Bye bye Gilly

Adam Gilchrist announced his retirement from international cricket yesterday. He has been a phenomenon in world cricket. Before he came into the picture, wicketkeepers were supposed to be decent batsmen; a test average of around 30 was supposed to be very good. Seventeen thousand runs and 32 centuries later, he has forever changed the definition of a wicketkeeper batsman.
Some of his career highlights read:

• The fastest Test wicketkeeper to 100 test dismissals.
  
• The fastest Test wicketkeeper to 200 test dismissals.
• World recordholder for the most number of wicketkeeping dismissals in One-Day International cricket.
• World record-holder for the most dismissals in an innings in One-Day International cricket.
• World recordholder for the most number of wicketkeeping dismissals in Test cricket.
• Fastest strike rate in the history of One-Day International cricket for a batsman scoring over 5,000 runs (96.9!).
• First batsman in Test cricket history to hit 100 sixes.
• World record holder for a wicketkeeper for playing consecutive Tests without ever being dropped for form or injury - 96 in all.
  

A perfect gentleman on and off the field, he was a rare batsman who always walked off, without waiting for the umpire's decision, if he nicked the ball.
I first saw him in a 6-a-side tournament where he smashed all the bowlers around the park.
Ian Healy was still at the helm then. While Gilly couldn't replace Healy as a keeper then, he forced his way into the Aussie team purely as a batsman. And what a batsman he was. An average of 47.9 in Test cricket will have done any top order batsman proud but that avg, from a man who batted at no 7, was simply unthinkable. After Healy retired, no other keeper has been able to take his place yet.
The innings that I most remember of his, is the one that he played to steer Australia to a test victory over Pakistan. If memory serves me right, it was an Australian tour of Pak, and Aus had won the 1st 2 tests. Paksitan had played very well in the 3rd test and had Aus on the mat on the 4th innings. Aus needed something like 360 runs to win but were down at 180 odd for 5, courtesy Wasim Akram and co. But Gilchrist came out all guns blazing and turned the match on its head by pounding the pakistani bowlers all over the park. He remained around 130 not out with Langer also scoring a century at the other end. It was one of the greatest innings I have ever seen.

I was truly saddened by the news of his retirement - for watching a great man, irrespective of his origin, at work is an inspiration. It remains to be seen whether Australia can recover from the loss of such great cricketers as Warne, McGrath, Langer and now Gilly in such quick succession. Thanks Gilly for all the entertainment you have provided over the years - and wish you all the best for your future.

O Captain! My Captain!

O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done;
The ship has weather’d every rack, the prize we sought is won;
The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,
While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring:

But O heart! heart! heart!

O the bleeding drops of red,

Where on the deck my Captain lies,

Fallen cold and dead.

O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;
Rise up—for you the flag is flung—for you the bugle trills;
For you bouquets and ribbon’d wreaths—for you the shores a-crowding;
For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning;

Here Captain! dear father!

This arm beneath your head;

It is some dream that on the deck,

You’ve fallen cold and dead.

My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still;
My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will;
The ship is anchor’d safe and sound, its voyage closed and done;
From fearful trip, the victor ship, comes in with object won;

Exult, O shores, and ring, O bells!

But I, with mournful tread,

Walk the deck my Captain lies,

Fallen cold and dead.

A young boy of 16 inchoate years goes to Australia with the India cricket team. After just 1 ODI, he is dropped from the team. He is written off by the critics and excoriated by the media. Everyone gives up on him. Except the boy himself. Armed with nothing but self belief he dares to dream and instead of sinking into an abyss of negativity, he channels all his frustrations into performing well in domestic cricket.
After slogging it out for 4 yrs, he finally gets the long cherished national call up. After an unceremonious walkout by a prominent player, he gets a chance to prove himself. The stage: the home of world cricket - Lords. He walks out regally and stamps his class over the game bewitching the crowd with his majestic cover drives and fluency. A century on debut at Lords. He follows this up with another century in his very next innings in the next test. All his doubters turn colour and laud him as if they never doubted his mettle in the first place. He becomes a hero back home. He is christened the Prince of Calcutta. Time moves on...and he becomes the captain of the Indian team when Indian cricket was going through a tumultuous phase of match fixing allegations. He takes a young unproven team and gels them into a winning combination, becoming India's most successful Captain ever. As a player, he becomes one of the highest run getters ever in International cricket.
So did he live happily ever after? He would have, but providence had other ideas. After giving so much to India cricket, he is malevolently thrown out of the team by the authoritarian new national coach who cannot stand the respect that our young boy, now an experienced man, commands among his boys. Any lesser man would have packed his bags and left for good. He just packs his cricket kit and comes to the practice field. And he trains. He trains and produces a mountain of runs in banal cricket fields all over the country. After a year of toil, he finally gets his dues - he is picked as part of the team for the South African tour.
And then he performs. In the hard and bouncy pitches of South Africa, he emerges as the highest Indian run getter in the series. After forcing his way into the ODI team, he emerges as the 5th highest ODI run getter for the the entire year after his comeback. Towards the end of that very year, he strikes a purple patch and becomes the 2nd highest run getter in Test cricket for that year, scoring a double century against India's arch rival Pakistan to help India win the series.
Then comes the big test. Against the best team in the world, he continues his rich vain of form although in a losing cause in the first two tests, while being subjected to some Buck-was umpiring decisions. Then in the 3rd test, he is part of arguably India's greatest Test victory ever. When he is sure that he has finally weathered the storm, he is dealt the final blow. He is dropped again by the selectors and the current ODI captain. Our hero is shattered. Our hero is stunned. He recalls that it was he who had brought the new Captain into the team and backed him for success. But then he remembers, Brutus was never dead.

Integrative Thinking

The latest management fad or the new horizon in management? Whatever may be the case, it certainly grabs your attention.
In an article in HBR (Harvard Business Review), Roger Martin, the dean of Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto tries to get into the head of successful business leaders and analyze their unique way of synthesizing conflicting ideas.
Many books have been written about the decisions and the results achieved by great executives but he takes the less trodden path to deconstruct and analyze the causality of these actions – their decision making process itself. He says that many times we have two opposing ideas in our heads. While conventional thinkers usually panic or simply settle for one alternative or the other, integrative thinkers are able to creatively resolve the tension between these two ideas by generating a new one which is an eclectic mix of the best points in both the original ideas. He has extensively studied the actions of and interviewed many highly successful executives like Jack Welch, Larry Bossidy, etc to establish his viewpoint.

What is a key takeaway from the article is his conclusion that integrative thinking is not an innate quality but may be developed and perfected over time with awareness and a conscious approach towards the integrative thinking concept. Not only was this article an interesting read, but it also got me thinking about my own personality. I used to think this as a quirk in my own thinking that whenever I am faced in a multifarious situation with equally strong and often conflicting alternatives, I tend to be very careful about taking a particular stance. Most of the times, I ponder over the matter for a long time until I am absolutely certain of the actions and their implications. In most cases, it’s not an either-or decision. For example, in the Toastmasters club that we are trying to set up, there were various views on the cost structure we can propose to the management.
1. Company pays the entire fees associated with the club.
2. The company pays only the $125 chartership fee but the membership fees should be borne by the members themselves.
Now the first option can be very effective in attracting potential new members. But the problem, I have found out from other Toastmasters with similar fee structure, is that many members register with the club just to get it on their CV but never show up again. This is certainly not desirable from the club’s point of view
While the 2nd option is very effective in getting the company’s approval, it hits the members very hard – on their pockets. So this is certainly a deterrent for any potential new member.
After discussing this over with a lot of people, I have come to the conclusion that a hybrid fee structure is the most effective solution. I present to you option 3 (drum roll):
3. Company pays $125 charter fees and $20 new member fees. But the $27 recurring fee is paid by the member himself. However, whenever the member completes say 5 speeches (50% of CTM certification), the company reimburses 50% of the fees paid by the member till date. And on completing 10 speeches (CTM certification), he gets back the rest of the membership fees paid till date.
This structure is genial on the pockets of both parties concerned and performance based as well, in the sense that a member gets back the fees based on his involvement in the club.
Now that’s integrative thinking!

Bitten by Toastmasters

I had my first brush with Toastmasters in Pune, through my previous company.
Toastmasters Club is an internationally recognized club for developing your public speaking skills. Many renowned companies like Infosys, TCS, Capgemini, Cisco, etc as well as great B-schools like ISB, IIMB, Harvard, MIT, Wharton, etc have a Toastmasters chapter.

Back then, we weren't Toastmasters club yet, just a cohort of enthusiastic people who wanted to develop our public speaking skills. The informal club was called Lets Talk Club (duh)! But then gradually the word spread and we became a full fledged Toastmasters club. I was actively involved in its set up, as a Treasurer - (sigh!)- and it felt gr8 to be able to start the club there.
I could not enjoy the fruits of my success though.
At the time the club started functioning, I had already taken up an offer for employment in Kolkata, where, at that time, there was no Toastmasters chapter. Then after a long hiatus, 2 weeks ago to be precise, the bug bit me again. Why not start a new club here? Like most simple questions, this had no simple answer

Back in Pune, there were so many able and industrious people around me and I was a mere cog in the wheel. But if I had to start something now, I had to take on enormous responsibility. But then again, someone has to dare - to venture where no man (at least in my Company!) has gone before!
I realized that I could not do it alone. So I managed to rope in 3 of my colleagues who were aware of the idea of Toastmasters. The most important task before us was generating publicity. I knew that once at least 20 enthusiastic people were 'in', the rest would be a ball in the park.
I also established contact with the only Toastmasters club in Kolkata (which had sprung up 2 months back). The president there is a very nice and helpful guy. He guided us a lot and even allowed us to attend their TM sessions.
By this week we have already managed to pique the interest of around 15 people.
The next step would be to get under the aegis of management. We have a meeting coming up with our Learning and Edu Dept head next week. So if everything goes well, my 2nd Toastmasters baby would be born sometime next month.
Cheers