Rewind

The last year had lots of action, in the domain of sports. I will try through this post, to look back at what has been a wonderful year from a sporting perspective, with an unapologetic biased view. A lot of things could be inferred from the year gone by, which I will try to list, in no particular order.

The biggest event of the year, without a shadow of a doubt was the Olympics. The Chinese government's effort to produce a generation of freaks brought them 100 medals. Through, the same time, the Indians effort to produce another generation, of people, produced three times the medals given at Athens. What it also taught us, is a man can beat the 100m WR, by walking the last 10m. Bolting through the first 90 helped. It is tough to understand the hype and hoopla behind Bindra's gold medal performance. After all, all it takes is a jump into the pool. Ask Michael Phelps.

This was also the year of the Spaniards. The Euro Champions, when you talk about individual performances, VAMOS RAFA, comes up foremost. Spaniards one the Davis cup, and also had many individual success firsts, never heard of in the history of Spains. In fact the year was so good for the Spaniards, that a Spaniard who did not win anything, just managed to win over the beautiful Women's French Open Champion, Ana! I never had a reason to hate Fernando Verdasco, now I am glad I do.

While with Verdasco, and ofcourse Ana, lets stay with tennis for a while. The year proved winning grand slams has nothing to do with being the best in world. Ask Jelena. This year taught us that King Federer is proud of winning the doubles gold, where their toughest opponents were two old Indians, who were never a team. Doubles??? However, 2k8, also taught us that Federer is not invincible at Wimbledon, Rafa is, at Roland Garros. Andy Murray has ruined any chance of Djokovic winning any other grand slam by dominating the hard courts. But, 2k8 will always be the year of Rafael Nadal. VAMOS RAFA!

Still with Ana. Oh Verdasco. He reminds me of Fernando, Fernando Alonso. He had a great year, by turning around the horrendous Renault racing team to race contenders. This year also taught, that the class of Kimi, needs a driver 0f Alonso's calibre challenging him, to keep him interested in racing. The year also taught us that the eventual world champion is either color blind, or just plain stupid! I would like to tilt on the latter. Lewis! No idea who sees a tiger in him!!

That brings me to golf, we learnt that Tiger can beat rest of the field, on a wheel chair, when he won the US open with no legs. No wonder, he says he would be embarassed to return to the field now :). Sticking with USA, we also learnt that, KG is delusional. When he barks non decipherable shouts aimed at some one sitting in the roof of every arena, visible to no one else. Also, incredibly, the guy most valuable to a team, with a winning record, is not LeBron, but a guy called Flash. Luckily, NBA does not seem to agree with that definition for the MVP, so the King, has his hands on the trophy! The year also taugt us that Boston still remembers the Beat LA chant from the 80's and Boston still remembers how to win a championship.

Speaking of championships, Manchester United, were crowned champions of the world!!! Ridiculous as that sounds, this will blow you over. They beat some random team from the far east, Japan, after beating another random team in the semi finals! Is this the new definition for farce? However, they were also crowned champions of Europe and England! The second half of the year taught that Liverpool actually knows that a league in England exists, and have finally showed up. Arsene Wegner wants to be the new Jose! Chelsea actually play pleasing football. Manchester United - I have nothing to say. And Hull City has loud fans! Else where, the year also taught us that the Spanish League, is a misnomer. It has just one team.

For no reason, I need to shift focus, to the greatest city in the world. Hyderabad. The biggest sports starlet from the city, and also, of the country, has the letter S, A, I, N and is not Sania. Saina got into the top 10, and apparently, the most promising, and has promptly managed to get herself a few ads. Meanwhile Sania, after her memorable, for whatever reason, 2k8 campaign, managed to become the first Indian woman to earn 1 million US dollars in prize money. If you thought that is unrewarding, how about 1 million, for a 9 over spell! Another dude, to break the mark, was Jeev, with a season to remember! So now you know what sport you should have taken up! 9 overs for a 900,000!! Hyderabad - Nothing about Hyderabad in 2k8, can be complete without talking about the Deccan Chargers!! The IPL introduced a new era into international cricket. Enough has been written about it. But, the absolute brain wave of Lalit Modi, besides - like everything Indian, taking the best from European and American leagues, was to fight all those who opposed cheer leaders for the games. It was the single biggest move and Deccan Chargers benefitted the most. Without a shadow of a doubt, DC had the best cheer leader troop. Nothing else can explain 50,000 people lining up to cheer the home team crash to 7 defeats in the space of a month! Remaining with the Deccan Chargers, Afridi is up for sale folks! Any buyers?

But yes, the IPL, has taken cricket into an exciting phase. 2k8 was a particularly good year for cricket with a frightening end for, forget the purists, probably even the generation brought up on t20. A little on that later. The year started off magnifying cultural difference, where a probable Hindi abuse, was thought off as a racist abuse. The Monkey gate was entertaining! But through this year, we learnt, that only two teams are fighting for the top spot, and Australia isn't one of them. Shocking! This year also showed that bowlers can think of alternate career options, with teams chasing scores in the unbelievable realm with effortless ease. Even Bangladesh threatened! But, for good or for bad, atleast for now, the year ended with Test cricket back above one day cricket in popularity, with amazing run chases. The year also witnessed, international cricket matches decided in a best of 1 over!! The golden over, introduced in the match between New Zealand and West Indies, was used to decide the better team. Thankfully, NZL and Windies were those teams. Who cares? The year also saw right handed batsman hitting left handed sixes, Pakistani cricketers in action in IPL, and nothing else, oh, of course the home series in Abu Dhabi. The year saw a prodigious carrom board talent make a name atleast for some time. The year also saw matches held in an environment where an excited Michael Holding, saying "whizzing bullets past the batsman's nose", might no longer be a metaphor. But 2k8 will always be remembered, as the year, Australia, fell, at a pace, that would make cricketers believe in gravity more than ever before.

A lot to look forward to in the coming year. The power struggle for the top of World Cricket, a great tennis rivalry, and an engaging F1 season to look forward to, are just some of the things that come to my mind foremost.

However, for all the great things that happened through 2k8, in the sporting domain, a few natural disasters, a few man made atrocities has drilled in more emphatically than ever before, that at the end of the day, all we are talking about, is just a game.

Wish you a happy new year!

Lets paint it red for next year!!

It has taken a long time, for us to catch up with Lewis, the 2008 World Champion. But, in our defence, it takes time, when the man in question, spends half his time, running from the police for jumping the red signal ( Kimi might sympathize) and the other half, for paying speeding tickets or fines for driving under the influence of alcohol. But the reigning world champion, has been graceful enough to give us sometime, while holidaying in St. Lucia, where the champion wasted no time in getting high.

Here are some excerpts from our conversation with Lewis " I nearly blew it again" Hamilton.

WaG: First of all congratulations on your championship, Lewis.
LH: Yeah thanks. I worked really hard, to lose it again, but then, these days money talks.

WaG: This is with reference to the dramatic last turn overtake of Timo Glock???
LH: Yes, it was a tough race. I worked very hard. I was driving aggressively and on the edge. But I somehow got beaten by a Minardi. But then, Mclaren worked out a behind my back deal with Toyota, the moment Vettel showed me his back. Mclaren agreed to fund the Toyota F1 racing team for the next 5 years. If Toyota are not happy with the progress, I can still have the championship stripped off, when they go public.

WaG: Interesting, the politics of F1. But you still had a great year. Can you explain the Vettel move in the last race from your point of view?
LH: Well, I raced hard, was driving flat out, but at the end of the day, the Minardi was too much for the Mclaren Mercedes to handle. It was a good move, but I thought he pushed me off the racing line a bit and that was not good.

WaG: Ofcourse. What made you interested in racing?
LH: The freedom to drive flat out. That is the biggest thing.

WaG interrupts: Like ramming into the car in front when the red light flashes brighter than ever.
LH: Hehe. Yeah, that was fun. But, ofcourse, that is something I can do on the racing track, and get away with it. Also, blocking cars, going off road and taking others with me, I own the road. However, shifting from the race track to the roads, has been a huge mental adjustment, as can be seen, from the number of tickets I had to pay on the road this season.

WaG: Yes, tough to be an F1 driver. How did you feel, when the idea about Wembley was mooted?
LH: Honestly, I was releived when the idea was called off. If you look through my F1 career, I have never been able to overtake someone without taking him off road, or myself off road. So I thought it would be something very risky for the public and the guy whom I was racing against.

He signs off by saying that he has been working hard this off season, to make out the difference between red and green, and for that, he suggests, they paint Mclaren red next year, and believes that is the only way he can keep the championship, how to keep his car on track without pushing the other one off, as he tries to overtake, or gets overtaken, and hopes for a less eventful 2k9.

Whatever you say about the guy, he won the championship after all, and deserves credit for that. But WaG, cant settle with that, and has to add this - the two best drivers were not even contending for the championship.

Uncomplicated Genius

It has been a long time since there has been any activity on this space allocated for random rumblings. But, I have been busy assembling a team and sending them across the world to meet up with the current F 1 Champion , Blew it Hamilton, and homegrown talent ( this was never promised, but this team is in a generous mood this time of the year), the Nawab of Najafgarh, Virender Sehwag holidaying in some god forsaken place, to top off his splendid year.

Excerpts from the really candid Viru conversation:

Wine and Gold: It's been a great year for you, Viru, out of the side, and the brilliant comeback into the team, you must be really satisfied.
Viru: Thanks, yes, it was a tough year before, but then I have always believed in my style of batting, if the ball is there to be hit, I will hit it. This year, luckily, I hit some.

WaG (not the brightest idea I think) : So what did you do, to get back into the form you displayed down under?
Viru: Nothing, if the ball is there to be hit, I just hit the ball. I have always believed in this and I saw no reason to change that.

WaG: Not even after the horrendous last year and a half?
Viru: I felt I was getting out when I was batting well. But in this game you either play or you dont, so I said, if the ball is there to be hit, I will hit it.

WaG: Enlightening, I can't help but notice, that you sit, right next to Gary, if your in the dressing room. What is the reason for that? Some superstition?
Viru: No, nothing like that. I just get frustrated in there, when a ball is there to be hit, and it is left alone. I am not taking any names, but the wall, for example. So i mouth obscenities in Hindi, which Gary really can't understand. That's all.

( and then he mutters - I broke a TV thanks to him, hitting a ball that was there to be hit, watching him bat)

( Looking for the Breaking News scroll!! Damn, where did it go??)

He rounds off advising youngsters playing cricket, to hit the ball if it is there to be hit, after all, you either bat, or you dont. ( Uncomplicated genius) Obviously, if you are still interested to know, there is no bowler, Sehwag fears, because, he has nothing to do with the bowler, as any bowler, has to bowl the ball, and any ball is there to be hit.( Oh yes, after admirable restraint the man said it)

But, the team would like to thank him, for giving his precious time while trying to find a ball that can be hit, and also, for the amazing exhibition of sheer audacity and exhilarating batsmanship, in a year where, he setup the march of this Indian team to the pinnacle.

Keep it up Viru, Pure Genius!

A happy ending to the "Fabulous" Era

P.S: By Indian cricket I am referring to the test circuit

The culmination of Australia tour of India has brought to an end a few long lasting eras' of modern cricket. For a start, the 2-0 result has officially(well not yet, if you want to follow the ICC rankings) put an end to Australia's authority on top of World Cricket. They have been challenged a few times the last decade, by India, almost every time they met, in the Ashes, but this series has showed the huge void left behind by Warne, McGrath, Gilchrist and the fishing adventures of Symonds.

But from an Indian fan perspective, especially, us who have grown watching them, it is finally the end of the Fabulous Era - The era of the Fabulous Four. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar, Saurav Chandidas Ganguly, Rahul Sharad Dravid, and VVS Laxman (never expanding a gult's name :)).
The longevity of them together itself is a testament to their greatness. As we all know, no community is as demanding as the Indian, and no community is as tough to win over as the Indian, no community is as hungry for the next big thing as Indian. The media, the fans, the politics all made sure in the past that the theatre of Indian Cricket has rarely had actors who played a part in each offering over as long a period as these four gentlemen have. That alone is enough testament to the greatness of this era.

An era so great, that I could not stop myself from coming out retirement, to use my office internet facilities (yeah, I'm still not fired) to celebrate a truely special part of Indian cricket history. One that will be etched in gold and framed, and will be placed right up there where it deserves, on the very top.



For a group as much as it has achieved, the forming of it was anything but trivial. As the Indian cricket fan had got used to by then, this group was plagued by inconsistency in the years before it donned its regal avatar. Inconsistency in direction, policies, selections, and when given the opportunity, the performances itself. It took four years, since the entry of the players in question, before the Fab Four took shape.

The contribution of the Fab Four to Indian Cricket cannot really be appreciated without looking at Indian Cricket through the 90's. The 90's brought to Indian Cricket, its first superstar, Sachin Tendulkar and with it great hope to a nation. And with great hope, unfortunately, came rather huge doses of disappointment. India had the best batsman in the world, it had Mohammad Azharrudin, a great captain, Javagal Srinath - one of the first "fast" bowlers of Indian Cricket, emergence of the next great spinner in Anil Kumble, and lots of bubbles, that would then soon burst, in Vinod Kambli, Jadeja, Manjrekar etc. An Indian fan will have fond memories of Sachin oozing exuberance, style, class, grace and genius in his innings in Sydney and Old Trafford. The amazing counter attack launched by Sachin and Azhar on a bouncy South African track, or the brilliant double century of Siddhu in West Indies, or many a fierce spells of Javagal Srinath and testing seam bowling of Venkatesh Prasad, but the overriding emotion of the decade had to be grief for the ever demanding Indian cricket fan, the sadness of Tendulkar's brilliance only resulting in a defeat by 200 runs, or the failure to chase 120. Most of you know what I am getting to by now. However great India were at home in the 90's, and initially, that was a big thing for young fans like me, even later - like the 98 Australian tour to India, the semi finals of 96 and other highlights of the decade, it eventually got to a point - the disappointment of the 99 World Cup, where the atrocious record abroad finally screamed out to even the most uninformed Indian (has to be a cricket fan). It finally made a fan wonder, if waking up at 4 to watch a test match in Australia was really worth it. The final blow was of course, the match fixing scandal.

From those depths, it needed something as special as these four to revive Indian cricket in the hearts and minds of the fan. From those depths, it needed something as special as these four to make the Indian fan wake up at 4 to catch even the pitch report of matches in Australia and stay up as late as 3 to see the post match analysis for matches in West Indies.

The heroics of VVS and Dravid at Kolkata in 2001, resulting in a dramatic series victory against the invincibles, the first test victory on the soil, in a long long time, of West Indies on the backs of Saurav and VVS, the Headingley assault led by Sachin and Ganguly, after the vigilance of, by now, "The Wall", Dravid's heroics in Adelaide, and finally series victories in Pakistan, West Indies and England and a test match victory in South Africa, the brilliant comeback in Perth, and Sri Lanka tour, and I am only scratching the surface. There were the occasional hiccups like the New Zealand tour in 03, but for the Indian fan brought up in the 90's, that is easy to digest. All this while maintaining their supremacy at home, only blemish being a series defeat to Australia in 04. (There were some drawn series). The 2000's for the first time in Indian cricket, made the Indian cricket fan, revel in the success of a group, and admire a group. That is the biggest compliment that can be put for these four, especially after Tendulkar became God somewhere in the 90's.

The Fab Four marked an era of Indian cricket, where its first serious push to the top of Test cricket was made. The start of the era was anything but a loud statement. But what we witnessed over the last eight or so years is batsmanship of the highest quality, and grit, fight and resolve never seen before in Indian cricket. And it is fitting that it has ended with a defining victory over the reigning test champions. Fitting that it has ended in taking India from being the forever middle of the pack team to the threshold of the best team in the world.

The Fabulous Four have cemented their place in Indian cricket history, and have become immortal in the minds of the Indian cricket fan.

Olympic Quotes

As the title suggests, great research has gone behind this post. I spent a lot of time going through the archives of all the games held since 1896 - the modern version of the games. I also consulted historians, translators, archaeologists - everyone I could to understand quotes of the ancient versions. After all this I put together a compilation of quotes, that I think are truly apart in terms of content. Here it is

1) "I could not run, I could not jump."

Anju B George, after failing to make even one legal jump in the 2008 Beijing Games.
Talk about a Government funded holiday and this tops it. Sorry to all other quotes that could not make the cut, but this is truly a class apart.

License to continue

The second test of the on going test series between India and the Lankans brought to us, something we should be getting used to. An emphatic comeback from the veterans. Before I start off about what I want to write for now, a little bit of introduction to the group I'm talking about. Sachin Tendulkar, Anil Kumble, Saurav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, Virender Sehwag and Harbhajan Singh. Sachin, the prodigious kid expected to take the world by storm. Saurav, believed to have entered the team because of the "quota" system. Dravid, never expected to become into anything even remotely close to what he has, VVS - made one of the worst openers of the last decade, Viru - Casual strokeplay sometimes interpreted as careless, and Bhajji called for chucking in his debut season.

These men have formed the core of the greatest Test team India has ever produced. This team also produced fine leaders, one of them probably the best of all time. These men, over the course of their careers have achieved something that was unheard of by our fathers. Victory in South Africa, drawn series against Australia in their den, series victory against Windies and the Pommies, Pakistan, on the threshold of one in Lanka, this team has achieved a lot. Even as recently Azhar's time, this was a team that was notoriously poor in traveling. The transformation was gradual. Started off by winning the one off test against Bangladesh! But what has been witnessed since then is something truly noteworthy. No more is the Indian team a pushover overseas. In fact they are expected to win now. Oh and not just by the Indians(which was always there). This transformation has been made possible by and large by the quality of the batsmanship. Collectively, it has been way greater than anything ever witnessed in the past. Lots of reasons can be put forth for this change. After all, we did have decent teams even before. The quality of batsmen, self confidence instilled by arguably the greatest leader the game in this country has ever witnessed, and also I guess, the general rise of India on the world map. A lot of factors helped in this overturn.


But this article isn't really meant to be a celebration of this great collective talent. The present scenario in Indian cricket has changed too fast. The growing influence of the media has made public retention very low. The selectors seem infatuated by the youth. And some idiots who call themselves experts throw their opinion on air everyday of the year, and we gullible lot, by and large agree with what everyone has to say. The push for youngsters has never been greater. The demand for success from this group of veterans has never been higher. One defeat against the Lankans, brought about hue and cry never witnessed. Because, suddenly, we were expected to beat the mighty Lankans.

Over the past, each individual, with the exception of Sachin Tendulkar, has always had a head hunter. But now, for the first time ever, the team collectively must have felt the pressure to perform. The time left for these greats is short. Every win for them is just a license to continue playing for the country, to satisfy media hungry to create sensation, and to pacify the selectors who seem bought into the idea of youth. Tendulkar is the one untouchable of Indian cicket, so leaving him aside, every one else has their ass on the hot seat. Sehwag is on a comeback, Dravid never played an innings under more pressure than the second innings, Saurav made the greatest comeback ever, is suddenly under pressure again, VVS never felt secure about his place, and Kumble, has Dhoni ready to take over test captaincy. The team collectively, first time ever is feeling the heat. And it was great fun, to watch these champions fight it out as a group to win, to win license to die another day. They will end soon. And not all might end on their terms, but it sure will be great to watch them fight it out just to stretch their careers a little longer and fight the infatuation of youth that has possessed us all. Sad it might be, but it sure will be great to watch. Fight to win. Win to play another day!

The Great Wall of India

Bored and without work! Fast Internet, occasionally functional air-conditioner, passable head phones - and a worthless blog to stare at. Then it dawns upon the creator of that worthless blog that the time is ripe for a new entry. Nothing changed since the last post folks. Still jobless, and yeah still the same facility to access internet. Scrolling through the blog, I realized, I did not post my views on one of the greatest cricketers of our generation, thought it would be useful in such times in the future, where I would have more to tinker with, and for the present would help me kill some time by advertising aggressively for my new blog entry. Aaah perfect! Change the track. Admire the internet speed for being able to listen to music. Blare out the volume to its fullest. And overdrive! A little peek from the manager will not deter this author from his mission.

Easily one of the most gifted batsmen to have ever donned the Indian cap, this tall elegant batsman from the great city of Hyderabad (sorry could not resist) , the Very Very Special Laxman, is probably one of the most under rated cricketer in the history of the game. So stupendous is his success against the greatest team ever assembled on the cricket field that his other efforts have been rather unjustly overlooked.

Damn! Break in the flow. Work assigned. Testing times for the creator of the blog that is there because there is space for it to exist. None the less, with unmatched determination, never before seen grit, yet complete poise, he will overcome all odds to write what he intended to, (think I did that already).

VVS Laxman is the greatest batsman to have ever played for India since 1995, yes, not Dravid, not Ganguly. He is an absolute artist and the ease with which he plays can only be matched by the genius of Sachin. The countless match winning knocks, match saving knocks he has played have by and large gone unnoticed, largely, I guess, because they haven't been as loud as the 281 in Kolkata. But 10 years later, when people sit down and look back, dont be surprised to see a bald Harsha with grey sidelocks say that he was the greatest matchwinner India ever had. Here is to the most greaceful batsman ever seen in our times, the singer, ready with a new song to the Lankan beats, Very Very Special Laxman!!

Tale of a Magician, a Machine and a Djoker

It has been a while since you have last heard from me. Lots has been happening in the world we care about, the world of sports, but nothing excited me more than the third grand slam of the year. The greens of Wimbledon. A truly amazing event.

The failure of the top seeds in the women' s draw, the magical run of the short Chinese, the re - emergence of the enigmatic Safin, the disaster of the American's in the men 's section, Djokovic stunner, and of course, arguably the greatest end to the Championships ever, the finals' of the singles event in both the men 's and women 's. Yeah, we tend to forget that the women 's final was one of the highest quality, ever offered on the last Saturday of any slam. Unfair maybe, but I will spend my energy, time, and my office's internet facility on the other final. The men 's final. Actually on second thoughts, I think I will give that a pass as well. A lot has been written about it, and anything I add here will only add to the cliche's that are already flooding the space. Instead I will re direct my energy, and yeah the office's internet facillity, to write on probably the most intense battle for the top seat in World Tennis.

The three characters being the magician, the machine and the djoker. Djoker is not a name to insult a special talent like Novak, but I guess, it describes him best. He likes to speak his mind, and have fun while out there on the court. Sure does not mind making statements, that would make him likeable among the press. This mad race between Federer and Nadal, and the new entrant, Djokovic is more intriguing because of the contrasting personalities, styles and the whole history. Nadal blocking Federer's claim to be the greatest player of all time, Federer well, stopped Nadal twice before eventually falling, in the way of Nadal's dream to be more than just the king of clay. And well Djokovic. The brat. Just to make things interesting. It has the most perfect setting. Federer and Nadal, who dont seem tired of singing praises of each other, and then there is Novak, who doesnt hesitate in saying something that might be politically incorrect. Federer who makes the game look so easy, Nadal who runs around like a rabbit (thank you Safin), and Djokovic - well he is fun to watch too.

And the emergence of each character was perfect too. Federer, the prodigious kid on the block, took lots of time to come to terms with his huge potential. Before it started raining Slam's in his house, and buffaloes in his backyard.

Nadal, the prodigious young talent, expected to take over the world of tennis, but was too young at 17 to do anything significant, with time, turned into the King of Clay, but faced agonising failure before eventually tasting the sweetness of succes in the grass he cared about.

And Djokovic, coming from a country invisible on the tennis map, again took time to come to terms with what he was capable of, tasted failure in his first grand slam final, yes in the hands of one of the other two character's, before putting his country in the tennis map of champions.

All three of them faced agonising failure before the mad success that has followed. Something never heard of before. Nadal and Federer faced each other in 6 slam finals, a record. Federer reached - I lost count - consecutive semi finals, and Djokovic, before the Wimbledon blemish, had 5 consecutive semi's or better finish to a slam. While Nadal merrily continued his streak on clay, and became much more of a threat on the faster courts, and finally displaced the King of Grass, to keep his thrown warm for a while.

Besides the contrasting styles on court and attitudes off court, there is one more reason that makes this mad race, a lot more interesting. It is how each one of them, stand in other's path to the finish. That is what truely separates this from anything ever seen in the past. Such isolation of greatness. Nadal in Federer's path of winning all the slam's and claim to be the greatest ever, if he can't already, Federer in Nadal's path to become the world No. 1, shocking that a player as good as Nadal was never the best player in the world(just shows what a great player the magician is himself), and Djokovic, the ambitious young man, who believes the world is out there for him to rule. And he has done a lot to make sure he meets his dream. He is the only man to beat Federer and Nadal in the same tournament, back to back that too. And that speaks loads of his ability.

It is this which makes the battle of these three so intriguing. Having achieved considerable success, none has found it enough to be content with. And they have each other to overcome in their quest for ultimate content in life. This greed for success, and strive for perfection, initial failure, some success, yet lack of contentment - this is what makes all of us identify with this mad race. The greatest script that could ever be written. The leads being ordinary humans with extra ordinary skills. Let the show continue. Enjoy it as long as it lasts. Dont ever try to answer the question who is the greatest. Because the day you answer that, the greatest rivalries ever witnessed on that rectangle would have ended!

Enjoy the show!!

Viva la Vida!!!

A lot has been happening since the last time you have heard from me. We have been treated to high quality sporting action, an absolute dream come true for the true supporter of the great idea called sport. Its been so good, that you might be forgiven for considering golf a sport! Yes folks. It has been great across the spectrum. A lot has happened that I do not know where to start, but have started because I have nothing to do for now, two hours ahead of what promises to be a memorable clash between pre-tournament favorites Germany , and the runners-up of the last edition, led by arguably the greatest player right now, Portugal. Yeah, I will leave aside my personal favorites for a while and try to be as objective as I can be. But before I get started.. I just have to get this out of the way.. What the hell(or the more colorful four letter word) were you thinking Lewis..(Tempted to add "I blew it" Hamilton, oops I just did)???


The picture above best explains what happened to all of us who pinned our hopes on the favorites. The past month saw favorites stumble at the last hurdles. Of course, there were exceptions but by and large, this was the month of the Underdog.




I will start of with the most recent event, the conclusion of the NBA Finals. The Boston Celtics, hardly given a chance by those who thought knew the game, and more importantly by those who others believed knew the game, were led by the "Truth" to put it across the LA Lakers. I have been harsh to the Lakers in the past and to Kobe in particular. But just for the moment, in my attempt to be objective, I will try and give him his due. The Lakers were deserving finalists, thrashing the defending champions and the other team, I believed to be one of the best in the west, the Jazz. They were led brilliantly by Kobe, whose post season until the Finals, made his MVP level regular season ordinary. Kobe was brilliant. He turned it on when he wanted to, and controlled games with ease and consistency, not seen from a shooting guard since His Airness. So they were deserving finalists, and with a bit of luck might have gone on to win the title, but surely, they will be a team to reckon with for the next 4-5 years at least. But yeah, Kobe still sucks. That brings us to the Celtics. Led by "The Big Three" of Truth, KG and Jesus, they found No.4 in Rondo. The Truth, deserved to be the Finals MVP. Putting aside the credibility of his knee injury, he still had a great series. And he deserved to be there, beating the King at his best. As for KG and Jesus, I am sure there is no one out there who wanted to see them retire without a ring. So it was a great finale to a great season. A season that unearthed a new superstar in CP3, and had four candidates for MVP, saw some high quality basketball, the grit of the underdogs from Atlanta, the re emergence of the Lakers and the Celtics, Superman's Magic, CP3 Vs D-Will, the made race in the west, the crazier free fall in the east, the Trailblazers, the dramatic crash of the Heat, rejuvenated Shaq, and of course, the King! The regular season was one of the best in recent times, and it sure culminated in one of the best finals in recent times. (The Detroit-Spurs was a bore)




Two great point guards to look forward to.

The French Open. Rafael Nadal. These two words describe the complete fortnight. An absolute demolition of the field not seen since Federer doing the same in the lawns of Wimbledon, a couple of years ago. And that is saying a lot. Especially when done by a player not called Roger. The finals thrashing of Roger was so shocking, that the Spaniard, actually apologized. Sure, for Roger, the grass is way greener the other side. But the re emergence of Nadal in the clay court season, has put back on track one of the greater tennis rivalries, and makes us anticipate another finals showdown between them on grass.



However, Nadal might end up being the greatest player never to be No.1. Novak Djokovic had a terrific French too and will surely overtake Nadal in the rankings, within the next year. But that is the beauty of this little idea we support. You never know!

Oh also, the women's circuit found a new world no.1, and lets just say, a lot of us are happy.

Formula 1. The last month sure made Kimi a strong believer in Karma. After crashing into Force India's Sutil in Monaco, while chasing for fourth, and thus denying the constructors and the driver their first points in F1, the world champion's race came to an end in the most comical fashion in Canada. Hamilton, who drove a brilliant race in Monaco, a little lucky maybe, finally showed that he is still a newcomer to this sport, when he failed to see the red light in the pits. Leaving, the Pole, Kubica to win the race, who by the way, was the car next to Kimi's in the pits, was left thanking his stars.

But Lewis, seriously, what were you thinking?? I have an exclusive interview with Lewis coming up soon, so will spare him of, what some might say, unfair treatment for now.

Golf!!!!! It actually made news!!!! And that says a lot. Tiger is a great player and all, yes, never denied it. But Golf? You can barely call it a sport. But the U S Open, was one of the best seen in a long long, really long time.



It had everything. An injury, A determined star, an unknown with a never say die spirit, coming from an injury himself, the oldest man, come backs, lost leads, do or die moments, everything. It had the perfect setting. And they delivered the perfect show. 'Rocky' and Tiger played the greatest playoff seen in a while and trashed all those who questioned the need of having an 18 hole playoff, and also those (me) who never regarded it a sport. They sure did give a show! And that is all that ever mattered. To a few at least!

The Champions League Final, was one of the best the game could have asked for, not for the quality of the game itself, but for the wide emotions expressed by the players within split seconds, the emotions covered the entire spectrum. And this image of John "six inches wide" Terry, (as a good friend of mine... Chari would say) will last for a very long time. But both Chelsea and Manchester United gave us a show, as sometimes, the lack of quality in a game can be made up by competitiveness. The Finals though was a reasonably high quality game. Manchester United were deserving winners. But the day will always be remembered for this.




The Euro-08 has been a great tournament so far, with teams that play aggressive football being rewarded, and of course the underdogs putting in a fight. It has been a great show thus far. And promises to be nothing less in the business end of the tournament.

Finally, Cricket. The inaugural Indian Premier League, witnessed one of the best finishes the organizers could have hoped for with a thrilling last ball finish made possible by a player who caught the nation's imagination during the course of the event. Yusuf Pathan. He made clubbing the ball fashionable again, more importantly graceful and effortless. The Indian Premier League, changed the face of Indian Television prime time radically but might have long term negative effects on the game itself. And no, it has nothing to do with the impact it will have on test cricket. I came across this theory in an article from Cricinfo.com and if you are interested, can go search for the same. But it went something like this. And it made a lot of sense.

It is almost certain that Albie Morkel and Mike Hussey will represent the Superkings instead of their teams back home for the Champions League. This is not only a huge blow to the chances of those teams in the Champions League, but might have greater impact on the game itself in the long run. The Chennai team is acquiring these two players by paying what they call "compensation" fees, which would be peanuts compared to the kind of money IPL is exposed to. In the case of the South African team, which funded and supported Albie, through his injury, this is particularly harsh. In the long run, business can bring all the good players to one place, and thereby dent the chances of victories of teams from other countries, which eventually will result in loss of the local peoples' interest in the team. Taking it to the absolute extreme, eventually this will kill cricket outside India, which can be the home to the best talent, and we can have 200 games a year and conclude it with the "World Series".

But otherwise, the IPL's first year gave a lot of great moments. Dravid's boundary in Mumbai greeted with silence, Yuvraj being booed, Sachin's wicket cheered, Symonds being applauded! IPL was the success it became, largely because the crowd was ready to accept the idea of city based franchises very quickly. Explains 60,000 seater being filled to watch home games of a team that never won at home. And to top it all, it had the underdog rising against all odds to win it all. Perfect script. And off the field, there was enough to have the people talk about it. Mallya, Shah Rukh Khan, Preity, Cheerleaders .. everything.. But whatever kept it going, the quality of cricket offered at IPL, if not extra ordinary, was definitely acceptable.



Besides IPL, there were the Windies frustrating again, Peiterson hitting left handed sixes, and India-Pakistan matches that hardly generated any interest. But the cricket was still high quality, with lots of close games, and the Aussie dominance of world cricket finally seemed to be coming to an end.

The last one month proved once again, why sports is the greatest idea ever created by man. It showed once again, that sports is not really about winning or losing for a fan, but it is to experience the two basest emotions of happiness and sadness, in its purest form, even if just momentarily. After all, for most of us, each match is just a tale, with characters whose victories inspire us, and their defeats comfort us. So here is to the greatest idea, we have ever supported. The truest reflection of the illusion we call life.

Viva la Vida!!!
(which by the way is a decent album)

Monaco Slam Prix!!

In a desperate attempt to save the most "glamorous" event of the year from becoming another yawn like it has been for the past so many years, Bernie, Bernie Ecclestone, pulled all the strings he could to ensure that Monaco is still considered a must watch event. But sadly, it doesnt deserve to be a track. With enough space for two tricycles to go side by side, this track is an absolute pain to those who enjoy some good old racing. After all wasnt that what it was all about?

But, unfortunately, and yeah, sadly, this track depends on the weather and roads narrower than the width of the car, and spikes on the track to make it even watchable. Folks, if anything, this year's race at Monaco, begs for its removal from the F1 calender. Infact, if Bernie is really hell bent on maintaining the glamor, he can have teh cars go around the track 78 times in 2 hours, one after the another, and declare the guy who doesnt crash the winner. Actually, lets forget the 78. Just last 2 hours and you win. Take a tricycle around, no problem. Just keep moving for 2 hours. And my man, Blew it Hamilton did just that to win the farcical Monaco Slam Prix!

Congratulations!!

Bull(s)hit!

NBA Draft. 2008. Like the other things mentioned in this page, was a sad event. An event where for a majority of us, undeserving people yearning for luck to turn us into overnight winners, it was a slap across the face. God used that little mercy he leaves aside for our lot, that little mercy each year, to make those left out comfortable in hope, he used it completely on the Bulls. The Bulls. And the Heat. The Bulls, well our lot can at least identify with them, and we can feel happy about the fact that at least it was one of us. The Bulls were genuinely bad. And apparently they were not happy with how bad they were, and they worked extra hard for that luck they earned on the night of the Draft. I mean, who in their right mind would trade for Larry Bruise and Drew Badden? What were they thinking? So, the luck the Bulls got really does not disappoint me. For committing suicide they perhaps deserved this extra life. But it is the Heat that made this event SAD!!

The Miami Heat!!!

The Heat. Led by a Dwyane "I dont know what to do with this ball but I can be flashy" Wade, whom the refs have learned to love, and have become so possessive of him, that they blow their shrill whistles when anyone steps on the same court as he does, with Big Daddy, Shaq, the most dominant center of our generation, arguably, to help him. The scape goat of the fiasco called 2007-08 Miami "We Hate Winning" Heat, led by Dwyane "The Flash" Wade. Only Shaq knew what he completely meant when he gave this disaster that name. Dwyane "The Flash(in a pan)" Wade. Still the Heat were lucky to get an All Star and arguably, one of the most versatile players in the league, in Shawn Marion. Yet the Heat pledged to remain devoted to their season pledge. We hate winning.

Now a bit about our lot. Us undeserving people who yearn for that luck, that luck to change our lives for the better. We work hard to be this bad! We do! Hence the luck the Bulls got on Draft night does not disappoint me. Its the Heat. With the talent, on that team, they had no business having that shocker they called their regular season. And instead of punishing them for their carelessness, for punishing Wade, the guy can play after all, for being so indifferent to the team's performance, inexcusable for a player once considered a possible successor to the seat left vacant by His Airness, this league, this league that loves to worship its "stars" gifts him with another opportunity in the form of a world class talent. No.2 pick on Draft Night. Draft rights to Beasley/Rose. To leap frog a team that just did not care enough about winning, but were always capable, into legitimate championship contenders.

Sad Day!!

GO CHELSHIT GO!!

May 22nd, 2008. A sad day for European football when two substandard teams square off for the biggest prize in Europe. Manchester United. Chelsea. An absolute nightmare come true for the true fan of the game called Football. An art that has been reduced to "Hit it high in the air and pray we get it" ball by these two teams. Manchester United, led by a "star" who should be nominated for the Oscar's every year. Chelsea. well nothing to write about them. Last year their manager made sure they made the headlines for some reason or the other. But this year they have just managed to be one big YAWN! But so sad is the final match up that, just for the heck of siding with a team, you would prefer a team with nothing to write about than a team of artists, just not suited for the football pitch. So on this day, a day that would witness a titanic clash between the biggest duds in the history of European football, lets all get our voices in unison to yell Go CHELSHIT Go!!! Sad day indeed!

The King learns "The Truth" WWE Style

Game 7. Boston vs Cleveland at the Garden. Three all stars vs The most valuable all star. The game had all the ingredients for a classic but sadly all it turned out to be was a farce. In a desperate bid to make the star claims of Paul "The Truth" Pierce credible, NBA used its biggest weapon, King James, to give rise to a new "star". The star waiting for his "breakout" game, which apparently was long overdue. After paying off half the Cleveland team to go on an early vacation, David Stern, ensured that a legendary performance for the ages, by the KING ended up for a losing cause. A sad day when a 45 point 5 rebound 6 assist 2 block 2 steal performance had to be second best to a clown, who has a tough time to hide his excitement when his shot goes in, the "TRUTH". May 18th, 2008 - a sad day when NBA pulled off a WWE story , where David Stern made Vince look like his student and when the King was forced to be second best to a mediocre wannabe.