Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath

[Lurker]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath Right on Gambo! And noone should say sorry to chutiya Ponting anyway.. :mad:

[King]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath I don't agree Srinath wasn't aggressive enough. You could ask a certain Astle, Fleming, Afridi, Jayasuriya, DeSilva and a lot others that were hit during their career. The media will colour a lot of incidence by the time it gets printed. Ponting's was one such incidence too. Srinath was feared by most and was thought to be a very very good bowler. I've spoken to many and read many, there hasn't been a single contemporary book that hasn't acknowledged Srinath's bowling skills. Do you guys think Walshy or Vaas were any different from Srinath? There was no attitude problem as far as Srinath was concerned. Yes he wasn't and isn't a hot headed person ala Merv Hughes or McGrath. That said how many have liked McGrath for his attitude. The problem is now a days there is more drama to fast bowling than substance. Every tom dick and harry goes overboard with the reactions. I don't buy into all this drama, firstly you are there to do a job for your country and as long as you are doing it no matter how you appear it should be fine. You can't pick someone and say the attitude isn't great just because he doesn't emulate the rest of the fast bowlers. For that sake a lot of old timers weren't into sledging. No matter what but some cannot forget their root, culture and their outlook to life. Srinath is one such gem and he should be lauded for that. As the popular saying goes "Srinath is every bit a Mysorean but for the pace" :wtg:

[gator]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath nice explanation, Ravi.... but there is also some truth to the allegation about lack of aggression... Lots of fast bowlers get quite a few wickets jus by getting on the batsman's nerves..... no harm in tht, is there.... let me tell u, wen i was batting, i used to be calm, but sometimes, ur instincts to teach the bowler a lesson get the better of u and invariably u lose ur wicket unless u a a VIv...

[Lurker]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath Ravi, I would think that you are right about Srinath being aggressive but I would also concede Gambit's point of "pehaps not being aggressive enough". Maybe it is just the expectation of an Indian fans to see a burly fast bowler ripping through opposition, with his deliveries as well as his demeanour. Unfair perhaps but thats the life of pace bowler. My gripe with Srinath's aggression is this. When he was hit he did not come back with a bouncer or a delivery that would scare the batsman. No he did not have to utter any rot or abuse. Andy Roberts never did that, nor did Joel Garner but you hit them and you better get very scared because they will get you. Make no mistakes about it. Thats where I think Sri missed out. A case can be made that he did not enjoy the support as a Roberts or Holding did, and quite rightly so, but Indian fans somehow think Srinath underachieved with what he had. I wonder if Srinath feels the same way too. That all said how would I have loved to have Srinath in this trip. Man I swear an attach of Sri-Zaheer-Munaf-Sreesanth would have messed Saffers for good. Damn! xxxx

[Gambit]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath Ravi, I'm not saying Sri should have hurled abuses at the batsman. He should have been more imposing. He should have stared down the batsman after hitting him, not trying to nurse him. He should have run up to the batsman and looked into his eyes after sending down a screamer. He should have sent down a torrent of short ones after getting hit for a boundary. His attitude was listless at times. And attitude does play a big part. Walsh was awesome but not fearsome. Ambrose was fearsome because he had that attitude. He stared down the batsman and let him know who was boss. Sri lacked the fire that is innate in certain fast bowlers. And that's my main gripe with him. As I said, with a little more attitude, he could have been one of the most fearsome quicks of all time.

[Dhondy]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath Well written, Gambo. He was gentle at heart and carried that into the field. I also have to point out that Sri was one of the unluckiest bowlers ever.The number of times he beat the bat but didn't get a nick was unbelievable. I wonder if he himself analysed this curious aspect of his bowling?

[King]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath All I am trying to say here is not all fast bowlers have to be beastly in their appearance or demeanour. Certain people are nice by birth or by the way they are brought up. Just because they are fast bowlers they cannot change their outlook to life. If everyone is like Sreesanth, Nel, McGrath then believe me the sport won?t be as enjoyable. Cricket is a non contact sport and although we need characters I personally do not want to see everyone to be a show piece of aggression. Even the likes of Bond don?t sledge or have words with batsman to get them out. They know they don?t have to chatter to get a wicket and they believe in their ability to get one. Let me mention this instance to ya. There was a kid yesterday that dropped by at our home that has absolutely no clue about cricket. We just finished a round of golf (myself and Srinath) and dropped by at my home. Srinath was the first to talk to this lad and in about couple of minutes time the kid was sitting next to Srinath chatting away. Eventually my kids dropped by after school to see Srinath at home in the after noon. Of course Srinath is seen as someone very entertaining and very interesting to talk to by my kids not because of his cricketing talent but just because the interest he shows towards the kids. There was another kid that dropped by to see Srinath, talk to him and spend some time with him. In about few minutes, Srinath was wearing one of the kid?s bike helmet and bowling to my son and his friend. They just seem to enjoy his company and I thought geez all these kids are as comfortable with Srinath as much as they are with me in absolutely no time. There were cricketing tid bits passed by Srinath to the kids and it was really very interesting to hear just his conversation with the kids. I have to say I haven?t seen too many fellas that are an instant hit with kids. We thought why not take photo with these kids along side Srinath. While I was clicking away the lad that had no interest in cricket was not keen for a photo but it was Srinath that forced him to sit next to him for a photo. Have you any instance where a cricketer such as Srinath forcing a kid to sit next to him and take a photo??? Just when we were leaving this kid?s parents turned up to pick him up and on their way they saw Srinath. They are Indians too and their joy knew no bounds when they realised their kid had spent some time with Srinath. They were over the moon and informed us they were desperate see Srinath in flesh and blood as they were one of his biggest fans. They were very disappointed not to have met Srinath and missed him by a minute or so. Later on in the day every kid that met Srinath was seen playing X-Box cricket and every one wanted to play as Srinath representing India Bond is another Srinath like character. The other day at the ground Sri Lanka were just bowled out and a lot of kids made a bee line on both sides at the players exit at the ground. All the kiwi players walked back to the changing rooms but there was one fella that was seen standing there signing autographs for the kids, yup it was Bondy. There were roughly about 50 kids on one side and Bondy signed for each of the kids there. Some kids went overboard and got his signature every where, behind the cap, on the miniature bat, cricket ball and the likes. After having spent say about 10-20 minutes signing autographs for the kids standing on the right Bondy turned to his left and went on to sign another 50-100 autographs. Bond?s act that day was very laudable. Despite having been in the ground and bowled so many overs he still spent time to sign those autographs knowing that little act will make a day for a lot of kids at the ground. Believe me on that day there were another 100-200 Bond wannabes at the ground. Cricket followers are not confined to just us fanatic followers. There are kids, senior citizens and women that watch cricket from a different perspective from us fellas. They don?t want to see guys spitting at each other on the field, throwing expletives at each other in the name of aggression. Unfortunately a lot of us fellas don?t want to see from any other different perspective. I for one absolutely laud Srinath for his efforts on the field and off the field. Guys like Srinath are rare gems and they should not change just for the sake of showing that little more aggression.

[Gambit]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath Ravi, I know he is your friend and you admire the guy. But putting that aside, let's talk about his on field efforts. All I'm saying is that he had almost all the skills a fast bowler needs to succeed at the international level but he did not have that fire in the belly, that josh, that attitude to accompany it. An accompaniment that turns fast bowlers into fire breathing demons that haunt batsmen in their nightmares. Look at Donald. He was slightly better than Srinath was far as skill goes. But people tend to remember how fearsome he was. The war paint. The menacing advance to the batsman. The bellowing after taking a wicket. You keep saying what a nice guy he is and all that and I'm sure that's true. But he should have stopped being a nice guy when he stepped inside the boundary rope. He should have developed this persona that fast bowlers have. He should have transformed into a demon bowler. Just because Donald,McGrath etc appear to be menacing on the field doesn't mean they are mass murderers in real life does it? THAT is the attitude I wanted Srinath to have.

[King]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath

Ravi, I know he is your friend and you admire the guy. But putting that aside, let's talk about his on field efforts. All I'm saying is that he had almost all the skills a fast bowler needs to succeed at the international level but he did not have that fire in the belly, that josh, that attitude to accompany it. An accompaniment that turns fast bowlers into fire breathing demons that haunt batsmen in their nightmares. Look at Donald. He was slightly better than Srinath was far as skill goes. But people tend to remember how fearsome he was. The war paint. The menacing advance to the batsman. The bellowing after taking a wicket. THAT is the attitude I wanted Srinath to have.

I am not defending or lauding Srinath just because he is my friend. After having had a chance to look at different perspectives from many different people I have to say Srinath is still a great role model for any youngster despite his lack of constant aggression as you put. This is my opinion after having seen him for years. I for one am happy he never changed his attitude whatever the end results. Of course I'm not stopping you from having such a perspective about Srinath and Srinath himself has acknowledged many times he's fine with such perspectives from many corners. I'm only putting forward my perspective so that a lot of guys here can understand where I'm coming from after having looked at Srinath from close quarters. One thing you have to know is Srinath was not fighting any outside expectations, he was living up to himself in the later years and that was why he was that successful. Sri expressed earlier in his life he wanted to emulate say a Kapil Dev but later in the years he realised there are many factors that will not make him achieve those high targets. I wish you were to listen to his thoughts about how he worked at his targets in the later years. I like the way he explained how a budding cricketer should set his targets. The targets should be set higher than what his talent can allow but make sure the targets can be achieved to keep him motivated. The point here is "you" wanted Srinath to be like someone and that is your perspective. Did Srinath do enough justice to his talents? This is open to debate and as I said above Srinath had his own expectations to live up to. There were many factors that could not have allowed him to be as menacing as Donald and the upbringing was one of them. We have to acknowledge his upbringing was such that he was kind at heart as Dhondy pointed out. To this day he still is the same, there are no pretensions and he is forth right always. I don't think he could have changed this attitude even if he liked to just because there was a Donald or a McGrath that were far more successful than him with similar skills. At times we have to be content with what we got and rather than try and emulate others, we could do ourselves justice by living up to our expectations.

[Guest BossBhai]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath -- Removed on request of the user --

[Lurker]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath Ravi, All these talks about Srinath is making me wish I was there in NZ instead of you hehehe..can you try to get him over here even if for a brief 15 minute period? It would be a honour to all of us to chat and discuss what we all, and he, loves most - cricket. xxxx

[King]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath I can try that Lurker but given his status as ICC match referee his comments will be very curtailed on a lot of things.

[Predator_05]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath Ask him why he could never attain any level of mastery over killer balls like the yorker. His inability to bowl good full-length deliveries was one of the reasons why he couldn't always rip through the opposition's tailenders. He could have been a very handy ODI bowler as well...his opening spells were as good as anyone elses (shame about all those dropped catches...) but he couldn't finsh off teams like say, an Akram could.

[Lurker]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath

I can try that Lurker but given his status as ICC match referee his comments will be very curtailed on a lot of things.

Ravi, I shall let you on a personal thought about this. See anyway you look at it Srinath is a legend. He was one of the best opening bowlers of the world, not only India. Now I beleive you have been on WWW for a while but how many times do you see a truly top notch cricketer coming on a message board? I would say I havent seen anything like this on a Indian(or Pakistani website).This is BIG. But you would have also obsercved that people here have taken it with a big smile and feeling of pleasantness and not gone over the top. I mean you only have to look at a parose site where a small old timer is considered a big shot. I guess what I am saying is that the average poster on our board is a smart poster, somewhere between the age of say 25-40 and one who has a job and a life. It is not a board running with 15 year olds. So I beleive Srinath would be well handled here. More life a few adults asking decent questions without putting the other person(in this case Srinath) into any trouble. Give it a shot..and if you would like we can somehow moderate it too(MODS help me here). xxxx

[King]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath I fully agree Lurker and Srinath is not averse to it too but the only reason he can't do it right now is because he cannot answer a lot of questions forth right. As a match referee he cannot comment on public domain but rest assured he has indicated he will do it by April next year at the most. Meanwhile he is visiting our website, reading our posts, providing valuable inputs with regards to cricket and cricketer's life. Just speaking to him is an education IMO and believe me I have met several popular cricketers but have great fondness for Srinath. Predator, as for your comments about Srinath being on par with Akram that is simply not the case. Akram could be termed as probably one of the best the world has produced. Srinath was India's best but not the best in the world. Srinath was more like McGrath, back of good length bowler but unfortunately the movement he got was far too much to claim wickets on a more regular basis. McGrath moved very little off the pitch and that has contributed to a lot of wickets. Srinath moved the ball heaps, particularly the in dippers and mostly devastating bowling but failed to get him as many wickets as the batters didn't nick them. Srinath in the last couple of years prior to his retirement developed the ball that would pitch good length/short of good length and move away from the right handers very slightly inducing the edge. That very little movement earned him a lot of wickets and the World cup was the icing on the cake. How many times early on didn't he snare wickets to set up an Indian win? It's a pity he developed and bowled this ball consistently in the later years. If he had this ball early on, am sure he would have got atleast about 30 test wickets. In any case his achievement has been great particularly coming from Mysore and playing most of his cricket on death beds for fast bowlers in India in the 90s.

[gator]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath Ravi, how about this.... he can register as some username.... u PM us who the user... we will ask him the questions and he can post however he wants and no one can prove it is him, except u as the admin, and u wont since u r his friend.... and hence no trouble.... sounds devious, eh? ;) anything to chat with ma man...

[King]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath Sounds good Gator, hopefully I will be able to arrange that.

[Guest BossBhai]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath -- Removed on request of the user --

[gator]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath

Sounds good Gator' date=' hopefully I will be able to arrange that.[/quote'] man... i am so excited... i have never asked a cricketer any question before..... thanks Ravi...

[shailesh]

Re: Last night's dinner catch up with Srinath

Sounds good Gator' date=' hopefully I will be able to arrange that.[/quote'] man... i am so excited... i have never asked a cricketer any question before..... thanks Ravi...

ask me anything you want gat :shrug: :lmao: seriously, it'll be fantastic of it works out Ravi.