OH NO!

Our worst fears come true! Jamaican police have confirmed that Bob Woolmer was strangulated. An innocent life has been taken away - and for what! A result of a game or something more nasty? Absolutely disgusting! One can only hope that the perpetrators of this heinous crime are brought to justice. Just once, I'd like justice delivered by the kind of people who chanted "Death to Woolmer, Death to Inzamam" and who broke down Mahendra Dhoni's house!

Cricinfo - Woolmer May Have Been Murdered

A disturbing article here by Cricinfo here. I sincerely hope that this is not true because if it is, then the last vestiges of innocence that the sport of Cricket could have claimed to have had will be lost! A sport that causes people to be killed due to the result of a match is a sport that most people would find very difficult to be associated with...

UPDATE: STAR News was conducting an interview with Mrs. Woolmer. The idiot conducting the interview was asking all sorts of insensitive questions about the book Bob was writing, whether it's been finished or not ad nauseum. Mrs. Woolmer seemed very composed and patient answering the never-ending questions being posed to her. One thing that Mrs. Woolmer did mention was that Bob would never have killed himself over a match, thus ruling out suicide and that she thought that the thought of him overdosing was ludicrous. This makes it clear that she believes that there is definitely something suspicious in his death.

The Pakistanis are understandbly shaken up by this news and don't want to play tomorrow's match against Zimbabwe. This may seem harsh for Zimbabwe, who are still in it with a chance to progress to the next round, but some things are more important than mere Cricket matches!

Inzy To Carry Bob's Coffin to SA

A touching article here.

Bob Woolmer - RIP

I was thinking of creating this blog yesterday when I heard the news that Bob Woolmer had been admitted to hospital. At that time, my friends and I joked about how it would be better to stay in a hospital in Jamaica rather than face Pakistani fans like these. However, I was certainly worried about how seriously ill he was. My fears were confirmed when a few minutes later, Cricinfo broke the news about Mr. Woolmer's death - the awful feeling that followed my moments of insenstivity is too hard to express.

My Cricketing Blog pays homage to Robert Andrew "Bob" Woolmer, truly a pioneer in the Cricket world. He was at the forefront of using technology (the famous Laptop Coach) to find out the smallest of flaws in the opposition and exploiting them to the fullest. I remember vividly when South Africa (then coached by Bob) routinely got Sachin Tendulkar out trying to loft Fanie de Villiers' slower ball over mid-wicket. No doubt that those dismissals had Bob's input in them!

Mr. Woolmer's death also shows just how much pressure cricketers and those associated with them are under, especially in India and Pakistan. Just imagine, being a foreigner living in a country half a world away from your own, having to deal with not only temperamental cricketers but also crazed fans, listening to barbs from past "greats" calling you a "gora" mercenary... India's own Greg Chappell has already had to endure a lunatic slapping him for not including players from his state, but further discussion about this will have to wait for a later post. My Cricketing Blog hopes that Mr. Woolmer's untimely death serves the purpose of bringing things into perspective - it's a game after all and that's all it should remain!