my spin on richie benaud...

shared by straight point on Thursday, February 19, 2009


so richie benaud has announced his retirement…

when i read about the news i got this feeling that something is lost silently but permanently within, you were thinking like ‘given’ all these years…

here's an interesting anecdote from sunil gavaskar on the intricacies of commentary involving one and only richie benaud...

to me he is like cricket grown in me and epitomizes the person who truly transcended the boundaries…i have not seen anyone who has influenced generations of cricket loving fans so much even after being 'behind the scene'…

you listen to ‘good morning everyone’...his silken voice…and suddenly even the dullest of cricketing moments would become tolerable…

but this post is not about how good was benaud...this is about his retirement...or rather exaggeratedly long retirement...

so after reading that he will retire in 2010 something also ‘yelled’ within me like eh…here’s an another ozie who could not keep himself away from the lure of planning a long retirement…

recently gilchrist enjoyed (or annoyed?) almost full summer as his farewell tour and only yesterday i came across news that they are planning yet another farewell party in sydney for hayden

i just don’t understand their fixation with these long overdriven farewell parties…is it in their blood?

why they just can’t announce immediate retirement…is it so difficult to say i am retiring...and just...retire...

why?

PS: sachin tendlkar commented ‘no comments’ on benaud’s retirement in a press conference...

16 comments:

Gaurav Sethi said...

i doubt channel 9 will allow him to retire - can see them stretching it till he's 80 at least, and have him as a guest commentator for sp slots.

along with the cricket, the commentary's touched an all-time low there, more propaganda, less commentary. the t20 game com box stinks, glad benaud's stayed clear of that.

straight point said...

NC...talking on all time low commentary...to my horror i found this news...

http://www.smh.com.au/news/cricket/nicked-out/2005/10/18/1129401255980.html

the story start with...

Mark Nicholas, one of the men thought likely to succeed Richie Benaud as the captain of Channel Nine's cricket commentary team, has been dropped from the network's line-up for the summer.

speechless!

Gaurav Sethi said...

if true, that's one of the best crick related news i've heard in a long time

straight point said...

indeed NC!...i would have been more happier had they asked healy to cool his heels too...

but none the less good beginning...

Anonymous said...

I am sure it must be contractual obligations due to which he had to plan a long retirement Plan, but even if it is not the case I don't think there is any harm in doing that.

Jonathan said...

He's staying for hte rest of his contract, isn't he?

The problem with the Mark Ridicholas news is that it's about a summer that ended 3 years ago...

Jonathan said...

(And btw, it seems like it's only Indian media describing the charity match as a farewell for Hayden, just because he will be plyaing and he's just retired. It's certainly not planned as a farewell or being marketed that way - I didn't even know he was playing, and I've got tickets.)

straight point said...

wasim & jon

then why not announce retirement then? what stops you to complete your term and when the term is nearing than you announce your retirement...? is it so hard...

isn't the term retirement is meant that way...?

straight point said...

yes jon...that was goof up by me...i was searching for richie's story and bumped on to it without realising the story date i pasted it here...

bad on my part i accept... :|

straight point said...

jon...i quote it from news source and one of the leading newspaper...about the hayden's farwell in sydney...

that all we can quote...new agencies?

Jonathan said...

Sounds like he didn't so much announce his retirement as mention that he wasn't going to keep going when he was asked in an interview.

As for the Hayden story, there is an interesting train of news stories - the fact is that he wsa one of the last players to agree to play in this fundraiser for the Victorian bushfires.

News Limited reported this as the chance he had missed to say farewell with the bat.

That seems to be where the Indo-Asian News Service got the idea, and shortened the article so the match seemed even more focussed on Hayden.

So step by step, we get from Hayden being a tiny detail about a charity match, to a story that sounds like it could be a match planned for Hayden...

straight point said...

that sound like fair assessment jon (about hayden one...)

Anil Singh said...

"Sachin said no comments"... brilliant.

But make him to say something,...why is he so politically correct, each time every time.

straight point said...

you caught it nicely AB! that's why we may never know the real sachin...

may be we should wait for his tell-all book...if he shed his political correctness...that is...

Anonymous said...

The greatest commentator... hope the fans cheer him into continuing. If mark Nicholas is all that is left, you know there can't be possibly anything worse.

straight point said...

no doubt about it scorpy...on both count...

about me...

BCC!straight point (sp) is restless... relentless... but a fun loving guy... likes to live life to fullest... trying to discover himself through cricket... welcome to this little world of his...

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