A New Obsession

Today, for the first time, I experienced a truly Indian sensation. And it even included chai break.

I'm talking about cricket. The game seems highly unusual on TV to the American viewer, with all of the players wearing white (I'll never understand those silly hats) and this obsession with the word "wicket". But underneath the seemingly slow game play and vague similarities to American baseball, cricket supports a vary complex series of mental complications that keeps the game in balance.

We played in the back of the hotel parking lot, in between buildings. It was raining, and there wasn't that much room, so we played without runners and shorter rules. Although our professor (and cricket-master) brought a ... bat? Stick? ... we only had one tennis ball, so when that went over the wall, a rescue party had to be arranged in short order to continue game play. A couple of us had played softball/baseball, so we had a slight advantage, but at this stage of competition the most useful skill was quick reflexes/ We all had a lot of fun and, although we may not quite understand all of the rules for scoring yet, have come with a refreshed interest in learning the intricacies of the game.

And it goes without saying that my team won. TEAM DOMINATION!!