The War Resumes

On the one hand, there is the firepower from across the border. And on our side, a bunch of ageing heroes and exuberant youth who believe in doing or dying. So will we do or die?
Keep your date with the TV remote and watch the war live. As always, the magic of an India- Pakistan encounter never fails to excite the senses. Though, it can't bring the dead back from the barracks, it still has enough power to bring life to a grinding halt, and pack up a billion drawing rooms before a billion TV screens. From CEOs to Coolies, from politicians to power brokers, from bankers to beggars, it's everyone's favorite passion fruit.
Astrologers can predict anything, though it is another matter that they may be wrong on your watch. But predicting an India-Pak match is like predicting who wins in the war of good versus evil. Forge what the holy books tell, but the fact is you can never tell. It can be one, one day, and another, the next.

Don't get the analogy wrong. An India-Pak encounter is not like good vs bad. But that's how most of us feel anyways. So why pretend otherwise?
To fight Pakistan's firepower, India's batsmen will have to keep their powder dry and running, all through the innings. And their firepower is as terrifying as their terror tactics in our border. First stop, Shoib Akthar fires his rockets at 150-plus K. Before you can take a few long breaths, in comes Mohd Asif, with his thunderbolts at near about range. Take a few blinks, regain your breaths, and here comes Gul, with his swing, variation, and cut.
For our proven batsmen, it's going to be the acid test. If Sachin and Saurav can't get their acts right, they may not live to live another day. They may return, not to the pavilion, but to their homes, humbled and humiliated. For the Young Turks, it's a once-in-a-lifetime chance to make or mar their career.

There can be a number of sub-plots, and wars within wars, new heroes may emerge, proving the theory that the series is all about Indian batsmen versus Pakistani bowlers, wrong. To sum up, enjoy the battle - but don't ask who is going to win it!
(P.S: It's India!!).