Long week for cricket

This has been a rather long week for cricket. It started out with the tragic attack on the Sri Lankan team in Lahore. The 'passing the buck' phase is still far from over as far as this incident is concerned. The Sri Lankan team had a lucky escape, but 8 Pakistani members of their escort lost their lives. For now, it does indeed look like all of Pakistan's 'home series' will be hosted in places like Abu Dhabi.

On the other side of the world, England are being ground out on a series of flat tracks, as the West Indies seek their first win in a Test series in a a long time. What was expected to be an easy series has been turned into a defeat, largely due to the batting collapse in the first Test.

Australia, on the other hand, look set to inflict yet another defeat on South Africa. The Aussies really have bounced back splendidly, thanks to some excellent batting by the new boys, Philip Hughes and Marcus North, and a rejuvenated Mitchell Johnson. Once again, the South Africans look to have failed when it matters most, though there's still a whole day left in the 2nd Test.

India have put the disappointment of their T20 defeats behind them, and have taken an unassailable lead in the one-day series against New Zealand. The Kiwis, for all their brave efforts, haven't yet been able to overhaul the massive totals set by Indian batsmen.

Silent traffic jam

The stereotypical traffic jam generally involves a lot of blaring horns along with engines being revved briefly in expectation of a 3-inch gap opening up. A couple of days ago, I was in a traffic jam on the Old Madras Road in Bangalore where there were a 100-150 cars, buses and motorbikes, yet there wasn't a sound to be heard. Not a single horn honking or engine revving or idling. Definitely creepy!