Player Profile 2009-10: S.Gopalakrishnan, #25

Name?
S Gopalakrishnan

Nickname?

Gopal

Where were you born?
Trichy

Birthday?
September 25.

Batsman/Bowler/All-rounder?
Batsman

Madras Marauders Debut - When and where?
It was against a Mallu team when I was in first year...den d team was known as Machans.

Your Most Memorable Match?
The one against d Spartans ...It was d second match of r willow cup campaign.

A game you would like to forget?
Against NODRAVES in d quarterfinal.

Favourite Football Team?
Man U.

Do you find any good captaincy material in the team for the future? If yes, who?
Captain.. I think Ajay r Bala can lead d team but Bala is a bit short tempered so my final choice is Ajay.

Anything in your life so far that you regret having done or not done?
I stopped playin professional cricket when I was in seventh std..I still regret dat..

If you could invite 3 people, dead or alive, to dinner, who would they be and why?
Saurav Ganguly---My Childhood hero... Neil Johnson---It needed just one world cup 4 Johnson 2 prove his worth...He predicted d future of Zim cric as early as 1999... S Badrinath---Mainstay of TN since 2000...I am being a bit selfish...Both of us belong 2 d same school PSBB.

Describe yourself in 5 words
Cricket & Acads are my Bastions !!!

What’s the best book you ever read?
Angels & Demons.

If you could fly on a magic carpet, where would you go?
Lord's --- The home of Cricket.

Funniest Moment on a Cricket Field?
When Divakar is around n bullies Hemu in d field ...It's happened on many occasions.

Best thing about Madras Marauders team?
Cricket Maniacs...Infact it's an understatement...Commitment, Passion, Aussie spirit n Zeal make up d team !!!

Marauders Cricket Diary 2009

Tried to capture some of the notable events of the year:

Sun | Jan.11 : In the absence of the regular top guns, Machans register yet another win over NEXIs. More importantly, a tall lanky fellow watches the proceedings from the sidelines.

Thu | Jan.15 : Malindu, that tall lanky left armer, grabs everyone's attention with his flawless cricketing skills in a practice game at the Skating rink.

Sat | Jan.17 : In the absence of Baptist, Tilak and Gopal, the Lankan trio of Dinesh, Malindu and Govardan make their debut in an one-sided affair against NEXIs.

Fri | Feb.13 : After an hour long heated debate, ‘Machans’ is rechristened as ‘Madras Marauders’. Name suggested by the captain of the team, Prashanth Baptist.

Sat | Feb.14 : Team logo unveiled. (It was later modified)

Sun | Feb.22 : In a game against Mavericks, Baptist scores 66 runs (his fourth consecutive score of 40+), the team’s highest individual score so far.

Sat | Feb.28 : A day before the start of the Willow Cup, Arjun Devgan makes his Madras Marauders debut.

Sun | Mar.01 : Willow Cup Campaign begins with an easy 10 wicket victory over F-XI.

Mon | Mar.02 : Spartans are beaten in a nail biting finish wherein the last pair, Balaji (who earlier had hit a cheeky reverse sweep six) and Aashish Ranka add 8 invaluable runs in the final over to seal a dramatic victory.

Tue | Mar.17 : Team Jersey along with the new logo is unveiled.

Sun | Mar.22 : In the Willow Cup Pre-QF clash versus Mavericks, Marauders snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, thanks largely to Malindu and Rajkumar.

Fri | Mar.26 : Shocking exit in the quarter finals despite the heroics of Baptist and Rajkumar. Chasing a stiff target of 86 runs against Nodraves, the team collapses from 50 for none to 78 for 9 - the absence of Ajay, Devgan and Malindu conspicuously reflecting in the defeat. Overall, the tournament turns out to be a great learning platform for the relatively young team.

Sun | Apr.11 : Mayhem at the hockey ground as Dinesh goes berserk and smashes 47 runs off 14 balls in the opening game of NPL Super Sixers.

Sat | Apr.17 : Marauders’ NPL Campaign comes to an end with a defeat in the quarter finals.

Sun | Apr.18 : Wild Bunch crowned the champions of NPL Super Sixers. Baptist and Ranka play for them in the finals.

Sun | Aug.02 : Govardan scores the team's fastest fifty off only 33 balls in a game versus Bengal.

Sun | Aug.16 : Malindu claims the team’s first ever hat trick in a game against Deccan Chargers.

Sat | Sep.12 : Marauders defeat Mauryas, the reigning Willow Cup champions.

Thu | Oct.15 : Marauders register a thumbing win in the opening game of Nano Cricket Championship.

Thu | Oct.22 : Twin wins in the Quarters and Semis (which were played on the same day) put Marauders in the finals of Nano Cricket.

Fri | Oct.23 : Marauders end up runners-up in Nano Cricket, falling short by 10 runs in a high scoring, high voltage final clash against Zovinda & Friends.

Sat | Oct.31 : In the absence of Bala, our new recruit VV Prasad makes his debut in what turned out to be a stunning loss to Bengal. First defeat in eight months.

Sun | Nov.1 : The slump in form continues as MM loses to A.P making it 2 defeats in as many days.

Sat | Nov.7 : Malindu and Govardan make it to the probables list for the NITC Cricket Team Selection trials.

Sun | Nov.8 : ‘Dream Big - The story of Madras Marauders’ – The team’s promo video for Willow Cup 2010 is launched.

Fri | Dec.11 : In a dramatic move, skipper Baptist declines a call to play for the college team, in an effort to stay focussed and prepare the Marauders team for next year’s Willow Cup.

When Sachin made India smile again...

If you are asked to pick the best Tendulkar innings ever, what would your answer be? To pick from 20 years and 595 matches and 30000 runs and 87 centuries at the highest stage of cricket, it is never going to be an easy job. That desertstorm 143 at Sharjah or that heartbreaking 136 at Chennai or the whirlwind 98 at Centurion or the recent 175 at Hyderabad? We have in our hand a never ending list. With due apologies to the aforementioned classics, here I start off writing about my favourite Tendulkar innings.

It's the one which I deliberately left out of that list - that classic match winning 103* against England last December- the last of his three immortal efforts at Chennai. In a way, it was Tendulkar’s reply to Lara’s unbeaten 153 some ten years ago. Scoring a fourth innings hundred in a historic chase! And that was not all. For fans of Ponting and Jayasuriya, it might be nothing but for one billion Indians it was everything. It was special. It was different.The reason was simple - because it came with a number of emotional tags attached to it. We all needed something different to try and forget and to compensate what was lost during the Mumbai attacks a fortnight earlier, the worst ever terrorist attack on the country. Much before the game began, we all saw his outrage over the attacks, thanks to a TV commercial. "I play for India," he proudly said.. "Now more than ever." It was like an address to the nation. And in the end, the cherubic little boy-turned-superstar from the suburbs of Bandra emerged victorious, exhibiting true grit and resilience, something which the Mumbaikars are long known for.

Also it was the one Tendulkar ton I got to watch live in the stadium and the best I've seen from him, before or since. Pure vintage stuff on a turning and equally tricky last day's track. Post 26/11, the stadium was near empty for the first four days with armed men all around and the mood of the nation, as a whole, at an all time low.

When I had left the stadium the day before, having seen the end of that Sehwag blitzkrieg, I expected India to surrender meekly, something on the lines of Mumbai 2006. So I decided not to go for the last day's play. Like millions of others, I too was scarred of defeat.

The next day - December 15, 2008 – my S3 results were to be declared. I was expecting an ‘F’ and with personal tragedy at a striking distance,I switched on our old Onida, instead of my PC. Having watched the first half an hour's play on TV and with Dravid gone, I foresaw something special happening (?! :P) and left the place almost immediately. An hour later, the lush green top of Chepauk welcomed me and believe it or not, the stands, this time, were jam packed despite it being a monday and , the Barmy Army was being pushed into oblivion. So were the gunmen. However, the very next ball Gambhir was gone. 183/3. A couple of overs later, Laxman followed suit, pushing a leaping off-break to forward short leg. 163 runs still to get.

With only one recognised batsman left - Yuvraj singh, forget Dhoni, India was staring down the barrel. The crowd was getting restless. For almost all of them and the little man in the middle, it was the perfect chance to erase the ghost of that tragic '99 Test and more importantly, lift the spirit of the nation. The duo defended purposefully. With Flintoff and Harmison running in like bull dogs, well complemented by KP's sledging skills and a pitch exhibiting uneven bounce, the Poms and the Barmy Army had reasons to celebrate. But the euphoria didn't last long. Thankfully, Yuvraj, in the company of his 'grandpa' was a different guy altogether that day. He was in no mood to get into any altercation with Fintoff or KP, who were looking so desperate for a duel.

Two and a half hours later, every dot ball played out by Yuvraj was being cheered by the crowd like they were being dispatched out of the park. Yes it was because Tendulkar was into his 90s and India, something like 10 adrift of the target. Every stroke from the master’s blade was being cheered as though it was a century, and the deafening chants of "Sachin Sachin!" reverberating around almost endlessly. The golden moment finally arrived when India was 383/4 - He needed one; India needed four.

The third ball of the 99th over, Tendulkar paddle swept a sharp turning off break from debutant Greame Swann and in no time the ball raced to the fine leg boundary, the part of the ground where I was seated. The stadium erupted emphatically as Sachin jumping in joy and pumping his arms in the air, signalled India's victory and his century. The little master had orchestrated one of the greatest chases of our times, hardly ever looking under pressure. Sehwag started it. Tendulkar nurtured and finished it. 387 conquered! It couldn't have come at a better time.

Not very often you see cricketers shaking hands with ground staff and vice versa. A lady in a red saree and a polio stricken young man, among others, went upto Sachin and exchanged handshakes and few words in a language which I'm sure Sachin wouldn't have understood but he definitely got the message loud and clear. That day, the feel-good vibe caused by Tendulkar, spread like wild fire and the nation knelt and bowed in front of its wunderkid, like he was Jesus Christ. Mind you, he was no more a demi god; something even bigger. Rightly so, the newspaper next morning read - "With Sachin, India smiles again" and my exam results were out by then and I was smiling too, though with a heart as heavy as his MRF bat.

If ever god was to grant me a wish, there is one thing I would surely ask for - to see Tendulkar hold aloft the ICC World Cup in 2011, the one trophy which has been eluding him for a very long time. That would be the ultimate jewel in his crown, and something that would keep the little master feel happy and satisfied for the rest of his life. God willing, it will happen. Yes, God willing.

Dream Big ... The Story of Madras Marauders

Wanted: A Standard batting order!

Even after those twin defeats of last week, I can tell you, without an iota of doubt, we are still the Willow Cup favorites. And I can give it in writing we'll smooth sail to the last four without any hurdle. But from then on, the real test begins. To be champions, we need to start thinking the champions way. And champion teams, as we know, put their heart and soul into even the smallest decision that they make.

My point is that we lack a standard batting order and we need to get it in place as soon as possible. For e.g, It should be something like,say (1)Rajkumar, (2)Baptist*, (3)Dinesh/Devgan, (4)Tilak, (5)Govardan, (6)Gopal/Raja, (7)Malindu, (8) Ajay, (9) Prasad/Shravan, (10) myself and finally (11)Ranka in that order. Remember, its only my personal opinion. And the important thing you can shuffle your lower order only but not the top order. Never ever experiment with top order shuffling. That is to say the top 6 or 7 needs to be constant all the time. Each one of us should know beforehand his position very clearly. We need to sort this out immediately. Without wasting any further time, voice your opinion and make suitable changes if needed to the one order that I have specified.

A New Dawn

Saturday 2:00 am Baptist conveys his unavailability for the match

2:15 am Gopal opts out

Till 4:15 am the rest of team is deciding upon the team composition

10:00 am We report almost an hour late for the match (Old habits die hard!)

and thus began one of the most defining matches in the history of NITC when the hegemony of the mauryas was destroyed by the marching marauders.It was the day when Team India and Marauders both reach their respective pinnacles.The journey to the summit hasn't been easy with the biggest setback being the quarterfinal loss in the Willow Cup. Coming up into the match with almost no form of physical exertion for almost a month , it was always going to be an uphill task against the reigning champions .The marauding juggernaut rolls on pulverising whatever has come in its path with abject contempt and disregard for reputaions.

P.S: As I write this the Indian team is looking down the barrels of defeat. talk about situational irony!!!

Requiem for a Dream

Once upon a time, there existed eleven warriors. Now the term warriors might be a bit cliched to you guys out there, but trust me... these guys are and will be warriors for the rest of their lives. Every warrior had something to fight against and if that some thing is common, that is what unites these warriors. Now I can hear you asking " What are these warriors fighting against then??" Well here it is; These 11 warriors, known as Madras Marauders are fighting against conventions. The conventions laid down by someone in the past, who has nothing to do with how things are or how things are going to be. Now I'm forced to narrow down my scope to a constrained domain in human life called sports and an even smaller part in that called CRICKET.

For our other like minded, cricket worshiping individuals,this blog is the best place to be. Have you ever heard of the term "underdogs"? Because we have, and we have experienced being underdogs. "Enough is enough", said our captain and wicket keeper batsman Baptist. "Lets dream of a world", he said, "a world where there's no partiality, where all of us rule". And cricket offered us that chance. Neither boundaries of state or nations(which coincidentally are human defined and are conventional) could not stop the marauders from claiming their rightful and everlasting position as one of the greatest teams in NITC.

They shared just one thing in common. Their love for the game. And they were ready to die for it. And their achievements are ranged at a peak unattainable by human imagination. For example, in the Willow Cup 2009 (the annual cricket championship in NITC), even their No.10 batsman S.Balaji displayed great grit and integrity by hitting a reverse sweep six which helped them seal a game against the still undefeated Spartans during their debut run. This is but just a tip of the iceberg. For knowing more about these undaunting men, who have dedicated and committed their heart and soul to the betterment of cricket in NITC, read on.

Marauders after win against Spartans Willow Cup 02/03/2009

Once upon a time there existed eleven warriors....(idhu trailor thaan ma...main pikkchara check out in the blog!!!)