SPORTS MEMORIES OF 2011

It was a mixed year - 2011. There were some incredible highs as well as some bitter lows for the teams and players that I like and support. It was definitely NOT as good as 2010 had been... from the perspective of the teams I follow.

Here are my top-10 sports memories (the pleasant as well as the unpleasant ones) from the year 2011 (sorted chronologically):

1. Cricket: England Win The Ashes 3-1 (7th January)

The Ashes had been retained already, but Australia had a chance to regain some pride after two innings losses. The redemption did not come, as England got their third innings win of the series as they sealed the Ashes win 3-1. It was a masterclass performance from the English side, bowling out Australia for 280 and 281, and scoring 644 themselves. Alastair Cook continued his golden run with 189 runs and the Man of the Match award. Playing without Ricky Ponting, who had injured himself at the Boxing Day Test of 2010-11, the Michael Clarke - led Australian team lost the Ashes at home for the first time in 24 years.

2. Cricket: ICC World Cup (2nd April)

I have far too many memories from this event. That is why I have already compiled a separate post of my World Cup Memories. But there is hardly any doubt that this was one of the highlights of the year in the game of cricket... and an event worth remembering! India became the World Champions for the first time in 28 years, becoming the first team to win the finals at home.

3. Tennis: Djokovic Rules At Wimbledon (3rd July)

It was the top-seed defending champion Rafael Nadal of Spain against the form player of the year and usurper of the No. 1 rank Novak Djokovic of Serbia in the Gentlemen's Singles Final at the 125th edition of the Wimbledon Championships. Djokovic won in 4 sets, and plucked out a few strands of the Wimbledon grass to put in his mouth. He was savouring the taste of his victory... quite literally! It was a difficult match to watch for a Nadal fan like me... mainly because he had been outplayed completely by the Serbian. Djokovic broke the Federer-Nadal duopoly for the No. 1 rank that lasted almost 7 and a half years.

4. Football: Japanese Women Triumph In Germany (17th July)

Ordinarily, this event would not have made my top-10 list. But this was not an ordinary year for Japan. The great earthquake and tsunami of March 2011 had left almost 16000 people dead, 6000 injured and 3500 missing. The aftershocks of the earthquake continued till June 2011, when the Japanese women began their FIFA Women's World Cup campaign in Germany. In this backdrop, they won the finals on penalties against one of the two favourites - United States of America, having already beaten the other favourite - hosts and defending champions Germany - in the Quarterfinals. It was an emotional moment for Japan, watched by huge crowds in Germany and a fitting end to an immensely successful World Cup!

5. Cricket: England Complete Whitewash (22nd August)

The No. 1 spot in Test cricket had already been sealed with a win in the third Test. But that was never going to stop England, as they emphatically completed a whitewash over India to stamp their status as the top team in Tests. It was extremely difficult to watch that performance from England as an Indian fan... the only solace being the realisation that the English squad was far superior. The wounds of this drubbing will take a long very long time to disappear... and even then, they may never disappear completely.

6. Rugby: All Blacks Win At Home (23rd October)

The hosts won the Rugby World Cup for the first time in 16 years (after the Springboks 1995) in a closely fought finale at Eden Park, Auckland. Like the Japanese women's FIFA World Cup win, this win for the All Blacks too came in a year where Christchurch had been affected by a big earthquake... so much so that some matches (including a quarterfinal) had to be moved out of that city due to the destruction caused. The All Blacks have always been an exciting team to watch... and there is no denying that they were the best team of the tournament, winning every single match they played.

7. Formula One: Inaugural Indian Grand Prix (30th October)

A few years ago, I would have said it's unfathomable so early! But in 2011, it actually happened. Buddh International Circuit hosted the inaugural Indian Grand Prix Formula One race weekend from 28th October to 30th October 2011... and apart from a small interruption due to a stray dog during the first practice session on Friday, it was a smooth affair. Karun Chandok set the first ever flying lap time on the circuit during the first practice session on Friday. Sebastian Vettel won the with his Red Bull car, both the Force India cars (Adrian Sutil and Paul di Resta) managed to score points and Narain Karthikeyan finished at 17th position - equaling his season best with the Hispania Racing Team. Formula One had come to India!

8. Cricket: South Africa 96, Australia 47 (10th November)

What a day of cricket! If I tell you that the day started with visitors adding 70 runs for the last 2 wickets and ended with the hosts scoring 81 runs for the loss of just 1 wicket, then you might be forgiven for thinking that a lot of the day's play might have been washed out. It is scarcely conceivable that in between these 151 runs for 3 wickets, Cape Town witnessed the fall of 20 wickets for 143 runs! So the final equation - 23 wickets, 294 runs, 79.3 overs and a part of all four innings played out in one day! I watched Australia slump to 21 for 9, and then had to miss out on the rest of their innings as I was to go out. Their 10th wicket pair's 26 run partnership saved them the embarrassment of recording the lowest ever total in a Test innings, and ended up being greater than the sum of all their other 9 partnerships!

9. Cricket: Sehwag Also Crosses The 200 Barrier (8th December)

A lot of people believed that he would be the first man to do so. He wasn't... his idol was! But 652 days after Tendulkar had done so, Sehwag too breached the 200-run barrier in Men's ODI cricket and relegated that 200* (147b, 25 x 4s, 3 x 6s) to the second spot amongst the highest runs scored by a batsman in an ODI innings. The top spot is now occupied by a 219 (149b, 25 x 4s, 7 x 6s)... a phenomenal knock that could even have been a 250! Like it happened with the Tendulkar 200, I missed this occasion too. Atleast in case of the 200*, I had seen Tendulkar bat till he was about 130-odd... but this time, I was reduced to just following the scores on my cell phone. But the highlights were good enough to make you realise what a special knock that was!

10. Cricket: Sri Lanka Move On From Murali (29th December)

South Africa humiliated them in the 1st Test. There was hardly anyone predicting a win for the Sri Lankans before the 2nd Test began. But the Durban jinx struck again. Sri Lanka put up a stupendous performance to beat South Africa in the 2nd Test and level the series at 1-1, subjecting the hosts to their 4th consecutive loss at Kingsmead, Durban. The most important thing was that this was Sri Lanka's first Test win in almost a year and a half since the retirement of Muttiah Muralitharan. I was wondering when Sri Lanka would start winning again... for their year had gone nowhere but down after they had been beaten in the World Cup finals in Mumbai. This match ensured that they finished it on the right note!


There were many other moments worth remembering in 2011 - Sri Lanka's capitulation against England at Cardiff, Zimbabwe's brilliant comeback to Test cricket, Na Li becoming the first Asian woman to win a Grand Slam singles title at Roland Garros, Rafael Nadal's 6th French Open win, Jo Wilfried Tsonga's win over Roger Federer in the Wimbledon quarterfinal coming from 2 sets down, Novak Djokovic out-Rafa-ing Rafael Nadal to win his first US Open title, Manchester United losing the derby to Manchester City at home 1-6, numerous clashes between Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa during the Formula One season, and many more! Looking forward to another exciting year full of great sporting action... Happy 2012 to everyone!

RETURNING AHEAD OF A HECTIC SEASON

It's been a long time since I wrote here... more than 2 months. The break was partly forced and partly self-imposed. But now that I get back to this blog, I realise how much I missed it... the blogging, commenting, tweeting, the entire package!

Since I last posted, a lot has happened in the world of cricket and other sports. In India, the IPL started, dragged along, and then finished, taking up almost 2 months of the calender. Yet, the champions remain unchanged as do the teams that qualify for the Champions League. After that, a youthful Indian side went to a Gayle-less West Indies, and won the Twenty20 and ODI series. On the administrative front, the BCCI v. DRS standoff continues. I will be writing a detailed post combining all my previous opinions on DRS soon.

The Sri Lankan cricket team is in England, fighting hard to gain something out of the Test series, while their Board is trying to convince the BCCI to send the Indian players to the SLPL. The English cricket team is, in the meanwhile, looking well-oiled and ominous for Indian fans. But there are certain chinks, as are bound to be in the best of teams!

The West Indies Cricket Board and Cricket Australia are involved in two different, yet similar standoffs. Chris Gayle and Simon Katich. "If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys" - that's the case in Cricket Australia. "If you have monkeys, you cannot expect much wisdom" - that's the case with the West Indies Cricket Board.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan Cricket Board continues to head the peanuts-monkeys scenario, with Ijaz Butt clearly the leader. The removal of Shahid Afridi and his temporary retirement, before fighting for his right to play cricket elsewhere in the Twenty20 format also made big news.

In South Africa, Gary Kirsten is the new coach and AB de Villiers the limited-overs captain. In New Zealand, cost-cutting is the word! The only Test-playing nation that has been relatively quiet with their cricket news over the last two months is Bangladesh... but then, that is how they have always been!

In football, the Champions League finals were played at the New Wembley, with Barcelona prevailing convincingly over the English champions, Manchester United. Though a Man-U follower myself, there is no denying that Barcelona is currently the best club in Europe, and it will take a super-human effort to beat them in their current form in a big match.

The Formula One news is all Sebastian Vettel! In 7 races, that boy has 5 wins and 2 second-place finishes! To think that it could have been 6-1 had it not been a final lap error at Montreal is just amazing! But Montreal did show that he does feel the pressure. And he is prone to making mistakes too. As the bandwagon moves to the European continent, McLaren-Mercedes and Ferrari will take heart from that Jenson Button victory in their efforts to fight back and close in the gap!

In Tennis, the Djoko-streak was broken by Federer, who was in turn broken by Nadal, who clinched his 6th French Open title. As the Wimbledon kicks off today with Rafael Nadal opening the proceedings on the Centre Court, the Gentlemen's Singles offers the most mouth-watering prospect of quality tennis, as the top-4 seeds look in great touch. The Indian presence too is quite strong in the Men's Doubles and to an extent, in the Women's Doubles.

Back to Cricket...

As the England - Sri Lanka Test series comes to an end today with England trying hard to press for a 2-0 win, the West Indies - India Tests will begin on the other side of the Atlantic. India's next 7 international matches will be Tests... and that is partly why I chose precisely this moment to get back to the blogosphere.

Though a Zaheer-less India may struggle a bit against West Indies, my mind goes back to a similar Zaheer-less India that won the Third Test in Sri Lanka not too long ago. I wonder if Praveen Kumar will get a chance to make his Test debut... it would be nice if that happens! And even though Virat Kohli is more or less certain to make his debut, which is a very promising development in India, my heart also goes out to Cheteshwar Pujara, who misses this tour because of an injury suffered during the IPL.

A hectic sporting season awaits... and I am delighted to be back!

CRICKET - THE FUTURE

Over the last 4 weeks, the Group stage of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 was contested across 13 cities in 3 South Asian countries. The top-8 Test teams have eventually managed to make it to the quarterfinals, a prediction made by a lot of people well in advance. While for 4 of these teams, the ride was easy and straightforward; for 4 others, it was an up-and-down adventure!

Two teams, by general consensus, have been the most exciting teams to watch in this World Cup… and to no one’s surprise really, they are both from Group B – England and Ireland! There were a total of 11 matches involving these 2 teams, and 10 of them were definitely worth a watch. The only one-sided match where either of these teams was involved was the Ireland v. South Africa match at Eden Gardens, where South Africa won comfortably by 131 runs.

The Difference

However, the similarities between these two teams end here. The path ahead for England is very clear – win 3 straight matches and lift the World Cup, or lose in the interim and return home for some rest after a hectic few months of non-stop cricket! The path for Ireland is not quite so clear though. They have an ODI scheduled against Sri Lanka in a couple of months’ time, when the latter go on a tour of England, and they have a few fixture scheduled in ICC’s Associate tournament structure. But what next?

England host Sri Lanka followed by India in the coming months. Then they will visit India for their cricket tour in October. As for Ireland, I doubt if they will get to play this much cricket over the next 4 years, by the time the next World Cup comes calling in 2015.

So when the time comes for them to play in the Qualifying round for World Cup 2015 against the lowest-ranked teams amongst the Full Member countries, there is a good chance that they may be found wanting. Ireland did not get a lot of cricket to play over the 4 years separating their impressive performances in 2007 and 2011, yet they managed to put up a fine effort in the latter edition. THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT IF THEY DO NOT PLAY MUCH CRICKET OVER THE NECT 4 YEARS, THEY WILL AGAIN MANAGE TO PUT UP A FINE SHOW AGAIN IN 2015! Far from it, in fact!

Ireland in World Cup 2011

Cricket Ireland did a tremendous job in these four years from 2007 and 2011. They must be applauded for that. But in their achievement, they have pointed out to the ICC a mistake made by it. With their performances, they have clearly made a statement to the ICC telling them that had they been allowed to or made to play more top-level competitive games in this intervening period, they might well have been able to close out the games against Bangladesh and West Indies, where they were in a winning position, but lost out partly due to inexperience. They could have easily won those 2 games and finished 3rd in the Group B – the Group of Death – have would now have been in Colombo awaiting their Quarterfinal clash against Sri Lanka, while England would have had to be in Dhaka ready for South Africa, and West Indies on the flight home!

I believe that most cricket followers would opine that Ireland performed better in this World Cup than Bangladesh. The latter may have had more points, but one look at the NRRs of both these teams will give you an idea of the level of competitiveness that they played with. Bangladesh lost 3 matches in the World Cup – in one, they allowed the opposition to score 370 runs (the highest score of the tournament thus far), and in the other two, they were bowled out for paltry scores of 58 and 78 (two of the three lowest scores in this tournament thus far). A lot more was expected from a Test nation playing in conditions that were ideal for their brand of cricket.

Ireland, a minnow and an Associate, won only 2 matches – in one, they stole a win from England when all hopes seemed just about extinguished, and in another, they comfortably chased down a target in excess of 300 (with more than 2 overs to spare) against another Associate, the Netherlands, showing them in no uncertain terms, that they are ‘the best amongst the rest’. In the four matches they lost, they put up a hard fight in three, and were in winning positions in two of those three before losing out as much to inexperience as to the opponents.

However, the biggest difference between Bangladesh and Ireland in this World Cup, in my opinion, was not in the performances, but in the mindset. I recall one incident that I would like to bring to everyone’s notice. During the pre-match cricket program for the Bangaldesh v. West Indies game, the broadcaster aired an interview of Bangladesh’s bowling coach Ian Pont who made a remark that did not go down well with me, and even one of the studio experts. When asked about their chances of winning that match against West Indies and getting into the race for Quarterfinals qualification, Pont said that the team management had indentified that match as one of the four that they would target a victory in – the other three being against Ireland (already won at that stage), England and the Netherlands. Compare this to the Irish coach Phil Simmons’ comments where he said that the team was there to win. The Irish captain William Porterfield too stated on numerous occasions that the team would go for a win in all games that they play, regardless of the opposition, and given the way he captained the side and placed his fields, he certainly stuck to his promise.

The Problem for ICC

Numerous people have said during this World Cup that the Associate nations need more exposure against the top sides so that they may improve. Most of them were those associated with the Associates – Jimmy Kamande, Steve Tikolo, William Porterfield, Phil Simmons, Peter Borren, Ryan ten Doeschate, Ashish Bagai and others, but there have been a lot of other people, amongst the average cricket followers too.

I know that it will be difficult for ICC to do so. It makes little commercial sense to have a series, howsoever small, between a team like India or South Africa or Australia or England and Ireland or the Netherlands or even Scotland or Afghanistan. Moreover, these matches may not be contests as well… they may just end up being massacres that will force the ICC to stop this practice. So I have tried to think of a solution or two for the ICC, and how it can go about maximising the growth of cricket in these centres.

Possible Solutions

One of the most commonly suggested steps, which I would wholly support, is to organise frequent tours of ‘A’ teams of the stronger countries to the Associate countries. More exposure to good quality cricket in home conditions followed by more exposure to good quality cricket in alien conditions when they themselves will tour these countries for ‘A’ team matches should definitely show improvement.

There are also people who are suggesting that when major nations go on Test tours, they should play their warm-up matches against the Associate nations in that region. While Sri Lanka will just be playing an ODI match each against Ireland and the Netherlands during their tour of England later this year, I would also like to see more First Class matches involving Associate teams and Test teams. This again poses a commercial problem because the Home Boards lose out on revenue if Associate nations play the practice matches, instead of a team registered under that Home Board. For example, the BCCI would lose out on revenue if England plays their practice matches on tour to India against Afghanistan, instead of the Board President’s XI team. It also deprives the young home cricketers of a chance to impress the selectors ahead of the main series. But in my opinion, these two problems are not grave enough that they should stall the potential progress of cricket as a sport.

Over the last few days, I have had another couple of ideas in my mind. One of them is to organise a few big-team tournaments in the smaller countries, e.g. ICC Knock Out Tournament of 2000, which was held at Nairobi, Kenya. I would love to see every alternate Champions Trophy and every alternate World Twenty20 Championships held at smaller cricketing countries. There are a number of benefits of this. One, this will definitely help in improvement of infrastructure at those places and allow better facilities to that country’s cricket team in future. Two, the best way to popularise a sport in a new territory, in my opinion, is to take the best practitioners of the sport to that territory, and allow them to showcase the sport in the best of lights over there.

The other idea that I have had is a two-tier Test Championship. The ICC has already shown interest in the concept of Test Championships to lend more meaning to the game of Test cricket. My solution would just involve adding another tier to that Test Championship to help the game grow. In the ICC Inter Continental Cup, where the Associate nations play First Class cricket, 7 teams took part in 2009-10, including a Zimbabwe XI that wanted to get a bit experience before their return to Test cricket this year. The winner of this tournament was Afghanistan, with Scotland, Zimbabwe and the three-time defending champions Ireland taking the next three spots. So, apart from Ireland, there are a few other Associates as well, who look very promising for the future of our sport, and can be included in the two-tier Test Championships.

Test Cricket

My last solution involves integration of ICC’s current plan of a Test Championship as well as the ICC Inter Continental Championships. There are 105 members recognised by the ICC – 10 Full Members, 35 Associate Members and 60 Affiliate Members. A further 24 non-members are under constant ICC scanner to be enrolled as Affiliate Members. If this plan of Two-tier Test Championships is planned, organised, and executed properly, in a few years’ time, we could have at least 35-40 of these member countries (including all of the Associates and a few Affiliates) play First Class cricket at various levels, with a real chance of breaking into the top-level by the process of promotion and relegation.

As it stands today, 15 Associate / Affiliate members have already had a chance to participate in the Inter Continental Cups over its various seasons, which even includes territories where you wouldn’t know cricket existed, like Cayman Islands!

The Need to Dream

The reason why I think a Two-Tier Test Championship (and Multi-Tiered in future) is necessary for the game is to give the lesser Associates and Affiliates a chance to dream big about competing at the biggest stage called Test Cricket. Afghanistan was once in Division 5 of ICC’s World Cricket League. But they knew that they could still qualify for the World Cup 2011 if they won or ended up as Runners-up in all the subsequent league matches they play. And thus, they had a dream! This dream was possible only because they could see a way of fulfilling it. And they almost accomplished their dream, missing out by a very small margin during the World Cup Qualifiers, having zoomed up through the lower leagues.

How will cricket see sustained development in these places if youngsters do not dream of becoming cricketers? I come from India, a country that stands at about the 140th rank in FIFA’s team rankings. As a 10-year old, I only played cricket and dreamt of becoming a cricketer. Football never crossed my mind as a serious sporting career because of my country’s low profile in that sport. In my country, as things stand, an average footballer will never achieve anything big, and football as a career is feasible for only those who are extraordinarily talented and have a decent chance of making it to the European Leagues.

A lot of countries have a low profile in cricket too, which the ICC must better. When the profiles of these Associate countries in cricket increase, and they see a realistic chance of playing at the highest level of our sport, the youngsters there will be bold enough to think and dream of a career in cricket. There will be more number of cricket professionals, as there are in Ireland today.

The performance of Ireland in the World Cup 2011 has given ICC a chance to work on developing the sport further and taking it to new shores. It has made ICC see beyond its traditional big-powers and gauge the level of development amongst its smaller members. I dearly hope and pray that ICC does not let go of this chance, and for once, takes a step that would benefit our sport rather than just its coffers!

(Note: I have purposely not made any reference to development of cricket through ODIs and Twenty20s in this post. The reason is this - I believe that these two formats of the game, particularly the smallest one, are the best vehicles to spread the game in far corners of the earth.

Soulberry from The Cricket Watcher's Journal puts it well when he says "T20 is the best vehicle for it provides a pleasure factor with the least debate in a new recipient's mind. The process of acculturization employs what is available to create a context - the desire for fun outing that doesn't consume or encroach upon existing vitals and the clarity of simplicity which helps acceptability because there are no tedious debates they have to understake in their minds over Cricket. And all you need is a park and a TV camera cabled up to an OB van to get started with T20."

However, my dream extends beyond the growth of merely the shorter formats of the game in these lands. I, as already stated, would love to see Test cricket take wings and spread just as much. That is why the solutions offered in this post are all related to Test cricket and First Class cricket. The Twenty20 format is bound to grow without a lot of effort from the ICC. Test cricket's growth will require effort.

There is a good chance that ICC may rest on it laurels of having spread cricket wide just on the basis of popularising Twenty20 cricket everywhere. However, that is not what I want to see ICC stop at. Hence, this post makes no reference to Limited Overs Cricket of any form.)

300*

It's coming a couple of weeks later than I had originally intended... but here it is. This is my 300th blog post on CRIC - SIS, and on this special occasion, I have decided to select my 10 favourite sporting moments of 2010. The 10 below are listed chronologically... because try as hard as I might, I just couldn't rank them in an order of preference.

1. MICHAEL HUSSEY STEALS IT FROM PAKISTAN AT SYDNEY

6th January 2010

There may have been lots of questions asked about this match later... but when it happened, it was incredible. I was certain of a Pakistani win for most part of the match, but one of my friends was certain that if there is any team in the world that can throw away a match from such a position of strength, it is Pakistan. And throw away they did, as Michael Hussey scripted a century for himself and a win for his team that really couldn't be deemed possible.




2. 200* (147)

24th February 2010

This one had to be there! How could it not be there! 147 balls, 25 fours, 3 sixes... and 200 runs! Sachin Tendulkar created history (once again!) at Gwalior and accomplished a feat that no man had ever done before him... and Double Century in ODIs. Like it's said, many have scaled the peak of Mt. Everest... but no one looks beyond Sir Edmund Hillary!




3. INIESTA PAINTS THE RAINBOW NATION RED

11th July 2010

It happened late in the second half of extra time when Andres Iniesta finally helped Spain breach the defense of the Dutch team. And as soon as it happened, we knew it! Spain had become the Football World Champions (in addition to being the reigning European Champions) in South Africa. Spain was one of the three teams I had backed right from the start to win the tournament... and they did!




4. PAKISTAN ERASE THE SYDNEY NIGHTMARES AT LEEDS

24th July 2010

Usually, when a team is bundled out for 88 on the first day of a Test match, there can be only one result possible. But with this match, no one could be quite certain. Eventually though, Pakistan managed to beat Australia at the end. This match comes in my list because of events that preceded it. Pakistan was thrashed at Lord's by Australia and Shahid Afridi resigned from captaincy. Salman Butt took over and had this amazing result straightaway. Whatever may have conspired behind the scenes, there is no doubt that at that moment, Salman Butt had won a lot of credibility for Pakistan cricket (unlike another Butt).




5. WE ARE NOT TERRORISTS: AISAM-UL-HAQ QURESHI

10th September 2010

It was written somewhere up there... this entire journey! The unheralded 16th seed pairing of Rohan Bopanna and Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi (alias the Indo-Pak Express) reached the finals of the last Grand Slam of the year... the US Open at Flushing Meadows. Though the scoreline might not suggest it, it was a very hard fought match with both teams throwing everything they had at each other before the better and the more experience team prevailed. The match in itself was brilliant, but what Aisam said after the match was even better. It was heart-warming to see the standing ovation that Aisam got when he finished his speech that told the world that Pakistanis are not terrorists! What a way for Aisam and Rohan to finish their campaign!




6. RAFA!

12th September 2010

Rafael Nadal became just the 7th man in history to complete a Career Grand Slam (and the youngest to get there as well) by winning the US Open at Flushing Meadows. A tremendous final, a brilliant opponent in the form of Serbian Novak Djokovic... and Rafa capped a brilliant year for himself and his country Spain!




7. LAXMAN = HOUDINI

13th October 2010

Even Houdini wouldn't have managed the escape that VVS Laxman engineered for India in the company of first Ishant Sharma and then Pragyan Ojha (and of course, Suresh Raina all the while). It was the closest Test match in India after the tied Test of 1986 between the same teams - India and Australia! There is no way this list could have been completed without this event. And yes, CRIC - SIS had it highest ever number of hits after this match... so that's another reason for the match to be there in the list.




8. CHE ARRIVES AT THE BIG STAGE

13th October 2010

I had waited for young Cheteshwar Pujara's chance for a long time. When he did get his chance, he also got a wretched shooter third ball from Mitchell Johnson. His Test career couldn't have started with much worse luck. But he came back... given a chance to bat at No. 3 in what could have been a tricky run chase, Che impressed everyone by taking the attack to Australia and when he reached his half-century in the illustrious company of Sachin Tendulkar, we all knew that Che had arrived!




9. VETTEL PULLS OFF THE UNEXPECTED

14th November 2010

The day dawned at Abu Dhabi with anticipation high in the Fernando Alonso and Mark Webber camps. Though Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton were also in the race, nobody gave them much of a chance. At the end of that race, it was Vettel who sported the biggest smile as he realised that he was the World Champion... the only German other than Michael Schumacher to lay his hands on the sport's biggest prize.




10. THE URN IN THE BAG, THE SPRINKLER ON THE FIELD

29th December 2010

England managed to retain the Ashes away from home for the first time in almost a quarter of a century... so the celebration was bound to be different! And different it was... the Sprinkler dance! What a way to finish a brilliant year for England... a year where they also won their first ICC Trophy - the Twenty20 World Championship.




I do know that there are a few moments that were very close to making it to my list... but have missed out! There was Razzaq's monstrous hitting to steal a game for Pakistan, there was Afridi's monstrous hitting to almost steal a game for Pakistan... there was Chris Gayle's triple hundred, there was India's win at Durban... there was Barcelona's 5-0 thrashing of Real Madrid, and there were a lot of others.

But the list endshere... and I do hope that my readers have enjoyed my journey of 300 blogs as much as I have enjoyed writing them. Now for the next target: Brian Lara's 400!

FIFA WORLD CUP 2010 ENDS

SPAIN ARE THE FIFA WORLD CUP 2010 CHAMPIONS!

As two hours of a physically as well as mentally exhausting game were coming to an end and the players were getting tired, it took one defensive error in the Dutch penalty area that was scooped up by Spain... and Iniesta, with the composure of a surgeon, turned that moment into one that will be etched in Spain's history and ensured that his name will be counted amongst the legends of Spanish football.

My heart goes out to the Dutch. Netherlands were by far the most enterprising team through the tournament... and had a 100% record right from the qualifying stages to the World Cup Finals. They just did not have the energy in the end to land their foot across the finish line.

The game itself, was a curious mix of unconverted opportunities and a lot of yellow cards (as well as a red at the end). The referee used his yellow card 14 times in 2 hours, once along with a red. Both the sides, surprisingly, were rather unconvincing in their opponent's penalty area. The referee too did not have an easy match... and at the end of it all, the Dutch fans let their frustration be known by booing the Englishman Howard Webb when he went on stage to collect his medallion.

Not only the Dutch crowd, but even the Dutch coach Bert van Marwijk and their midfielder Arjen Robben lashed out. Both were specifically upset that Webb has failed to book Carlos Puyol for the second time when he had his arm around Arjen Robben as he looked to get one-on-one with the Spanish keeper Iker Casillas. Van Marwijk was simple in his assessment: "I don't think the referee controlled the match well." And Robben was not too discreet when he said: "When you play in a World Cup final, you also need a world-class referee."

But, there was no doubt at the end (the Dutch coach agreed as much) that the better and the more deserving team was crowned the World Champion. The top goal-scorer David Villa, the finals goal-scorer and man-of-the-match Andres Iniesta and the ever-reliable workhorse Xavi set the foundation on which Spain built its success. Carlos Puyol, Gerard Pique and Iker Casillas were fantastic at the back. And Sergio Ramos was brilliant at the back as well as wide on the right while attacking.

This year is turning out to be even more beautiful than 2008 for the Spanish sports fans. In 2008, Rafael Nadal won the French Open, the Wimbledon and the gold in Beijing Olympics, Spain were ranked 14th in that Olympics with 5 Golds, 10 Silver and 3 Bronze, they won the Davis Cup and of course, the football team won the European Championships... their first major international football title.

In 2010, Nadal has managed to duplicate his 2008 feat (minus the Olympic medal, of course) and Spain has already been crowned the Champions of the World in football... a glory that they have never seen before.

The World Cup has drawn to a close now... and South Africa must be congratulated on hosting a brilliant event. Just 12 months backs, there were fears that it might not be a success, there were security issues just a few months back and there must have been myriad other obstacles, but just as the Rainbow Nation's history suggests, they overcame everything. CONGRATULATIONS TO SPAIN AND CONGRATULATIONS TO SOUTH AFRICA!

ANY COMMENTS?

Greame Smith uploaded this pic on his Twitter page. I am speechless...

FIFA WORLD CUP ON THE LAST LAP

In just about a couple of hours, the closing ceremony of the FIFA World Cup 2010 will begin... before the Grand Finale between the Netherlands and Spain.

Now, the bookies all over the world are reportedly favouring Spain to lift the title. In fact, most Indian celebrities are also reportedly backing Spain... a number of them have said as such on their Twitter pages. The German team manager has thrown his weight behind the Spaniards. Robin van Persie, the Dutch striker (supposedly target-man), has also admitted that Spain will start as slight favourites. And yes, before I forget, the star of the World Cup hero from Germany, Paul the Octopus, has also predicted a Spanish win.

Does this increase the pressure on the flamboyant, yet perennially under-achieving Spanish side? I guess it does. Now, I did use the word flamboyant to describe Spain... because all the newspapers seem to think so. But I think that this word has come out only after the semi-final match against Germany... where Spain indeed was flamboyant and the deserving winner.

However, if we look further back, it was not an easy ride for them as it has been for the Netherlands. Spain just about managed to scrape through over Paraguay... and though they were the clearly better team against Portugal before that, they won the game because Portugal underperformed and not because they were exceptional.

Netherlands, on the other hand, have been a lot more attack-minded than Spain. Their goal tally shows as such. Spain have scored just 7 goals over the past one month whereas Netherlands have been way ahead on 12 goals. In fact, the problem for Spain is that apart from David Villa, Andres Iniesta and Carlos Puyol, no one has managed to strike the back of the net. And they certainly cannot rely on Puyol to score everyday... then who will be at the back!?

For the Netherlands, the scorers have been Dirk Kuyt, Robin van Persie, Klaas Jan Huntelaar, Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Arjen Robben and of course, Wesley Sneijder. This seems to suggest that they have a lot more settled and confident attack than the Spaniards.

The Dutch, however, have not been very strong defensively. They have conceded 5 at the back, in comparison to just 2 by Spain. And when you compare the goalkeepers, I would pick Iker Casillas any day over Maarten Stekelenburg.

So this contest builds up nicely... on one hand is a team with a misfiring attack but a strong defense facing up to a team with a confident attack but a faltering defense. Both teams are chasing history... never having won this competition in the past 80 years of its existence.

Spain already starts on the backfoot... in terms of history. No team has ever won this showpiece event after having lost their first match. Spain had lost the first match to Switzerland... but they have regrouped since then.

So... now the wait is just about over. In a few hours, the world will know which team has made history. Let the battle begin...

FORLAN, YOU BEAUTY!

Uruguay is losing the 3rd place playoff match of the FIFA World Cup 2010 against Germany 3-2 in the 89th minute... but irrespective of the result, I must say that the second goal of Uruguay scored by Diego Forlan was amongst the best I have seen.

Scoring on the volley that hit the ground before crashing into the back of the net, Forlan notched up his 5th goal of the World Cup... the top tally in this event, alongside David Villa, Wesley Sneijder and Thomas Muller.

And, oh my God! 90 + 2', Forlan takes the last free kick of the match from the edge of the penalty box and beats the wall and the keeper only to see the Jabulani ball hit the woodwork before referee blows his full time whistle.

Germany are the 3rd team at this World Cup, having beaten Uruguay 3-2. But make no mistake, Forlan is a true champion! He gave a champion's performance at this World Cup... and had that free kick gone in to make it his 6th goal, he would have certainly deserved his lead in the race for the Golden Boot.

The penultimate match of the FIFA World Cup 2010 has ended and by this time tomorrow, the Waka Waka World Cup winner would most likely be decided. There have been some amazing moments as well as some disgraceful ones... as it happens in every bug sporting event. But one thing's for sure: the first football World Cup to be held in Africa has been a success!

GOLDEN BALL NOMINEES

FIFA has announced ten nominees for the Golden Ball award at the World Cup 2010 in South Africa. Here is the list of nominees:

1. Diego Forlán (Uruguay)
2. Asamoah Gyan (Ghana)
3. Andrés Iniesta (Spain)
4. Lionel Messi (Argentina)
5. Mesut Özil (Germany)
6. Arjen Robben (Netherlands)
7. Bastian Schweinsteiger (Germany)
8. Wesley Sneijder (Netherlands)
9. David Villa (Spain)
10. Xavi (Spain)

3 Spanish, 2 Dutch and 2 Germans... clearly stating which were the best teams in the tournament!

My vote would go for Xavi (Spain). He's got the most number of successfully completed passes in the tournament, and has been the heart of Spanish midfield. He has been the key figure in the team and their strategy of holding ball possession has been centered around the control showed by him and his fellow midfielder, Andrés Iniesta.

I was surprised that Thomas Müller (Germany) did not get a nomination. He's been a huge force in Germany's march to the semis... and their chance to be the No. 3 team in this World Cup. Mesut Özil from Germany is a very good nomination though. This young left - footer has impressed one and all!

These ten men have a chance of getting their name written in history, alongside the likes of Pelé (Brazil - 1970), Diego Maradona (Argentina - 1986), Ronaldo (Brazil - 1998), Oliver Kahn (Germany - 2002) and Zinedine Zidane (France - 2006). May the best man win!

WEIRD!

I received this extremely weird forwarded email some time back... I don't know how many of you have read this.

Brazil won a FIFA World Cup in 2002. They had also won in 1962. 2002 + 1962 = 3964.

Brazil won a FIFA World Cup in 1994. They had also won in 1970. 1994 + 1970 = 3964.

West Germany won a FIFA World Cup in 1990. They had also won in 1974. 1990 + 1974 = 3964.

Argentina won a FIFA World Cup in 1986. They had also won in 1978. 1986 + 1978 = 3964.

Going by the magic number of 3964, the winner of 2010 FIFA World Cup should be the same as the champion of 1954. In 1954, it was West Germany. So this time again, the number of 3964 is going to fail... just as it failed in 1998 and 2006.

1998 Champions were France, while 1966 Champions were England.

2006 Champions were Italy, while 1958 Champions were Brazil.

But if we take it that this formula will hold true for the next World Cup, then you can place your bets for the 2014 Champions... Uruguay (they won in 1950). And the Champions in 2026 and 2030 will be Italy... followed by Uruguay again in 2034. That's it! Can't predict any further as the formula will become obsolete then.

So now you know whom to place your bets on in the future!

FIFA WORLD CUP FINALS - NETHERLANDS V SPAIN

Last time when Rafael Nadal won the Wimbledon, it was 2008. It was also the same year in which his country Spain won their first major international football title... the Euro 2008!

Now in 2010, Nadal has regained his Wimbledon title... and a week later, few thousand miles down south... Spain will compete against the Netherlands in the finals of the FIFA World Cup 2010 at the Soccer City Stadium, Johannesburg. So is the history about to repeat itself?

Right from the start of the tournament, there were three teams that I was supporting: Argentina, Netherlands and Spain. I am glad that two of them are in the finals and all of them are in the top-5. So I am lost as to whom should I be supporting! May be, I'll just sit and enjoy as a neutral... hoping for some quality football.

The semi-final clash against Germany was a hard-fought win. Yes, Spain did dominate possession and had more chances... but then Germany has been the best team on the counter-attack in this World Cup. Even during the loss, it could be seen that the chances created by Germany were really good ones. Iker Casillas was forced into making some fine saves. In fact, when Spain had not opened their account after 30-35 minutes, when Spain did not open the scoring despite really good chances, I thought that it will be Germany's day. They will remain solid at the back and one of their counter attacks is bound to succeed.

But Carlos Puyol's head had some other ideas. He had had another opportunity earlier when he headed over the bar. That one, I felt, should have gone in. But he compensated later by scoring the winner.

Germany, as I had predicted in a comment on some other blog (can't remember which one), missed Thomas Muller. He has been exceptional for them, and in his absence, their brilliant left-footer Mesut Ozil was not able to combine well with anyone else.

In the finals, I would like to see Fernando Torres start in the First XI... something he didn't do in the semis. I know he's been off-colour in the Rainbow Nation thus far... but he had been off colour even in Euro 2008. That didn't stop him from scoring the winner in the finals!

Whatever the First XIs, I am just hoping for an exciting game of football... a fitting finale to a wonderful event! So will this be a Spanish season once again or will Jo'burg be painted Orange on Sunday? It will be worth watching!

SOMETHING FUN AND DIFFERENT FOR MY 200TH BLOG

Wow! This feels good... this is my 200th post on this blog. And as CRIC - SIS celebrates its double century, I though I'll write something different today... something fun and unique!

And so I got this idea! I had read somewhere about the views of Sir Alex Fergusson... the celebrated manager of Manchester United Football Club. I read that he encourages his players to settle down in life and get married. He believes that players gain maturity and play with responsibility after their marriages! He even pointed out the case if Wayne Rooney to prove his point. So I thought lets see if his ideologies apply in cricket... or rather, Indian cricket!

Now since I am a little pre-occupied, I decided to restrict my research to India's top-5 batsmen of the last decade... Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Virender Sehwag. However, I have excluded Sourav Ganguly from the common analysis because he presents a unique case.

Ganguly has two marriage dates. The first one (August 12, 1996) was when he eloped with his love, now his wife Dona Ganguly, and had his marriage registered in the government records. The second one (February 21, 1997) is the date when he reportedly celebrates his marriage anniversary as he was remarried to Dona Ganguly on that day with the consent of both their families. True Bollywood style, man! More on that later on this blog...

On another note, I am sorry bowlers... but if you want I'll do a similar research sometime later for you guys! This marriage series will continue as and when I get the time...

Sachin Tendulkar married in 1995, scored a record number of runs in 1996 World Cup and raised that form in 1998-99. He maintained his good form till 2003-04 before injuries finally caught up with him and had a toll on his body. So the lady luck supported him well for almost a decade before he faced major challenges that it could not counter!

Dravid married in the midst of his golden days. His marriage in 2003 was followed by his most memorable performance in India's tour of Australia 2003-04... the one series for which he will forever be remembered. He was soon handed the captaincy of the side and led India to Test series wins in England and West Indies. The interesting thing here is his strike rate. There was a good jump in his strike rate in both forms (particularly ODIs) after the marriage. In fact, it gave a boost to his 6-hitting capabilities. So his lady luck carried him to a captaincy stint with Team India and held him well for about 4 years till the disastrous World Cup 2007 campaign.

Viru married in 2004... just after hitting his 309. He followed it up with a couple of successful seasons before his form deserted him and he was dropped from the side. But he came back stronger after that... another 300... then almost another 300... and now he is indispensable to the team. What's unique here is that he is scoring much faster while taking lesser risks! His 6-hitting in Tests has reduced marginally... but the runs are coming faster than ever! The bowlers might start cursing the day when he got married. More than anyone else, Sir Alex Fergusson's theory fits Viru pretty well. Better results with lesser risks!

VVS Laxman is the only guy to whom marriage life has not been good (professionally, I mean)! It almost signalled the end of his ODI career... and has not done anything ti improve his Test performances. Maybe, the only positive is that he has atleast maintained his place in the Test side... which is no mean feat considering the policies of our selectors over the past few years with regard to our seniors.

Coming back to Ganguly, here are his stats:

Ganguly's marriage made his career. From a nobody... he became one of India's finest captains, had a glorious career and came to be regarded as one of the legends in Indian cricket. That is what you call Lady Luck! The Prince of Kolkata had it! His performances were wretched during the period of uncertainty over his family's acceptance of marriage... but once that was out of his way, there was not looking back for him!

So, I guess its time for guys like MS Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh and Gautam Gambhir to look at the option of marriage seriously. Who knows how it might transform their career (for the better)!

NOT POLITICS... I WANT ACTION, MAN!

Not a lot to blog about today in the world of cricket as far as cricket goes... there's a lot of politics for those who are interested. I have read numerous blogs about the John Howard issue, numerous articles by esteemed writers (the latest one joining the bandwagon was Harsha Bhogle) and numerous other news reports and bulletins.

But I am getting weary of it now. Just choose someone, man... anyone! If he is good at his job, this blog will appreciate it. If he is bad, this blog will be critical. And well, if he is ugly... it will be nothing short of castration! So I have no option but to turn my sights to the FIFA World Cup and the Wimbledon... both tournaments towards their business ends!

FIFA WORLD CUP:

Two quarterfinals today... Brazil v Netherlands followed by Uruguay v Ghana.

Two quarterfinals tomorrow... Argentina v Germany and Paraguay v Spain.

My three pre-tournament favourites all feature in the last eight... Argentina, Spain and the Netherlands. I am not sure how many will progress to the last 4! I do have a feeling that the Netherlands might just edge past the Samba boys today... I guess I am feeling a bit too adventurous! And yes, it would be nice to see Ghana winning today. The reason is that I really want to see their striker Asamoah Gyan in action again (I found him extremely impressive!)... and since he is likely to sit out today due to his ankle injury, the only chance I will get to see him again soon is if Ghana win today!

WIMBLEDON:

The men's singles semi-finals today... 12th seed Tomas Berdych (the Federer conqueror) v 3rd seed Novak Djokovic... and then what should be a cracker between the 4th seed Andy Murray (the local hope of the Wimbledon staying in Britain for the first time since 1936) v 2nd seed Rafael Nadal (the World No. 1 and my favourite)!

Then there is the women's singles final tomorrow... top seed Serena Williams v the 12th seed Vera Zvonareva in what I expect to be another walk-in-the-park for the American! How many Grand Slam titles does Serena want to end up having... she'll need more space in her house! But Zvonareva must be one happy girl... she is alive in the Women's Singles as well as Doubles draw. In fact, as I write this, her Women's doubles semi - final match has just commenced on the No. 1 Court.

Then there's also the Mixed Doubles draw where an Indian has still kept his hopes alive... Leander Paes with his Zimbabwean partner Cara Black as the 2nd seeded pair will play their semi - final match today against 9th seed Czech pair of Lukas Dlouhy (Paes' Men's Doubles partner) and Iveta Benesova.

It should be a good day with so much of sporting action packed together. A minimum of 3 hours of football and a lot many more hours of quality tennis with some of my favourite sportsmen in action (Nadal, Paes, Kaka, Robben, Kuyt, Sneijder, and hopefully the new one Gyan as well)...

TIME FOR CRICKET TO CASH IN...

Shahid Afridi has won the toss and decided to that Pakistan will bat first against India at Dambulla in the 4th match of the Asia Cup 2010.

There's hardly been a build - up to this match... the FIFA World Cup is grabbing all the media bytes. Rooney's words into the camera are being shown more often than Dhoni practicing in the nets on news channels. It's weird.

It's extremely weird to see a cricket crazy nation get so engrossed in a Footbal World Cup (in which the only participants from India are performers in the Opening Ceremony and one of the sponsorers) that they seem the least interested in a India - Pakistan cricket match. In fact, I have even come across a few who did not know that India was to play Pakistan today till they saw the newspapers do a preview today.

And there were another kind: those who didn't know that India is currently playing in a cricket tournament! What on earth is wrong! India's performance in recent times has not been too inspiring... but when Indians do not know or are uninterested in following an Ind - Pak cricket match, something is definitely wrong!

A win here for India will get a few more fans to support the team... and a few more eyeballs into cricket. Considering that there have been a few upsets at FIFA World Cup and some of the favourite teams like England, Spain and France are struggling to qualify for the Pre - Quarterfinals, this might be the best chance for cricket to cash in!

GROUP OF DEATH IN ACTION TODAY

The 'Group of Death' will be in action today at the FIFA World Cup 2010 in South Africa. An intriguing battle between Portugal and Ivory Coast will be followed by the 5-time champions Brazil taking on North Korea.


PORTUGAL V. IVORY COAST

Will Didier Drogba play? That is the biggest question on most people's minds. I really hope that he is fit enough to participate... at least as a substitute. It'll just add a lot more spice to the match.


After gaining a huge fan following and stardom over the last 4 years, Christiano Ronaldo has his chance to cement his name amongst the legends of the game. Most people have written off Portugal's chances in the tournament, but you never know! Ronaldo might just kick it into a different story this time. They are, after all, the No. 3 team in the world. Nani's loss to injury is big... and Deco isn't all too threatening these days... but Portugal will still be a team to watch and this opening encounter of theirs is one of the matches that I have been looking forward to during the group stages of this tournament.


If Drogba manages to play, Ivory Coast will have a strong chance. They do not have too many big names... apart from Drogba and Toure. Their path is also likely to be very difficult in this tournament... Brazil and Portugal in the group stage, and Spain lurking ahead if they qualify. But then, they are arguably the best African side to participate here in this World Cup.

BRAZIL V. NORTH KOREA

Five time champions and World No. 1 Brazil open their campaign against the unheralded World No. 85 North Korea. A classic case of David v. Goliath, it is the match between the highest ranked and the lowest ranked teams of the tournament.

Few expect the result to be anything other than a Brazil win... and with good reason. Dunga is regarded as a fine manager and many feel that this World Cup is the time for Kaka to shine at the big stage. The 2002-champions are also in hot form... having won 8 of their last 10 matches.

As the World Cup enters its 5th day, I am waiting for the matches of Group G to begin. I may not watch the Brazil - North Korea match... but I'll certainly be keeping a close eye on this group.

IS THIS ALL ASIA'S GOT?

As Kumar Sangakkara wins the toss and decides that Sri Lanka will bat first against Pakistan at Dambulla, the Asia Cup 2010 commences.


A tournament that is held to fill up the extremely thin gaps in the international itineraries of the Asian teams... it used to feature the smaller teams like UAE and Hong Kong also in the past. Their absence this year really raises the question that is this really 'Asia' cup?


True, these four are the strongest teams in cricket in Asia. True, there are only three genuine contendors in an Asia Cup... no matter how many nations participate. However, the objective of the Asian Cricket Council is to promote the game in the region... or so I presume. If such opportunities to make the smaller teams take on the bigger ones are going to be ignored, then how is the game going to prosper?


We have seen some encouraging performances by countries like Afghanistan in the recent future. We also saw that their weakness was against fast and pacy bowling... whereas their bowlers are good enough to hold the best of sides on their day. These problems can be sorted out by allowing these sides more exposure at the highest level. With all the teams sending out their strongest or near-to-strongest squads for the tournament, this would have been the ideal opportunity to groom the smaller sides of the Asian continent.


I am disappointed with the ACC... and since I expect this series also to be decided by the outcome of the toss, I am hardly interested. It is a different matter altogether that the FIFA World Cup and Wimbledon provide pleasant distractions!

BUILDING UP TO IND V PAK

India finally managed to beat Zimbabwe on this tour. And it's Twenty20. Looks like Zimbabwe is more comfortable playing the longer game rather than 20-over cricket. The only match they lost during the round robin stage in the tri-series against Sri Lanka was also reduced to 20-odd overs due to rain. Weird, I used to think that shorter the format, greater is the chance for the underdogs... the weaker team.


And then I thought... maybe, Team India is the weaker team. Zimbabwe has been far more impressive than India over the past couple of weeks. Their departments have played as proper units... the army of spinners choking the opposition and the batsmen remaining cool during the crunch moments. Neither of the two has been the case with India.


As India ends the Zimbabwe tour today with the second and final Twenty20 and then regroup with the seniors to fly to Sri Lanka for the Asia Cup, they will need to deeply think about really how good is the team. The team was World No. 2 on ICC Rankings before the tournament... I do not know if there is a fall after the two defeats to Zimbabwe... but are we really playing as a No. 2 / 3 team?


A clearer picture will emerge when an almost full-strength squad plays at the Asia Cup. Matches against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh might test the Indians... but the match against Pakistan has the ability of separating boys from men. India play Pakistan on 19th June... it's been quite some time since their last meeting at the Champions Trophy in South Africa last year. In that match, Shoaib Malik hit a match-winning hundred to take Pakistan to victory. Who will be the man this time?

The build up is not quite the same... but it should be a cracker nonetheless!

The build up to this match has hardly been what it was like for the meeting on 1st March 2003 during the World Cup at South Africa. But that should not mean the match will be anything less than a cracker! Luckily, the FIFA World Cup fixtures that day include just one team that I am interested in... the Netherlands, which will feature against Japan in the first match on that day. After that, I can use that Saturday to pay complete attention to an Indian cricket fan's delight... an India v Pakistan match!

TIME FOR RED DEVILS TO SHINE...

South Korea have just become the first team to register a victory at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. A goal in each half... first by Lee Jung-Soo and then by captain Park Ji-Sung sealed the deal for the South Koreans against the Greek side that looked a little shocked at the fast game played by the Koreans.


Now that one Manchester United fellow (Park Ji-Sung) has made his by scoring in his team's victory, I am waiting for the other fellow... that one called Wayne Rooney! Not that I am an avid fan of the English football team, but I am certainly a Wayne Rooney fan! And I really want him to make an impact! I am also a Manchester United fan... thus not too happy about the fact that Rio Ferdinand (England) and Nani (Portugal) have been ruled out due to injuries.


Not having a definite country to follow at such a big event is such a relief... you can just look forward to the game. Some quality football! South Koreans certainly put up a good show today... and looking forward to some more from Argentina and England later through the day!

DIFFICULT TIMES FOR IVORY COAST

Didier Drogba is racing against time to be fit for the opening game of Ivory Coast against the World No. 3 Portugal side, which includes a certain Christiano Ronaldo... who would want to show some of the flair that he oft showed in the Manchester United red, now in the Portuguese red.


But more on Portugal later... spare a thought for Ivory Coast. They have their main striker unfit and unsure whether he will play their opening fixture against the World No. 3. As if this was not enough, they play their next match against none other than the World No. 1 Brazil. They are the best hope amongst the African nations to make an impact in the tournament... but then they had the ill fate of being a part of the Group of Death.


And the story does not end here. After an easier fixture against the North Koreans, if Ivory Coast does manage to qualify for the next round, there is a very strong chance that they will meet the World No. 2 side Spain in the Pre - Quarterfinals.


So one thing is certain: if Ivory Coast does manage to reach the Quarterfinals, they would have either been extremely lucky or they would have played the best football of their life!

FIFA WORLD CUP 2010 BEGINS...

In a little less than 8 hours from now, the Opening Ceremony of the FIFA World Cup 2010 will begin. And another couple of hours after that... the grand month - long spectacle will be kicked off with a match between the hosts South Africa and Mexico at the Soccer City, Johannesburg.


The entire world is geared up, ready... waiting and excited to witness the second biggest sporting event in the world... after the Olympics! 32 teams will fight for the ultimate glory in the life of a footballer... one that has eluded many of the greats in the past!


The common favourites are the World No. 1 and 2... Brazil and Spain! Brazilian manager Dunga has cut off from the squad the likes of Ronaldinho and Adriano... I really don't know what to make of it, given that even Kaka is not in the best of his forms at the moment. Spain, on the other hand, have played unbelievable football over the past 2 years. Their squad is filled with talent... and their stars just love the big moments to show their skills. I still remember how Torres, who had had a pretty ordinary Euro 2008, stepped it up right in the finals by scoring the winner and leading Spain to glory.


Argentina is another team that will be closely followed... and one man even more so... Lionel Messi. Comparisons to his manager Maradona have been drawn forever... now is the time for this young lad to prove it right. Messi has not been his best while playing for his country... but everyone knows what he has got to offer. And this is the big stage... champions just love the big stage!


Then there are the eternal under-performers in the form of England and the Netherlands. They have some big, quality names in their lineup... but will the team put up a good show? That is the question that remains to be answered.


The world will also be waiting for some individual skills from the likes of Christiano Ronaldo, Didier Drogba, Samuel Eto and others, even though their teams are not expected to make it very far in the tournament. I know that Ronaldo's Portugal is currently 3rd in FIFA Rankings... but I really do not expect them to go far. In any case, at least one of the top 3 teams on the rankings is bound to be ousted before the tournament moves into the Quarter Final stage.


So, get ready for the big one! After 4 years... it's Waka Waka time in South Africa!