posted Nov 28, 2008

i think india doesnt need cricket now...there are lot more issues we should address first ,we must start our war against terror and then cricket should continue and there is no point in the english players coming back cos it will be difficult for us since , terrorist() want to kill westerners to make a point which is soo pointless my thougts are with the ppl dead and the heroes(nsg) who saved the hostages.

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posted Nov 28, 2008

Terror has no color, no religion, no country. To stand by in solidarity with any terror victims needs more than just words. It is up to each individual how they want to stand up to terror. Somehow when this happens in the Asian subcontinent the reaction is very different from the western world. Did terrorism not happen in UK ? How many events were cancelled and how many times was UK asked to prove how secure is UK ?

It really does not matter if England returns or not. This could have happened if you were in the world trade center on 9/11. Then would the reaction be the same ? Indian citizens do not care if we have a cricket series or not. The only folks who are really doing this drama are the ones who want to make money. It is up to the individual teams like England, Australia to retrospect itself and conclude wether they would have reacted the same if this had happened in the US or Europe ?

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posted Nov 28, 2008

^^What do yuo mean terror has no religion?? When terrorism is committed in the name of religion when religious dogma has wiped out any humane feelings towards ppl of other faiths, hwo can you not relate the two?

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posted Nov 28, 2008

Cricket in India is totally different to any where else in the world.
Teams in India & the Indian Cricket Team is made up of Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Parsees, Christians etc., i.e. it is multi-religious & also multi-cultural. The spectators are made up of men, women, children, boys, girls, teenagers & elderly of various faiths & cultures.
There is no better time then now for friends to show solidarity with the Indian people. There is no better time then now for friends to stand "shoulder to shoulder" with India. There is no better time then now for people to show these cowards that we are not afraid & we will not hide or run & nor will they succeed in either to drive a wedge between communities or to affect our freedom to do what we do & enjoy. Only the selfish & greedy come for the sake of money but only true friends come in times of need.
A Test Cricket match in India will bring joy to a billion+ people all around the world & help, be it only temporary, to erase bad memories & sadness & once again unit the people in a common cause.

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posted Nov 28, 2008

Ronaldomilesahead and Spannersdad - cricket and everything else which goes with normal life is exactly what India needs now. Australia did not cancel the Ashes 2005 despite the terror attacks on the Underground in London; there was also an open-top bus tour with a cast of hundreds of thousands lining the route after England's victory, and that told the world Britain was in business. I got on an underground train the day after the attacks to go to work. I lived in central London throughout the IRA bombings of the 1970s when there were explosions only a street away from where I lived, and yes, people were killed.

The England team have contracts to honour, so unless the British government takes the view that no British citizens should go to any part of India, the contract to play in India is nullified. Why should cricketers be protected from the real world more than anyone else?

It is very clear that the security situation must be kept under review and a risk assessment made - on the evidence before them and assuming that the risk is containable, England should definitely go back and play.

And yes, SadlAm-whosSane, I totally agree with you about solidarity with India. In the language school I work in, when the July 2005 attacks happened, hundreds of Spanish students wrote to us and said that no way were they cancelling their courses - they had been through hell in the Atocha bombings and they felt that their best way of standing with us in London was to come and study - and indeed they did, in droves.

I'll be very interested to know whether Pietersen, Flintoff and others in the England camp will be now turning down their IPL opportunity because of security concerns in India....

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posted Nov 28, 2008

England flying back home is a good move given the uncertainty prevailing in Mumbai - It is still possible to have the Test series in Chennai and Ahemedabad later in December - Chennai is a very safe place and quite up and coming city with software, automotive and other industries and chennaiities are cricket knowledgeable ang everywhere people speak english - the british team has done well at chepauk chennai when derek underwood ran through the Indian side in 70's

chennai also will benefit from a top contest test series between flintoff the champ and sachin

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posted Nov 28, 2008

chennai - a great place to play cricket - let us hope the monsoon rains do not play spoilsport - twice against australia, in winter, chennai matches were washed out

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posted Nov 29, 2008

Any extremist activity has to depend to some (albeit minor) extent at least on local logistical support from not so extremist but still sympathetic people. In India/Pak - given the almost religious (within all comunities) support for cricket, any terrorist targeting the game or any cricketer would lose that support base with that one action. Hence, hope I'm never proved wrong, but I think they have not and will not target the game. They only needed to wait a fortnight in this case to target the Mumbai test, FGS.

But of course this is logical (I hope!)thinking and who knows how an extremist thinks.

Also - somehow don't see the shoulder to shoulder rhetoric this time..oops...forgot Mumbai is in the East....altho Alaska could be East of Calcutta from a certain perspective...

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posted Nov 30, 2008

Apparently Fred Flintoff and Steve Harmison are unwilling to return and they might sit out if an England team does go back.

By my count, Swann, KP, Fred, Harmy and Broad have all stated they are 'not 100%' sure they would be happy to return.

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posted Dec 3, 2008

As sad as things are there are those who will always use a particular belief - but hide that with religion. Yes, there is always going to be conflict with faiths, but to totally blame a particular religion for a terrorist's actions is wrong.

Before I have a queue of folks jumping down my throat, think of this: the IRA bombed Manchester in a despicable attack which was Terrorism. What religion are they? Christians. Does this mean that the entire Christian faith is to blame? No.

The Islamic Fundamentalists say they use Islam as a front, but these are people who take what they believe about Islam and twist it to suit their purpsose. Sadly, too many people tar everyone who follows this faith with the same brush.

Personally, anyone out there using Islam as an excuse to bomb or kill anyone is actually betraying Islam, as one of the major laws of Islam is that you mustn't harm anyone else. On this basis alone, these terrorists are not muslims, and furthermore, as a fellow muslim myself, i would back the international community to bring these evil people to justice and impose maximum penalties.

On the subject of cricket, I believe out of respect for the 100+ victims of this tragedy, this tour ought to be called off, and re-arranged at a later date. Those who call for it are not thinking of the victims but either themselves and simply for money, which does the same injustice to the victims as the vicious act itself.

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