5 Talking Points of Cricket All Stars series

5 Talking Points of Cricket All Stars series: The cricket fans all over the world witnessed a visual treat as they saw the legends of the game having the time of their lives in an initiative by two cricketing greats Sachin Tendulkar and Shane Warne in what was called the ‘Cricket All Stars’. It is fair to say that the stalwarts themselves wouldn’t have imagined that they would get such unprecedented support in a country like the USA, the place where the series was held, where the existence of cricket as a sport is negligible.

In the 3 matches held on drop-in pitches at Baseball venues of New York, Houston and Los Angeles, ‘Warne’s Warriors’ spoiled the party for ‘Sachin’s Blasters’ and beat them comprehensively but most importantly, as the cliche goes, cricket turned out to be the real winner.

Here are the 5 Talking Points of Cricket All Stars series:

1. The 90’s nostalgia:

If one has been a cricket fan, then they would have licked their tongues at the prospect of watching their favourite rivalries on-screen once more! The stars list was just never ending and for a kid from the 90s, it must have brought back some brilliant memories of their childhood as they once again witnessed Sachin playing Shane Warne, Wasim Akram’s tailing deliveries, Shoaib Akhtar’s furious bouncers and many more wonderful memories. Just the excitement to see all the stalwarts of the game together was enough to create a buzz among cricket aficionados and it certainly did.

2.  Knocking on States’ door

The fact that the United States of America has a cricket fan following of almost the same as New Zealand must have prompted the All Stars management to conduct this series in the country. USA’s huge Indian population must also have played a part in that decision. The crowds didn’t disappoint at all and graciously accepted the tourists as they came in numbers to watch the matches. In fact, such huge gathering of crowds was something even the legends playing and the management wouldn’t have imagined! The idea was to spread awareness regarding cricket in this huge nation and it turned out to be a big hit.

3. We are a team:

One thing which was observed in all the 3 matches was how much these guys were enjoying each other’s company! No one in their right minds could have imagined Shoaib Akhtar embracing Sachin like he has been his mate for a long time, but that is the beauty of this game. It is fierce and competitive yet spreads the message of being together. In these past 10 days, it was soothing to watch these players have a good time, share jokes, click pictures with each other, have a friendly banter amongst themselves which once again proved that at its heart, cricket still remains a gentleman’s game.

4. Some epic moments:

Amidst all the fun and chat’s, the on-field cricket remained a serious business as though they were sharing laughs, the passion to win the game and perform for their teams was seen in each and every star of the Cricket All Stars. There was plenty to cherish from this first season of Cricket All Stars. Some of the takeaways are mentioned as follows. Shane Warne got the wicket of Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar in the same game while Kumar Sangakkara hit Muttiah Muralitharan for sixes all round the park. Kallis was troubled by an Akhtar ripper while Viru hummed a song and then smashed the ball outside the boundary ropes with ease! Ponting played like a champion not once but twice while Akram swung the ball as if he had never retired. While all this happened inside the park, an airline left the God fuming due to their inadequacies which soon became the talk of the town. The list could go on and on but the overall impact was wonderful for the game.

5. Cricket is the winner:

One cannot thank Sachin and Warne enough for, first of all, proposing this idea and then to implement it at such a large scale so that not just USA but the whole world witnessed these greats play for one more time. The USA would be the biggest beneficiary from this tournament as it got introduced to this wonderful world of cricket by none other than the Masters of the game themselves. The legends also spent time with the locals telling them about the nuances of this game and encouraging them to pick up the bat and ball. They played with the local players, coached them, spent time in improving their techniques and gave them useful tips which would help them to groom their skills and who knows, this laudable effort would bring the USA on the cricket map very soon as one would see them competing with the best of the best.