|
|
|
| SPORTS TRIBUNE |
|
Who’s watching? Checkmate! Fit Zone
|
|
 |
|
Who’s watching ? Cricketwise, Champions Trophy 2009 was an immense success given the intensity with which the matches were played, but where were the spectators? Barring the early India-Pakistan match and the games involving hosts South Africa, who, like India, failed to get past the first post, the other games failed to draw a full house. This should send alarm bells ringing in the ICC because what is the use of holding competitive games in front of empty stands. Cricket’s administrators must act. All over the world cricket is funded by lucrative television deals with the broadcaster looking at the pulsating Asian market, especially India. But half the thrill of watching a match on television is that you share the excitement of a live stadium event. A full stadium makes a dull match a thriller as has been seen time and again at different venues in the subcontinent. An empty stadium, on the other hand makes a thrilling match dull and that is what many matches in the Champions Trophy became. Inevitably, cricket will lose the battle for television if the spectacle on our screens carries the thrill of a funeral procession.
But the ICC should also take the blame for the almost empty stands during the final between underdogs New Zealand and Australia. By squeezing the tournament into a 15-day schedule and with no option for extra days for rain-hit ties (India can well blame the weather for their early exit from the tournament), the final had to be played on a Monday a sure way of keeping the local crowd away from the game. The same probably goes for the television audience. According to reports even during the India-Pakistan match, television rating points slid down to 4.5 per cent, just half of what was recorded in the previous Champions Trophy five years ago when it was 9.22 per cent. India ’s other league matches against Australia and the West Indies also saw poor viewer interest, according to data compiled by the media rating agencies. This is drastically lower than what had been seen earlier in one-day matches played in India when the television rating points hovered around seven to eight per cent. And it is sure that the seven-match one-day series between India and Australia starting later this month will again see full houses. But what should send alarm bells ringing in the corridors of the office of the ICC is the fact that overall the spectator interest in the 50-over game is waning. Of course there is one school of thought, which says that the timing of the telecast of the Champions Trophy matches from South Africa did not suit the Indian viewers. The current international schedule is taking the fascination and meaning out of contests, especially with so many Twenty20 games being squeezed in simply because this is one format which is still drawing in the paying spectator. More Ttwenty20 games, for example, have to mean less of something else. These challenges cannot be insoluble. International cricket, specially the 50-over format, is on a slippery ground and the ICC must do something if it wants to keep the format going. Just organising tournaments will not do. For the past decade, revenue has mattered more than the health of the game and this attitude must change. The sale of television rights has largely obviated the need to have full houses in stadiums. But the true indicator of the game is how the paying public takes it. And the ICC must not lose focus on this issue. There is no doubt that the 2011 World Cup to be played in the subcontinent will get total spectator support given the following that the game has, not only in India but also in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. But the question one is tempted to ask is: will the next edition of the Champions Trophy be held or have we seen the demise of one of the most exciting tournaments of the
ICC? |
|
Checkmate!
Chess matches played between man and computers have now become a regular feature. In North India alone many such competitions are held where man has to balance his intellect and skills against the manufactured ones of the computer. Recently in London, FIDE (the international body governing chess around the world), roped in former and present world champions to play against computer but amazingly 95 per cent lost their bouts against the bytes of the computer. In London, first it was that ageing artisan, Anatoly Karpov who tried to match his wits against the computer but had to eat a humble pie. Then Vishwanathan Anand fell prey to the cold calculating machinations of the computer. It may sound farcical yet it all boils down to the fact that these encounters are nothing but a test of human intelligence versus artificial intelligence. When chess champs play against the computer, they know such lifeless matches diminish the value of sport. That tingle of anticipation, that surge of pure adrenaline that is felt by two world champs sitting across the board is missing here. When in London Karpov lost to a computer called ‘Deep Blue’; the master of the 64-square board did not speak much. But then not much could be said that day for that was the day when the entire human race had lost. ‘Deep Blue’ neither celebrated nor opened a bottle of champagne. All this leads us to a litany of questions, which need to be answered to sustain the very essence of sport. Both Karpov and Anand, widely perceived to be two of the most intelligent sportsmen on earth, were beaten by a machine created by the human mind. The silicon chip took precedence over the grey cells. In almost every other sport, particularly chess, man is pitted against man. Sport proliferates out of a desire to stretch the limits of human endurance and ability. The unfettered enthusiasm of just playing, the sparkle and sheen of young men in their athletic prime, the camaraderie of sportsmen that often only they understand, is the essence of all sports. To see a Karpov or a Anand sitting in front of a computer, stone faced, makes one wonder whether they want to be there? Unlike a chess champ playing against the computer, in sporting ordeals pain is consciously invited so that it turns into strength and joy, which often resemble the ordeal of religious contemplatives. In Zen Bhuddism a monk may sit in meditation for 12 hours or even more. The pain and distractions that flow from these sessions are overwhelming, but the depths of knowing joy and freedom emerge only from the experience of overcoming this agony. Hence, when a human being tries to balance his civilising instincts against the artificial intelligence of a computer, the very soul of sport is killed. For a couple of games, both Karpov and Anand did try to outplay, or rather outwit, the computer by managing to balance their skills against the manufactured ones of the computer. But, eventually the cold and brutal calculating skills of the machine coupled with its relentlessness ultimately pushed human intelligence to the wall. A foe, devoid of emotions, having no fear of baulking under stress is definitely a dangerous foe. While Karpov suffered from stress, strain took over a usually restrained
Anand. |
|
Fit Zone I, too, have a sweet tooth as I believe that God created sweets so that one could savour the taste of mithai. If he didn’t want us to overeat then he would have simply deleted certain flavours from earth and we would all have to manage with bland food. But as this is not the case, so we have God’s approval to enjoy all foods, especially the ones loaded with sugar and oil. But after Divali the weighing scale needle gives jitters and all justifications ring hollow. So if you are among those who gave in to the impulse to gorge on sweets and savouries and are now in the grip of post-Divali blues, it is time to make amends. But this doesn’t mean that you go off food completely. A salad with lettuce, dry fruits, some oranges pieces and some paneer can be very tasty and filling. Alongwith this make sure that you get adequate exercise every day to keep your metabolism high. Yoga is very useful in losing those extra pounds. Kapalbhati kriya, veerbhadrasana ans santolanasana are some of the asanas that not only detoxify the system but also help one get back in shape. Here are some simple techniques to beat the effects of festival bingeing: |
Festival time is the time to celebrate, to meet and spend time with near and dear ones. It is the time to laugh and play and forget your worries for some time. Indulgence becomes a norm and overeating is justified as the festive spirit drowns the guilt of eating oily, heavy food and sweets.