Some Thoughts on the the India Australia Series...

The series is over and i guess most people are relatively happy with India snatching a narrow and fighting win in the last game. The Aussies had the measure of us , an looking at them we see the gap that exists between them and the rest of the world. Somehow we are never able to be consistent enough to seriously challenge the mighty machine that is Australian cricket. There seem to be this assembly line of youngsters waiting to step on to the world stage and deliver.

This was a win that was mainly due to the batting of Hayden and Symmonds. Strange how many batsmen tend to get a kick start to their careers while playing us. Between them they were able to ensure that Australia ended up above 300 in almost all the games. The 2 games they didn't manage it they lost!

All aspects of India's game needs to improve, but the biggest improvement required is bowling at the death!!! The days of giving away close to 100 runs over the last 10 overs and still pull out a win are over. Isn't there anyone who can put the ball where they want to delivery after delivery ? Does anyone know how to bowl a yorker ? how about 3 or 4 in a row ? You could still go for runs, but you just increase the odds in your favour !! And will some help bhajji figure out how to get some wickets ???

Finally, the one thing that surprised me is that the Aussies genuinely seemed rattled by the Indian chatter.It seems like they like dishing it out and they can't take it when someone else is dishing! If only we could back it up with strong consistent performances. It almost felt like the Aussies were whining..... Can't see what they were complaining about have seen Warne,Mcgrath and even Lee celebrate with even more agression. Personally i would prefer that this was not the way we went about it, and let the performances do the talking , but just seeing the reaction maybe it would not be so bad!!!

So lets hope for an agressive India sticking it to the Aussies at home !!!

The Finnish line awaits ....

(Sorry couldn't resist that childish pun) No prizes for guessing who my favourite would be to win the drivers championship, but the odds seem to be quite long on that.

Looking back on one of the most open of seasons, remember Michael any one ? Well except when he happens to be at the race, this was a year when we pretty much didn't really miss him. This was a year when the big guns and some youngsters really stepped in and showed us what they were capable of and the season has been electrifying , a three way tie for the championship. Looking back this season was meant to be about Alonso and Kimi, but Lewis and Massa were not exactly going to lie back and let things go without a fight. No matter what happens over the weekend, there is no doubt that Lewis is a future world champion. He has been electric of the line and his aggression on overtaking and his awesome defense are a joy to watch. Personally i counted 3 mistakes he made over the season and that is just awesome for a rookie!! He really seems to have his head firmly screwed on his shoulders!!

The guy who has got the biggest jolt is probably Alonso, and he has not really done his reputation much good! Though there will always be a market for his driving skills (given the stories coming from Benetton!!). But this was a year when the mask was off!!! It seemed to have started from last year , but Alonso has really seemed desperate on and off track this year. He has seemed truly rattled by the pace of his teammate. But all things said and done he is just 4 points behind in the championship.

Finally Kimi has had an up and down year. There have been weekends when he (and the car) have seemed awesome and some other weekends when he has looked ordinary. Perhaps it was just getting used to a new car , and a new team. He did seem to be getting better towards the end of the season(some awesome drives at Spa, Shanghai ) but we won't really know till next season!

So the championship is neatly set up lets hope for a good (wet???) race at Interlagos... seems the best way to sign the year off! I believe its Hamilton's Championship to lose ! He basically has to trail Alonso and he is champ, but he is a racer and ideally he would like to win it beating both Kimi and Alonso. The smart money seems to be on Alonso, But i would love for Kimi to win it after being so close almost every year , but he needs luck and that seems to be the one thing he lacks.

On a lighter note there was off course Ferrarigate !!! Looking at how the season has gone maybe a few more teams needed to get on Ferrari technology and then imagine the fun and games, with the likes of Kubica, Heikei, Rosberg, Webber Vettel being added to the mix... what fun and games !!!!

Either way can't wait for the weekend to begin !!!