A leader gives a vision and shows the path.
To follow the path and to understand the vision and connect to it, is very challenging. As a leader, you have a very important role to play to inspire your team so that they follow the path towards your set goal.
One important aspect of all this is goal creation. Each of your team members has a personal goal for sure. Some say it. Some don’t. As a leader, you need to develop an environment where your team members can speak with you frankly. When your team members believe that you are working for “their” growth, they will surely open up and speak with you from the heart.
Communication plays an important role. With good and transparent communication, your team members will open up. They will tell you their likes and dislikes. Then you will come to know what makes your team member happy and what’s her personal goal in life. People feel shy talking about their goals. People feel that if they speak of personal goals that are not connected to her current business goal then she won’t be given a patient hearing. That’s why “listening” is so important. As a leader when your team member speaks, you should focus and listen rather than snapping in between. I have seen many times that candid conversations get broken because the leader snaps in between which makes the team member jittery and soon she goes in a cacoon. To have a candid environment it’s important that you let your team members speak.
It’s very important to be a good listener too.
Now, to be a good listener doesn’t mean that you stop talking altogether. You need to listen and ask relevant questions in between or validate or amplify what your team member is saying – that way your team member understands that you are part of the conversation. This is an activity that will take a lot of time investment but it’s worth it because knowing your team member and her goals is a part of your team-building exercise. Once you know your team member’s goals, you will be able to align her goals to your team’s and organisation’s goals.
Once your team member gets candid and shares with you, her goals and her passion, you will then be able to understand how you can connect it with her career. I had spoken about the 3Ps to success in one of my blog posts previously. It would be a good time to read that once again.
Finding your purpose in life is not so easy because you need to connect the dots going backward. You will not be able to connect the dots forward. Simply because no one can predict the future. Hence, go back to your early teenage years and think about what work used to make you very happy.
I once won an essay competition in school – that’s the only competition that I ever won in my life but that win made me happy and that inspired me to write small essays about my daily life. This turned into a dairy which I continued for quite some time before leaving that habit (wrong decision) after a few years. Today if I am writing so much it’s only because I was able to connect the dots and realise that writing makes me happy – it makes me connect to my soul – it helps me to talk to the world.
Sometimes teenage years might not give you the right purpose. Sometimes it’s in the 20s so whatever be the age, find out what made you truly happy.
Everyone is talented but some do certain things very easily than others. – That’s your special talent. That’s what you are good at.
What you love to do (Purpose) and what you are good at (Passion) complete your 2 Ps. That’s your purpose and passion. Once that’s defined now connect your profession to it.
Say you love to write and you write well then see if you are into the Content Development work by any chance? If not are you associated with sales or marketing? Media? Digital agency? Advertising? If yes, then the third P (Profession) gets connected and you will be happy at work.
This is the work of the leader – to help you connect your dots – to help you in aligning your goal to the company’s goal and in turn, she helps you lead a purposeful and happy life at work.
Few things happen when this is accomplished.
- You don’t get stressed at work because you are doing what you love to do and what you are good at and being paid for that. An ideal scenario for happiness.
- Your manager won’t stress you out because you are doing what you love to do and hence you get better at it every day and your manager is happy with your work.
- There is no micromanagement because as a leader you know, your team member is happy at work and will do everything in her capacity to reach her goals.
- The team member feels happy with life and finally, it’s the happiness that counts in the long run.
In a corporate set up another aspect that bothers employees, is growth. Many feels stagnated after a few years. The question is why? Is it the money? If yes, then one should openly talk to her reporting head because you should be paid what you deserve and I am sure any company will pay the best possible salary for their superstars. Are you a superstar? If yes, then definitely your personal goal is aligned to your company’s goal and when you speak with your reporting head about your finances you will get a patient hearing.
So let’s recap.
Nobody wants to lead a stressful life and to remain stress-free at work, you need to align your personal goal to your company’s goal.
For that to happen you need to find your purpose and passion in life by connecting the dots and see how your current profession can help you reach your goals. If it’s not connecting then this is not the right place for you. Do not stay in a company just for money because this will only lead to stress and unhappy life.
When you work, which makes you happy and you get paid as per your satisfaction then the world feels like a better place to live in. This work satisfaction will automatically help you in having a happy life at home too. This is an ideal work-life integration. People feel that you can’t reach that stage or most don’t reach that stage. Indeed, most do not reach this level of happiness because people measure happiness wrongly. People measure success wrongly. It should never be measured with the amount of money one has. What’s most important is are you leading a good life? Are you happy in your current profession? Is it helping you in finding your true purpose? Is the job helping you to reach your goals? Are you stressed? Are you having a lovely time with your family? When you have a positive answer to these questions – it means you are happy and finally that’s what matters.
As a leader, if you can help your team members find their true purpose in life and help them to be happy at work – remember you are doing an awesome job.
Point to note: People working under great leaders are happier, more productive, and more connected to the company’s goals. Your company’s bottom line will be positively impacted if you as a leader invest in your team’s well-being.
I keep telling, “Your NETWORTH is not the amount of money you have in your bank, nor the number of connections you have in social media but it is the number of Thank You’s you receive every day”.
That’s how I measure success!
How do you measure? Have you been able to understand your true purpose in life? Do you want any help in connecting the 3Ps? Please reach out – I am always available.
Take Care everyone! God Bless!
Some talk a lot. And some talks less.
When you are angry – do you talk more or do you talk less?
Does shouting when you are angry help? Or does being silent get the message across better?
These are some questions that kept bothering me for many years.
I was an individual who over a period of time from being “a not-so-reactive” person turned into a very reactive one. As this shift happened over the last decade, a few of my friends kept pointing this out to me. I initially denied it as a problem but then I sat down and gave it a deep thought and I realised that reacting to situations is hampering me mentally as well as physically. Yes, when I am reacting, for that moment I could stop the conversations, I could stop the criticisms but in the long run, problems were not getting solved.
One way to stop reacting is by becoming better listeners and another way is to do deep meditation.
I have now realised that silence is the best medicine. Silence is more powerful than shouting or reacting or arguing. Let’s look into some pointers on how you can improve your life with the power of silence:
1. Never Defend Yourself
No single individual can be found without faults. Our vulnerabilities are what defines us and how we accept that and improve ourselves define our growth.
Weak people give excuses, strong people accept their mistakes and improve on them. The first step towards growth is to accept your mistake. When you accept, don’t think that you have lost a battle. This has nothing to do with your ego – it just shows that you are matured enough to learn and improve.
Defensive people give excuses and shouts at any given opportunity or under any criticism but by accepting your mistake, you move up the ladder because now you are ready to learn. Once you learn, you will get better.
2. Never Complain
Very early in life, one of the most important things that my parents taught me was to never complain. My father always told me that remember you are lucky to have whatever you have because there are millions of people who don’t even get their basic needs fulfilled. My father struggled financially to meet ends meet but I never saw him complaining or blaming his luck. He accepted the truth, accepted the reality, and worked hard for a better future for his family in which he eventually succeeded.
To know more about him, you may wish to read this blog post which I wrote last year.
A complaining attitude is a useless habit because it’s just a waste of time. Either build power to change the situation or change your perception because nobody has the time to spend on your complaints. And it’s only possible if you believe in the power of silence. People who do not believe in the power of silence are generally the ones who give excuses and raise complaints!
When people do harm to you or you feel you have been given a raw deal, don’t complain – take a step back, try to understand why the situation came up, and ask yourself how and what you can do to change the situation in your favour.
3. Don’t Argue
What you say and what you do should be in alignment – Always.
As I keep saying – Walk the Talk.
Your point of view might not ring a bell with me but that can’t be the reason to argue.
People who do not believe in the Power of Silence get into arguments. Successful people don’t argue because they know an argument is a waste of time. Nobody wins an argument but you lose valuable time. What you also lose is your mental peace. Be at peace with yourself and that’s only possible if you can hear your inner voice. Your inner voice will never tell you to get into argument or a fight. I am not advocating that you should not fight for your rights but what I am saying is that do not get into fruitless arguments. Put your points forward based on data and logic but don’t let your emotions take over. When you get angry and get into a fight or argument, you lose your inner peace which will hamper your work as well as your body. Finally, you need a good night’s sleep and when your mind is not at peace you won’t get a good sleep which finally will lead to work-life imbalance.
The argument doesn’t get you kudos because it’s only the results that count. When you can deliver results without getting into arguments, people around you will realise who is more important and at that time you and others will realise the Power of Silence.
4. Don’t React
Respond to situations – don’t react to situations. I had this habit of replying to hostile emails too fast. This led to email wars. Over time, I have understood that it’s better to respond to hostile emails after 24 hours or after a good night’s sleep.
Many people respond too quickly when they get a scathing email from colleagues or clients. It’s important to understand the perspective first before reacting. Both of you are wearing different hats and definitely, her perspective must be different from yours. But does that mean you have to react with another scathing email? If you start, what will result is a big email chain with no final solution as both of you will try to win the battle. The bigger cause will be lost.
5. Choose your words
If you believe in the Power of Silence, you will listen more and talk less. Wasting time on needless gossips or arguments will never take you far. You need to learn to speak only when needed. If you speak out of turn without ascertaining all the facts, you will end up with more enemies and your mental peace will lie in shatters.
It takes years to build a relationship so never destroy it by using words that might hurt the other person. Mentally strong people can speak through their eyes and through their silence. Try to do that, it would be difficult initially but once you are able to do it, you will find that the world is a better place to live in. Do not think that people will take you for granted if you do not speak much because the quality of words matters not the quantity.
6. Think & Sit Alone
Are you able to sit alone in a room for 30 minutes and do deep thinking? This is not something that people generally follow but it’s a fantastic habit. You can do it early in the morning or before going to bed. You are all by yourself and you will think about your problems and when you think aloud, you will hear your inner voice giving you the solution.
I know it’s a boring activity for some and I am sure right now after reading this many would like to move to the next paragraph but believe me, try this for 1 week and I am sure you will come to know how powerful, silence is. When you are all by yourself, thinking deeply about your problems, you are in meditation mode, you are in focussing mode – it’s a mode that is very difficult to trigger but it gives you solutions. Talking to others might temporarily solve your problems but real problems will remain. Real problems have to be resolved and you are the only one who can resolve those problems. So sit still, think deep and your mind/body/soul will tell you what you need to do to get out of the problem.
7. Seek Truth
There is your truth, there is my truth and finally, there is the Real Truth. Always understand that by telling, I am truthful – you do not become one. Hence, it’s important to always seek the real truth. We human beings are biased and that makes us blind to the real truth. We make ourselves believe that all is ok even when it’s not and our system rots inside.
You can reach towards truth only when you believe in the power of silence. Because when you are silent and when you are thinking deep, you will be able to get to the real truth and when you get the real truth you will understand that life is worth living by positive and ethical values.
We all want to be respected.
We all want to lead a great life.
But we can only reach there if we are truthful. Nothing can be won over false ethos because nature takes it back.
Karma bites – and bites hard! It’s a truth which you should never forget!
More words are spoken in silence and when you understand and follow the path to attain this power, you will find something changing inside you and this change will make you a better person – a better human being.
Do you believe in the Power of Silence? Do you have any points to add?
After reading this do you think introverts are people who believe in the Power of Silence? Do you think introverts or people who believe in the Power of Silence can become great leaders?
Please share your thoughts as I plan my next blog post which would be about leadership or any associated topic around leadership.
Stay safe friends.
PS. India is going through an unimaginable crisis. 2021 is now even worse than 2020 and we thought we had seen the worst last year. It’s vital that you stay positive and try helping others in whichever way you can. Simple retweets and liking posts related to the Covid crisis can help people. Please keep following your heart. Wear your masks & get vaccinated as soon as you can!
I and Neel were talking about the changes that KKR could do for the game against RCB when news filtered in that two players from KKR, Varun Chakravarthy and Sandeep Warrior has tested positive for Covid-19. It was a piece of very surprising news because we have been continuously told that all the teams are in a strict bio-bubble. That the virus could breach such a bubble showed that none of us are safe from this pandemic.
The tournament as a whole was just about to turn around after a couple of upsets and close encounters and this news worked as a big dampener for me. I had become used to the cycle of watching matches at 7.30 PM every day and hence getting back to the old cycle without cricket is a bit difficult.
There was hope though that only one camp was affected and hence the Delhi leg would continue unabated. It turned out to be wrong as more players and officials started falling sick, namely Wridhiman Saha and Amit Mishra. That was the final nail in the coffin and IPL 2021 was officially postponed for an indefinite period.
The organising authorities are yet to come out with the reason for the bubble breach but I guess that will come at a later stage. As of now what was important was to get all players and officials to be sent back safely to their homes.
With India getting crushed under the hammer of the second wave, many countries have locked their doors and no one coming from India is welcome in developed nations. The foreign players have to now either go to the Maldives and stay there for 14 days before heading back home or go to UK and self-quarantine for 2 weeks. It’s a tough situation but the fact is that it was bound to happen.
Why do I say so?
Air-Travel was not a very smart decision from the organizers. The Chennai and Mumbai leg went about pretty well and the problem occurred within one week of the teams traveling to new locations, namely, Ahmedabad and New Delhi.
I also understand that the entire Bio-Bubble was managed by a company that used tracking devices that were faulty. Quite clearly cost was minimised and quality was compromised by the IPL Governing Council. This shouldn’t have happened when it comes to the world’s richest cricket body in the world’s richest cricket league.
Mumbai has 3 world-class stadiums and if UAE could host the entire IPL last year in 3 stadiums why couldn’t they do the same this year too? Someone needs to answer this question. The playoffs could have been planned for Pune or Ahmedabad. Trying to be too professional they ended up with eggs on their faces. Anyways, spectators were not allowed inside the stadium so how did it matter if the entire tournament was held in one city?
This bubble breach was something many people were talking about when Adam Zampa and Kane Richardson left IPL midway. Zampa was quite vocal after reaching Australia where he said that he didn’t feel safe. People in India criticised him but I guess he was right. There were problems in the bubble which was not disclosed or were shoved under the carpet. Hundreds and Thousands of people are involved in this mega tournament and how could the organisers show so much laxity? Will we see some accountability from the BCCI? Will they come up and accept their mistakes?
It’s high time they did it. Because lives have been put at risk by running a tournament under such prevailing conditions. Every day India is seeing more than 3.5 Lakhs of infections and it’s far worse than even the pessimistic estimates.
Will IPL happen this year?
I don’t think so. Officially BCCI is claiming that the tournament is postponed but when can they organise it? India goes to England in June for WTC finals and that is followed by a 5 match test series. Within a month of coming back, we have the WT20 which would be followed by New Zealand and South Africa series. So I think this is the end of IPL 2021. Bad luck to CSK, Delhi Capitals, and RCB who looked good but then, we are living in strange times, and strange things are bound to happen.
I hope all players go back safe to their homes and as for me, I will have to get over this cricket hangover and wait for a month when India travels to England.
This bubble breach will definitely mean that the WT20 tournament won’t be held in India and I guess it will move to UAE. Does that make India vulnerable? I don’t think so because India has a very good team to definitely reach the semi-finals. Will they win it after 2007? Well, that’s anybody’s guess.
Till we meet again and talk about cricket, Goob Bye All.
Take Care, Stay Safe, Double Mask Yourself, and Stay Indoors as much as possible. Hopefully, this shall pass soon!
With Rajasthan Royals winning against Sunrisers Hyderabad, our focus now moved to the next match in the evening which was between Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings. Punjab Kings upset the apple cart of RCB in their previous match to turn around their fortunes but they were laid low yesterday by the news of KL Rahul who was diagnosed with Appendicitis which ruled him out for the rest of the tournament.
Rahul’s absence was a big void to fill and it would be extremely difficult for Punjab Kings going forward. With Pooran not in form, their batting looks very thin on paper and they would need some stellar performances from gayle and Mayank Agarwal to see them through.
So what were the hits and misses from yesterday’s match in Ahmedabad? Let’s find out.
The Hits:
With a very slow start, Punjab Kings was on the back foot from the word go. Gayle couldn’t last long and the onus was on Mayank Agarwal to play a long innings. With the Delhi Bowlers not giving anything away and wickets tumbling at the other end, Mayank had to play the safety-first approach. Only towards the end, he brought out his aggressive strokes and it was because of his final push that Punjab Kings were able to post a total of 166 runs. It was never going to be enough but Mayank’s innings was a bright spot for the team. He remained not out on 99 and it was one of those rare matches where a player from the losing side won the man of the match. Punjab Kings will be hosting that he plays like the way he did for the rest of the tournament.
Shikhar Dhawan is having a great IPL 2021. He has been excrement consistent and his strike rate has been much higher than what it has been in previous years. Prithvi Shaw’s good form has helped him too and yesterday both of them once again gave Delhi capitals a great start.
The final figures of Avesh Khan might look anything great but the fact is that 23 runs came off his last over when Mayank Agarwal went after him in the 20th over. Otherwise, it was another good performance from him. Avesh Khan has been the find of the tournament this year. Kagiso Rabada finally got into wicket-taking form yesterday picking up 3 wickets. The team will be hoping that he continues picking up wickets consistently from here on. Rabada was a big factor last year and his performance is extremely critical for the team.
The misses:
Shahrukh Khan and Deepak Hooda both showed a lot of promise in the first few matches but they are suddenly going through a very lean patch. Hooda in particular is a good all-rounder and Punjab Kings will be hoping that he gets back his batting form soon. Shahrukh Khan needs to be sent higher up in the order because most of the time when he is coming to bat he doesn’t have time to look in. This is something the team management needs to look into.
Yesterday Shami looked very off-colour and was seen missing the length quite often. For Punjab Kings to succeed they would need Shami to pick up wickets upfront. At the moment it’s not happening and quite naturally his team is struggling. Shami post-2019 has been a very different bowler and I hope he gets his mojo back in the future matches.
What to look forward to?
For Punjab Kings, things are looking very bleak because you can’t have a ready-made replacement for KL Rahul. They could probably look into giving Mandeep Singh a chance because they need solidity in the middle overs. Hardeep Brar played well once again and that has been a bright spot for the team.
For Delhi Capitals they are on a roll and I do feel that they will be in the top 2 once again. Their batting and bowling all are well set and most of their players are in good form. They do not need to make any changes to the team and they will hope that Rabada continues with his wicket-taking form.
Do you think Punjab Kings can turn around their campaign this year? Please do write in as KKR tries to turn around their campaign tonight against RCB.
PS. Allocate resources to improve quality of life!
It was a doubleheader Sunday in IPL today and the first match was between two struggling teams, Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad. In a surprising decision, Sunrisers Hyderabad dropped David Warner and made Kane Williamson the captain of the team. These midway change of captains never works out well in tournaments like IPL but the struggling team s still keep on making these decisions. There is a saying that when you look for excuses you never succeed and in Sunrisers case it was the same. David Warner was not the reason why Sunrisers have been struggling because after all, he is the only player in IPL history who has hit 50 half-centuries – it’s their weak middle order which has been letting them down. Unfortunately, they can’t get reinforcements in the middle of the tournament!
I thought they might bolster their middle order by picking Holder in place of Warner or get Jason Roy but inexplicably they replaced him with MD. Nabi. It was a clear case of not understanding the situation because Nabi at best is an average cricketer whereas Jason Roy or Jason Holder can win you matches and they have proved it in the past.
Rajasthan Royals have been troubled with a weakened squad due to injuries but they always fight back strong with weak teams! They have some genuine match-winners especially in their batting unit and players like Samson and Buttler can win you matches single-handedly. That’s what exactly happened yesterday as Jos Buttler brought up his maiden century in IPL to help Rajasthan win against the Sunrisers.
Let’s look at the hits and misses from yesterday’s match.
The hits:
Mustafizur Rahman had an excellent season in 2016 when he was the wrecker in chief for Sunrisers Hyderabad. He and David Warner were the primary architects along with Rashid khan which ensured Sunrisers winning the IPL that year. Mustafizur has not been in good form over the past couple of seasons but he is getting an extended run this year because of lack of personnel in Rajasthan Royals. This has worked well for him because over the last few matches the old “fizz” is back. Yesterday he bowled like the old Mustafizur that we know of. Sunrisers needed to chase 221 runs but Mustafizur didn’t allow any leeway and the batters struggled to take him for runs. In the process, he picked up 3 wickets too. His performance would be critical for Rajasthan royals as we move towards the second half of the tournament.
The match will be remembered for Jos Buttler. He was the difference between both the teams yesterday. Midway into the innings, it didn’t look like Rajasthan would be able to cross 180. Jos Buttler was 35 off 33 balls. It was Sanju Samson who was keeping the run rate ticking. But then he broke loose and in one over of MD. Nabi took out 21 runs and from there on there was no looking back. He finished at 124 runs off 64 balls to take Rajasthan Royals to 220 runs which was too much for Sunrisers to chase.
The misses:
Sunrisers have been struggling with the bat and it has been compounded further by not having a settled lineup. When Sunrisers have won matches on the previous two seasons it has all been about Bairstow and Warner with Williamson providing solidity in the middle. But with Warner not playing and Bairstow not in a big run making form it was expected to be a struggle for Sunrisers and that’s how it played out. They have tried out everyone without playing Priyam Garg once – guess it’s time to get him into the playing XI.
Bhubaneswar Kumar has been struggling throughout this IPL. This has been very surprising because he played very well against England recently. With Natarajan out with injury, too much pressure is on Rashid khan. But you can turn a match with 4 overs most of the time. No wonder the team is struggling because none of the bowlers other than Rashid khan is performing as per expectation. The problem is not David Warner – the problem is the rest of the team members who are having a very bad season.
What to look forward to?
Rajasthan Royals have to expect that Sanju Samson and Jos Buttler keep playing the way they are. They will also hope that Yashasvi Jaiswal doesn’t throw away his wicket after making a good start. Their seam bowling is doing well though their spin bowling department looks weak! They will hope that Rahul Tewatia plays a stellar role in the second half of the tournament. It was great to see Karthick Tyagi bowl yesterday. He was consistent with his line and length and he was able to generate good pace. He spent three months with the Indian team in Australia and I think that experience is showing. It’s a good omen for Indian cricket.
For Sunrisers Hyderabad they must be hoping the tournament to end asap. The playoffs look out of reach for them and their only hope would be to win some matches to bring some enjoyment to their fans. Can they do some turnaround like the one CSK did last season?
Let’s wait and watch!
What do you think? Will Rajasthan Royals be able to make the playoffs? Do write in as we await the next match which would be between KKr and RCB later tonight.
PS. We are not an object! We are a process!
The most anticipated match in any IPL is the one between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Superkings. CSK has been playing like a dream whereas Mumbai Indians have been struggling with their batting. All fingers pointed to CSK coming out trumps but stranger things happen in cricket and what we viewed yesterday was one. The match swayed from one side to another before a master class from Kieron Pollard saw Mumbai Indians beating CSK off the last ball of the match.
It was the most thrilling encounter of IPL 2021 and Rohit Sharma was right in saying that it was one of the best matches he has been part of.
MS Dhoni summed it up correctly when he said that it was a game that CSK should have won if the bowlers didn’t bowl so many full tosses and if some of the catches were taken. But cricket is not a game of ifs and buts and the only thing that CSK can do is to learn from the mistakes and make the changes going forward.
Let’s look at the hits and misses from yesterday’s match:
The hits:
Ambati Rayudu has been struggling thus far in the tournament but to be fair to him he didn’t get many opportunities to play long innings. Yesterday He came in at a very important juncture when CSK was about to lose the grip of the match. At 116/4, Mumbai saw an opening to get back into the match but Rayudu didn’t let it happen and single-handedly took CSK to 218 runs. 72 runs off 27 balls should have been a match-winning one but Pollard usurped that by playing an even better innings. The best part about Ratudu’s innings was that the bowling was not that bad but his quick feet movement made you think the bowling was bad. It was a great innings and probably his best knock in IPL that I have seen.
Sam Curran is a very underrated cricketer. He is a terrific all-rounder in the truest sense but he doesn’t get the sort of limelight that he should. Yesterday when all bowlers were going for plenty his figures of 3/34 looked out of the world. His pinpoint yorkers kept even the rampaging Pollard on check.
The one man who made all the difference yesterday was Kieron Pollard. At 81/3 in 10 overs, it looked like Mumbai Indians would struggle to make the match competitive. But Pollard had other intentions and he started by hitting 3 sixes against Jadeja to warm himself up. From there on there was no looking back and with 8 towering sixes, he scored 87 off 34 balls to help Mumbai Indians win the match off the last ball. Also, let’s not forget his contribution with the ball too because it was he who put the break on the Chennai innings by picking up a couple of wickets.
The misses:
In matches like these, it’s the bowlers who cut a sorry figure, and other than Sam Curran, Deepak Chahar, and Rahul Chahar all had terrible bowling figures. Jasprit Bumrah went for 56 runs. Lungi Ngidi went for 62 runs and Shardul Thakur went for 56 runs. There was no dew and hence it was quite surprising to see the number of full tosses the bowlers bowled. Most of the time they missed the length and full tosses were easily dealt with yesterday.
What to look forward to?
This loss won’t make CSK too unperturbed but MSD would be concerned about the way his pace bowlers have been bowling. I think Ngidi will be dropped next match and he will be replaced by Jason Behrendroff. I don’t think they need any more changes but I do believe they should look at using a leg spinner because that would bring in more balance to the side.
I am still not sure why Ishan Kishan is being dropped. Krunal Pandya can’t play just as a pure batsman and hence I am very surprised at this thought process. Winning makes people forget their shortcomings and I think their batting is still a bit light and they should look at getting an extra batter in. James Nisham turned out to be a failure and I am not sure if he will get another game.
The win makes the tournament very interesting. The gap is reducing between the teams and that’s good for IPL.
Doubleheader today. Let’s see if we get some thrillers once again.
PS. Life is short. Count the blessings. Have a gratitude journal and be happy with whatever you have.
IPL needed some upsets!
IPL 2021 needed some bottom-placed teams to win against the top-ranked teams!
The tournament was dragging a bit and it was high time that we needed some upsets and some close contests. And finally, we got one yesterday when Punjab Kings defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore in Ahmedabad. Punjab Kings have been struggling with balance for most of the tournament and they have been doing too many experimentations with their batting order. For a team to do well one must have a settled side and Punjab Kings have not been one thus far in 2021. Yesterday they were further hampered with the injury to Mayank Agarwal. They made a couple of other changes too with one of those changes, Harpreet Brar making a major impact on the match.
So what were the hits and misses from yesterday’s match?
Let’s have a look.
The Hits:
KL Rahul takes time to get going. It’s a risky strategy if from the other end no one is enforcing the innings. Yesterday Chris Gayle took it upon him to play the aggressive role as Rahul settled in to play the long haul. It worked out well yesterday with Rahul getting into aggressive mode towards the end of the innings. He remained not out on 91 runs off 57 balls to take Punjab Kings to 180 runs which at the end turned out to be a winning total.
The number 7 spot has been a cause of concern for the Punjab Kings throughout the tournament. They tried a lot of players over the last two weeks and yesterday they brought in a relatively unknown domestic player, Harpreet Brar in that spot. With the team stuttering at 118/5 with 5 overs left, Punjab Kings were on the verge of letting go of the good start that Chris Gayle gave them. A couple of lusty hits by Harpreet got the team breathing again and it gave confidence to Rahul too to start playing some shots. The aggressive batting by Harpreet gave him the necessary confidence when he came into bowl. RCB didn’t run away with the chase but wickets were hard to come by. Then in the space of 2 overs, Harpreet changed the complexion of the match completely by picking up the wickets of Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, and AB DeVilliers. RCB couldn’t recover from that jolt and lost the match by a big margin.
I was very surprised when Ravi Bishnoi was kept on the bench for the first few matches by Punjab Kings. Thank God that good sense prevailed and he got his spot back in the playing XI. He has given impactful performance in all the three matches he played and yesterday was no different. 2/17 in 4 overs is ample proof of the same. What’s more, he came up with another superlative catch in the outfield when he helped dismiss Harshal Patel in the final over.
The misses:
Harshal Patel is leading the wicket-takers list in this year’s IPL and has been amongst the wickets in all the matches thus far. Even in the match against CSK when he went for 37 runs in his final over, he had bowled extremely well in the first three overs. But yesterday he had a terrible day with the ball. Such days happen and I guess it’s good for him that it happened in the middle of the tournament because he can always come back well in the next match. He couldn’t get the ball in the right place and was taken for plenty in the slog overs. The yorkers either converted into full toss or half volleys and both Rahul and Harpreet took a heavy toll on him. Harshal redeemed somewhat with the bat though hitting 31 runs off 13 balls to let everyone know that he has good skills with the bat too. He had the worst economy rate with the ball and the best strike rate with the bat. Talk of polar opposite performance and it was similar to what Pat Cummins displayed against CSK.
Maxwell failed with the bat. That’s two days in a row. This is not yet in the danger zone but his past performance in IPL will keep the RCB fans on tenterhooks. The bigger problem is Virat Kohli. He is opening the batting so that he can play aggressively at the top but that’s not happening and his fragility against spinners is getting very disconcerting too. Time is not far off when teams will start bringing in spinners against him as soon as he comes into bat. For a player of his caliber, it’s quite surprising that he is unable to plug this gap in his play. I sincerely hope that we get to see a century from Virat’s bat before the IPL ends.
What to look forward to?
I think Chris Gayle should open the batting. Even if Mayank comes back it should be he and Gayle who should open for Punjab kings. Rahul should bat at number 4 to hold the innings together. Pooran is in terrible form and I think it would be good for the team to replace him with Dawid Malan. I hope that the win against RCB works like a tonic for Punjab Kings and they rattle off some wins to open up the tournament.
For RCB there is not much to change because they have a settled unit in place. They just need to hope that Harshal Patel is well-spoken to because it’s now twice in three matches wherein he has gone for plenty of runs in the final over. They might think of changing their death ball strategy going forward!
So what do you think? Will this loss make RCB jittery? Will Punjab Kings be able to win some matches on a trot? Please do write in as we look forward to the match between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Superkings later in the evening.
PS. Keeping cool under pressure is what separates a great leader and an average one. Staying positive under any adversity is one of the biggest traits of good leadership!
One of the reasons IPL has become the darling of the cricket world is because of the close contests that you get to see every night. But unfortunately, it has not been the case this season. Delhi Capitals, Chennai Superkings, and Delhi Capitals have created quite a gap between themselves and the other teams. For the cricket-loving public, it’s important now that teams like, KKR, Rajasthan Royals, Punjab Kings, and Sunrisers Hyderabad put up a good show and create some upsets.
Delhi Capitals over the past few seasons have been having a good run against KKR and when they met each other yesterday in Ahmedabad they were the favourites to win the match. First of all, KKR has been laid low by the bad form of their frontline batsmen and their bowlers have been inconsistent too. T20 cricket is fun to watch because you see a lot of 4s and 6s upfront and most of the time the game goes into the last over making it thrilling to watch.
But unfortunately, the matches involving KKR have been the opposite and it’s a struggle to watch them play. They lack intent in the powerplay overs which makes the game drag. Yesterday was no different with KKR struggling once again and the match finished with plenty of overs to spare. 154 runs was definitely a very low score but the way Prithvi Shaw started by hitting 6 fours in the first over, the match became a no-contest thereafter.
So what were the hits and misses from yesterday’s match in Ahmedabad? Let’s have a look.
The Hits:
I watched Prithvi Shaw hitting his debut century in Test cricket a couple of years back. His sense of timing and his strokes on the offside left me in awe. Then quite suddenly he lost form and it was a pain watching him bat last year. His natural instinct to go for shots led to his downfall. He is a naturally aggressive player and it was understandable that he might get out sometimes but he started getting out too quickly and too consistently. Eventually, Shubhman Gill replaced him in the Test team but how fortunes have changed over the last couple of months. Prithvi Shaw scored buckets of runs in the domestic tournament which preceded IPL whereas Shubhman Gill struggled with the bat in the England series. Cut to IPL 2021 and we are seeing a rejuvenated Prithvi Shaw on display. Yesterday he started with a bang and made a mockery of the chase by hitting 6 boundaries in the first over against Shivam Mavi. He continued in the same zest throughout the innings and for a while, I felt he might end up getting a century. I guess he would have got his century if he had not got out. Either way, he single-handedly took Delhi capitals to victory yesterday by scoring 82 runs off 41 balls.
I saw Lalit Yadav for the first time in this year’s IPL and I liked him instantly. He is an all-rounder and a terrific fielder. I was a bit disappointed when Delhi dropped him in the last match but was happy to see him back yesterday. He had a telling effect on yesterday’s match when he picked up 2 wickets in the 11th over to push KKR when they were about to get loose. KKR couldn’t recover from that setback and ended up scoring only 154 runs.
That KKR was able to score 154 runs was only possible due to the final push given by Andre Russell. It was Russell’s birthday yesterday and I hoped for a special innings from him. It was not a typical Russell innings but in the end, he did hit some towering sixes to help KKR cross the 150 run mark.
The misses:
The tale of two talented youngsters: Shubhman Gill and Prithvi Shaw. As Shaw’s stocks dropped last year, Gill’s kept rising and now when Shaw is getting his form back, Gill has completely lost confidence. I thought KKR might bring him down the order yesterday but they didn’t. To be fair to him, Gill seemed to get back his touch but the wickets in the middle overs got him tense and he ended up losing his wicket after scoring 47 runs. It would be a good idea to play him at number 4 going forward.
Eoin Morgan has been a disaster for KKR this season. he is one of the best white-ball cricketers in the world but his record in India has never been very good. KKR had a lot of expectations from him after they took him last year but he has not scored many runs for them yet. I am not sure if the team management will persist with him or not but I think they should and I think it would be best suited for him to open the innings. Let’s see if that’s the case in the next match.
What to look forward to?
KKR definitely needs some changes because it’s quite clear that the players upfront are not showing the needed intent. KKR has reached the panic stage because they need to win 6 of the next 7 matches to make it to the playoffs. Stranger things happened in IPL but the chances look very glim.
My ideal playing XI for the next match is given below:
Venkatesh Iyer, Eoin Morgan, Rahul Tripathi, Shubhman Gill, Dinesh Karthick, Andre Russell, Pat Cummins, Lockie Ferguson, Harbhajan Singh, Prasidh Krishna & Varun Chakravarthy
For Delhi Capitals the heart-breaking loss against RCB is now a thing of the past and I think they might not want to tweak the winning combination. Avesh Khan has been a revelation and I think another few performances like this and he might sneak into the Indian team in International T20s.
So what do you think? Will KKR be able to make a comeback? Will Shubhman Gill showcase his special talent this year? Do write in as we await the match between RCB and Punjab Kings later this evening.
PS. It could always be worse!
Mumbai Indians have not played like a champion side this season. Their batters have struggled to score runs and that’s been their major problem throughout this tournament. Rajasthan Royals is one of the weaker teams this season and I expected Mumbai Indians to bolster their batting unit because a loss against Rajasthan Royals would have been disastrous for them. But I was surprised to see that they dropped Ishan Kishan instead and replaced him with Nathan Coulter Nile. It meant that they bolstered their bowling attack and one look at their team sheet made me feel that they are light on batting.
Rajasthan Royals on the other hand doesn’t have many options in front of them so quite expectedly they went with the same playing XI.
A doubleheader on a weekday is not a preferable option for me because I have a day job to take care of and hence I followed the match mostly through online score updates.
So let’s look at the hits and misses from yesterday’s match.
The Hits:
The wickets column doesn’t always give you the perfect picture. Yesterday Jasprit Bumrah took only one wicket but his performance was way above the rest on the field. 4 overs for 15 runs when the opposition scores 171 tells you that his economical spell made a big difference between Rajasthan Royals scoring an average total against a big one. You need to have a bit of luck when it comes to picking up wickets but unfortunately, Bumrah is not having that luck at the moment but he has made sure that he is at his economical best which in turn is helping Mumbai Indias to stifle oppositions.
Rahul Chahar has had some match-winning performances under his belt this season. His match-winning spell against KKR has been a big confidence booster for him and he has been among the wickets ever since. Mumbai Indians have been winning matches due to their bowlers and Rahul Chahar was on the forefront yesterday too. Jos Buttler and Yashasvi Jaiswal made a good start yesterday. In fact, Buttler looked in good touch for a big innings when Chahar stuck and he followed that up by picking up Jaiswal too. This double breakthrough put a break to Rajasthan’s scoring rate and in the end, they couldn’t put up a challenging total.
Before the match I expected Mumbai Indians to drop Quinton De Kock because he had hardly scored any runs this season. But they stuck with him and yesterday QDK gave the returns. He not only batted right through, but he scored a quick rate too. Mumbai thus far has been very dependent on Rohit and Surya Kumar Yadav and when these two wickets fell there was a chance of a meltdown but QDK made sure that he kept his end up. He got able support from Krunal Pandya and in the end, Mumbai Indians won the match quite easily with 9 balls to spare.
The Misses:
Shivam Dube is getting an extended run this season because Rajasthan Royals is short on the bench. He is yet to play any special knock and his domestic form is yet to be replicated in IPL. He must consider himself extremely lucky that Rajasthan Royals is persisting him at number 4 because he is yet to play a forceful innings. Yesterday after a good start what Rajasthan Royals needed was an enforcing innings from Dube. But that didn’t happen and he wasted too many deliveries which meant that their finisher Miller didn’t get many deliveries to play. I think if Dube has to play then he should come down the order because Rajasthan is losing momentum in the middle overs because of him.
Jos Buttler looked in good touch yesterday but due to the void that’s created due to injuries in the team, he needs to play long innings. Good-looking 30s and 40s won’t help Rajasthan Royals to win matches. Yesterday he was looking good to play a big one but then got out trying to be over-ambitious. I hope he plays some big knocks in the upcoming matches because when Jos Buttler plays well, it makes for great viewing.
Playing Nathan Coulter-Nile and Jayant Yadav together was a very surprising move from Mumbai Indians. Both of them didn’t give any eye-catching performance and though Mumbai Indians won the match easily I do not think it is the right combination for them going forward.
Mustafizur Rahman is the leader of the bowling attack in the Rajasthan Royals team. It is hence very important that he performs to his potential on all the match days. Rajasthan Royals would need him and Chris Morris to perform consistently with the ball otherwise they would find it very difficult to win matches against the top-ranking teams. For IPL to be competitive, teams like Rajasthan Royals must win a few matches. A one-sided tournament is not great for viewers and right now there is a big chance that we might have the most one-sided IPL ever.
For the sake of the viewers, teams like Rajasthan Royals must win against the top 4 ranked team in the upcoming future.
What to look forward to?
For Rajasthan Royals, it’s looking extremely difficult to make an impact in the tournament. For them to turn this around they need to have their best batters play some significant knocks. Holding back Miller is not a very smart decision and they should play him at number 4. They will also hope that their three main batters, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson, and David Miller play significant knocks going forward.
For Mumbai Indians, I feel they got their combination wrong yesterday even though they won the match. Dropping Ishan Kishan didn’t feel good and I hope they reverse the decision in the next match. I would suggest having him back in the playing XI in place of Jayant Yadav. They have a good bowling attack and they are in good form so once their middle-order gets runs under their belt, we might as well see Mumbai Indians lifting the trophy once again.
So what do you think? Should Ishan Kishan get back his spot in the playing XI?
Do write in as another match awaits us today evening. This time it’s Punjab Kings Vs Royal Challengers Bangalore.
PS. We do not rise to the level of our expectations. We fall to the level of our training.
Towards the fag end of IPL 2020, Chennai Superkings got their act together winning the last 3 matches. It was too late in the tournament but they derailed the party for KKR and Punjab Kings. One significant factor that played out in those 3 matches was the form of Ruturaj Gaikwad and Faf Du Plessis. When the tournament started this year, I was looking forward to seeing how Ruturaj performs this year. There were expectations and I guess that put him under a bit of pressure initially with 3 continuous failures. It was great to see though, that CSK kept backing him and now the results are coming consistently.
Another day, another match, change of venue but the run machine of both Faf Du Plessis and Ruturaj Gaikwad continued unabated. When Kane Williamson hit those lusty blows in the end taking Sunrisers to 171, I felt we will have another close match. But, how wrong was I as CSK bossed the chase and at one point looked like finishing the match with all wickets in hand. Rashid Khan picked up a few wickets at the end to create a flutter but finally, CSK won the match easily to reach the top of the table.
So what were the hits and misses from yesterday’s encounter in Delhi?
The Hits:
Faf Du Plessis was the consistent performer for CSK in UAE last year. Though CSK didn’t have a good time, Faf didn’t let them down. It has been no different this year too and other than the first match he has scored consistently. With three fifties already in his kitty, he is leading the race for the orange cap. CSK will hope that he continues with this good form because with him in good touch the work gets that much easier for the team down the order. In Ruturaj he has got an able partner. It was their second 100 run partnership yesterday and the signs are ominous for the other teams. Yesterday it was Ruturaj who was more aggressive of the two and when that happens the work for Faf gets that much easier. Faf Du Plessis can play long innings and if he can stay till the end, CSK will chase down any totals.
Dropping Manish Pandey didn’t work for Sunrisers Hyderabad and he was back in the playing XI yesterday. With Kane in the playing XI, it would make sense to play Manish in number 4 then his current slot of number 3. Yesterday it was Kane who gave the final touch to the Sunrisers’ innings and without him, they would have struggled to reach 160. Manish showed that he is in form it’s up to the team management how they use him properly. Manish is an experienced cricketer and if Sunrisers Hyderabad has to progress further in IPL 2021, he needs to play a stellar role in it.
The Misses:
Shardul Thakur made a name for himself by being a wicket-taker. He goes for runs most of the time but he takes a bag full of wickets too. This IPL season has been the opposite. He is going for runs and he not able to pick up wickets too. He was the weakest clog in CSK’s wheel yesterday and he got a pasting from Kane Williamson in the end. Right now CSK is winning so he might not come under scrutiny but I am very concerned with the form of 2 of our Brisbane heroes, Washington Sundar and Shardul Thakur because they are supposed to play important roles in the upcoming T20 World Cup. I hope Shardul Thakur gets his act together soon. He is a very competitive cricketer and he knows how to come back from tough situations. Here’s hoping for a grand comeback for Thakur Saab.
David Warner scored another 50 in IPL cricket. No one has scored more half-centuries than David Warner in IPL history. So scoring a 50 is like a habit for this Australian opener and Sunrisers’ captain. But the way he scored those runs yesterday made a lot of difference. He was unable to time the ball and hardly got any power behind his strokes. 57 runs off 55 balls is not something anyone expects from Warner and he admitted that candidly after the match. If SRH needs to turn around this campaign, Warner needs to play freely at the top.
With Natarajan and Bhuvaneshwar Kumar sitting out due to injuries, there is too much pressure on Rashid Khan. Cricket is a team sport and one bowler can’t win you matches. He did pick up 3 wickets but the other bowlers struggled to make an impact. Sunrisers Hyderabad needs to look at their balance. After all, right now they are suffering because they are unable to blend young with the old properly.
What to look forward to?
CSK looks like a well-oiled machine and I do not foresee any changes going forward. MS Dhoni never liked chopping and changing much and I will not be surprised if this same XI continues playing right through. With Ngidi they have a good pace bowler too. They have great balance in the side with Shardul Thakur coming in at number 9 and 7 bowling options.
For Sunrisers Hyderabad they have reached a stage from where they need to win a few matches consistently. For that to happen they need to make some changes in their lineup. Here is a suggestion which they can look into going forward.
Suggested Playing XI: David Warner, Priyam Garg, Kane Williamson, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jhadav, Vijay Shankar, Abhishek Sharma, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Sandeep Sharma, Khaleel Ahmed
This lineup ensures more balance and gets some experience in the bowling lineup. I am suggesting Kedar Jhadav keep wickets. I am not sure what’s the injury status of Bhubaneshwar Kumar and I think his availability is crucial for Sunrisers Hyderabad. A competitive Sunrisers Hyderabad will be great for IPL in the next few weeks.
What do you think – will Sunrisers Hyderabad be able to turn this around?
Do write in as we get into a doubleheader today with Mumbai Indians meeting Rajasthan Royals at the Kotla in the afternoon and then later in the evening its KKR vs Delhi Capitals in Ahmedabad.
PS. Count the “Thank You” more than the “Rupees” in your bank account.
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