Our game against Cuyahoga....Their Innings

Cuyahoga started their innings with their two best batsman and they were very very aggressive from the begining....Hari had a disastrous start with two wides reaching the boundary as byes. By the end of the first over they had 16 runs and Manpreet was hit for 2 fours in his over. I gave Hari one more try but he was hit for 9 runs in his second over. Then manpreet was hit too and in no time they reached fifty. I tried Kiran but with no luck.....he was hit too....so I experimented and brought on Avinash.....as he bowls into the batsman cramping them and giving them room to free their arms. The change worked as he immediately bowled the most economical over of the innings till then, I brought Adi....our most economical bowler of the season. He bowls straight and gives no room. He got a break through straight away....he got Kamal their Captain an their main batsman.....it was a lucky dismissal as he was given out LBW of an inside edge. We got the decision and we took it. we were more than happy to get the wicket. The team which was quiet during the run flow suddenly started to shout and encourage each other. Suddenly the runs dried up and the otehr set batsman was getting restless and fell for a good piece of bowling by Avinash....he got him to play outside off stump and gave a n easy catch to the Raj at thirdman.

On the other end Adi was tightening the screws and drying up the runs. He was spot on every delivery......the new man in was very confident and stylish lefty. he was playing beautifully...he hit a majestic six off Adi. It was wonderful shot to watch. But we had to get this guy out....Adi then bowled a straight ball which he misread and got bowled!! That was the wicket we were looking for. We were all very delighted and excited. IN the mean time one of the Cuyahoga players...Imran asked me forr a runner......he was injured before the game and came into the game with an injury. I woudl have allowed a runner for any other team other than this one. They were very very rude oin the field and sledged hard and they showed unsportsman like behavior so I decided not to allow a runner. The other members of Cuyahoga got pissed at that but we played fair. I brought Hari back into the attack and Hari responded brilliantly with controlled bowling which fetched him 3 wickets in 3 overs.....it was very very good spell of fast bowling. i brought raj on from the other end and he got a wicket straight away too. The wickets were falling at regular intervals but the runs were being scored at a high rate too. So the only way to win was to get them all out and we got that. In the mean time I caught a one handed catch in the long off position. i was very thrilled. Then i brought myself on...and I got 2 wickets in 2 overs. i was very very happy and we had won the match comfortably thanx to Adi and Baji for the tremendous bowling perfomance. hari tooo bowled very well but the Man of the Match was Avinash who had batted brilliantly and then bowled extremely well in the pressure circumstances. Over all it was a very very satisfctory victory, All of us had lots of things to say abt the victory so as usual we met at Adi's place after the game.....

An Amazing speech...........

This speech was delivered during the commencement exercises of the UP graduating class of 2003 by Mr. Butch Jimenez, the youngest commencement speaker in the university's history. He once dreamed of doing so, and it came true!!! :-) Students wished they had a pencil or paper to jot down notes during the speech; some even wished they had a tape recorder. Some members of the faculty found his speech practical, refreshing, and funny! Butch Jimenez, head of PLDT's media and strategic communications department, delivered this speech at the UP Diliman Class 2003 commencement exercises.

What's better than...?
By Butch Jimenez

Better than being negative As college students, you're just about to set sail into the real world. As you prepare for the battleground of life, you'll hear many speeches,read tons of books and get miles of advice telling you to work hard,dream big, go out and do something for yourself, and have a vision.

Not bad advice, really. In fact, following these nuggets of truth may just bring you to the top. But as I've lived my life over the years , I have come to realize that it is great to dream big, have a vision, make a name, and work hard. But guess what: There's something better than that.

So my message today simply asks the question, What's better than...? Let's start off with something really simple. What's better than a long speech? No doubt, a short one. So, you guys are in luck because I do intend to keep this short.

Now, let me take you through a very simple math exam. I'll rattle off a couple of equations, and you tell me what you observe about them. Be mindful of the instructions. You are to tell me what you observe about the equations.

Here goes: 3+4=7, 9+2=11, 8+4=13, and 6+6=12. Tell me, what do you observe? Every time I conduct this test, more than 90 percent of the participants immediately say, 8+4 is NOT 13, it's 12!

That's true and they are correct. But they could have also observed that the three other equations were right. That 3+4 is 7, that 9+2 is 11, and that 6+6 is 12.

What's my point? Many people immediately focus on the negative instead of the positive. Most of us focus on what's wrong with other people more than what's right about them. Examine those four equations. Three were right and only one was wrong. But what is the knee-jerk observation? The wrong equation.

If 10 people you didn't know were to walk through that door, most of you would describe those people by what's negative about them. He's fat.He's balding. Oh, the short one. Oh, the skinny girl. Ahhh, 'yung pango.Etc.

Get the point? It's always the negative we focus on and not the positive. You'll definitely experience this in the corporate world. You do a hundred good things and one mistake-guess what? Chances are, your attention will be called on that one mistake.

So what's better than focusing on the negative? Believe me, its focusing on the positive. And if this world could learn to focus on the positive more than the negative, it would be a much nicer place to live in.

Better than working hard

We have always been told to work hard. Our parents say that, our teachers say that, and our principal says that. But there's something better than merely working hard. It's working SMART.

It's taking time to understand the situation, and coming out with an effective and efficient solution to get more done with less time and effort. As the Japanese say, "There's always a better way."

One of the most memorable case studies I came across with as I studied Japanese management at Sophia University in Tokyo was the case of the empty soap box, which happened in one of Japan's biggest cosmetics companies. The company received a complaint that a consumer had bought a box of soap that was empty. It immediately isolated the problem to the assembly line, which transported all the packaged boxes of soap to the delivery department. For some reason, one soap box went through the assembly line empty. Management tasked its engineers to solve the problem. Post-haste, the engineers worked hard to devise an X-ray machine with high-resolution monitors manned by two people to watch all the soap boxes that passed through the line to make sure they were not empty. No
doubt, they worked hard and they worked fast.

But a rank-and-file employee that was posed the same problem came out with another solution. He bought a strong industrial electric fan and pointed it at the assembly line. He switched the fan on, and as each soap box passed the fan, it simply blew the empty boxes out of the line.

Clearly, the engineers worked hard, but the rank-and-file employee worked smart. So what's better than merely working hard? It's working smart. Having said that, it is still important to work hard. If you could combine both working hard and working smart, you would possess a major factor toward success.

Better than dreaming big

I will bet my next month's salary that many have encouraged you to dream big. Maybe even to reach for the stars and aim high. I sure heard that about a million times right before I graduated from this university. So I did. I did dream big. I did aim high. I did reach for the stars. No doubt, it works. In fact, the saying is true: "If you aim for nothing,that's exactly what you'll hit: nothing."

But there's something better than dreaming big. Believe me, I got shocked myself. And I learned it from the biggest dreamer of all time, Walt Disney.

When it comes to dreaming big, Walt is the man. No bigger dreams were fulfilled than his. Every leadership book describes him as the ultimate dreamer. In fact, the principle of dreaming and achieving is the core message of the Disney hit song, "When You Wish Upon a Star".

"When you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are; anything your heart desires will come to you. If your heart is in your dream, no request is too extreme. When you wish upon a star, as dreamers do," as Jiminy Cricket sang.

But is that what he preached in the Disney company? Dream? Imagineering

Well, not exactly. Kinda, but not quite. The problem with dreaming is if that's all you do, you'll really get nowhere. In fact, you may just fall asleep and never wake up.

The secret to Disney's success is not just dreaming, it's IMAGINEERING. You won't find this word in a dictionary. It's purely a Disney word. Those who engage in imagineering are called imagineers. The word combines the words "imagination" and "engineering."

In the book "Imagineers," Disney's CEO, Michael Eisner, claims that "imagineers turn impossible dreams into real magic."

Walt Disney explained there is really no secret to their approach. They just keep moving forward-opening new doors and doing new things, because they are curious. And it is this curiosity that leads them down new paths. They always dream, explore and experiment. In short, imagineering is the blending of creative imagination and technical know-how.

Eisner expounds on this thought by saying that "Not only are imaginers curious, they are courageous, outrageous, and their creativity is contagious."

The big difference with imagineers is that they dream and then they DO! So don't just be a dreamer, be an imagineer.

You must have all been given a lecture at one time or another about the importance of having a vision. Even leadership expert John Maxwell says that an indispensable quality of a leader is to have a vision. The Bible also makes it very clear that "Without vision, people perish." So no doubt about it, having a vision is important to success.

But surprise! There's something more potent than a vision. It's a CAUSE. If all you're doing is trying to reach your vision and you're pitted against someone fighting for a cause, chances are you'll lose.

The Vietnam War is a classic example. Literally with sticks and stones, the Viet Cong beat the heavily armed US Army to surrender, primarily because the US had a vision to win the war, but the Vietnamese were fighting for a cause.

In the realm of business, many leaders have visions of making their company No.1, or grabbing market share, or forever increasing profits.

Nothing really wrong with that vision, but take the example of Sony founder Akio Morita. He did not just have a vision to build the biggest electronics company in the world. In his biography, "Made in Japan," he reveals that the real reason he set up Sony was to help rebuild his country, which had just been battered by war. He had a cause he was fighting for. His vision to be an electronics giant was secondary.

What's the difference bet ween a vision and a cause? Here's what sets them apart...

No one is willing to die for a vision. People will die for a cause.
You possess a vision. A cause possesses you.
A vision lies in your hands. A cause lies in your heart.
A vision involves sacrifice. A cause involves the ultimate sacrifice.

Just a word of caution. You must have the right vision, and you must be fighting for the right cause. In the end, right will always win out.

It may take time, and it may take long. But if you have the right vision and are fighting for the right cause, you will prevail. If not, no matter how sincere you are, if you are not fighting for what is right,you will ultimately fail.

Two final quotes

Allow me to end with two quotes that I have lived by ever since I stepped out of UP. The first comes from the Bible, which says, "To whom much is given, much is required."

Having been given the opportunity to study in UP, no doubt, much has been given to you in terms of an excellent education. Don't forget that in return, much is now required of you to use that education not just for yourself, but for others.

And as you move up and start reaching the pinnacle of success, even more will be required of you to look at the welfare of others, of society and of the country.

Though I have often dreamed of addressing any graduating class of UP Diliman, I never really thought it would happen. This brings me to the second quote I have held close to my heart as I traverse the destiny God has laid out for me.

"There is no destination beyond reach of one who walks with God." My standing in front of you today, as the youngest commencement speaker of this esteemed university in 92 years, is proof of how true that quote is.

A final review:

* What's better than focusing on the negative? Focus on the positive.
* What's better than working hard? It's working smart.
* What's better than dreaming? Imagineering.
* What's better than doing something for yourself? Doing something for your country.
* What's better than a vision? A cause.
* What's better than a long speech? Definitely, a short one.

Thank you and congratulations, UP Diliman graduating class of 2003

Hey Guys,

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The first is the link to video streaming of the desi cartoon song of the 80's soooraj ek chanda ek ...tharen anek... does tha song ring any bells??? well it was one of my favorite songs....click on the link to see and enjoy....it felt sooooo good to see it Sooraj Ek Chanda Ek

I have been trying to get hold of the tree of unity (remember people????).....if anybody finds the link for it please let me know:

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For all the mumbaikars!!!!!!! here is a link that is similar to map quest but exclusive to mumbai and its really amazing....see and enjoy Mumbai Mapquest

Game with Cuyahoga….Ind Vs Pak

These days I have been pretty busy with things so i have not been able to find time to write my usual elaborate match reports. From now on the reports will be very very short compared to the previous ones. I am sure that many of you are disappointed with this news but I am pressed for time so I cannot continue writing long match reports. But I will guarantee that I will resume writing long reports if the team makes it to the playoffs !!!!!!!!

We were at the field as usual on time and the opposition was late. We usually get to the Cuyahoga ground on time. We have been playing well on that field and it’s my personal favorite as I scored my only tournament fifty there as well as my previous highest score, incidentally both those scores were against the same team (Hashlingden). We had a bad experience playing with the Cuyahoga team the last time around during the practice game. Couple of players got into a tussle and the match had to be abandoned. So to prevent the repeat of such events we had mutually agreed on having a neutral umpire. The neutral umpire for the game was Harsh from the Cleveland State University Cricket team (Vikings).

I went in for the toss with Imran (the opposition skipper), the Cuyahoga team is a team with majority players having a Pakistani origin. I called tailsand as expected it was Heads !!!!!.We always love to have a bowl first and have not batted first yet. Imran chose to field !!!!!!!! so we got to bat first. We fielded a pretty strong team. Our opening pair was Brijesh and Puneet. Brijesh’s parents had come to visit him so they were at the game too. Brijesh had a bet with his dad that we would score 250.The night before the game we had a great time at Brijesh’s place, aunty made some awesome food and we watched Andaz Apna Apna for the n MILLIONTH time. Brijesh had an irritated start as the Skipper of the opposition asked him to wear full whites (he usually bats in shorts). He borrowed a shirt from me and had his whites tracks on. But that was the only irritating thing that happened in the first few overs. Cuyahoga had a disastrous start…..they started off with wides and we were 5 runs in 0 balls!!!!! Then Puneet hit a brilliant boundary with his favorite pull shot……it was good o see him play that shot so early on. That shot showed how confident he was in the middle. If Puneet was confident Brijesh was supremely confident. He has been one of the batting main stays for us along with Pogs (Hari) . Brijesh hit a boundary with a pull shot at the other end. In no time we were in the twenties and closer to the thirties. Puneet hit a beautiful square cut and just stood there admiring this shot….. WOW ….it was indeed a brilliant shot. But then he got carried away a bit and risked an aerial shot which went for a sitter towards Sadiq who is one of their better fielder……but fortunately he dropped the catch!!!!!!! Puneet must have been relived to see such an easy chance being dropped but Sadiq got the firing of his life from Kamal. Kamal is like the dictator on the team…..the most powerful personality…..he is their best batsman and is also a very good bowler. Well, Puneet’s joy was short lived as he played on to his wickets and got bowled of the very next ball he faced !!!!! It was really sad that he got out when they were going great guns. I guess Cuyahoga thought that they would be able to put some breaks on the scoring. But they were in for a rude shock !!!!!!! in walked Phani….who probably played the best innings of his cricketing career at Akron.

Phani started off very very positively and Brijesh at the other end was getting runs effortlessly. He made batting look ridiculously easy and took on the bowlers with the ease similar to that seen in the nets !!!!!!! Both o them were putting together a brilliant partnership when Brijesh played an uppish short of a leg-spinner and popped up a simple catch to Imran. I was surprised as I expected to see Phani getting uncomfortable playing a spinner but unfortunately Brijesh got out for 46 runs…..he missed his second fifty by 4 runs!!!!!!!! I mean it could have been a memorable fifty as his parents were watching him play. But by the time brijesh got out we already had 100 runs on board in less than 13 overs!!!!!! It was brilliant batting by the openers and Phani. In walked our most dependable batsman…..Pogs…he strode in confidently and started in his usual manner. Phani was playing excellently…..he was confident and hit the leg spinner for a couple of sixes. Both the shots were clean hits. The first was a pull on the leg side off the spinner….Phani was waiting for the loose delivery and punished the bad balls very well. He batted very aggressively and hit a straight six just after the break.....he is on a roll!!!!!!!! He has hit 4 sixes in his last two knocks !!!!!!!! Thats a tremendous feat considering the fact that he had not hit a six before in the tournament. Now, he has the highest number of sixes for the team.....manpreet has 2, hari has 1, I have one, Brijesh has two !!!!!!! But he had a couple of close calls on the LBW ....if not for the neutral umpire the game would have taken a very bad shape. Phani also got a life early on....when he was in his 20's he was dropped by Kamal off Sadiq and the poor guy didnt say a word to Kamal. That showed how much they feared Kamal. Phani got to his first fifty and didnt even take his cap off !!!!!!! i am sure that he would remember every stroke of that fifty. Pogs on the other end was encouraging him and asked him to stay put....all this while the run-rate was being maintained at about 8 runs an over. Then Phani gave a simple catch and got out meekly. He had a lapse of concentration and got out immediately after getting his fifty. He played an uppish shot and got out. He came back disappointed as he had a very very good chance of scoring more runs and probably a Century !!!!!!! I sent Avinash up the order....as I wanted him to get some time in the middle. He was ready to go from the first ball. Early in his innings Avinash gave a simple catch which Kamal dropped !!!!!!! once again!!!! But no one uttered a single word. But now he must have realised that he dropped an important catch. Avinash settled down soon and started playing brilliantly. The all of a sudden Pogs lost his composure and went for a heave and got bowled !!!!!!! thats very unlike Pogs. He usually plays very straight and very confidently. but that day was not to be his as it belonged to Avinash. Pogs made 11. I walked in with score around 180 in 24-25 overs. We were looking at a target of 270 !!!!!!! I usually play well on that ground and started off well taking the singles and twos. I run very hard and try to get the maximum for the shot. I usually never dive as I am either safe or short by a big margin. Baji started to open up and we decided to play like the way we were tilll the 30th over. But unfortunately I got LBW to a bowler who had bowled 6 wides in that over. the only ball he bowled straight I got out !!!!! that was very very frustrating. i made only 5 but ran for abt 25 runs!!!!!! Kiran walked in with the ideal platform to launch.....he played with his head down which showed that he was trying hard to stay in the middle. Baji on the otehr hand was playing some superb strokes!!!!!!! he hit a couple of fours which were just awesome to watch. Some of the shots he hits are a treat to watch....especially the ones he hits with one knee on the ground. Kiran got out in an unfortunate fashion....he played a powerful drive which was very well taken by Imran...it was a reflex catch and he did a great job. kiran was very very disappointed. manpreet walked in and started playing well...but now the scoring rate had gone down and it was getting increasingly difficult to score. but baji was placing his shots to run the twos. THen Manpreet went for a big hit and was caught. Sunny walked in and I hoped that he would hit some good shots. Then the most unfortunate incident of the match happned....SUnny hit a shot which beat the bowler....baji wanted to run but sunny didnt....so Baji thought that the ball was dead and went out to tell Sunny to run the next time. But the bowler saw this as an oppurtunity to get Baji out (as they werent able to get him the conventional ways) and took the bails off !!!!!!! thats the most unsportsmanly behavior I have see so far. Baji was playing really well and was out for 46 !!!!!! Adi walked in. Sunny then hit a huge six. he is very good at that, he has a good swing of the bat and usually makes contact. But them sunny got runout going for a non-exixtent run. Raj walked in...Adi then hit a four....that was straight from the meat of the bat.
it sounded soooo good!!!!!! But Raj got Lbw in the last over. adi was not out on 7 and we finished with 254 runs in 34.3 overs!!!!!!!! thats a great target.