The idea of this thread is not to attack anyone but to bring home the harsh reality that cricketnama is no longer as interesting or entertaining as it used to be.
Try and understand what Some1 is really saying here. It is not about newbie or oldie but about involvement in discussions and posting something interesting, you know something new and original rather than just copying and pasting from webs (I appreciate they can be very interesting and informative sometimes) all the time or just turning up on match days and posting latest scores! As someone who has been a member for two years and a bit, I know that some posters are clearly more knowledgeable about cricket in special and sports in general than others. To quote an example I recently opened a thread on 'switch-hitting.' Frankly I did not know myself the difference between reverse-sweeping and switch-hitting before I researched the subject. I thought people would appreciate it as it was something new. So it involved going away and reading up on the subject (sports sections of various newspapers and tabloids, web etc.) "Legend of the month series" is another example. I am doing it again next month but it would be nice if someone-else could contribute too in the future. During the time that I have been active here, I have probably contributed as much as if not more than any other guppy to khail khilari.
Some1 is himself a very good poster, one of the best here. I do not know him personally but I have thoroughly enjoyed reading some of his comments since joining GS.
...aur yahan koi sifaarish bhi nahin chal rahee...
Apart from the names Some1 mentioned above I have not seen F&B or Antumul Alona post anything for a long time. Don't see legbreakgoogly, smooth_guy, Faisal bhai or even the game posting much these days either. Even ehsan bhai only really shows up on match days. pidbull, a1kashur, brahmachari, Co0ol Breeze, Rock_Express, HomiD, gravity_kills & let uz chat (the ones that I can remember offhand) are other good posters here. And whatever happened to Yassir and Anil Khan!! The sudden disappearance of a few guppies esp. after the World Cup and Woolmer fiasco in 2007 is very understandable. They have all likely moved on to other more important things in life like family, kids, better, more demanding jobs etc. and probably still browse but don't have as much time to spend on the forums as they used to. At some point in life you have to reset your priorities and move on. Can't just limit yourself to these forums. Besides it is probably necessary to take a break from GS and other cricket forums once in a while and I am going to be doing precisely just that....will browse for sure but will probably read more than write over the next few weeks to months.
Not only has the level of participation been poor recently but also the content and quality of some of the threads. I appreciate some of it has to do with the current sad state of our cricket. As a keen cricket follower I am only too aware that other teams have similarly gone through rough times in the past - England (mid-late 90s), Australia (mid 80s when Kim Hughes was the captain) etc. Even though I like to think of myself more as a cricket fan rather than just PAK cricket fan, it is not easy to motivate yourself to come back to GS when your team is not doing so well.
Apart from Imran Khan and a few others most of the cricketers that I have admired over the years are West Indians and 1 or 2 Indians and Australians. Vivian Richards is the greatest player that I have seen in my lifetime followed by Imran Khan and Sachin Tendulkar. And I was fortunate enough to see Viv at his best in the Reliance World Cup in 1987 (National Stadium, Karachi). That day Viv stroked a masterful 181 against Sri Lanka, an innings full of majestic and breath-taking strokes and no less than 7 bludgeoning sixes.
When the game and I criticised Malik's appointment last year, almost everyone here disageed with us but I am glad to say now that time has proved us right. We have been vindicated by our recent poor results. Malik just does not have it in him to be a good leader. He is too dull. Besides he does not automatically select himself in the test team by merit. Even laid-back figures like Zaheer Abbas and Inzi were better motivators of men.
Cricket will always remain my no. 1 passion in life but barring a serious improvement in our cricket in the short-term (sadly can't see that happening though with the players that we have at the moment) - afterall no one really enjoys discussing defeats day in and day out - and more interesting/absorbing discussions here, I can also see myself gradually drifting away from cricketnama and even other cricket forums for a short while atleast if not for good.