sunil Gavaskar.

These two are such epic mis-commentators I cant even begin to tell you.

. Ravi Shastri.

Everything and I mean everything about that final presentation ceremony was majestically wrong. Majestically wrong. His hair, his tie (okay, now I'm just hating), mistaking names, stumbling like a bumbling bee, no flow in his speech, no poise. Quite possibly the most anti-climatic and pikha (dull) end India could have asked for. What was that comment as Sachin was fielding? 'Quite possibly his last ODI ever.' You dont say things like that man, unless you want people to throw red paint at your house. And dont even get me started on the majestic fail that is his commenting ability.

. Sanga's speech.

I wanted him to say something to his home crowd. All the same, I can understand being overwhelmed by emotions. It showed in his eyes.

. Graphics Team.

I said this way earlier, I'll say it again. The entire graphics team, and on-line team was a huge disappointment. Considering that this was a match, and an event more than 2 billion turned on to watch, this was a big disappointment. Graphic plates disappearing, technical glitches, wrong score sets, bands going awry, this progamme will never win any Features awards. Shoddy all the way through. Special mention to the camermen, specially in the field, who couldnt manage to get good shots, who blurred images way too often for anyone's liking and who couldnt reel cameras to where the action is- no celebrities (despite us knowing how many people were there) and no smart witty placards, no emotions of crowds. The Lankan online team was waaay better and should have been given a run of the Wankhede last night.

. BCCI.

If there's one thing that upset me the most, it was the end announcement by BCCI, which as usual, Ravi S botched up. Giving 1 crore rupees to all players? Whaaaaaaaaaaaat? What's worse, 50 lakhs to the real men behind the team. I feel so disgusted I dont even have words.

Many Letters

. Dear Sreesanth,

You now own a crore rupees at the very least. Kindly get a haircut. Or a hairband.

. Dear Malinga,

I'll pay for your haircut.

. Dear Indian Supporters,

Lets just agree to bury the musical gaffe that is De Ghuma Ke and agree to never use it as a term in our statuses, conversations or just anywhere. Ever again.

. Dear Sachin Tendulkar and Muttiah Murlidharan,

Take a long and hard bow. For being the last gentlemen remaining in a gentlemen's game, for exuding spirit, persona and humility that only men of your stature can. For showing the world, naysayers and all how you can overcome difficulties, rough patches, tough times. And for making us proud to be able to associate ourselves and say, 'I saw a legend play'.

. Dear Indian and Lankan Team Supporters,

Kindly stop taking potshots and jibes at the opponents. Its extremely rude to go beyond the game. Calling Indians 'chappatis and 'papads', Lankans 'villagers' and 'fishermen' is just immature. '1 billion frowns and 20 million smiles? A billion jubiliant browns and 20 million clowns?' Keep it to the game. Hope that your side wins. Is cool. If it just so happens that your side loses, it requires a great amount of restraint to keep the opponents from going, HAH. A great royal amount of restraint.

. Dear Indian Team,

Congratulations. You've just done undone a bunch of stats. You are now the first host team to ever win a WC Final on home grounds. I know what those tears were for. I know how so many months and years of frustration went into this, and how those tears were your emotions unravelling. I know how there was an insane amount of pressure on you, how you had to prove a point from 2007, the fear that unruly fans might hurt family and friends, the criticism you've had to take head on, the way the situation would have panned out if we weren't on the winning side last night. Doing this for Sachin, basing an entire campaign around one man, and being able to live up to that. For all the match-fixing allegations and controversies you've courted like Hugh Hefner courts Playboys. Pat yourselves on the back Team India, pat yourselves on the back.

. Dear Sri Lankan Team,

You deserve nothing less than a standing ovation. For your temperament, for your belief and for supporters that are die hard. You reach home very soon. Please give Double M the send-off you rightly know he deserves. You didnt win this World Cup, it doesnt matter. You didnt just try is what matters. You gave it more than your best. You didn't base your entire WC campaign around 'Winning it for Murli', so dont feel any less about yourselves. I know what it feels like, being so close to victory, almost clinching it, then watching it slip away from your hands.
If you will remember however, 2007 wasnt the most pleasant of circumstances to be playing in. You have risen from that, a terrorist attack on your bus, and so so so much more. To come out so tall and strong after so many adversities, you can only go from strength to strength.

Love,

A.

PS. Did anyone else at all fall in love with the 2015 logo? That is what I'm talking about. 
PPS. I know the real reason behind India's victory- Rajnikanth.Mind it machangs.