Life Etc Etc

India wins another Test and wraps up another series. With the series score line reading 3-1 , I was wondering how fortunate we are today to be watching Test matches which actually produce a result. This was really not the case when I was a kid with many Tests ending in a stalemate. A draw, back then was considered to be an acceptable result and in many cases also treated on par with a victory. Those were the days when neither sporting declarations nor spirited chases were in vogue. A Test match on the 5th day would typically meander meaninglessly allowing those playing to get to some personal milestones and thankfully end before the scheduled close with the customary handshakes of opposing teams. That's probably the reason why I don't remember too many drawn test matches from that era. The only memorable draw that comes to my mind was the one in Sydney where Vihari and Ashwin stalled Australia's charge . Since a draw has become somewhat of a rarity these days, I wanted to...

Where is it? About 25-30 km away from Hampi .  Sanapur Lake Lush green fields on the way to Sanapur Lake What is it? Backwaters of River Tungabhadra and in the past was also a freshwater reservoir for the Vijayanagara Empire .  Sanapur Lake and its association with Vijayanagara Empire What activities are available here? Coracle rides are available until sunset. There are also designated spots near the lake for cliff jumping. I was told that there were quite a few accidents in the past when these jumps were not undertaken under official supervision. Therefore, please follow all instructions before taking up this activity. Coracles at Sanapur Lake Sanapur Lake: View from the Coracle What else can you do here? After completing the coracle ride you can walk around the lake to capture some exhilarating views of the world renowned Hampi boulders and even catch a glimpse of the Sanapur reservoir.   Sanapur Lake: Right before sunset Sanapur Reservoir The view is particularl...

Plot Outline: Hanumanthu ( Teja Sajja ), a small-time village thief retrieves a divine stone from the depths of the ocean and finds himself immediately transformed by its powers. Hanumanthu's metamorphosis catches the eye of Michael ( Vinay Rai ), a man with unlimited resources and boundless ambition, on a mission to capture the power for his own selfish motives. The rest of the plot revolves around how Hanumanthu finds his true calling while battling it out with Michael for the greater good of humanity.  I finally got to watch Hanu-Man on Republic Day, two weeks after its release. Despite the fact I tempered my expectations the movie did not work for me as well I had expected. I felt that the execution did not do justice to the initial premise. So, without any further ado, here are three things which didn't work for me in Hanu-Man ( watch out for some spoilers ): Hanu-Man: Could have been so much more <Courtesy: Tips Telugu > Extent of Hanu-Man's powers are not real...

With the start of a new year, the season of new year resolutions is upon us once again. The dawn of a new year is the perfect time to try something new and the resolutions you set up might just be the magic bullet that your life needs. Here are some rules to keep in mind while brainstorming about a resolution, they might just help you to commit to something that is more practicable. Rules for New Year resolutions <Courtesy: Tim Mossholder > Have specific measures around your resolutions: For Example:  If you want to lose weight then your resolution must target a specific number of kgs/pounds you are willing to lose. You should also have a date by which you are hoping to achieve that target. If you want to buy a house, then put a date around when you would like to start house hunting and when you would like to close the deal by. Break up resolutions which center around large goals into smaller ones: Let's say you want to lose 20 kgs in a year. Think about how about many kgs ...

It took me sometime to collect my thoughts after the utterly disappointing World Cup final on Sunday. I needed this break to objectively wrap my head around what might have happened and also listen to the analyses from various sources before writing this piece. Within the last week, I've seen  several experts  claim that a slow track was intentionally prepared to provide an outside advantage to India with that strategy ultimately backfiring on the hosts. I don't know how true these allegations are but more than the pitch I single out the team's performance as the primary reason we lost that day . Here are three things which our team could have done better.  1. Firstly, we did not read the pitch as well as the Australian team did . Rohit Sharma revealed that he would have batted first had he won the toss on a surface which played better in the second innings. Considering the fact that we played more international matches than any other team at the venue we should have had...

Before the first ball is bowled in the final tomorrow, I would like to have my final say on this World Cup. We've seen a tournament where the Indian Juggernaut has rolled along thumping teams across the Indian sub-continent. Come T20s or ODIs the core of this team has largely been the same since 2019. After some misguided attempts to bag a World T20, the team is finally flourishing in a format which suits its strengths. One thing which we could have done without, were the repeated tributes to Virat Kohli. Conversations on/off the field inevitably centered on him, fall of wicket montages unfailingly transmitted his reactions and the preview packages to all matches featuring India were replete with his references. Virat is a great player, no doubt, we just don't need to be reminded about it every other minute. Cricket World Cup 2023: Grandest prize of them all <Courtesy: Logowik >  Our opponents in the final, Australia started listlessly but found form at the right time. Th...

Until Next Time, Your Quotemaster, Chaitanya J.J.