AMA Sure, what the hell.. Ask me (VC the slogger)

[VC the slogger]

Well you did manage Abu Dhabi Warriors in my Emirates Cricket League and New Zealand in Cricket History Redefined.

Both were pretty good leagues. I preferred the latter though, as it's not everyday I get a chance to manage one of my all-time favorite teams i.e New Zealand under Stephen Fleming in the 2000s.

 

[Aislabie]

Ten questions I've come up with because I can't sleep:

1. What are the first three items you can think of from your bucket list?
2. What is your proudest achievement to date?
3. What piece of wisdom do you feel you ought to share?
4. If I listen to one song tomorrow, what song should it be?
5. You have to pick a cricket team made of players from any era in history. Who is your first pick and why?
6. Which one person who you've never met would you like to invite to dinner?
7. If you have participated in any of my leagues, which was your favourite?
8. What, in your opinion, is the king of biscuits?
9. If you were to declare your house an independent micronation, what would be on your flag?
10. If you could turn a non-cricketing country into a cricketing country overnight, which one and why?

 

[VC the slogger]

What are the first three items you can think of from your bucket list?

• Get back to playing cricket again. I was a complete misfit back when I used to play regularly, but that's clearly no longer the case in my opinion. Ironically, despite being in better shape than at any point in my life before I've not held a bat or ball properly in nearly 4 years now.
• Travel places. I've ticked off a few from my bucket list already but this is something that has continued to elude me due to various reasons.
• Just in general, go one better at whatever I do with every day.

What is your proudest achievement to date?

Just how far I've come in life in general compared to a few years previously, when I was horribly overweight, lacked confidence in myself, was quite broke too with several debts (around INR 600,000) to pay and had just lost my father. Particularly how I went from weighing 110 kg at one point to my current weight of 82 kg, and managed to clear all those debts. I also managed to go through the whole of 2017 completely sober despite many temptations along the way.

What piece of wisdom do you feel you ought to share?

That one should always believe in themselves regardless of the situations they find themselves in, what people think of them or however difficult the road ahead may appear to them. Life isn't meant to be easy after all.

If I listen to one song tomorrow, what song should it be?

This one. There is no better in my opinion.

And this one's a close second..

You have to pick a cricket team made of players from any era in history. Who is your first pick and why?

Don Bradman. Because he's Don freaking Bradman. There has never been or can never be a better batsman than him. A bit tough on Bart King, who would be my second pick.

Which one person who you've never met would you like to invite to dinner?

I'd invite you.

If you have participated in any of my leagues, which was your favourite?

The World Cup '32 series beyond any doubt. The old APL seasons were also fun although I was a noob back then.

What, in your opinion, is the king of biscuits?

Well, I do love Oreos.

If you were to declare your house an independent micronation, what would be on your flag?

Something quite similar to this..

If you could turn a non-cricketing country into a cricketing country overnight, which one and why?

Burkina Faso. That way I can finally find an excuse to bring them in for the African leg of my 2019 WC qualifiers. They would be captained by Abidine Sakande obviously. I can't find any scorecard or proof of an existing national team at the moment, which is very frustrating.

 

[Fenil]

It's closely followed by @CaptainCremer's Zimbabwe Premier League, where I remember once managing a pretty strong team (though I can't remember which) alongside @Fenil. It's been a while since I participated there however.

If I remember correctly, the only team I've managed in ZPL is Matabeleland Tuskers and I loved every moment of being a part of it.

 

[RUDI]

@VC the slogger

1. Upon joining PlanetCricket, what did you hope to get gain out of this site (on an emotional level) ?
2. Who was your first genuine friend here on PlanetCricket?
3. Rivalries. Can you remember your first unfriendly interaction here on PlanetCricket? If so what happened and who is the individual in question?
4. Your take on Forum regulars? Surely there is better ways to spend your time than on a social platform like PlanetCricket.
5. What frustrates you the most (or really gets you mad) here on the forums ?
   
6. Your take on social media bullies? Will you openly stand up for someone here if they were bullied by the " in-crowd" ?
7. Explain something to me that you think is complicated ... any topic .. that you feel is complicated.
8. Is there a question I haven't asked you, but should?

 

[VC the slogger]

Upon joining PlanetCricket, what did you hope to get gain out of this site (on an emotional level) ?

I joined this site for the sole purpose of downloading patches for Cricket 07. I did not look to gain anything out of it, but over the years I've made some truly fine acquaintances and learnt a great deal from interacting with people from many different parts of the world. And that's a good thing in my opinion.

Who was your first genuine friend here on PlanetCricket?

@HARISH S. He rarely ever logs in these days, but we remain in contact via Facebook occasionally.

Rivalries. Can you remember your first unfriendly interaction here on PlanetCricket? If so what happened and who is the individual in question?

When I first joined this forum I was very immature, slightly troubled on an emotional level and hardly ever listened to anybody, even if they were trying to help me. So yeah, during that time I think I had plenty such interactions which I'm not proud of with several people whom I get along with quite well these days including @Aislabie, @Freedom, @Fenil etc.

Your take on Forum regulars? Surely there is better ways to spend your time than on a social platform like PlanetCricket.

There are 24 hours in the day. Quite enough to spend some quality time on this site and not miss out on any of work, exercise, sleep or any important day-to-day activities if you distribute your hours properly. It's more a matter of will you rather than can you in my opinion.

What frustrates you the most (or really gets you mad) here on the forums ?

When people completely disregard the code of conduct on an internet forum and treat it like a goddamn chatroom.

Your take on social media bullies? Will you openly stand up for someone here if they were bullied by the " in-crowd" ?

Anyone who's cowardly enough to do such a thing as bully someone over social media isn't really worth the time or attention it takes to classify them as real bullies. They need to get help themselves.

Explain something to me that you think is complicated ... any topic .. that you feel is complicated.

Politics.

Is there a question I haven't asked you, but should?

That's for you to decide.

 

[Aislabie]

I'd invite you.

 

[RUDI]

Just how far I've come in life in general compared to a few years previously, when I was horribly overweight, lacked confidence in myself, was quite broke too with several debts (around INR 600,000) to pay and had just lost my father. Particularly how I went from weighing 110 kg at one point to my current weight of 82 kg, and managed to clear all those debts. I also managed to go through the whole of 2017 completely sober despite many temptations along the way.

Well done Varun Truly inspirational

 

[Dipak]

Just how far I've come in life in general compared to a few years previously, when I was horribly overweight, lacked confidence in myself, was quite broke too with several debts (around INR 600,000) to pay and had just lost my father. Particularly how I went from weighing 110 kg at one point to my current weight of 82 kg, and managed to clear all those debts. I also managed to go through the whole of 2017 completely sober despite many temptations along the way.

Amazing!

 

[zimrahil]

How does it feel like to have first 2 pages of new posts all made by you?

 

[VC the slogger]

How does it feel like to have first 2 pages of new posts all made by you?

 

[Deleted member 46200]

1. What are the things that stand between you and complete happiness?
2. What will people say at your funeral?
3. If you lost everything tomorrow, whose arms would you run into to make everything ok?
4. Does this person know how much they mean to you? When was the last time you told them?
5. If you could send a message to the entire world, what would you say in 30 seconds?
6. If today was the last day of your life, what would you want to do?
7. If your entire life was a movie, what title would best fit?
8. How would you describe yourself in 5 words?
9. What are the chances you’ve passed up on that you regret?
10. How do you apply the learning from this regret to your actions today?

 

[VC the slogger]

What are the things that stand between you and complete happiness?

Frankly, I don't think there is any such thing as complete happiness. Life is full of it's ups and downs, and we need to go through both to be genuinely happy.

What will people say at your funeral?

Hopefully something nice and heartfelt. Perhaps something about my achievements, my fervent desire to beat the odds stacked against me and my great musical taste as well.

If you lost everything tomorrow, whose arms would you run into to make everything ok?

My mother's.

Does this person know how much they mean to you? When was the last time you told them?

I am sure she does.

If you could send a message to the entire world, what would you say in 30 seconds?

I would say "FREE DRINKS FOR EVERYBODY!! Just kidding lol, now that you have my attention.." and then sing a shortened version of John Lennon's Imagine.


There, that's my message. And frankly, there can't be a better one in my opinion.

If today was the last day of your life, what would you want to do?

• Spend quality time with everyone I love.
• Make one last effort to mend a few broken relationships.
• Make peace with everyone I've ever wronged or everyone who has ever wronged me.
  
• Donate most of my things to people who will actually need them which includes money. My family can have the rest.
• Have one last kickass session at the gym where I give it my absolute best.
• Perhaps play a game of cricket with friends and anyone else who's willing.
• Have a nice and hearty meal. Preferably pizza.
• Play this song on loudspeakers before it's my time.

If your entire life was a movie, what title would best fit?

I'd just like it to be called VC, like they did Abraham Lincoln's by just calling it Lincoln. Hopefully I don't have to get shot in the head for that to happen.

How would you describe yourself in 5 words?

Kind, helpful, determined, passionate, but sometimes mercurial.

What are the chances you’ve passed up on that you regret?

I don't regret any.

How do you apply the learning from this regret to your actions today?

Again, no regrets. I try to use whatever it is I learned to make myself a better person from what I was the day before.

 

[Aislabie]

Ten more

Cricket

Which player, in your opinion, didn't play enough international cricket?

Similarly, which player has played far too much international cricket?

Which Cricket World Cup, in your opinion, was the best of all time?

Which non-cricketing athlete would you most like to see trained up into a cricketer and why?

Which eight teams would you include in a Premier League made up of franchises from anywhere in the world?


Not

If sleep was unnecessary, what would you do with that time?

An honest magician offers you the chance to live forever. What do you say?

What common thing will you never experience?

What is something that you will always buy the expensive version of?

Do you ever find yourself wanting to answer your own questions on your AMA?


And a bonus one...

In the movie VC, written by you about your life, what detail would you embellish or invent entirely?

 

[VC the slogger]

Which player, in your opinion, didn't play enough international cricket?

There are several I can think of, but none better than Shane Bond. If not for injures, I believe he could have become the greatest New Zealand pace bowler of all-time, possibly even better than Sir Richard Hadlee who had the advantage of playing in an era when pitches were slightly more bowler-friendly compared to those Bond played on for most of his career. He played only 18 Tests, and New Zealand won 10 of them in which he averaged a mind-boggling 14.81 with the ball. They won only 13 of the other 62 Tests they played without Bond in the 2000s.

Similarly, which player has played far too much international cricket?

Rubel Hossain. I'll grant he's a very useful bowler to have in limited overs cricket, but his skills as a long-format cricketer are beyond horrible. With an average of 79 after 25 Tests and 57.80 after 49 first class matches, how Bangladesh keep selecting him is just beyond me..

Which Cricket World Cup, in your opinion, was the best of all time?

If not for that deluded Super 8s format that made it drag on forever, my answer to this question could have been the 2007 World Cup. It was the first proper World Cup I had gotten around to watching as a cricket fan and had some of my favorite players growing up in it such as Stephen Fleming, Glenn McGrath, Brian Lara etc. To see Ireland and Bangladesh topple established nations was also a treat to watch, as was Gilchrist's batting in the final. We all know what happened next.

Absolute shambles.

So I'm gonna go with the 2011 World Cup instead. To see my own country lift the World Cup after 28 years was simply brilliant to watch, and could have been a perfect way for Tendulkar to finish his ODI career had he the sense to call it quits at the time rather than drag on for another year till he was well past his prime. It also featured that stunning upset of the English cricket team at the hands of Ireland which made it all the more sweeter for a global cricket fan like myself.

Which non-cricketing athlete would you most like to see trained up into a cricketer and why?

Usain Bolt. Apparently, he was good enough to bowl over Chris Gayle this one time and was in talks to appear in the BBL but that never materialized.

Which eight teams would you include in a Premier League made up of franchises from anywhere in the world?

A franchise each from Australia, China, France, Mexico, New Zealand, Germany, USA and the UK - the places I'd like to visit most in the world.


To be continued..