<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss version="2.0"
	xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
	xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"
	xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
	xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
	xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"
	xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"
	>

<channel>
	<title>Valley Chai &#187; Incorrigible Sportsholic</title>
	<atom:link href="http://valleychai.com/blog/category/sports/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://valleychai.com/blog</link>
	<description>Head in the Valley Heart on the Chai</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Thu, 22 Jul 2010 18:03:20 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<language>en</language>
	<sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod>
	<sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency>
	<generator>http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0</generator>
		<item>
		<title>India Now Exports Pitchers</title>
		<link>http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/sports/india-now-exports-pitchers/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/sports/india-now-exports-pitchers/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 25 Nov 2008 15:15:39 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>spandana</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Incorrigible Sportsholic]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/11/25/india-now-exports-pitchers/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>oh the only pitchers we know of india come filled with beer. but in what looks like a publicity stunt, major league baseball drafted two desis to pitch for pittsburgh pirates baseball team.</p>
<p>the selection was done by an open competition called &#8220;million dollar arm&#8221; (check out their page on how to throw a pitch here). whether [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>oh the only pitchers we know of india come filled with beer. but in what looks like a publicity stunt, <a title="MLB Pitchers Drafted from India" href="http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/rumors/post/Pirates-sign-two-pitchers-from-India?urn=mlb,124477">major league baseball drafted two desis to pitch for pittsburgh pirates</a> baseball team.</p>
<p>the selection was done by an open competition called &#8220;<a title="Million Dollar Arm" href="http://www.themilliondollararm.com/index.php">million dollar arm</a>&#8221; (check out their page on how to throw a pitch <a title="How to Throw a Baseball Pitch" href="http://www.themilliondollararm.com/index.php?L=header.howtoplay">here</a>). whether this will bring back &#8220;playing base&#8221; to india, who cares. but it will surely bring some $$ into the country, and zee tv will have another game to broadcast than the sorry-looking ICL.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/sports/india-now-exports-pitchers/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Total Paisa Vasool</title>
		<link>http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/sports/total-paisa-vasool/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/sports/total-paisa-vasool/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 05 May 2008 19:31:15 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>spandana</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Incorrigible Sportsholic]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/05/05/total-paisa-vasool/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>even in IPL cricket, indian players are going in for value-pricing. 17 of the top 20 players (in terms of production on the field vs. player contract value) are indian players. check out the complete rediff story. very soon someone will start playing [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>even in <a title="IPL" href="http://www.iplt20.com">IPL</a> cricket, indian players are going in for value-pricing. 17 of the top 20 players (in terms of production on the field vs. player contract value) are indian players. <a title="Player Value Index on IPL" href="http://www.rediff.com/cricket/2008/may/05index.htm">check out the complete rediff story</a>. very soon someone will start playing the <a title="Moneyball the Book" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moneyball">moneyball</a>.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/sports/total-paisa-vasool/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>As Genuine As It Gets</title>
		<link>http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/sports/as-genuine-as-it-gets/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/sports/as-genuine-as-it-gets/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 07 Mar 2008 12:42:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>spandana</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Incorrigible Sportsholic]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/03/07/as-genuine-as-it-gets/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>i thought he was a clinger while he played on for the last 4-5 years while people were overbearing on him to quit, but i now no why.</p>
<p>you must be divinely blessed to have a job and a career you just can&#8217;t peel away from. for those that are in india.. brett favre retired after playing [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>i thought he was a clinger while he played on for the last 4-5 years while people were overbearing on him to quit, but i now no why.</p>
<p>you must be divinely blessed to have a job and a career you just can&#8217;t peel away from. for those that are in india.. <a title="Brett Favre" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brett_Favre">brett favre</a> retired after playing in the NFL league (american football) 17 seasons without missing a game. won championship once, was the &#8216;most valuable player&#8217; 3 times. he was reported to have taken pain-killer drugs just to play in thhe game.</p>
<p>watch the clip in it&#8217;s entirety. the gritty fellow throws the ball like a cannon, plays like a kid, wins like a champion.</p>
<p>truly blessed.</p>
<p><object width="512" height="323" /></p>
<p><a title="Favre Retirement Press Conference @ Yahoo! Video" href="http://video.yahoo.com/watch/2159636/6832511"><img align="left" alt="Favre Retirement Press Conference @ Yahoo! Video" title="Favre Retirement Press Conference @ Yahoo! Video" src="http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/i/bcst/yahoosports/865/59958243.jpg" /></a></p>
<p><a href="http://video.yahoo.com/watch/2159636/6832511" /></p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/sports/as-genuine-as-it-gets/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>No Monkeying Around, This is Indian Cricket</title>
		<link>http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/sports/no-monkeying-around-this-is-indian-cricket/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/sports/no-monkeying-around-this-is-indian-cricket/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 09 Jan 2008 04:51:19 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>spandana</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Incorrigible Sportsholic]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/01/08/no-monkeying-around-this-is-indian-cricket/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>one thing the aussie and the world knows but doesn&#8217;t really GET it, is that sachin is a god and cricket is a religion in india. it&#8217;s beyond a religion in india.. whereas religions devide india, cricket UNITES india.</p>
<p>so harbhajan singh calls somebody a monkey. the tough guy symonds suddently gets all soft and goes about [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>one thing the aussie and the world knows but doesn&#8217;t really GET it, is that sachin is a god and cricket is a religion in india. it&#8217;s beyond a religion in india.. whereas religions devide india, cricket UNITES india.</p>
<p>so harbhajan singh calls somebody a monkey. the tough guy symonds suddently gets all soft and goes about complaining?? imagine an american basketball player going &#8216;wassup, dog?&#8217; on an indian guy? calling someone a dog isn&#8217;t a going to represent street-talk in india. a suspension in that case would be laughed at. that&#8217;s exactly whats happening. except desis aren&#8217;t laughing &#8211; this isn&#8217;t funny.</p>
<p>check out <a title="Prem Panicker on Aus Cricket" href="http://www.rediff.com/cricket/2008/jan/08prem.htm">prem panicker&#8217;s take</a>. he&#8217;s pretty even keeled about things like this. also check out <a title="Cricinfo on Ricky Ponting" href="http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/329708.html">crickinfo</a>&#8216;s take on aussie media&#8217;s coverage <a title="ponting must be sacked" href="http://blogs.cricinfo.com/surfer/archives/2008/01/ponting_must_be.php">calling for ponting&#8217;s head</a>. these talented bastards have taken the &#8216;gentlemen&#8217; out of the &#8216;gentlemen&#8217;s game&#8217;.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://valleychai.com/blog/2008/sports/no-monkeying-around-this-is-indian-cricket/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Cricket Over Plusmo</title>
		<link>http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/sports/cricket-over-plusmo/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/sports/cricket-over-plusmo/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 15 Nov 2007 17:44:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>spandana</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Incorrigible Sportsholic]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Innovations on the Web]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/11/15/cricket-over-plusmo/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>checked out plusmo after an alum (Ro?) sent out a help-wanted ad in our alumni mailing list. sounded cool, and it did cool things. but later discovered that cricinfo had a cool plusmo gadget called MobiCast for mobile phones. installed it on my blackberry 8800, works like a charm. the best ball-by-ball user experience so far., [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>checked out plusmo after an alum (Ro?) sent out a help-wanted ad in our alumni mailing list. sounded cool, and it did cool things. but later discovered that cricinfo had a cool plusmo gadget called MobiCast for mobile phones. installed it on my blackberry 8800, works like a charm. the best ball-by-ball user experience so far., better than indiatimes and rediff gadgets. <a title="MobiCast on Plusmo" href="http://plusmo.com/cricket/ci/home.html">check it out</a></p>
<p>right now, indian seamers are chocking pakistan top order.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/sports/cricket-over-plusmo/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Championship Triple Crown : Phoren Influence?</title>
		<link>http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/sports/championship-triple-crown-phoren-influence/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/sports/championship-triple-crown-phoren-influence/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 30 Sep 2007 22:06:23 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>spandana</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Incorrigible Sportsholic]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/09/30/championship-triple-crown-phoren-influence/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>indian sport scene is on a roll. though i&#8217;ve been in bangalore only for the last 2 months, it&#8217;s easy to get sucked into my old favorite sports. hockey has a special place in my heart, mainly because that&#8217;s the closest i got in competitive play (i played for a couple of seasons for the Palo [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a title="Viswanathan Anand" class="imagelink" href="http://valleychai.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/Viswanathan-Anand-2007-World-Chess-Champion.jpg#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed"><img width="249" height="370" align="right" alt="Viswanathan Anand" id="image58" title="Viswanathan Anand" src="http://valleychai.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/Viswanathan-Anand-2007-World-Chess-Champion.jpg" /></a>indian sport scene is on a roll. though i&#8217;ve been in bangalore only for the last 2 months, it&#8217;s easy to get sucked into my old favorite sports. hockey has a special place in my heart, mainly because that&#8217;s the closest i got in competitive play (i played for a couple of seasons for the Palo Alto Field Hockey Club). anyway, checkout the recent successes:</p>
<p><a title="India - 2007 Asian Hockey Champions" href="http://www.fihockey.org/vsite/vcontent/content/transnews/0,10869,1181-18543-19728-28355-277926--5039-layout169-19693-news-item,00.html">Asian Hockey Championship</a> : <a title="Joaquim Carvalho is Indian's new Hockey Captain" href="http://www.sportingo.com/more_sports/joaquim_carvalhos_new_faces_fire/1001,3436">joaquim carvalho</a> (portuguese) brought the coaching that greg chappell couldn&#8217;t.<a title="the new india - world beaters" href="http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/09/25/the-new-india-world-beaters/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed" /></p>
<p><a title="the new india - world beaters" href="http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/09/25/the-new-india-world-beaters/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed">World Twenty20 Championship</a> : dhoni and team won by playing &#8216;<em>khul ke</em>&#8216;. dhoni is a self-confessed admirer of aussie cricket and adam gilchrist.<a title="2007 World Chess Championships" href="http://www.chessmexico.com/es/index.php?option=com_content&#038;task=view&#038;id=466&#038;Itemid=114" /></p>
<p><a title="2007 World Chess Championships" href="http://www.chessmexico.com/es/index.php?option=com_content&#038;task=view&#038;id=466&#038;Itemid=114">World Chess Championship</a> : viswanathan anand was the lone shining star of international success in the dismal indian sport for over 15 years. he reminds us again who the flag-bearer of indian sport is. bravo!<br />
* special mention world snooker champion pankaj advani is riding high &#8211; <a title="Pankaj Advani's 120 break" href="http://www.siliconindia.com/shownews/21452/2">check out his play</a></p>
<p>the root of the resurgence is clearly the exposure to world-class sports and corporate sponsorship: both of which are growing by leaps and bounds. in a perverse way, expertise in steroids from <a title="Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BALCO">balco</a> would complete the picture <img src='http://valleychai.com/blog/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_wink.gif' alt=';-)' class='wp-smiley' /> </p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/sports/championship-triple-crown-phoren-influence/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The New India &#8211; World Beaters!</title>
		<link>http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/sports/the-new-india-world-beaters/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/sports/the-new-india-world-beaters/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 25 Sep 2007 16:26:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>spandana</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Incorrigible Sportsholic]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/09/25/the-new-india-world-beaters/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p></p>

<p>it&#8217;s been a long time coming since Kapil&#8217;s Devils won the 1-day version of cricket world cup back in 1983. that was for my dad&#8217;s generation. i heard shabana azmi mention the other day that 50% of india&#8217;s population is 25 years of less old. so this one&#8217;s for that half.</p>
<p>that was a team of rag-tag [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a title="Dhoni and Boys" class="imagelink" href="http://valleychai.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/2007WCWin.JPG#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed" /></p>
<div style="text-align: center"><a title="Dhoni and Boys" class="imagelink" href="http://valleychai.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/2007WCWin.JPG#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed"><img alt="Dhoni and Boys" id="image51" src="http://valleychai.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/2007WCWin.JPG" /></a></div>
<p>it&#8217;s been a long time coming since <a title="Third One-Day World Cup Champions" href="http://www.abc.net.au/sport/columns/200703/s1865291.htm?cricket">Kapil&#8217;s Devils</a> won the 1-day version of cricket world cup back in <a title="1983 World Cup" href="http://www.tssonnet.com/tss3009/stories/20070303002201600.htm">1983</a>. that was for my dad&#8217;s generation. i heard shabana azmi mention the other day that 50% of india&#8217;s population is 25 years of less old. <a title="India Wins Twenty20 World Cup" href="http://broadband.indiatimes.com/videoshow/2399370.cms">so this one&#8217;s for that half</a>.</p>
<p>that was a team of rag-tag players knit together under <em>us vs. world</em> chip on their shoulders. some were supremely gifted (kapil included) and some were not so (amarnath, for example) &#8211; but every single person delivered to their abilities, and they played with no other agenda but to play good cricket. cut to today, it&#8217;s quite the same. dhoni&#8217;s boys aren&#8217;t the top of the line players, but they had much the same qualities. from pathan&#8217;s sheer talent to joginder singh&#8217;s grit, from yuvraj class to yusuf pathan scrappy play, each player did what they had to do, what they <em>could </em>do.</p>
<p>it was early diwali and fire crackers were booming well into the night, and television pretty much was blanketed with coverage of celebrations. it&#8217;s kind of like post-election coverage when the returns start streaming in. i got glued into TimesNow, CNN-IBM, ESPN/Star Sports, and AajTak channels to take in the excitement around the country. funny thing is the coverage from chennai showed bunch of baffoons singing rajini songs. brought me a chuckle. the general routine for the TV shows is to camp out near the players&#8217; homes and interview their parents. throw in one of the ex-players (preferably from the 1983 batch) and a foreign player and you have a show going.</p>
<p>things seem to going india&#8217;s way these days. low inflation, rupee appreciation, global expansion and sport success seem to be amplifying the general country&#8217;s mass psyche. all of a sudden those <a title="Demographics of India" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_India">50% 25-year-olds</a> think they can beat the world. much like the new team india.</p>
<p><a title="World Cup Winning Team" class="imagelink" href="http://valleychai.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/2007WCWin1.JPG#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed" /></p>
<div style="text-align: center"><a title="World Cup Winning Team" class="imagelink" href="http://valleychai.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/2007WCWin1.JPG#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed"><img alt="World Cup Winning Team" id="image52" src="http://valleychai.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/2007WCWin1.JPG" /></a></div>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/sports/the-new-india-world-beaters/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Yuvraj Singh&#8217;s Majestic Sixer-Parade</title>
		<link>http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/sports/yuvraj-singhs-majestic-sixer-parade/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/sports/yuvraj-singhs-majestic-sixer-parade/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 20 Sep 2007 11:25:18 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>spandana</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Incorrigible Sportsholic]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/09/20/yuvraj-singhs-majestic-sixer-parade/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>it was a rare occasion that wife i get to watch tv together, so when we were glued to india batting in the t20 game against england last night, i was thinking this is special. and special it turned out to be!</p>

First six &#8211; i was thinking, it&#8217;s about time they started swinging the bats.
Second six [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img align="right" alt="Yuvraj Singh hitting six sixers" id="image42" title="Yuvraj Singh hitting six sixers" src="http://valleychai.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/yuvy-t20.jpg" />it was a rare occasion that wife i get to watch tv together, so when we were glued to india batting in the t20 game against england last night, i was thinking this is special. and special it turned out to be!</p>
<ul>
<li>First six &#8211; i was thinking, it&#8217;s about time they started swinging the bats.</li>
<li>Second six &#8211; wow yuvy is going for it. awesome!</li>
<li>Third six &#8211; you can see he is angry. you can see broad is shaken.</li>
<li>Fourth six &#8211; yuvy looks in a daze. you know next one is going to be in the air. everything is eerily similar to a pitcher on the mound on piching his 9th inning of a no-hitter. no word from dhoni, no mid-crease chit-chat. the batsmen stay at their crease, dhoni playing imaginary defensive blocking shots, yuvy dazed a bit more. he isn&#8217;t checking field position, adjusting his gear.. nothing.</li>
<li>Fifth six &#8211; you know it&#8217;s a catch or a six.</li>
<li>Six six &#8211; a weary smiile on yuvy&#8217;s face. a warm hug from dhoni.  my wife screamed so loud kids almost woke up</li>
</ul>
<p>it&#8217;s very refreshing to see bats doing their job, finally. refreshing to see the <em>absence of</em> good old word of caution and guidance from the captain to his &#8216;boys&#8217;. pure and simple, bat going after the ball with the best man left standing tall, after all.<br />
<a title="Yuvraj Singh's six sixers against England" href="http://content-ind.cricinfo.com/twenty20wc/content/current/story/311684.html">58 in 16 balls</a>. never thought that was possible in international cricket. never thought i&#8217;d see it live.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://valleychai.com/blog/2007/sports/yuvraj-singhs-majestic-sixer-parade/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
	</channel>
</rss>
