At 22, can Sania Mirza make a comeback?

Sania Mirza was the heartthrob of millions. Good looks combined with tennis skills made her a heroine, a poster girl. The whole nation looked up to her to bring home more and more laurels and proudly followed her career.

At the age of 22, Sania is the 91^st ranked women tennis player in the latest (September 8) WTA list. That sounds good. An Indian girl in the top 100. But what is bothersome is the route map to her present grade.

Sania Mirza started 2005 with a rank of 134. From there onwards, it was a steady climb. By the end of August 2005 she had brilliantly fought her way to the 42^nd place. In August 2007 she reached her best ever rating, 27^th in the world. That was incredible. Many expected her to break into the top 20 this year. But instead it was a downward slide from then on.

What went wrong? A lack of focus and commitment? Nonchalance? Immaturity? I suppose a bit of all these plus fitness problems and a penchant for getting into controversies. Some of the issues she had to face were ridiculous. They were not of her making but brought severe pressures on her.

However, Sania Mirza cannot shirk the responsibility for appearing at the Beijing Olympics march past in training clothes. The explanation that she had to come straight from practice was childish. All those thousands of athletes who took part also had to practice.

Sania Mirza could have taken a cue from Leander Paes (once ranked 73 in men’s singles) for commitment and fitness. Or she could draw inspiration from the other three Indian girls who are doing brilliantly in their chosen sports.

Saina Nehwal is just 18. She reached the quarterfinals in badminton at Beijing Olympics with a great performance. The girl is now ranked 14 in the world. The other two are in squash racquets. Joshna Chinnappa, 22, the National Women’s Champion, is 39^th in the world (slipped two places recently). There is an interesting aside about Joshna. When someone mentioned that she was the Sania Mirza of badminton, her repartee was, ‘No, Sania is the Joshna Chinnappa of tennis’.

Then there is Dipika Pallikkal, the beauty who will be turning 17 this month. (A rising hope squashed?) This brilliant squash player is the world’s 57th ranked women. She slipped three places in the latest ranking. She certainly has a bright future if she does not follow Sania Mirza’s pattern.

There are great comeback stories in sports. Let us hope that Sania Mirza returns with all glory. But that would take a lot of character and hard work. Among the current top ten women tennis players, four are her age or younger. On the other hand is the example of Lindsay Davenport. Even at the age of 32, she is ranked 21.

Sania can still do it. She should ignore everything else and concentrate on her game and fitness.

Ends.

Also see:

Tennis: Leander Paes, the Indian Hero

Ramanathan Krishnan: India’s Tennis Legend.

Dragonflies, Onathumpi

Do you remember chasing dragonflies as a child? Catching one and tying a string to its tail? Making it lift small stones and splinters? It is a fascinating childhood pastime.

There are so many interesting tales about the dragonfly from several parts of the world. In some areas it is considered sinister. Possibly because of the stone lifting capability, a Swedish folklore says that dragonflies are used by the devil to weigh the souls of people. In Kerala, India, there is a story that these insects belonging to the order of Odonata serve as a transit abode to the souls of the dead.

Can you imagine a connection or similarity between a dragonfly and a horse? Well, according to a Romanian legend, dragonfly was originally a horse which became possessed by the devil. There are similar Maltese tales as well. In some parts of the world it is believed that dragonflies follow snakes around with the objective of repairing any hurt the reptiles might sustain.

In Japan the dragonflies have a different status. They are considered as the mark of strength, courage and happiness. The Japanese and Chinese use them in traditional medicine also. It is said that the insect is a culinary delicacy in Indonesia.

Among some of the Native Americans too, dragonflies symbolize hope and revival. The Navajo Nation considers them as an icon of pure water.

But stories apart, the dragonflies render a great service to humanity. They are predators who thrive on mosquitoes, flies and other harmful

small insects, thereby controlling such pests.

Since this is the time of Onam in Kerala, I must make a mention of the connection between dragonflies and the great festival before concluding. ‘Onathumpi’ a specie of Odonata that appears around this time is an integral part of the lore linked to the festivities.

I wonder if any other language has so many songs about dragonflies (Onathumpi) as there is in Malayalam, the vernacular of Kerala. Here is the first stanza of one by Sreekumaran Thampi:

‘Poovili poovili

Ponnonamayee

Nee varu nee varu

Ponnonathumpi’

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Photos: Top two from Wikimedia Commons. Last three from Olavipe. Copyright reserved. Click to enlarge.

Also see:

Photos: Vegetables for Onam

Kerala photos: Flowers for Onam

Kerala food: Aviyal, Bhima’s own dish, for Onam

Kerala food: banana aftermath of Onam

Flowers for Onam

Photos: Vegetables for Onam

Top eight pictures from Thekkanattu Parayil Estate, Olavipe.
The vegetables are organically grown.
Copyright reserved.
Last two images from Wikimedia Commons.
Click to enlarge.
Also see:

Onam: Pookalams in water

Kerala food: banana aftermath of Onam

Kerala: Onam goes up in spirit

123 Agreement: Is India getting what it wants?

A US Congressman makes public an internal note from his government relating to the Indo-American nuclear deal, and the tumult and the shouting starts in India.

What is the significance of this note? Does it infringe on India’s sovereignty? Was it part of what could be called Bushing (not to be mixed up with ‘phishing’ or ‘bushing’), which sometimes causes confusion. President Bush is said to have his own lexicon. Perhaps the President, though he didn’t sign the note, could have been misleading his own people.

What does the note say? The main point of objection in India appears to be the mention that the US would stop nuclear supplies if India conducts an atomic test. Now, how could such an eventuality come about?

The relevant points are:

1. India has a self-imposed moratorium on nuclear testing in force. To carry out a test in future, the ban has to be revoked. Is that likely?

2. The countries, India included, that are advanced in nuclear technology do not, it would appear, need to carry out more physical tests. The exercise is now done on computers.

3. If India does conduct a test on some future date, the nuclear supplies from the US do not stop automatically. The incumbent US President at that time would have to decide. The commercial benefits to the US would be a major factor in arriving at a conclusion.

4. The US is not the only supplier of India’s nuclear requirements.

5. We are looking at a short 4/5 decade time-span till our thorium-based technology is streamlined.

(See my post dated 8/18/07, Indo-US nuclear agreement)

International agreements are confined to what is inked by the countries involved and do not include internal notes of one party. The Government of India certainly could not have presented the confidential domestic communication of another country for debate in the Parliament.

If the Americans had formally sent us a copy of the note concerned, we would have had to take cognizance of it. As of now it remains an opinion, rightly or wrongly worded, of an outgoing administration. The next administration in the White House may or may not endorse it.

Our sensitivity to what others say amounts to a lack of self confidence. The question should be whether we know what we want and are we getting it? Why waste time and energy on what is whispered behind our backs or the internal dialogue of another country?

On 6/23/08 I wrote (Nuclear Deal: The Left, and the Right) that China would be the gainer if the Indo-American Nuclear Deal did not materialize. Now it seems clear that China has reservations about it. Surely, internal notes (if China has that system) would have passed within that country’s government. There is no reason why we should bother about that.

What is intriguing is the timing and the reason for Congressman Howard Berman to make the note public. He reportedly said that he wanted the people of America to know. That revelation came to him after holding on to the communication for nearly nine months. If the NSG had approved the Indo-American Nuclear Deal at its earlier meeting, Berman would have missed the bus, whatever his reason was for wanting to board it.

Let us look at the matter objectively. If the final product is acceptable, we take it. Otherwise we dump it.

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Kerala photos: Flowers for Onam

Photos by me. Copyright reserved.
Click to enlarge.

World Coconut Day: Photo of piggyback coconut sapling

Today, September 2, is World Coconut Day. I did not know that such an observance existed till reading Malayali’s best friend – The Coconut in Maddy's Ramblings. To commemorate the day, I am publishing this photograph which I took at Olavipe in August.

The photo captures a strange scene. A sapling is growing on the stump of an old coconut palm that had been cut down. Usually, such stubs are good only for use as firewood or, in rare cases, for carving (see Coconut wood sculpture: Stump to sheep). It does not grow. In other words, it is considered as dead wood.

Here, the sapling did not originate from the stump. A coconut which somehow got lodged on the remains of the felled palm sprouted and caught on. Either someone placed it there and forgot to collect it later. Or it could have been stuck there while falling from a nearby coconut tree. Anyway, nobody noticed it till the seedling was prominently visible. Judging by the size of the sapling, the coconut would have been there for more than two years.

The plant looks very healthy. How does it get nutrients since it has no direct contact with the ground? The inside of a coconut tree stump turns into pith and can accommodate roots. But the outer wood is very hard and there is no way by which the roots of the new plant can break through it to reach the soil.

Last month the Agriculture Officer for our area came to inspect this strange phenomenon. Her conclusion was that some of the roots of the stump were still active. They draw nutrients from the ground and pass them on to the sapling. I suppose she is right. Can you think of any other explanation?

How long will the sapling survive in this strange life support mode? Will it grow into a big palm? Will it yield coconuts, say, eight years from now?

Who knows? We will have to wait and see.

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Copyright reserved. Click on photo to enlarge.

Also see: Coconut photos: From sprouts to saplings to yielding trees

Kerala food: Aviyal, Bhima’s own dish, for Onam

Onam, the most famous festival of Kerala is just around the corner. Thiruonam is on the 12^th of September. Can a Malayalee (Keralite) think of Onasadhya without aviyal? This famous cooked vegetable ‘salad’ is supposed to have been invented by Bhima.

It is believed that the Pandavas spent a considerable time in Kerala during their year of hiding after the vanavasa (living in the forests) of 12 years. (See Travel: Mist covers the mountain tops)

If they were recognized during that period the cycle of vanavasa and hiding had to be repeated. They had to be very careful to remain incognito. While the other Pandavas were satisfied with living on fruits etc., Bhima’s appetite required more solid food.

One day in desperation, he gathered all the edible vegetables available, cut them up, put them in a vessel and poured some water into it. He added grated coconut, curry leaves, salt, turmeric etc and boiled the pot. He took it off the fire when the water had almost dried up. And, aviyal was born! Possibly it looked something like in the picture below:

Bhima loved it and so did the people during the millenniums that followed. I don't think anyone would dispute that aviyal is Kerala’s favorite vegetable dish.

One could possibly write the recipe for aviyal by looking at the photo. There are no hard and fast rules or rigid list of ingredients. The requirements are vegetables on hand, coconut, turmeric, curry leaves and salt. Add something for sourness if you like. May be a little coconut oil or coconut milk, before taking off the fire.

In short, aviyal is a dish that you blend to your taste with available inputs. Or, if you like, there are many recipes available on the Internet.

Aviyal is great, any time.

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Photo by me from Olavipe. Copyright reserved. Click to enlarge.

Also see: Sadhya - a sumptuous Kerala meal