Shivsena patriarch, the MI matriarch and Jack Kallis steal show in first half of IPL 3

Chuck Doherty comes from a beach town of England. He has seen his people playing cricket in stodgy whites over the years during the weekends with the same dedication the Chancellors presented the annual budget to the Commons. Nonetheless, he swore that he had not seen anything related to cricket anytime in his country like the cricket carnival happening in India at present that could even make Kerry Packer blush. Natural, gaping at the bizarre event he asked me, 'Do we have an electricity shortage in the UK?'

Game number six for Royal Callenge Bangalore; Found Doherty lost for words while praising Jaques Kallis's excellent technique-temprament package. However, he also warned that the Springbok, with his strange ways that could even draw a sceptic to thinking that the big batsman was driven by the charm of milestones, could perhaps jeopardise the scopes of the Mallya XI. 'I still think that a display of this strange ways of his by treating Mark Waugh's innocuous and predictable slowers - while 18 initimidating balls from Shane Warne were looming over the crowns of a team not so famous for their tackling spin - with outlandish respect would have cost the dreams of an otherwise deserving team in the 99 World Cup' said Doherty. He added that Jennings shows some intelligence by injecting a steadying agent say Robin Uthappa into the second opener's slot.

Another person that attracted Doherty's attention was the big personality stradling the Mumbai Indian dressing room. No....not the God this time (Doherty reveals that Tendulkar can no more impress him with mere hundreds) but the matriarch of the 'family in blue', which recently has been showing that rare spark of camaraderie and reaping rich dividents. 'Ms Ambani...I am fascinated by her remarkable gesture of caring; her huddling with hundreds of under-previleged kids really touches. Cricket has definitely benefitted a lot of such Oliver Twists across this country, either via Waughs and Akrams or through these fresh patrons. I honestly do not know if she had been doing this over the years..no issues either if she has not been....as long as she ensures that this continues taking a bite out of the exemplary works of Zaputuo Angami, a widow from Nagaland who is a virtual mother to 693 children', he remarked.

Doherty during one of those lighter moments, mentioned his having a mongrel back at his home that had cultivated an annoying habit of having a bite at anything that came across it. He reckoned it meeting its match finally in a toad. Despite the first terribly unpleasant feel experienced by the dog while biting the toad, followed by many more later, it has still not learned the lesson and still chases one given a chance only to grimace in utter discomfort as a result. This reminded me of another thing in this part of the world....not exactly a dog, but an outfit with a dogged sort of mindset towards anything that stinks in the ditches - Shiv Sena. This time the inglorious supremo/supremos of the organisation has made another shameful u-turn just a day after attacking the proposed marriage of Sania Mirza and Shoaib Malik to say that it is Sania's personal decision and they had nothing to do with it.

Whatsoever someone who is relieved here is obviously Lalith Modi, for Mumbai Indians have finished with all its home fixtures. Significantly without any instance of pitch ploughing, or even the throwing of a bottle. Sachin is safe, Shah Rukh is safe, so is the big? B and most importantly peace for the paper tigers...at least until the next IPL season.