IPL 7 – The Aussie Juggernaut

In spite of all the noise made for wrong reasons in the past, and a clamor to ban it this year, IPL is back with a bang and entertaining one n all. Viewership it has garnered since it started 2 weeks back is not surprising, with cricket loving Indians thronging the stadium's or are glued to the TV while the matches are on. The severe beating IPL brand received because of the fixing scandal last year, has not deterred the audiences, it seems. With just the first leg of the tournament over, audiences have already witnessed some amazing skills from the players from various franchisee teams.

Players from down under so far have been the front runners in all departments, be it batting bowling or fielding. The Aussie cricketers are a tough breed of professionals who do not give up easily and their never say die attitude augurs well for the teams they represent. Glenn Maxwell going hammer and tongs and bludgeoning the bowlers is a treat to watch, though it can induce fear in any bowler, who would prefer not to bowl at him, and see his back ASAP. His aggressive brand of batting, very much Aussie, is creating mayhem in the opposite ranks. The pyrotechnics he produced in the last few innings have blown away the bowlers to smithereens.  Punjab team is riding a wave of success with his contribution. Besides Maxwell, the other Aussie batsmen, read Warner, Finch, Smith, Watson are not far behind in matching Maxwell. They can frighten the living daylights out of the bowlers and the teams playing against them. Aussies have impressed all and sundry with their acrobatic skills while fielding and have taken some mind blowing catches which can defy the laws of physics. The catch grabbed by Chris Lynn the other day was an epitome of professionalism and has set a benchmark for others to match and transcend. No superlative or adjective is enough to describe that catch. Similar skills were demoed by the other Aussies in Steven Smith and Mitchell Starc. They have redefined the skills of catching and fielding overall. The Aussies play there cricket aggressively and don’t shy away from expressing themselves onto the opposition. They can be intimidating at times and the opposition can buckle seeing the Aussies run on field like a pack of wily wolves. The game won by Rajasthan Royals in the super over was a great exhibition of cricketing acumen from the Aussies. The Aussie pace attack of Mitchell Johnson, Kane Richardson, Mitchell Starc are doing excellent for their respective teams and exhibiting the art of fast feisty bowling. Seeing them run hard to bowl, can make the best in the business nervous and run helter-skelter.

The Aussies bring a lot to the table and are fierce competitors. The testimony to it, is they outshining the other foreign cricketers playing the IPL. There thorough professionalism is something others should imbibe and follow suit. Their brand of competitive, fierce cricket make them the best in business provided they stay away from sledging and not cross the boundary of sportsmanship. They are a value add to any team and can be a game changer. With just the first phase of IPL- 7 concluded, the Aussie Juggernaut is stealing the show and crushing the opposition mercilessly. In coming days it would be an Hanumanian task for others to stop this Aussie Juggernaut, who as always are fighting to win, period.

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