Winds of change
As the debate over changing the format of the ODI game hots up, Abhijit Chatterjee takes a look at the flux in the cricketing scenario

Suddenly the 50-over game is falling out of favour with the viewers as well as the players. The growing popularity of the T20 game, specially the IPL (which many countries now want to replicate), coupled with the renewed interest in Test cricket, has led to waning of interest in the 50-over game.

Are we to witness the demise of this format of the game?

Why has the 50-over game suddenly fallen out of favour in spite of the fact that it was this format of cricket, which had threatened to push Test cricket into the history books?

This was in the early 1970s when the shorter version of the "gentleman’s game" was first introduced in England. Then of course one-day cricket was played on 60-over a side basis and the 50-over version came into being when the World Cup shifted out of England to the sub-continent in 1987.

From then onwards the one-day game has been played as 50-overs a side game. Day-night cricket, first introduced by Kerry Packer in his rebel series in Australia, was also introduced by the international body at about this time and now the 50-over game generally starts in the afternoon and ends late in the evening.

COUNTER-POINT: Former Pakistan captain Imran Khan says the double-inning format will take away all the charm of the one-day game

In contrast to the 50-over game, which continues over the whole day, the T20 game is a three-and-a-half hour affair with the game being played and decided in the evening itself. This is a game tailor-made for television audiences and it is here where the 50-over game is facing its biggest threat. Being television friendly the T20 format is drawing more advertisement revenue than the 50-over game,

Just a few years ago a one-day game involving India was worth $ 6 million in terms of revenue from on-ground advertisement, telecast rights and title sponsorship. In contrast to this the telecast rights of the five-match ODI series between India and Sri Lanka in March last were sold for just $ 5 million. On the other hand an IPL game is worth $ 8 million while the ICC was able to mop up $5 million from each game of the World Twenty20 Championship.

Of course over the years the 50-over game has evolved itself. The introduction of "powerplay" has tried to bring in some excitement into a format that is dominated by the batsmen. But here again one "powerplay" has been kept for the batting side, which anyways has a number of inherent advantages.

Another reason why the 50-over game is falling out of favour is the fact that the outcome of the games, at least in 75 per cent of the cases, can be predicted after the toss, especially in a day-night game. Also, most teams follow predictable game plan, picking up runs during the "powerplays" with the fielding side playing the waiting game.

Sachin Tedulkar, who holds the world record in both Test and one-day cricket and who opted out voluntarily of the first World Twenty20 Championship which India won, advocated in a recent interview that the 50-over game should be divided into two innings of 25 overs each so that the advantage of batting first in a day-night game can be negated. and both teams will have to play one inning each under lights. If this suggestion is adopted then one can see a team being packed with specialist batsmen and bowlers with no place for the bits-and-pieces players.

Sachin’s plan has found support not only from Indian players bit also from Australia where former Test star Dean Jones has said that it is worth a try. But former Pakistan captain Imran Khan has not liked the suggestion and has said this will take away all the charm of the one-day game.

This year England is experimenting with one-day games of 40 overs a side to see if the pace of the game changes.

In any case, the forthcoming two-week Champions Trophy matches in South Africa should set the pace for the 50-over game as no offical change is in the offing as the cricketing world prepares for the 2011 World Cup in the sub-continent.

Goalie No. 1
It is hard to forget the past. But India goalkeeper Subrata Paul has buried the ghost of his past and moved on in life to become the No. 1 custodian in the country, writes A. Roy

It’s hard to believe that someone who just four years back was contemplating giving up his gloves is now the country’s sporting hero after his three brilliant saves during the tiebreakers that saw India retaining the Nehru Cup title with a 5-6 win over Syria at the Ambedkar Stadium.

While playing for Mohun Bagan in the 2004 Federation Cup, Subrata Paul’s career was hit hard when a collision with Dempo striker Cristiano Junior resulted in the Brazilian’s death on the ground. It was just the start of a bumpy road for Subrata. Next year, Mohun Bagan coach Amal Dutta allegedly made false allegations against him of taking bribe to let in goals against East Bengal.

At the age of 19, it is tough for any youngster to handle such adversities. But every time Subrata was up against odds he emerged stronger.

The 23-year-old from Sodepur in the suburbs of Kolkata doesn’t like to talk about his past and is enjoying his new star status, which was only limited to national captain Bhaichung Bhutia.

The soft-spoken Subrata was surprised to see his pictures splashed all over the leading dailies and news channels. "It was a pleasant surprise when I woke up in the morning. Never thought that I would be a star overnight," Paul says.

But for him the Nehru Cup win is now a thing of past and he is looking to scale greater heights. "The Nehru Cup is over for me. I don’t live in the past. Now my target is to keep up the good work for my club Pune FC in the IFA Shield," Paul says.

Saving three penalty kicks is a rare achievement in Indian football, but Subrata sees nothing great in his performance, possibly because he has been through tougher tests in life.

"You can’t predict tie-breakers. Luck was on my side and I saved three penalty kicks. Nothing great about it," he says.

He may make it sound it easy and cool, but the Nehru Cup performance showed Subrata’s mental strength that has been his hallmark since a rocky start to his career in 2004.

Subrata was the darling of fans at the Ambedkar Stadium. Chants of "Subrata- Subrata" spurred the young goalkeeper to achieve glory on a night that he will not forget in a hurry. Quite a contrast to that evening in 2005 when the Kolkata crowd labelled him as a traitor.

"What more can I ask for? Never in my life have I witnessed such scenes like the one when the crowd was chanting my name. It was an inspiration for me. I wanted to prove that I am right," he says.

`A0Amid the euphoria, Subrata stood grounded and remembered those who shaped his life — his childhood coach and former India goalkeeper Debashish Mukherjee and national coach Bob Houghton.

Mukherjee gave him the courage to fight that troubled phase in 2004-05. Houghton showed faith in his potential when the country’s top club East Bengal discarded him this year, saying he was unimpressive.

"I have no grudge against East Bengal and Mohun Bagan. I had nothing to prove. I just didn’t want to let down Bob sir. He had a lot of faith in me and I am happy that I made my contribution in the win. Today I owe my success to both of them. I will never forget what they have done for me.`A0 Had it not been for Debashish-da, I wouldn’t have been playing at the Ambedkar Stadium today. I shall always be grateful to him," he said.

Both Mukherjee and Houghton are surprised by Subrata’s mental strength and determination. "He went through a lot as a teenager — the Junior incident and then allegations of bribery. But it was his mental strength that has carried him so far," Debashish Mukherjee says.

Houghton feels that consistency is key to Subrata’s success.

"He is the No.1 goalkeeper in the country and he has achieved it because of his consistency. In the last three years, I have not seen a more consistent player than Subrata," he said.The Indian goalkeeper is now targeting to play in top football leagues in Japan and Saudi Arabia.

Subrata’s six-month contract with his American agent Eddie Rock expired recently. But he is excited about the new Asian Football Confederation (AFC) rule on overseas players that makes mandatory for all clubs to use one Asian player.

"I am not extending my contract with Eddie since he couldn’t do much. I am on the lookout for a new agent. My target is Europe but things are not going to be what I want. I feel leagues in South Korea, Japan and Saudi Arabia are of very high standards and I will also try my luck there," he says.

`A0Houghton, who has coached top Saudi Arabian club Al Ittihad, said club leagues in West Asia are of high standards and Indian players stand to benefit from those leagues.

"Leagues in West Asia are several light years ahead of India. It is a good option for Indian players," he says. — TWF

Fitness Mantra
Sensible binge
Sudha Khurana

The craze for fast food has resulted in the mushrooming of outlets selling this fare. Ironically, almost everyone frequenting these fast food joints knows, at least to some extent, that this food is neither economical nor does it provide a balanced diet. But still these places are the favourite haunts of youngsters and working couples.

These so called fast foods satisfy the taste buds, are convenient, provide instant gratification and are an excellent source of fat, calories and cholesterol. Though most of us enjoy the fries-and-burger fare immensely, yet the fear of consuming harmful calories lurks at the back of our minds. Then what do we do? Should one banish these entirely from one’s diet regime and stick to the boring fat-free boiled diet to remain healthy and slim or should one keep on eating these calorie-laden foods and enjoy the momentary gratification forgetting about the long-term damage to the system.

The common fast foods like chips, instant noodles, soft aerated drinks, ice cream, burgers, pizzas etc are rightly called junk food because:

n Most of these foods have a very high fat content. This can cause hardening of arteries, coronary heart disease and stroke.

n Most of these foods have empty calories. This means they are high in simple carbohydrates and fats, which leads to obesity.

n These foods are very high in salt content, which may lead to hypertension at a young age.

n They also contain preservatives and additives like monosodium glutamate, which is very harmful.

n There is not much variety in the menu. In a nutshell "Junk food implies convenience at the cost of health".

American researches have found that "a steady diet loaded with fats and calories may not only increase weight, it could also be dangerously addictive". As people put on weight while on regular high calorie, high fat diet, they become resistant to hormone Leptin, that is strongly related to weight and appetite. Leptin releases signals to that part of brain that coordinates one’s eating behaviour. As the body fat increases, the brain uses this ability to stop responding to these hormones which could make it difficult to control the eating impulse.