<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/804/1*W819kWWRZFnx-5G6LCNTKQ.jpeg"><figcaption>This has to be one of my favorite images of him!</figcaption></figure>While I write poems about your legacy, wish you a happy birthday, distribute chocolates on your birthday, never have I ever expected a reply. It has always been about my wishes to transcend to you, even if in spirit.
Despite all this, the moment I sit down to think about you, words fall short &amp; today is no exception.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*66JWZ8HnnN8a-yFHQMFx2g.jpeg"><figcaption>If there is one image that defines the character that is MS Dhoni, it is this. Picture credits: gettyimages</figcaption></figure>On 15th August, you posted an Instagram IGTV. I jumped up with joy that MS finally posted on Instagram. Such a huge smile. And then I read the caption. “From 1929 hrs consider me retired.” Oh boy, did I cry?
It hit hard &amp; it hit home! It was followed by puddles of tears. I mean, how were we even supposed to process that we wouldn’t get to see the man who has managed to carry all our hopes &amp; our dreams (for years, no less!)on his shoulders, anymore on the field.
The name ‘Dhoni’ resounds with leadership, dreams, respect &amp; of course, calm.
All of this is cliché, because over the course of 15 years 7 months and 22 days, along with so many memories to keep with us, you have taught us lessons to live our life by. Someway or another, everyone one of your admirers has thanked you in a thousand different ways.
Hundreds of articles, thousands of memoirs, and just too many wishes from our heart to yours.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/612/1*SMwo-MqbcRCMeqVup5AbIg.jpeg"></figure>While your press conferences managed to make us laugh, your shots around the field made us jump up in our seats and clap loudly. Those superhuman helicopter shots were more than just runs you scored or matches you won, those were the start of a dream for a million people around the world.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/388/1*eUEsSXLz5oSHV1h1VumMTw.jpeg"></figure>But let us, for some time, talk about the dream that evolved to be befitting of the name ‘Mahendra Singh Dhoni’.
Those long locks were more than just a hairstyle, they were a statement. They were iconic just like everything else you did.
Back in 2004, you made your ODI debut versus Bangladesh. Not the start everyone had expected from a player who had clearly made a name for himself in the domestic circuit and in the India A team. The match-winning centuries in the 2003/04 Season of the India A team bagged the attention of Sourav Ganguly &amp; the national selectors.
A few more bad matches followed before you finally made a mark. The patience finally paid off in the 5th ODI, your second against Pakistan when you scored a magnificent 148 of just 123 balls. MS Dhoni was here to stay. Despite so many critics of the game telling that you weren’t made for the long run, you defied them. And then, match after match, you built upon the opportunities, the mistakes, but you didn’t back down, even once.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/612/1*8vB2MhLCRpuy0EEj38A_sg.jpeg"></figure>While the nation knew about the player Mahendra Singh Dhoni, we saw you become the torch-bearer, the unorthodox leader, the captain in 2007. The world was bewildered when you gave the ball to Joginder Sharma in the 2007 T20 Final. Every smart cricketing mind questioned your choice at that moment, but you never heard them, did you? Your faith &amp; gut, proved everyone wrong, as the Boys in Blue brought the T20 World Cup home, without the greats.
The world awakened to the news of a young captain conquer the world and carve his own niche, as he marched forward, making a team that relied on its Captain’s instincts.
The years of 2007 and 2008 proved to be momentous as you took over the reins from Sourav Ganguly in all three formats. These were the years that saw the rise &amp; rise of a legendary captain. You so perfectly embodied the sentiments of all players alike. The young players looked up to you, while the old ones respected you and trusted you to make the right decision. For years to come, you have gone through one hell of a ride. Even through the worst of times, you made sure, India’s name keeps flying high. While we learnt to celebrate the wins, we also learned to accept our losses, with humility. That was new. For the first time, we saw the nation smile even when we lost. You taught us that. You taught us to own up to our mistakes, smile, learn, and move on.
What followed would go down as one of the most successful eras in Indian Cricket. Number 1 rank in test cricket, IPL trophies, personal milestones, and Champions’ trophy. The mention of Mahendra Singh Dhoni brings up the tales of the 2011 World Cup. For India, your six to seal the win is one of the most iconic images in the vast history of Indian sports, not just cricket.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/612/1*Uf9WQVAcEKRciuCTcqwe_Q.jpeg"></figure><figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/612/1*_Sz5rGMLLQaYBzYcFPsbZQ.jpeg"></figure>The entire nation came together to thank the Indian team that day. That team was yours, and no matter what, it will always remain that way. That was one of the few times when we saw you resonate the feelings of the nation with your face. An otherwise solemn, poker face, brightened up that day, shed a few tears, laughed some more, and smiled. The hugs shared that day was a blanket of warmth to the nation. The whole country felt it. And it was you &amp; your team that did that. The whole nation rose to the national anthem that day. We felt that pride every single day you served the country.
The Indian Territorial Army conferred the honorary rank of Lieutenant Colonel to you on 1 November 2011. In 2015, you became a qualified paratrooper after having completed five parachute training jumps from Indian Army aircrafts in the Agra training camp. You made yourself unavailable for the West Indies series (2019) to serve your regiment in Kashmir. Oh, captain! Salute!
In the winter of 2014, you abruptly announced your departure from the world of test cricket. You handed over the team to Virat Kohli and you just moved on. This is another thing you made us learn. Do your job, and then, move on, without ever looking back.
In 2016, you gave up your captaincy and became an even bigger human. Without hesitation, and clashes in the team, you passed on the reins to the youngsters. You paved the way for a stronger squad. You were always about the country first, weren’t you?
While everyone questioned your presence in the team, you simply kept walking. Along the way, you kept doing what you always did best. Your job. Unwavering, and steady, you kept moving along.
Along with all this, the Indian Government and the citizens of the country recognized your efforts and you were conferred with multiple awards to commemorate your contribution to the country. You were the recipient of the 2007 Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, 2009 Padma Shri &amp; 2018 Padma Bhushan.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*sL1CH5rzSwPV6QxPbpA3Vg.jpeg"></figure>The World Cup of 2019, we all, somewhere deep down knew that this would be your last and hoped that the Indian team, which was on its A-Game at that time, would bring back home the trophy. But destiny had its own plans, like always. A single bad performance and we were out. That’s the last we saw you in the colors of blue. Even that day, you did all you could to give India its dream. Hearts were shattered that day and every day after that when we wouldn’t see you play for India.
And then, there was the day of August 15th, 2020. You came out of nowhere and announced that our dream to see you in Blues again was never going to be complete. You said “Main pal do pal ka shayar hoon” and everybody knew. It struck us.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/612/1*zvZOXlqtrouJ6JSuXADE-g.jpeg"></figure>We wanted you to have:
One final match,
One final honor,
One final run,
One final Guard of Honor.
But, I know, we would need much more than that to see you depart from the blues. I also know, no farewell would be befitting of the name ‘Mahendra Singh Dhoni’. No tribute would ever be enough to honor the cricketer you have become, the player you evolved into, the captain who guided the stars home, the human of your character. And yet again, our hearts yearn for more. One more of every single thing you did.
You always said: We should live in the moment, not in the past, nor in the future.
Dear Mahi, you were our moment.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/612/1*ghBayyo2jKwWe2uPA5_A-g.jpeg"></figure>And we cannot do anything else but Thank YOU. Nothing will ever suffice the emotions we feel. As you hang up your boots, we bow down, take off our hats, and smile as we see you walk back to the pavilion. You will always be my captain!
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/612/1*TYLn6gLqNFBUCSqtFKayzw.jpeg"></figure><img src="https://medium.com/_/stat?event=post.clientViewed&amp;referrerSource=full_rss&amp;postId=61f18b300eb3" width="1" height="1" alt=""><hr>
<a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm/i-am-your-fan-is-an-understatement-61f18b300eb3">“I am your fan” is an understatement</a> was originally published in <a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm">Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors SRM</a> on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

“I am your fan” is an understatement

Hint- It’s getting emotional.
Everyone is familiar with Big Data, extracting, analysing, and dealing with large datasets. To be honest I don’t know anyone who isn’t familiar with the “Sexiest Job of the 21st Century”. But with all the glamour around the Big Data profession, people tend to neglect its counterpart, Small Data.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/581/1*25sQmmD-IWsw3HQxNoatxw.jpeg"></figure>Small Data has been in the shadows of Big Data for a long time now, and it is now time for it to make its mark in today’s market.
<h4>What is Small Data?</h4>
Small Data is data. Data, small enough that the human brain can easily comprehend. Data, small enough to not require dedicated algorithms to analyse. It may come as a surprise, but Small Data is as important as Big Data if only not more important.
<h4>What is the fuss behind Small Data?</h4>
The Small Data concept is much more accessible than the Big Data concept. There is no need to collect gigabytes of data, clean it up, and write hundreds of lines of code. All you require is great observational skills.
Small data revolves around insights one can gain through the day to day life of consumers.
<h3>What sets Small Data apart from Big Data?</h3>
1) Big Data doesn't have that spark. Big Data is born out of databases, and these databases are too narrow to create insights. It fails to spark perception.
Take the example of e-commerce websites. They are only limited to the data they get from their websites, and that too only includes their customers' purchase from the site. The company does not know what their customers purchase from shops, which in turn keep this data very guarded. But on the other hand, small data requires an intricate insight into the lives of the customers and focuses on their real needs.
2) Big Data is based on analytics. Big Data neglects the emotional factor of customers. While increasing the battery life of a laptop will increase the respect of a particular brand, which big data can easily help us identify. But it'll fail to tell us how to increase the emotional factor of a brand, how to make the brand more lovable. Small Data makes up for this incompetence of Big Data. Small data helps in the design aspect of the works. It tells you the best way to get your brand more love. It helps in generating emotional excitement in the brand.
By the above two points, I in no way intend to critique Big Data. Summing it up, Big Data has problems and small data is essential to overcome these problems.
<h3>The Small Data Methodology</h3>
Any new project in small data starts with Subtext Research. Subtext Research is the equivalent of Data Collection in Big Data. It's the most time-consuming process.
Subtext Research, in turn, is a framework of seven steps.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/534/1*JsXwv7y_bv9dzJ5ZwShQIA.png"></figure><ul>
<li>
Collecting data- this step begins with establishing navigation points, getting perspective from cultural observers and local observers. This helps in creating a hypothesis, which gives a plan of action.</li>
<li>
Finding clues- This step is exactly how it sounds. Just as a detective, one must ask questions and look for subtle hints that will help us in our "investigation". The clue can be physical or emotional.</li>
<li>
Finding a connection- Now that we have Small Data collected in front of us, we must realize if there are any similarities between the clues? Do they tilt us in a certain direction? Do they begin to validate our initial hypothesis?</li>
<li>
Causation- It is now time to put ourselves in the customer’s feet and see if this is what they want and how they feel about it. We must find out what emotions are evoked.</li>
<li>
Correlation- Once we have generated emotion in the customer, it is time to figure out what generated the emotion.</li>
<li>
Compensation- Having found a shift in emotion, it is time to find the desire of the customer. What does the customer seek? How do we fulfil this desire? It is also necessary that the desire should be in line with the culture of the customer.</li>
<li>
Concept- This is where the idea, the method to fulfil the desire will be found. Ideas don’t germinate under pressure. Thinking about all the small data collected in peace will give the most effective solution.</li>
</ul>
Although the data explored in small data is small it has large implications on human behaviour.
<h4>Case Study-</h4>
To put emphasis on the importance of Small Data, we’ll investigate Martin Lindstrom’s work. Martin is a pioneer in Small Data.
I would pick up his case of how he managed to save Lego, the world-renowned toy company from potential bankruptcy. Lego's sales were dwindling in the 90s and early 2000s. Technical toys were taking over the market. Swayed by their Big Data analysis of strategies to get relevant and push sales back up, they realized that kids wanted instant gratification, and therefore they started making Lego sets quite easy. Despite this, sales didn't increase.
This is when they got Martin up for <a href="https://www.wobi.com/lego-in-times-of-small-data/">the case</a>. Martin used Small Data and recognized that kids are also incredibly competitive and liked the idea of a challenge. Being the only person to have solved a particular puzzle gave them a feeling of pride. This emotional feeling could never have been picked up by Big Data. Subsequently, Martin suggested Lego make their toys much more complex so that completing them have the kids a sense of satisfaction. The Lego board implemented this and soon after Lego sales were rising again.
I’ll also recommend Martin’s book on <a href="https://g.co/kgs/hdWE6A">Small Data</a> to get more in-depth knowledge in the wondrous world of Small Data.
<h4>Conclusion</h4>
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/953/1*1gghfNwGIWFUEN6ZCkcC_Q.jpeg"></figure>In today’s day and age people not only want an efficient and cheap product but they want a product they can relate to. Roomba is a particularly good example of this. According to the <a href="https://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/style/2016/09/15/our-bots-ourselves/KekBWFnovSSp2yAhaTUOKN/story.html">Boston Globe</a>, the Roomba has become a part of the families that purchase it going as far as to even name it.
The importance of the emotional value of a brand is increasing day by day. And this is where Small Data comes out of Big Data’s shadow and shines. For the larger part of the time since Data has become an integral part of our lives, we’ve neglected the one aspect of data.
And I think it is finally time for it to be given the importance it has in the success of any company, for companies to recognise that Big Data is not the solution to everything and that to truly succeed both Small Data and Big Data should be implemented.
At the end of the day, Big Data alone wouldn't increase business. We need rich, deep data. No matter what form.
<img src="https://medium.com/_/stat?event=post.clientViewed&amp;referrerSource=full_rss&amp;postId=da207ca86a70" width="1" height="1" alt=""><hr>
<a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm/big-data-is-not-self-reliant-and-heres-why-da207ca86a70">Big Data is not self-reliant and here’s why</a> was originally published in <a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm">Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors SRM</a> on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Big Data is not self-reliant and here’s why

<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*R7SgXuhTXlDooRLVsSRptQ.png"></figure><h3>What is the problem that we are looking to solve?</h3>
If you have developed an API and you know that all you want to do is make a request, process it on the server and get the response you need. But it all comes crashing when you get stuck setting up the right environment on the server, or your dependencies go missing.
It’s time to change that. What if you only needed to be concerned about what data the API receives, what it does it with and what it returns as response. True, all of us fear seeing the internal server error arising from mismatched server configurations.
You could argue that you are a master in managing servers and have never had issues with server configurations and environment settings. Well, but are you paying only for what you use? Most cloud services provide you certain resources (that can be scaled up) but you are still charged for each second of the app being deployed on the cloud, whether you use it or not.
Here is where Azure Functions saves the day. It supports your favourite languages including C#, JavaScript, Python, Java, TypeScript and more. You can write your function in any of these languages and you are only charged when the function is being executed. So, if it was called once in the past 24 hours and execution took 10 seconds, you get charged for 10 seconds.
If your API can be written down in one function, you can run it on Azure Functions and save the hassles and money.
<h3>What does Azure Functions do?</h3>
It enables you to run code segments that are perfect for APIs. It also allows you to write code that executes with a timer. So, suppose you want to back-up a file system every 12 hours to a remote server, you can write the function for it and Azure Functions will ensure that it runs every 12 hours.
<blockquote>If you are new to Azure or do not have an Azure subscription, you can get a free subscription with $100 in credits from <a href="https://azure.microsoft.com/en-in/free/students/">here</a>.</blockquote>
<h3>How to make an Azure Function?</h3>
Let's dive straight into it now. There are numerous ways to make an Azure Function. Today, let's look at it from the Azure Portal.
<h4>Step 1:</h4>
Open the <a href="https://portal.azure.com/">Azure Portal</a>, login and select Create a resource to access the Marketplace.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*vW4AgPHZpzN0B6XEPCkMpQ.png"></figure><h4>Step 2:</h4>
Search for Functions and choose Function App.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/602/1*5XRUtsAKQy7pgPvw09EEZw.png"></figure><h4>Step 3:</h4>
Click on Create to open the setup for the Function. Fill up the details as you need them. Be careful with the Region as Functions might not be available in all Regions (Central India, for example, does not support Functions but South and West India do). I’ll go ahead with Node.js v12 LTS as my environment. Once done, click next and select a Storage Account.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/602/1*Uewlz22n9PByajVaMrvleA.png"><figcaption>Basic Configuration</figcaption></figure><h4>Step 4:</h4>
You will need to set up storage so that there is some memory available for the API or app to store your files and log data. Don’t worry, even though it says storage account, it is just a storage allocation for you on the cloud that you can use for other projects as well. Think of it as your hard disk in the cloud that can store clustered, unstructured data, media files, etc (end of Firebase’s expensive monopoly?).
Choosing the plan in this section of the setup makes all the difference in the world if you are low on budget. Go for serverless so that you can peacefully focus on building, testing, and deploying your function. Serverless means that there is no dedicated server being allocated to you. Your function just needs storage to run. You will only be charged for the computation time and memory that you use. No server fees. If you go for a regular plan, you will be charged even if the function is sitting idle.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/602/1*Lvsdzr4vEMFtj7EZplOmoA.png"><figcaption>Storage Account and Serverless Plan</figcaption></figure><h4>Step 5:</h4>
Enable Application Insights and smash the Create button. Now you wait. Wait till the resources are deployed and think about what you just did. You deployed a serverless app on the cloud, while minimising costs and giving up all concern for infrastructure. The app that you are now deploying will auto scale to handle millions of calls if that is what you want to throw at it.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*AwZ5Aeimw7FbBkAEVtCUYw.png"></figure>Now that the function deployment is complete, it's time to dive into the code and see the app work first-hand. Click on Go to resource.
From the left side panel, choose Functions under the Functions header and click on Add to create a new function.
There are multiple options to choose from. I will demonstrate the HTTP Trigger today. This will allow you to build an API.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/522/1*MceL4BgSqmz8cJSeBhfo8Q.png"></figure>Choosing a function-level authorisation allows you to allow access to only one Function with each access key.
Open the newly deployed function and click on Code + Test from the left side panel. It will have a boiler plate ready for you already.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*yV_XQg0YOPTAXAIyqOca5g.png"></figure>This boiler plate is a simple Node.js API which requires a ‘name’ parameter and returns a basic answer. Click on Get Function URL to get the API endpoint along with the access key. This access key authorises you to run the Function and is a mandatory query parameter for the HTTP request.
An API call be made using <a href="https://www.postman.com/">Postman</a> or any other API testing software. Pass a name parameter as query to the API call and test it.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*jsLLUZ3mVELWmkk_tS3jBw.gif"><figcaption>Test the API using Postman.</figcaption></figure>It’s done! You have a server less function running in the cloud, which is more than just a simple API. If you are new to APIs, you should play around with what you just made to understand concepts better. Let me write down a slight modification of this API to help you get started with making your own.
<a href="https://medium.com/media/d8f979f451ee072e5239c4200733fd81/href">https://medium.com/media/d8f979f451ee072e5239c4200733fd81/href</a>Azure Functions are dynamic. You can:
<ol>
<li>Add attachments to it.</li>
<li>Make it run on a schedule with a timer.</li>
<li>Automate a manual process so that the function runs whenever there is a new entry to your SQL database.</li>
<li>Connect it with container storage, so that the function can execute automatically whenever a new blob is uploaded.</li>
</ol>
There is so much more to Azure Functions than just a regular HTTP API. Discover more about Azure Functions on the vast and in-depth <a href="https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-functions/">official documentation</a> from Microsoft.
I hope this helped you in your project. You can check out my <a href="https://shantnu.net/">Website</a> and <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/shantnuagarwal/">LinkedIn</a>. A few claps on this blog would help this blog go a long way and help more people in the community.
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<a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm/apis-with-azure-functions-2dcc7fc81bf7">APIs with Azure Functions</a> was originally published in <a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm">Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors SRM</a> on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

APIs with Azure Functions

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<a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm/yet-to-be-fixed-5b328dc2e1d2?source=rss----61e4a911d3af---4"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/2047/1*Nn747CwR8FY4Wf5UUO6CWw.jpeg" width="2047"></a>
“Where there is data smoke, there is business fire.” How is the data stored? The PAST, PRESENT &amp; FUTURE!
<a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm/yet-to-be-fixed-5b328dc2e1d2?source=rss----61e4a911d3af---4">Continue reading on Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors SRM »</a>
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Introduction to the Evolution of Data Storage

<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*7mT4zn-Pa4doFi_ukar8Lw.jpeg"><figcaption>Did they statistically deserve it?</figcaption></figure><h4>Statistical analysis of the French Football Team’s performance in the 2018 FIFA World Cup and did the best team win?</h4>
The FIFA World Cup is the pinnacle of all sporting events. Naturally winning it for their country is the ultimate goal of any footballer (pun intended). So obviously conquering this tournament requires something special and can not be fluked, right?
In the following section, we determine whether France deserved to lift the prestigious 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
<blockquote>
IMPORTANT LEGENDS AND THEIR MEANINGS: xG — Expected Goals: Expected goals (xG) measures the quality of a shot based on several variables such as assist type, shot angle and distance from goal, whether it was a headed shot and whether it was defined as a big chance.</blockquote>
<blockquote>
1. xGF — Expected Goals For = For analysing attacking performance 2. xGA — Expected Goals Against = For analysing defensive performance 3. xGD — Expected Goal Difference = (xGF -xGA)</blockquote>
<blockquote>know more: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSaeaFcm1SY">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSaeaFcm1SY</a>
</blockquote>
<h3>A Formidable Attack?</h3>
The French football team boasted a phenomenal in-form attacking line up which included players like Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann, Olivier Giroud, Paul Pogba etc.
France played 7 matches and scored 11 goals with xGF of just 6.76, that is xG of 0.96 per match! (not even 1 goal per match!!) Which clearly says that they majorly overperformed themselves tactically and statistically in the attacking department. Let’s see where they lie when compared to top 16 teams of the World Cup:
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*2qNORBoFb1UzoDzfCssUyQ.png"></figure>Teams like Brazil and Belgium led the way in terms of xGF and hence created the most and the best chances, although Brazil wasn’t clinical enough to convert those chances. Individual brilliance by players like Mbappe and notable set piece masterclass led by Raphael Varane and Samuel Umtiti gave France the finishing edge over their average chance creation numbers.
The Game which raised concerns: In the last group stage match, France faced Denmark which ended in goalless draw.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/877/1*N0vgYtjIv5jsEcwIuAMFiA.png"><figcaption>Radius of circle proportional to the shot’s xG</figcaption></figure>France could barely create a big scoring chance in this match even after having 67% of the ball possession and taking 11 shots on target.
So, we can safely conclude that France did not have the best and the most efficient attacking line up in the tournament.
<h3>A Rock-Solid Defence?</h3>
The French’s last line of defence was led by some very in-form talented players who were in their prime during the World Cup. 4 Time UEFA Champions League winner Raphael Varane was paired up in the centre with Samuel Umtiti, and the full back consisted of speedy Pavard on right and Lucas Hernandez on the left.
In 7 matches France ended up conceding 5 goals with an xGA of 4.69 that means xG(against) of 0.67 which is great. Let's see how they did when compared to others:
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*ViEf7iIeJwLnaCbKjf0QsA.png"></figure>The teams like Belgium, England and Russia outperformed themselves defensively their xGA numbers are high compared to the actual number of goals they ended up conceding. Whereas teams like Uruguay and Brazil where airtight at the back with incredibly low xGA and actual goals conceded.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*Av2D211pEbYW_uKnK_BKjg.png"><figcaption>Radius of circle proportional to the shot’s xG, DARK colour = Goal</figcaption></figure>In the semi-finals when France faced Belgium, the team with the most goals scored and the best attacking numbers in the tournament. They kept a clean sheet (no goals conceded) France restricted Belgium to only 3 major shots on target showing how and defensively compact they were, not to mention that a defender scored the winner.
So clearly France were efficient in their defensive duties. Not only did they have the lowest xGA in the top 4 but they conceded almost exactly the number of goals they were statistically predicted to conceded.
<h3>The Balancing Act</h3>
The goal difference (GD = No. of goals scored — No. of goals conceded) is a good measure of how a team performs both attack wise and defensively as a unit. France had a goal difference of 6 with expected GD of 2.07 in the 7 matches they played. They can only boast about their above average GD due to their defensive unit and individual brilliance in attack, because statistically they were only supposed to have a GD of 2.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*oKuYWwh1aY0EzhZpOUo-HA.png"></figure>It’s clear from the above graph that France extensively outdid themselves (So did 3rd place Belgium). Interestingly the team which was most efficient with their performance were the runners up Croatia!!
<h3>The Great Escape</h3>
The highly anticipated all important final, the Game 64 was contested between France and Croatia. It promised to be a nail-biting event between a team which was massively outperforming their own stats vs the most efficient team of the tournament.
The match ended 4–2 in France’s favour and it looked like France cruised past Croatia to win the World Title, but was this really the case? Let's have a look:
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/972/1*8--BlotzYtoFtAaOvreDlw.png"><figcaption>Radius of circle proportional to the shot’s xG, DARK colour = Goal</figcaption></figure>France took a total of 7 shots whereas Croatia took 14 shots (double of our winning team’s number). The passing accuracy in opposition box for France was 69% whereas Croatia was riding with 83%.
The xG of France was 1.1 while Croatia had 1.24, but when we remove the penalty which was controversially awarded to France in the 38th minute, French xG drops to 0.3!
The French were truly fortunate to score four from the chances they created, generating just 0.3 non-penalty xG, scoring twice from these low-probability chances.
<h3>So, did the best team win?</h3>
The simple answer is no.
France were fortunate throughout the tournament, especially in attack, where they scored 11 non-penalty goals from just 6.76 no-penalty xG.
In attack they were fortunate, but their defence was impressive, conceding less than 1 xG in four of their 7 matches.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/990/1*CkbMiC_K2u5npZ9aQyFMyg.jpeg"><figcaption>Luka Modric (C) receiving the player of the tournament award</figcaption></figure>Belgium (3rd Place) were the best attacking team with Brazil who they eventually knocked out.
Uruguay were statistically the best defensive unit in the tournament.
Croatia was led by the eventual player of the tournament and was statistically the most efficient team in the tournament, although they were hard done by the brilliant individual displays by elite young players and some controversial VAR decisions.
But overall, as does tend to happen with knockout tournaments with such a limited amount of games, luck might be the best bet one might have.
Code for the analysis: <a href="https://github.com/shushrutsharma/France-WC2018">GitHub</a> Data Source: <a href="https://github.com/statsbomb/open-data">StatsBomb</a> More Football Analysis: <a href="https://github.com/vivekjagannath/statisfy">GitHub</a>
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<a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm/the-french-route-to-success-83520b557015">The French Route To Success</a> was originally published in <a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm">Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors SRM</a> on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

The French Route To Success

<h3>Excellence through experience.</h3>
<h3>What is Rotaract?</h3>
Rotaract is Rotary in Action where the youth in the world come together under a club for Rotary and work together to towards improvement in the global issues facing the world by engaging in social, environmental and humanitarian work.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/0*uuoKSWREsiW3ReeV"></figure>Rotaract clubs are part of a global effort to bring peace and international understanding to the world. This effort starts at the community level but it has no limits in it’ s outreach. Rotaract trains you well for the corporate world as by working for its projects, you learn to honor deadlines, commitments, effective execution of plans, most importantly team effort and getting exposed to life-changing experiences that add doses of understanding, empathy and the will to serve the community to your personality.Talking about the importance, working with Rotaract, brings with it the admiration of the community we serve and the love that we receive brings us utmost inner peace and always draws a wide smile across our face. The respect you get working for it and the inner peace that allows you to have a constant smile on the face is the most significant side of it.
Rotaract is an umbrella organization of Rotary International under which various youth chapters get along together. You can be a part of an international community of people where all are acting for one common goal that is the welfare and prosperity of people around us.
Rotaract clubs and parent Rotary, work closely to execute major and minor projects. Generally, the Rotarians are influencers who have achieved miles in their lives and are now willing to dedicate themselves to the society, they’re highly inspiring and we cab learn a lot from them.
Rotaract is one big opportunity enabling you to express yourself and unearth the potential within and do your bit for the society as well.
You will have access to a national well as international network of Rotaractors to interact with, learn from and work together.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/392/1*EZPkaDKw8DsitOYs-UU_Uw.jpeg"></figure><h3>What’s involved?</h3>
Rotaract members decide how to organize and run their clubs, manage their own funds, and plan and carry out activities and service projects. Rotary club sponsors offer guidance and support and work with your club as partners in service.
<h3>Perks of being a Rotaractor!</h3>
The primary focus of the Rotaract is Personal and Professional Development by providing opportunities of being a part of the Annual meets, competitions, industrial visits etc.
Rotaract makes you a Volunteer- Volunteering is a great way to meet new people and practice social interaction. It does not matter whether you interact with one person or a group of people. It builds your social skills or builds your confidence around people.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/585/1*Ulc-0ks3dQELHfQoqILW4w.png"></figure>Rotaract teaches us how to develop professional and leadership skills - You learn how to respect rights of others and how to treat people. You learn to manage a team and respect hierarchy. You learn to recognize the dignity and value of all useful occupations as opportunities to serve . Rotaract helps to develop knowledge and understanding of the needs, problems, and opportunities in the community and worldwide
Rotaract provide opportunities for personal and group activities to serve the community and promote international understanding and goodwill toward all people. There are so many social activities that you can do . Good feelings lift your mood and help with your mental health.
It can give you a sense of achievement. Serving society is a wonderful thing to do and an achievement in itself. Additionally, it can take you outside of your comfort zone and give you an opportunity to face your fears. For example, if you fear social interaction or have social anxiety, sooner or later you will find a way to practice being around people.
Rotaract is an opportunity for youngsters to get a feel of the real world and an opportunity to learn about life outside the comfortable confines of classrooms and homes. It gives you a sense of purpose. You are helping the community and making a difference to something other than yourself. It gives you something meaningful to be doing, and it is empowering to be doing something that really does matter.
You will learn new skills and gain experience. It’s empowering to learn something new, and you could gain valuable skills to use elsewhere. It’s also an opportunity to make new friends and connections.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*K2w9EYJo5VVID5vxDoFnDg.jpeg"></figure>“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much” ~Helen Keller
Thanks for reading.
Shubhangi Soni
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<a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm/excellence-through-experience-2b0b2aff8c1f">Excellence Through Experience</a> was originally published in <a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm">Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors SRM</a> on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Excellence Through Experience

Lockdown got you down? We understand, and we’re here to tell you: stress, overwhelming feelings, and heightened emotions during this time of the pandemic are understandable, and while they may seem outer-worldly, this is our reminder to you: feeling this way, is normal. Most of us haven’t experienced a lockdown of this sort, and this abrupt break in our daily lives is taking a toll on the entire world. But let’s keep the world aside for a bit. If you’ve clicked on this blog, there’s a slight chance you’re dealing with one (or all) of what’s stated above and we’re here to try and help.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*cxDR5_Z9ZcizRsyfd-cJUw.png"></figure>While Instagram and memes may tell you differently, being extroverted or introverted doesn’t make too much of a difference here. As humans, we like patterns (a lot, if you look at history) and any disruption in the pattern that is our daily routine, disrupts our mental peace, in turn affecting our mental health. While we’d like to emphasize you being special, we’re also here to tell you that you aren’t facing this disruption alone. You aren’t alone in this, just socially distanced (we really hope you’re practicing social distancing here!).
The question arises: How do you keep this disruption of mental peace at bay, to not drive yourself crazy with your thoughts?
While completely eradicating these feelings is not something we can promise, we have a few tips in store which may help you cope with distressing feelings and make this lockdown a more memorable, and productive one. But before we give away the gold, here’s a short disclaimer. Everyone has different mechanisms of coping with stress, and some of these tips might not work out for you. It is advised that you don’t stress out more about not being able to wind down. This blog is also not any form of counselling. If you need to talk to someone, a few contacts which may help you out will be listed at the end of this blog.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*4OARQ5ZuuQqpAJSBVJ7DGg.png"></figure>1. Ditch a few plans: If you’ve seen your favourite blogger/ YouTuber having the most productive times of their life or your group of friends acting like they’re vacationing, it’s high time to burst that bubble. While making this lockdown period your most productive time could sound like a treat, it could also lead to a burn out quite easily. Focus on activities that relax you and start by combining a few ‘productive’ things you’d like to do during this lockdown. Low motivation, problems with concentrating and added stress due to the same are expected. Go easy on yourself while planning out your goals.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*P1GNq_CSQGhrZlEwP_57MQ.png"></figure>2. Rooting for routines: This wasn’t meant to sound like your parents during Board exams. But there’s a reason for this. Remember that routine we talked about previously? Disturbances in your day-to-day life add to irritability and stress. Try fixing a routine to follow throughout the day and stick to it as much as possible. Yes, a routine also meaning a fixed sleep schedule. Trust us, you’ll feel better.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*f_TULYR9Ef3Gar1NgxJINg.png"></figure>3. Maintain connections: Not being able to meet anybody other than the people you’re lockdown-ed with is hard. If family, or friends, are getting on your nerves, remember to get yourself a bit of space. Asking for space is something many people find difficult to do but invest some time in yourself. If you’re feeling trapped, give a friend a call (They might be feeling the same way; We don’t recommend exes for this activity.) Do keep in mind that this is a challenging time for who you’re living with too, and make sure to not cut them off entirely, and spend some quality time with them. You may learn something new about them which you never knew before! (Or not.)
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*4gUS4Rnc7v-LNtylSsCBKw.png"></figure>4. Step away from the media: Constant news about the pandemic WILL stress you out. Be it in the form of constant WhatsApp forwards, the news channels on TV, or even the Discover page on Google. Take a break from the overload of information and indulge in a relaxing activity of your choice (with precautions related to the pandemic, of course!).
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/512/1*15GuOy-mKu1n8WYySOy-Ng.jpeg"><figcaption>And to end it off with a bit of wholesome-ness ;)</figcaption></figure>And lastly? Support yourself, and loved ones in times of need (Yes, as cheesy as it sounds). Make sure to stop the train of overthinking, or at least pause it to get yourself some rest. Stressing out about stress, or not stressing enough is equally harmful. This pandemic will cause a lot of distress and will be testing humanity. But keeping your calm and being patient is what is important in these times of need. As promised above, here’s a pandemic helpline you can contact for help:
<a href="https://www.mohfw.gov.in/">Ministry of Health and Family Welfare</a> Psycho-Social’s toll-free helpline number: 804 611 0007.
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<a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm/how-to-keep-calm-and-not-lose-your-mind-during-the-pandemic-4ab287f8a45a">How to keep calm (and not lose your mind) during the pandemic</a> was originally published in <a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm">Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors SRM</a> on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

How to keep calm (and not lose your mind) during the pandemic

<h3>The Business Algorithm</h3>
<h3>Introduction</h3>
Today, we are a part of the world where innovations and entrepreneurs lead the world. Everyone aspires to be an entrepreneur, but the successful ones have a different story. So what’s so different about their story. Analysis proves that a proper strategic business approach is key to the success of any entrepreneur. How does marketing help them and why is branding so important. What is the process of implementation and how slowly does it go? Entrepreneurs often do face different questions regarding their product and its outreach while they blueprint their plan. So what is the key to getting a successful response and outreach? What all should be a part of your product blueprint when it comes to outreach. This blog will help you with your product’s outreach and business plan and hope to become a successful entrepreneur.
<h3>1) THE THREE ‘S’ RULE.
</h3>
A product is always pre-planned by the entrepreneur setting its target audience. But it is completely on the audience for their response. A product should always be built and strategized in a way that it draws public attention in a maximum range it can. The basic rule of targeting the maximum crowd is that your product should keep in mind the three S always, they are Sale, Satisfactory, Sustainability. The product should be planned in a way that graph of sale increases in a positive way, which will happen when the product is cost-effective to the local crowd as they are the main targets of most of the entrepreneurs. The second S clearly says that the benchmark of any product should be at least satisfactory, it should satisfy the target crowd’s need in every possible way. Only then people will choose to have a look and buy it. The third S being the most important one, it should be sustainable, only then it will survive in this fast-growing market. Quality assurance should always be given the highest priority. These three S may help you to target and draw a huge crowd’s attention.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/550/1*fZsoZX1Agli_e727Oen92w.jpeg"></figure><h3>2) Magnificent Media and Creatives</h3>
Creatives have always helped us in a very positive way in all sectors of development.Creatives are the backbone of any product, any start-up. When one says every small thing matters, it matters a lot when it comes to the Creatives. Taking care of the ultimate designing of the product and making sure it is eye-catching at first glance is mandatory. For example, when Apple releases an edition of any of its products, it gives an identity to each one of them with a crisp effort towards all things related. The teaser video, the website designing for the product, the logo, the designing of the product itself, each one of it contributes the most in outreach and promotion to that extent that each one of us targets to buy it even if it isn’t cost-efficient. Thus Creatives play a key role in setting up the product to the audience. Media is a medium to promote your creatives of the product just like the “Medium”. Be it the Television advertising, Print media or the most useful, The Social Media where things get hit overnight. All of them are way too important to get outreach to your product. Promotion in the right method is always beneficial.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/612/1*vOf61w8QjXHW563dBZqk1Q.png"></figure><h3>3)THE TREND</h3>
As mentioned above, social media is the largest and a free platform to explore, express and share anything. It is the key to promote any product in the best way possible. And how do we do that? Be a trend? No, that is very temporary and it won’t give you your own identity. Instead, make a trend. A trend that passes from you helps the audience to identify you and your promotional product. Again, this is completely crowd dependent, but it has only profit and no loss. If the trend goes on, we are benefited, we have driven traffic for our product and that benefits the sale of the product. Hence, making use of social media to its best is very beneficial for the product as well as the entrepreneur. Apart from social media, people observe people which in a way influences them for the product. So more the people are invested in the product, more the outreach it gets.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*GFipjPP3HsMndfJ-7pQrmQ.jpeg"></figure><h3>4) Business-Make the most out of the source</h3>
A product needs to survive in the market. We have all known the BCG Matrix that clearly explains each situation of a product’s survival. If there are possibilities that a product survival or even sale might fail, as an entrepreneur we have to look ahead to see, ‘What next?’ and even if the product survives and the sale goes down the same question repeats. The basic strategy to implement is to modify the source product and turn it into an advance version of the product that sets again a new aura of the product and it leads to increasing demand for the same. For example, the iPhone series, Red-Bull’s different flavored drinks, Nike’s shoe collection, etc. They all have implemented the same business algorithm in the market and entered the Billionaire Club. According to the analysis, these companies in their line of competition are at the top. Why? They made the most out of their basic source. Even a single change in feature seems alluring and attracts the entire market. This is the key to business growth.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/700/1*OaN95RnE18H-Z7gn5T_EPw.jpeg"></figure><h3>5) Branding and Recognition</h3>
First, let us understand the difference between Branding and Marketing. Branding is who you are and marketing is how you build awareness. We do Marketing for Branding. Branding is our strategy where else Marketing is our tactic plan to accomplish those strategies. They are interrelated. Branding is a slow process. First and most, Branding depends on the success of the product. The audience always demands good quality in the right quantity. Branding is when the brand can grab the trust of your target audience in your brand and that’s when you hit the bullseye. Branding gives you recognition, and that recognition leads to development both financially and economically. Hence, the Branding factor is considered very important.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/1*8ufx6_q6nBUv8OimA26d5g.png"></figure>Thus, a well-strategized long term goal plan with proper implementation is the base to the tower of success for an entrepreneur.
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<a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm/the-business-algorithm-adf0c2f937f">THE BUSINESS ALGORITHM</a> was originally published in <a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm">Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors SRM</a> on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

THE BUSINESS ALGORITHM

2003 XI V/S 2011 XI of the Indian Cricket Team
Cricket is more than a sport in our nation and few sports moments in the Indian history have been as iconic as Kapil Dev lifting the 1983 Cricket World Cup at the Lord’s. It led India into a cricket revolution, both in terms of talent and fan following.
The country had to wait for 28 years to win the title back. It was another iconic moment when MS Dhoni, the Captain Cool of Indian Cricket team then, hit the iconic six on April 2nd, 2011, as India beat Sri Lanka by 6-wickets.
Many consider MS Dhoni &amp; Co. as the best Indian team of modern era. After all, they won the World Cup. However, there are another set of fans who believe that the Sourav Ganguly-led Indian squad from 2003 World Cup was much better in comparison. It had one the most legendary batting lineups ever in the blue colours. One cannot label if a team is better or not simply because it won a World Cup or not, the pro-Ganguly-XI fans say, After all, you need to take into account the numerous aspects leading upto and during the World Cup.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/900/1*X2cYe7Mb-4X0ykTVgoFFvQ.jpeg"><figcaption>The Runners up of 2003 ICC ODI World Cup</figcaption></figure>Points kept in mind while comparing both the teams
Undoubtedly one of the most loved playing 11’s in the history of Indian cricket- the 2003 Indian world cup squad and the 2011 squad. Though both the teams played in different years under different circumstances in this report, I will try to compare both the teams completely based on the statistics and the sports analytics, like how many matches the squads played, how many matches were against associates nation ( though they could be though to beat sometimes), how strong the opponent was in both the cases, how experienced was our team in different years, how many players were in their prime during their respective world cups?
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/512/1*4u6TdQ_BoEpxaMBZZbyEBQ.jpeg"><figcaption>World Champions of 2011 ICC ODI World Cup</figcaption></figure>2003 XI- The world cup squad led by Sourav Ganguly and the 2011 XI led by MS Dhoni
The 2003 world cup was played in South Africa, Kenya and Zimbabwe which was played away from home, despite of this fact the 2003 squad reached the Finals which give them an edge over the 2011 squad as it was played in Indian Subcontinent where the track record of the Indian team has always been phenomenal (marginally over 55%).
<figure><img alt="The Indian team had a meagre winning percentage of 44% till 2003 at away grounds" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/480/1*uOnWbPQzlnnHKZpXoQCIYg.png"><figcaption>The Indian team had a meagre winning percentage of 44% till 2003 at away grounds</figcaption></figure><figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/640/1*adbrEU1nj_LFKdx2lKtnxw.png"><figcaption>With over 55% Indian team in 2011 always had an upper hand</figcaption></figure>Pro-Ganguly XI 1–0 Pro-Dhoni XI.
In 2003 India played against 3 associate nations which include 4 matches and a very crucial match of Semi Final. Though associates could be a though a nut to break sometimes but when it comes to the numbers the 10 members always have an upper hand over associates in terms of experience, the number of runs scored or wickets taken in that matter. Whereas the 2011 world cup squad played against 2 associate nations in the group league. When considered the factor of associate teams, the Dhoni led team had lesser easy games. (Though not a single game is easy, this factor is totally based upon the number of games played by the associate and their experience)
Pro-Ganguly XI 1–1 Pro-Dhoni XI.
When it comes to the quality of players the opponent had in these scenarios the ICC ODI rankings of batting and bowling has been taken into consideration just a day before the world cups commenced. (9th February 2003 &amp; 19th February 2011). The Ganguly led team faced top 7 batsman from the top 10 ICC ODI rankings with just 1 Indian bowler featuring in the list of top 10 giving it a 1:7 ratio of the Indian bowlers to the opposition batsman, and the Indian batsman faces top 7 bowlers among top 10 in ICC ODI bowlers list with just 1 Indian batsman facing the quality bowlers again giving it a ratio of 1:7 between the Indian batsman to the opponent bowlers.
Coming to the 2011 World Cup there were 6 opponent batsman placed in top 10 which India faced with none of the bowlers listing in top 10 from India .Coming to the batting 4 Indian players were placed in top 10 of the ranking comparing to 8 bowlers around the world bowling to them giving a 1:2 ratio. So when it comes to batting the Dhoni battalion were stronger than the Sourav’s 11 and the opposite applies when it comes to bowling, based upon the ratio of the top 10 ICC ODI rankings.
Pro-Ganguly XI 2–2 Pro-Dhoni XI.
In terms of the experience of each squad, as it is a crucial factor when it comes in handling the pressure and unbalanced situations, the 2003 Indian squad had an average of 110 matches making it the third most experienced team in the world cup followed by Pakistan and Sri Lanka respectively.
Whereas the 2011 Indian squad was the most experienced squad with an average of 139 matches with Sri Lanka the runners up with 124 matches. In terms of experience the Dhoni led team was far more experienced than 2003 squad giving the latter a benefit in comparisons.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/936/1*1emqd2KfaqLY3QR15cA6wg.png"><figcaption>The 2003 team was comparatively less experienced in the whole lot</figcaption></figure><figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/640/1*-InnIHYepICLP50RCvN2jw.png"><figcaption>The Indian team was the most experienced team of the WC-2011, where the two most experienced team made it to the Finals.</figcaption></figure>Pro-Ganguly XI 3–2 Pro-Dhoni XI.
An important consideration comes under the fact of captaincy, both much celebrated cricketers of Indian history both leading their team from front but when it comes to numbers while Ganguly, has a win-loss ratio of 1.16 in ODI’s, MS Dhoni has a better win-loss ratio in ODI’s compared to Ganguly. When it comes to captaincy the 2011 team edges over 2003.
Pro-Ganguly XI 3–3Pro-Dhoni XI.
There are other factors as well which can be taken into consideration such as three matches were forfeited in 2003 world cup giving Zimbabwe a place in super 6 over England and Kenya over New Zealand for the semi final, if these matches weren’t cancelled the scenario would have been different but wouldn’t be counted in this report as it is completely based on statistics. Hope the Indian cricket team keep making us proud and we keep winning trophies at the ICC events as Cricket is more than a sport in our nation and cricketers more than human.
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<a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm/analysis-of-indian-cricket-team-2003-v-2011-a9ece3cd9d70">Analysis of Indian Cricket Team: 2003 v 2011</a> was originally published in <a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm">Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors SRM</a> on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Analysis of Indian Cricket Team: 2003 v 2011

<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/0*NxGy9MUrpsKO0Veb.jpg"></figure>In this day and age, we are always connected to the internet. While you may not realise it, but someone somewhere knows about you in more details than you yourself. This is not a speculation and I am not paranoid. If you are interested, check out Wikipedia for <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_profiling">Social Profiling</a>.
Since you are reading this, I hope you are not the type of person who goes like “Yes, they are tracking me, so what?”. I might want to change your opinion in a future blog and you might wanna <a href="https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=oBzDhDusrk6tEVGdgCM-b6jTh1ydMqBBljMfASa_1ApUNURJODFPSlVUUzc3OEdRUDlMSDRZUTZCNi4u">subscribe to know </a>as soon THAT blog goes live.
According to <a href="https://us.norton.com/internetsecurity-emerging-threats-2019-data-breaches.html">this report</a> by Norton Inc, more than 3,800 breaches were reported in 2019 alone with more than 4 billion records being compromised in them. This was far greater than ever before with a year-to-year growth rate of 54% as compared to 2018. Keep in mind that these are the ones which were actually reported.
In a noted incident, Yahoo did not report a breach of its emails and passwords for 3 years and kept it a secret up to 2016!
With this is mind, the next obvious question that comes to mind is whom can you actually trust with your information?
Information leaks can happen anywhere; while your data is being processed in a compromised server or while being transmitted over a compromised network. But it can also be targeted while it is simply being stored at some remote data centre.
Not all leaks are actually carried out by hackers. Sometimes, companies go all the way to serve user data directly to interested companies who are more than happy to pay for it. Like when Facebook served data to Cambridge Analytica without user consent and possibly allowed the US elections to get rigged.
Tech firms did not prioritise following ethics regarding user data unto now because there were no financial gains in doing so. But now, we have seen how not protecting users’ data can lead to negative financial outcomes. When Facebook was exposed of doing business with Cambridge Analytica in 2018, it saw rapid downfalls in share price and thus a major devaluation.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/0*4soqd0h1NSFvW3GR.jpg"></figure>Now Facebook has entered every home and every business across the world through WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger. They brought out end-to-end encryption to gain trust and marketed it as an in-penetrable security layer. Only a while ago we found out that this wall of encryption was being bypassed by governments for months (Pegasus Spyware).
Google earns the vast majority of its revenue from its Ads services. Its Ads service thrives on the vast base of information gathering that is laid down by its extensive network of trackers and cookies. On a typical Android phone for example, Google Play Services collects user information that consisting of real-time location, your search queries, which apps you use more and which apps you use less, which sites you visit, device usage patterns and more. This allows them to create a thorough profile of what you are and what you like (and not like) about this world. While it may seem okay to you that the targeted Ads that they are showing are alright because it is ultimately helping you see ads that you are actually interested in. But have you ever talked about something, picked up your phone five minutes later and found an advertisement for that exact same thing?
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1024/0*1MYLnNQRV9r8pyd6.png"></figure>While Google may try to convince you that they are only collecting information anonymously and no personal data is being collected, it is impossible for us to trust them on this when we know that 84.8% of their revenue comes from Ads.
Apple and Microsoft are much better off in this regard since we know that they have no financial gains selling off user data. In fact, iPhone sales account for about <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/apple-s-5-most-profitable-lines-of-business-4684130">70% of Apple’s Revenue</a> as of Q1 2019. They do not need to sell user data to avoid going bankrupt, they are financially secured anyway.
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/899/0*bhjTIXNofLyLj55u.jpg"></figure>You can start taking control over your information from today itself. For instance, when you see a
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/292/0*2DHxLCkC59R1yje4.jpg"></figure>or
<figure><img alt="" src="https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/367/0*9cj7wqexgy8ExIwD.png"></figure>button, try to avoid that and start fresh instead. Even though this might cause you to spend 5 more minutes to set things up, logging in to other websites using facebook/google credentials allows them to track you more thoroughly. Think about it, why do they offer free login on other platforms? Its because they are benefiting from it through the additional data they are able to collect about you.
There is no such thing as absolute trust, but some companies are definitely more concerned about you than others. On a personal level, I use an always updated version of Firefox and prefer Outlook over Gmail. My YouTube tracking is off and Google search results are not stored on the servers.
There are better alternatives for most of the offering from Google and Facebook. Twitter CEO Jack uses DuckDuckGo instead of Google Search and he seems to think its app is even better than Google’s.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-align="center" data-dnt="true"> — <a href="https://twitter.com/jack/status/1199783221162053633">@jack</a></blockquote>
It is bad to overthink, but that’s not what we are doing here. Give it a thought and lets talk about it. After all, its your information in someone else’s hands. :)
I welcome your thoughts and counterpoints on <a href="https://twitter.com/shantnuagarwal">Twitter</a>. You can also visit me on <a href="http://shantnu.net/">Website,</a> that wouldn’t make any difference to your life, but I seem to appreciate a visitor in a day or two.
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<a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm/trusting-your-information-with-the-right-company-1f2b93cc5415">Trusting Your Information With The Right Company</a> was originally published in <a href="https://medium.com/mlsa-srm">Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors SRM</a> on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

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