Howzzat
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Is that so? Also, what will happen when India goes to Australia again and faces a team that does have Steve Smith and David Warner? Can these two players stop India from winning on its home soil again?
Let’s get this right. India won the test series in Australia because of one reason alone—that the captain of the Australian team was Tim Paine. Poor chap was born in 1984 on a full-moon day. ‘Poor’ because he captained the weakest team in terms of performance. The full moon made him the captain. Unfortunately for him, he was against Virat Kohli, who has one of the best horoscopes ever. Tim Paine was born for this painful moment for Australia—to captain them at their lowest point. Unfortunately, he was the chosen one. Just how good is Paine’s horoscope? Well, as good as Murali Vijay’s, who is another 1984, full-moon born.
Virat hasn't won a World Cup so far. He was supposed to have some extraordinary wins under his belt and that is why he won in Australia for the first time. So, in a scenario where Tim Paine is the captain once again, even if Steven Smith plays under him, then India under Virat Kohli will beat Australia once again. But that is highly unlikely since Tim Paine will never be the captain again.
Now when India visits Australia again, it will be a different story. Who would be the captain? In all probability, Steven Smith, but it could also be someone else too, maybe even Aaron Finch. Steven Smith will not win the World Cup since he will not be the captain of the limited-over teams. That means he will be able to fulfil his karmic quota of success only in the test matches. That makes him really dangerous and his chances of winning against any other team become much more powerful.
Aaron Smith has a good horoscope anyway, probably as good as Kohli’s. When a player with a ‘not-so-good’ horoscope captains a team, the best arsenal of the team fails to fire, simply because if he does, then his team will win, which was not supposed to happen. That was exactly what happened when India won the historic test series in Austrlia in 2018–19. Aaron just didn’t fire. If Aaron becomes the captain himself, he will find his mojo back and can be a hugely dangerous player that we all know he is.
So, the next time India visits Australia, there is a very little chance that they will pull off a spectacular victory once again in a test series, especially if Tim Paine is not the captain.
Prediction #10 : Will India Ever Win a Test Series in South Africa?
India have never won a test series in South Africa. They have been trying since 1992, but could never cross the line. The maximum they could achieve was a draw. Everyone from Mohammad Azharuddin, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli have failed. I wondered why.
It may sound absurd, but the reason why Indians could never win a series in South Africa is because South Africa never won the ICC tournaments! The captains retained their karmic quota of success by not winning any major tournaments. So, they won everything else. No wonder SA won almost every bilateral series. Everyone has to win something and the South African captains won the tournaments at home. Hence, another team would only have a chance to win a test series against South Africa in South Africa if their captain wins a World Cup. But that doesn't seem to be possible anytime soon.
Also, it has to be mentioned that historically, starting from Kepler Wessels, the South African captains have had really strong horoscopes. But they just fell short of the best by a whisker and that's the reason they couldn't win any ICC tournaments. Only Hansie Cronje won an ICC trophy, but there was a tragic end to his career and then to his life due to other planets.
The current South African test captain is Dean Elgar. Now this man has a fantastic horoscope. He was also born in 1987 and on a full-moon day, which makes him a potential icon of the game. It is ironical that he is not playing the ODIs when South Africa have a potential World Cup winner in their midst. I shudder to think of the possibilities South Africa might have if Dean Elgar were their ODI captain. Thankfully for the other countries, he is not.
It is sad that some players are branded as test or T20 players, when they actually have the capacity to achieve something even bigger. Dean Elgar is one of them. That means if Dean Elgar is still the captain of the test team, it will be very difficult for the other teams to beat South Africa, unless they have a really extraordinary captain themselves.
Virat Kohli has achieved much in life. In comparison, Dean Elgar has not achieved anything extraordinary. This may work against India and especially Virat, who will not be able to win a test series in South Africa in such a scenario. Maybe in the third attempt? Maybe. Or perhaps if he doesn’t win a World Cup at all. Can India perform a miracle as Sri Lanka did in February 2019 in Durban? Kusal Perera played an epic knock to steal a last wicket win against the Faf Du Plessis-led South African team in their home soil. I doubt if Sri Lanka would have pulled off that spectacular win if Elgar was the captain. India’s chances definitely brighten up in the next couple of test series in South Africa if Faf Du Plessis remains their captain.
Prediction #11 : What are India’s Chances in the 2021 ICC World T20?
‘Greenie, you need a story. Create a story around yourself. A story sells. We need something fancier than just a Christian boy with no background or upbringing in astrology, who goes on to be a good astrologer. If required, invent something!’ The social media consultant exclaimed with exaggerated hand movements.
So, here I was requesting a humble flyer created on Photoshop and he was selling his services as a consultant. In hindsight, what he said made a lot of sense. Everyone loves a hero who wins against all odds and extreme circumstances. It is appalling how the media can sometimes exaggerate stories just so that we have something interesting to read/watch.
But Virat’s could be a real-life hero story if he has never won a World Cup before and goes on to win the 2021 edition. Just like it happened for Pakistan’s Imran Khan in 1992. Winning the World Cup at 40, in your last competitive match! What a dream end!
Would Virat have such a story? Going against the odds and winning it when everyone is writing you off as a captain who stumbles when it comes to winning ICC tournaments?
This World Cup will be played in India and India will, naturally, be the favourites to win the tournament. Let’s examine the astrological chances for India in various scenarios:
If India has won the 2020 World Cup (The basic assumption is that it has not won the 2019 World Cup): In this case, it will become difficult for India to win any World Cup under Virat Kohli again. If Virat has already won a World Cup in 2020, then he will have no choice but to give way to either of the other two guys to win the next World Cup.
The composition of the team or the coach will not matter then. The captaincy of Finch or Morgan will be enough to win the World Cup. In fact, in this World Cup, there is an additional danger for India in the form of Sri Lanka. Remember, Angelo Mathews, too, is a 1987-born. Mathews hasn’t been on the right side of the selectors of late, but there is always a chance that he may come back as the captain. If he does, then the Lankans have some chances as well.
Sri Lanka’s incredible crop of young players was born around the 1993 period, making them deadly dangerous. Sri Lanka may return to their heyday under their coach, Hathurasinghe, and captain, Mathews. Do not forget that cricket-wise, Sri Lankans would love the sub-continent pitches on offer in India. They wouldn’t be alien as the Lankan players play in the IPL too. Even if the Lankans are captained by Dinesh Chandimal, they still have good chances.
So, not just Australia and England, but even Sri Lanka could win this World Cup if Virat Kohli has the 2020 World Cup in his kitty. Bangladesh is one team that doesn’t seem to be throwing up good captains or players. Their players are just above average. Hope some future Bangladeshi player emerges stronger. We need to keep a watch on both Bangladesh and Afghanistan. As of now, both the countries seem good, but just not good enough.
If India has not won a World Cup under Virat Kohli so far: This will be a great chance for Virat Kohli to win a World Cup for India. England would have won under Eoin in England in 20
19; Australia would have won it in Australia in 2020 and India will do exactly the same in 2021. The World Cup happening in India under all too familiar conditions will add to the possibilities. If India has never won a World Cup under Virat before, then this will be their best chance. For Virat it will be a case of now or never.
All three 1986-born captains winning a World Cup each will happen now.
This World Cup will also go only to a 1986-born. Remember, this World Cup will be played for the last time before Pluto enters the zodiac sign Capricorn in 2021. Once Pluto enters Capricorn, it will become extremely difficult for a 1986–87-born to win large tournaments any further. This is the final instalment when the 1986–87-borns can rule the roost.
Here are three contenders for this:
Australia could always win it once again under Aaron. He has a birth chart that can give him back-to-back T20 World Cups. The fact that all the Australian players play in the IPL every year anyway, makes them more comfortable with the conditions here. So, don’t be surprised if they go on to win yet another tournament. They have the captain and the team to do it.
The only other possibility is that India would have won in Australia in 2020 against all odds and Aaron Finch would extract revenge by winning it in India. While India keeps the World Cup for a year, Australia would for a longer time.
The team that looks capable of surprising everyone is the Sri Lankan team. They will be at their best at this time. Sri Lanka poses the biggest threat this time around to Virat’s India. Virat can win this World Cup only if there is a huge overhauling in the Indian team. Also, Virat’s chances will go up only if there is a good coach for India this time round. If Virat has never won a World Cup before, then this will also prove to be his last and best chance to win it.
So, the teams with the best chances to win the 2021 World Cup will be:
India
Australia
Sri Lanka
England
This, of course, is based on the various assumptions, ifs and buts, and a lot of terms and conditions as discussed earlier.
We cannot do a T-Rex comparison here as we are not sure of the players and the coaches. But it suffices to know that India has some great chances to win this World Cup.
If Virat indeed was born in 1986–87, then he has to win a World Cup and it seems this would be that time. A fab new team under Virat winning at home. That would complete an astonishing run of three teams winning World Cups in their backyard—England in 2019, Australia in 2020 and India in 2021.
If Virat hasn’t won a World Cup as a captain until 2021, there is very little chance that he will later. There would probably be no great story in the making. Nor would there be folklore. You need the planet, Pluto, in place to create folklore. Imran Khan had it; so did Kapil Dev. And, indeed, Arjuna Ranatunga. Virat Kohli doesn’t. There lies the difference.
Prediction #12 : What Could Be the Indian XI That Can Win a World Cup?
Alright, so this is one prediction that can spark of a lot of debate. We Indians love discussing who we would like to see in the playing 11 of the Indian cricket team.
Now, here is my team that can potentially win a World Cup. I have given two or three names for certain spots, but mentioned just one for some. So, it's about a pool of 15 cricketers from where the playing 11 can be selected.
The logic behind the selection is simple: the men with the best horoscopes will play for the country. The men born in the best years and at the best of times will be in the playing 11. This also includes the players who are of the right age. I have taken care to ensure that these are the players who have the potential to win a World Cup in their horoscopes but, at the same time, haven't completed their karmic quota of success.
The patch of greatness which comes after 1990 is 1992–1994, 1997 and beyond. The majority of the players should be born in 1993. The captain, being the most important person, should have the best horoscope amongst all. As of now, we don't have any player who has a better horoscope than Virat Kohli. So here are the best 11 who can win the World Cup for India.
We need to remember that the opposition can still come up with a stronger team than ours but this, according to my astrological calculations, is our best team going forward for the next two T20 World Cups to be played in Australia and India in the years 2020 and 2021 respectively.
(1987) Rohit Sharma
(1992) KL Rahul
(1986) Virat Kohli (Captain)
(1994) Shreyas Iyer
(1990) Suryakumar Yadav/ Sarfaraz Khan (1997)/ Shivam Dube (1993)
(1993) Hardik Pandya
(1997) Rishabh Pant (WK)
(1994) Kuldeep Yadav/ Mayank Markhande (1997)
(1993) Jasprit Bumrah
(1990) Yuzvendra Chahal/ or a fast bowler born in the years 1993–98
(1990) Mohd Shami/ Khaleel Ahmed (1997)
This team would have a 1986 born captain, a 1987 born vice-captain (Rohit Sharma), two-three players born in 1990, one player born in 1992, at least two players born in 1993, two players born in 1994 and at least two players born in 1997—an almost perfect recipe to win a World Cup, astrologically. Unless other teams outthink us, of course.
Some of the top/better known players have not made this squad, as they are either overage and cannot be considered or have completed their quota of success or have karmic quota elsewhere. On the other hand, some may be too young to win a World Cup right now.
Prediction #13: Who Will Be the Future Ranji Trophy-Winning Captains?
‘All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players,’ said William Shakespeare. Talking about the stage and films, the actors and performers with the best horoscopes win Oscars and Grammys. In India it could be the National Award or the Filmfare or some regional ones or relatively less-known awards which not many would notice. The interesting bit is that we all play our part depending upon the horoscope we have got.
In sports, players with the best horoscopes win Olympic medals, the FIFA World Cup or the ICC World Cup. Players with slightly ‘lesser’ horoscopes would win the IPL or major club championships and those with even less remarkable horoscopes would win a Ranji Trophy.
I don’t intend to demean the Ranji Trophy in any way (that is not my intention at all), but I do need to mention that, ironically, it is amongst the lowest in the hierarchy of achievements in cricket.
The captains who win the Ranji Trophy normally have less significant horoscopes compared to captains who win the IPL or the World Cups. So, you will notice that the captain who has won the Ranji Trophy was probably born in the years that haven't been discussed as important years astrologically.
The last Ranji Trophy in 2018 and 2019 was won by Vidarbha and the captain was Faiz Fazl—born in 1985. Parthiv Patel, another 1985-born, won the Ranji Trophy in 2017. Aditya Tare, who was born at the fag end of 1987, won it for Mumbai in 2016. Vinay Kumar, a 1984-born, won it for Karnataka in 2014 and 2015. Ajit Agarkar, a 1977-born, won it for Mumbai in 2013.
So the pattern we see here is that the captains in particular years, who had the best planets at that time, but not as good as those in the best years, were chosen to be the winners of the Ranji Trophy. For example, the years 1986 and 1987 are amongst the strongest years astrologically. However, none of the recent Ranji Trophy-winning captains were born at that time. This proves how astrology works.
In future, too, we will see that Ranji Trophy-winning captains would be born in such astrologically weaker years—all the years that may not be the greatest in terms of astrological significance, but still have some spark in them. Some of such future years would be 1988, 1989, 1991 and 1992. Dinesh Karthik, a 1985-born captain, could certainly win the title for Tamil Nadu if he doesn’t win the IPL for KKR. Ajinkya Rahane, a 1988-born, could win it for Mumbai, and a similar feat could be achieved by the 1988-born Cheteshwar Pujara or Ravindra Jadeja for Gujarat. Karun Nair of 1991, Umesh Yadav of late-1987, Dhawal Kulkarni of 1988, Jaydev Unadkat of 1991, Krunal Pandya of 1991, Siddhesh La
d of 1992, Shikhar Dhawan of 1985, Ishant Sharma of 1988, Manish Pandey of 1989, Vijay Shankar of 1991 are potential Ranji Trophy winning-captains. There could even be some Ranji Trophy legends born in those strategic years but never known in the circuits outside, like Faiz Fazl, who was not known to many until he led Vidarbha to Ranji trophy victory in 2018.
Prediction #14 : What Now for Anil Kumble?
Lots of drama unfolded after Anil Kumble became the head coach of the Indian cricket team in 2016. Much before the end of his tenure he fell out with the captain, Virat Kohli, and had to relinquish his position unceremoniously. Ravi Shastri took over after that and India went on to achieve many milestone victories, especially while touring abroad.
Shastri is all set to step down from his post after the World Cup in 2019. Everyone knows that Anil Kumble will still not get an opportunity to coach India again because he is not in the good books of the Indian captain—the man who matters the most. It seems that at least temporarily Kumble is out of the reckoning for any top position with the BCCI. But, let me assure you, for Kumble everything is not over yet.
Pluto will be moving into Anil’s third house in 2021 and will stay there until 2039. This is a very interesting house. The third house indicates the brain, the tongue and the hands. If you try to interpret this, it means that he may have a strategic or a thinking role or do something significant using his hands. It is also an indicator of teaching, training, coaching and writing. As far the role of the hands is concerned, diehard cricket fans may remember that Kumble is a huge photography enthusiast. He may just take his passion for photography to the next level.