Sports Blog: for the common fan

The Sports Blog : for the common fan has now moved to www.acommonfan.com

2008-09-29T21:05:00.008+05:30

And now the biggest fall in the financial capital of the world

2008-09-26T23:03:00.002+05:30

Troubled times continue in the financial capital of the world. The latest casualty is one of America’s most storied organizations - a part of their history and folklore. It was this organization which first made the pin stripes a dress code – something which has now become a dress code across Wall Street.

Their fall comes after 13 glorious years including 4 as the best performers in the whole world. In a performance driven world this organization had the highest salaries and bonuses this year – 207 million dollars in all. And the worst part – they now have to vacate their famous office – a land mark site in the city, nicknamed after one of their most legendry employees.

So is the Federal govt doing something about it?

No, in fact some industry watchers are making fun of the government’s inability to do anything in this case.

God knows what America is coming to

FIFA finally gets the World Cup mascot a pair of shorts

2008-09-25T21:09:00.005+05:30

The mascot for the 2010 football world cup in South Africa was unveiled on Sept 23. After the shockers that were the last two World Cup mascots, I was expecting something similar or worse than a set of comic alienoids or a half clothed lion football man.

The 2006 mascot - Is it half-clothed or half-naked?

But thanks to I don't know who, we have been spared - FIFA's latest mascot, Zakumi, is a return to sanity and propriety

Such fears never arose in the good old days. Check out all the World Cup mascots till date and the rationale behind each.

Is it a mere coincidence that the mascot horrors have come in the reign of Mr Sepp ' mad bundle of ideas' Blatter. I am wondering what could be an appropriate punishment for him - making him dress like the 2006 mascot probably!!!

Dempo schools ‘Home’ away from home

2008-09-24T22:07:00.006+05:30

Which channel is showing this tournament in India?

After the high of India’s triumph in the AFC Challenge Cup, comes India’s greatest moment in Asian Club football. Dempo Sports Club have become the first Indian club to make the last four of the AFC Cup – Asia’s equivalent of the UEFA Cup. The club achieved this by scripting an amazing away win over Home United of Singapore.Here’s a full recount of how they got to this stage.

I am sure many Indian football fans like me gave this momentous game the slip. Well, time to make up for it and cheer Dempo to more glory. The semis begin on 7th Oct when Dempo take on Lebanese club Safa Sporting in the first away leg. The return leg is at home on the 21st of Oct.

But does anyone know which channel will be showing these games live in India? I haven’t a clue. Somebody please help me out here – for my sake as well as for all the others who care.

Go Dempo

P.S. - The 'Sports Blog : for the common fan' is now moving to a new home. Starting the second week of October, the common fan's views on the world of sports will be found on http://www.acommonfan.com/. Look forward to seeing you guys in our new home.

HR lessons from the world of sports

2008-09-24T18:25:00.004+05:30

This post was originally published on the Workosaur blog. Workosaur is the coolest new job portal around - its a niche site focusing only on 7 figure jobs

The world of sports is extremely performance driven. It’s the hardest “industry” to continually stay at the top. No other industry is as competitive. Winning in sports is everything. There is no place for non-performers – winners thrive and losers perish. Business organizations also aspire to create a similar kind of culture – one which is completely performance driven and breeds excellence. However, few HR teams know how to go about doing so. What they need to do is take a break from what they have been doing all along and start doing what people are doing in the world of sports. So what are the key things that people in the world of sports do?

Great players don't always make great managers and vice versa - In most organizations, the best individual contributors are often promoted to become managers. The world of sports runs differently – those guys have long known that the skill set required to become a great manager is drastically different than the skills necessary to be a great player. A lot of great managers have been very ordinary players but in corporate organizations managers have more often than not been great workers also. HR in organizations needs to learn this - to promote based on people and management skills and not just on their ability to contribute individually.
To win it is important to focus on the key positions that play the most significant role in securing victory – Sports teams know that it is not possible to have top performers in every position and also that attempting to do so is a futile exercise. HR teams are not so focussed and end up spreading their resources thin. Successful teams have always concentrated on filling the key positions with top performers and HR needs to do the same – start prioritizing jobs by their potential impact on the success of the business.
Your performance statistics will never improve if you keep hiding them - The best sportsmen always love to compete and compare themselves against others – by keeping score. The world of sports is obsessed with tracking performance figures and that ensures that non performers have nowhere to hide. Compare that to the corporate world, where the HR keeps all the performance statistics under wraps. No information about target achievements and appraisals are ever made public. This also forces the HR to keep salary increments a secret. Non performers keep getting away. Thus to build a performance based organization you need track, measure and distribute output and performance reports.
Rewards and recognition programs should not have a fixation for parity - In sports the best players often get paid many times more than the mediocre performers. In business, the difference is far less. HR uses tools like normalization curves and target percentiles to justify their action of keeping salary differentials low. It is difficult to get the top talent (as required for point 2) if they are not paid significantly more and treated differently than the average performer. It also corroborates the fact that in sports, performance is rewarded and paid for accordingly. HR often has no justification for its payment practises and hence is forced to keep them secret 9 another example of point 3)
Firing poor performers is a good thing and not a bad one – In sports, teams are always striving to improve – even if it’s by the teeniest bit – it’s a pre-requisite for teams that want to continue the winning habit. They are always looking to weed out the bottom performers and replace them with better talent. HR managers on the other hand believe that sackings are bad for morale and keep delaying it – giving poor performers’ chance after chance. How’s that for the motivation of the star performers – seeing their efforts get negated by that of shoddy performers, who are not even made to pay for it.
In sports, Winning isn’t everything… it’s the only thing – Sports teams are never satisfied with second place. It is this kind of “performance culture” that brings the best out of players. Unfortunately HR departments are quite happy with an above average performance. Average goals often result in below average results. There is no motivation to exceed expectations.
Don’t reward complacency with training sessions – Great sportspersons have the personal will and drive to get better. They don’t have to be tutored like school children to work on improving themselves. HR teams are preoccupied with training sessions. They believe that grown up and career conscious men don’t have enough self motivation to improve on their own and have to be sent to training programs to achieve that. Well I have news for them. If you have a company full of such men, you are in big trouble.

Disclaimer – We are talking of teams and organizations that want to win, not ones who are happy being mediocre.

P.S. - The 'Sports Blog : for the common fan' is now moving to a new home. Starting the second week of October, the common fan's views on the world of sports will be found on www.acommonfan.com. Look forward to seeing you guys in our new home.

Ek Khiladi Ek Haseena - what took TV guys so long to come up with this?

2008-09-21T22:12:00.006+05:30

Colors, the Hindi general entertainment channel (GEC) from the Viacom18 stable, is launching a new cricket format show - Ek Khiladi Ek Haseena. This will feature “Indian cricketers with ladies from Indian television, to fight it out on the dance-floor”. It hits the TV screens on 26 September and will air every Friday and Saturday at 9 pm.

I have one question for the people who run television in India

What took you so long to come up with this?

This was such an obvious idea that even I had thought of it

The six teams are S Sreesanth with Surveen Chawla, Harbhajan Singh with Mona Singh, Irfan Pathan with Ashima Bhalla, Dinesh Karthik with Nigar Khan, Nikhil Chopra with Barkha Bisht and Vinod Kambli with Shama Sikander.

While this is a decent line-up, I have a dream cast for any competing channel that wants to steal their thunder.

And trust me; if this one materializes I will take a break from this blog to watch the show. The line-up is that good

Why I have dared to do a Nostradamus for Indian Tennis

2008-09-21T21:44:00.007+05:30

Nostradamus’ prediction on Indian men’s tennis

“At the height of the game’s glory in the land of the Aryans civilization, a great warrior will be born in a place known for its shrubs that produce a brew of unmatchable purity. The warrior will be named after the moon god. He will travel to the land of the game’s origins and train in the ancient learning grounds. He will conquer all and became the most accomplished fighter produced by the training grounds. He will return to the land of his birth and find it shorn of most of its past glory and eclipsed by other regional powers. His people have been consumed by internal strife and the last link to the magnificent past is also fading away. The warrior will answer the call of his long deprived people and bring back the glorious days.”

How the prediction has panned out

In the 1980’s (the best period for Indian men's tennis with the combo of Vijay Amritraj and Ramesh Krishnan) in India (land of the Aryans), a tennis player (warrior) will be born in the tea (brew) producing state of Assam (a place which produces the best tea). The player will be named SomDev (the moon god as per Hindu nomenclature). He will go to the US (place where tennis originated) and play in the US collegiate system (formerly a breeding ground for all US players). He will become the collegiate system’s most decorated player (most accomplished fighter). He will come home to find that India haven't been to the World Group in ten years (lost past glory) and have no half decent singles player – Thailand, Japan and South Korea have far better singles players (eclipsed by other Asian powers). The team has been suffered from infighting (internal strife) and the last of our Davis cup heroes – Leander Paes (last link to glorious past) is close to retirement (fading away). Somdev will bring new hope for long suffering Indian tennis fans (long deprived people )and become India's next great singles player. He will lead us back to the Davis Cup World Group and also bring back the days when Indian players were regular features in the main draw of grand slam events and other top tournaments (bring back the glory days).

Ok, fine, Nostradamus made no such prediction

Mr Nostradamus couldn't have done a better job with this prediction

But Iam willing to put my head out and take ownership of this prediction. And you know what, this is the safest prediction that I have ever made, really. Somdev is that good.

Good enough to have won two NCAA singles titles breaking numerous records on the way

Good enough to have beaten a bagful of top-100 player s even before he turned professional. One of them happens to be Sam Querry – the guy who gave Rafael Nadal a real scare in the US Open.

In Somdev we trust, completely

And we haven’t even come to the best parts yet

Somdev’s stint in the US collegiate circuit has ensured that he is supremely fit and athletic and has an all-court game with no glaring weaknesses. This is a rare combination for an Indian player – we haven’t had another one who wasn’t lacking on at least one count.

Ramesh Krishnan had a serve which acted merely as way to start the point. He was taught by his father who in turn was taught by a father who was self taught. Vijay Amritraj’s lack of stamina was his undoing in countless encounters. Leander’s singles game was extremely one-dimensional – chip and charge at every opportunity. Sania Mirza has also suffered from a lack of a good serve and technical flaws which cause frequent injuries. Somdev on the other hand is well equipped to face the challenges of the modern game.

Additionally, he has a very mature head on his shoulders. He could have turned professional a year earlier after his first NCAA title. But he resisted the temptation to do so, preferring to stay on for another year to finish college and work on his game. Such maturity will hold him in good stead – he will not get carried away by the fame that has already been bestowed upon him and also not get disheartened by the growing pains of finding his way around in the tough world of men’s professional tennis.

Is there anybody who still doubts that chances of my prediction coming true?

The BCCI gets a little more marginalized in its war against the ICL

2008-09-20T12:59:00.002+05:30

It just keeps getting better for the ICL. Immediately after making a major inroad into Bangladesh, the league has now won new friends in SriLanka. The Lankan board has agreed to allow players aligned with the rebel Indian Cricket League to compete in the country's domestic tournaments. Sri Lanka thus becomes the second country after England to do so – more will follow and the clamour for lifting the international ban will also gain a stronger voice. Additionally the ICL gains a new audience – which will create more cash flows and significantly improve the League’s financial health.

And there is more. A strong bitterness is brewing against the BCCI in New Zealand as well. Glenn Turner’s recent interview clearly echoes the sentiments of his country’s cricketing fraternity.

The key excerpts from the interview

Drifting to a different topic, how do you see the current crisis in New Zealand cricket?
Yes, with the emergence of the Indian Cricket League, we have lost some of our top players. Our provincial cricket is getting weakened and it is getting reflected in our performances in the international circuit. I think it’s time the ICL affiliated players are allowed to play international cricket.

Is the NZC putting the issue forward to the ICC?
I don’t know about that, but what I don’t like is that it’s the Indian board which is calling all the shots in the matter. If somebody’s ego and the power of the mighty dollar are put ahead of the game, cricket is bound to get a beating.

Here’s a list of ICC member countries who would be quirt relieved to see the ICL win (a victory means official recognition and an end to losing players to a rebel league) or the IPL lose (emergence of a strong rival league to seriously diminish the BCCI‘s clout in world cricket) - England, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh. That’s quite a list – The BCCI is either making a lot of enemies or losing a lot of friends. Either ways Subhash Chandra isn’t complaining.

The ICL plays to its strengths and secures a significant win in its war against the BCCI

2008-09-17T22:25:00.001+05:30

Just when everyone thought the ICL was done for and Subhash Chandra and gang were ready to pack their bags and leave, India’s first professional cricket league is back and not just literally speaking.

They have been pushed to the background by IPL but have continued to do the various small things, which ICL fans’ hope, will ensure the league’s survival for this year and beyond

They needed to expand to newer centres in the country and they have done just that by expanding to Ahmedabad. This expansion has come at the cost of a 10 crore investment towards the development of the stadium. They have quite clearly stuck to their commitment of doing their bit for the development of the game at the grassroots and reaped a few benefits in return. In addition to the expansion, they will also have a much better stadium to play in this time round.

The absence of any quotas or restrictions is the League’s major advantage. They have gone ahead and used it to their advantage by recruiting half the Bangladesh national side. The ICL is fast becoming a haven for those international cricketers who have missed out on the riches of the IPL – and this is quite a list – Mohd Yusuf is close to being the most high profile member of this club. The ICL will benefit from this disgruntled bunch to substantially improve its player quality. While it may not match the IPL, it will have just enough star power to be in business.

Consisting largely of internationally ‘banned’ cricketers, except for those playing in England, the ICL has their players at their disposal for the full year – which is huge advantage. The BCCI and other boards are already having trouble finding a window to stage the IPL on a regular basis. As a consequence of the conflict of interest - like in the case of the next IPL clashing with Sri Lanka’s proposed tour of England, the BCCI continues to invoke the wrath of other boards like the ECB, who, are none too pleased at the gaps appearing in their international calendar.

The signing of the Bangladesh players like in the case of the Pakistanis last year has two more advantages for the ICL. One it opens up a huge international market in Bangladesh – the population of that country will be quite keen to watch their home grown stars – which is almost like an alternate national side perform in the ICL. The ICL might not be able to compete with the IPL in India, but can surely give them a run for the eyeballs in Bangladesh. A case in point being ICL’s popularity in Pakistan – where matches of last edition where shown live on their biggest broadcaster Geo TV.

Additionally, it hurts the Bangladesh Cricket Board who lost some key players. They will have good reason to support the ban being lifted from the ICL players – they have nothing to gain from the IPL-BCCI-ICL fracas and only important players to lose. They will also be sore that the beneficiaries of the ban – the BCCI haven’t lost any national players to the ICL. And not that they are alone – NZL and Pakistan are also peeved. And then there is the ECB. This small bunch can soon gain enough critical mass – enough to influence the ICC. The international body is still struggling to find an answer to ICL’s petition and if pressurized enough by the victimized boards, will surely succumb.

But when is the question. It will be a huge victory for the ICL. But till then they continue to lose money and just about survive. The IPL hopes the moment will never come and even if it does comes late enough, so that the ICL is crippled by its losses and has to close before the salvation happens. At the moment it continues to be a battle of attrition between the Essel group and the BCCI. The ICL though just gained a small but significant victory.

Most memorable moments of Indian sports – Tennis

2008-09-16T10:55:00.008+05:30

This will be a series of articles where I will be trying to list the five most memorable moments from each of the many sports that we play. I was looking for some similar information once and could not find it. So I thought, why not make the effort myself. So here I am starting with tennis. The moments are in no particular order. And as I am only putting down five for each sport, I am sure I will have to leave out a few moments. And remember these are the memorable moments not simply the greatest moments. This is a subjective exercise. So rather than criticizing the list, help in enhancing it. More glory to Indian sport.

This one counts for more than anything else

Leander Paes’ bronze medal effort at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics – The greatest singles effort ever – on the largest stage for all sports – an individual medal after 44 years. This event has no prize money and no ranking points, just national pride and honour. Not surprising that Leander was at his very best.

261th ranked Amritraj stunned 30th ranked Masur to get India off to a flier in 1987

The run to the Davis Cup final in 1987 – this one stands out for the amazing semi-final victory over the mighty Aussies in Melbourne. We had our opponents on the ropes at 2-0 but they roared back to 2-2. And then against Wally Masur and a raucous Aussie crowd Ramesh Krishnan guided us home.
The Davis Cup final of 1974 that never was – India reached the final but refused to play against South Africa in protest against their apartheid policies. Was it a missed opportunity to rue forever? No, it was a show of uncompromising opposition to colonialism and racism – anything else would have been an affront to our own struggle for freedom and dignity.

The Giant killers of 1993

The quarter-final victory over the French in 1993 – Another Davis cup moment against a far superior opponent. Played on red clay – France’s favourite and India’s least favourite surface. Started on a disastrous note when senior pro Ramesh Krishnan was thrashed in the opening match. Leander showed indomitable spirit to keep India in the fray and Krishnan returned to win the deciding match in a marathon five setter spread over two days. This campaign also included another upset - over Switzerland in Calcutta.

The Indian Express captures Wimbledon

Leander and Bhupathi winning the Wimbledon doubles title in 1999 – This victory is probably the greatest moment for the Indian Express also – as they were lovingly called before they split up. These guys made all 4 grand slam finals that year and as long as the Indian Express rolled at full speed it was one heck of a ride for the Indian tennis fan. It’s also a sad reminder of what could have been.

Other notable efforts

The Davis Cup side of 1966

The Davis Cup final effort of 1966,

The win over Yugoslavia in the Davis Cup with Leander beating Ivanesevic

Ramesh Krishnan’s win over World number one Mats Wilander at the Australian Open

Ramanathan Krishnan’s semi-final efforts at Wimbledon in 1960 and 1961 and

All of Vijay Amritraj’s near misses – losing in 5 sets to eventual champion Jan Kodes in the Wimbledon quarters of 1973, losing to Jimmy Connors after being two sets up in the Wimbledon quarters in 1981 and losing to Bjorn Borg at Wimbledon in 1979 after leading 4-1 in the fourth and being two sets to one up– a victory in any of those would have surely cracked the top five.

These guys should not be in their jobs

2008-09-14T16:15:00.007+05:30

The guys in goal that is. Is there anything more embarrassing than this. They are like a policeman who got mugged by an 80 year old granny !!!

And we always thought baseball and basketball were the most popular sports in America

2008-09-14T12:16:00.004+05:30

We (meaning most of the non-American sports loving population of the world) think basketball is one of the most popular sports in the USA

Because

We keep hearing about these global superstars – Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal and now LeBron James

We get to see a lot of NBA on TV and can see the mad crowd support

We see all the attention the US basket ball team gets at the Olympics

We also think that baseball is one of the popular sports in the USA

Because

We keep hearing about teams like the New York Yankees and see a lot of people all over the world wearing their merchandise

We see some MLB on TV and see the support baseball teams get

We know that there is another sport called American Football which is also very popular but don’t think it’s as big as basketball or baseball

Because we don’t see a lot of it

We are so wrong

Rick Reilly of ESPN enlightens us by making a list of the most popular sports team in 18 major American cities and this is what his list has to say

NFL (Professional American football) teams rule 12 of the 18 cities with the NBA (Professional Basketball) and MLB (Professional Baseball) following far behind with 2 and 4 respectively

And we thought we knew about the Americans

The Commonfan’s Indian Sportswomen poll – please participate – these ladies deserve more respect

2008-09-13T20:27:00.004+05:30

I have a new poll on Commonfan – to pick out the most popular Indian sportswoman from the current lot. I had expected this poll to get as many responses if not more than the previous polls on this blog. Sadly no one seems to care and the response has been bad. This is bad and we need to show more respect for Indian sportswomen . So to get more participation for this poll, I am writing this post and providing more information about each of these ladies. I hope this information generates a little more interest and a lot more in terms of participation. So here you go. Let the most popular lady win.

The poll is on the top right of your screen in case you haven’t noticed.

Saina Nehwal – Badminton - Currently ranked world number 14, Saina is the first Indian woman to reach the singles quarterfinals at the Olympics.

Anju Bobby George – Athletics - Made history when she won the bronze medal in the Long Jump at the 2003 World Championships in Athletics becoming the first Indian athlete ever to win a medal in a World Championships in Athletics

Koneru Humpy – Chess - Her October 2007 FIDE Elo rating was 2606, placing her at number two in the world for women (behind Judit Polgar) and becoming the second female player ever, after Judit Polgar, to cross the 2600 Elo mark

Sania Mirza - Tennis - Is the highest ranked female tennis player ever from India, with a career high ranking of 27 in singles and 18 in doubles

Anjali Bhagwat – Shooting - She won four golds in the 2002 Commonwealth Games

Dronavalli Harika - Chess - She has won three World Youth Chess Championship titles: in 2004, she won the Girls U14, and in 2006, she won the Girls U18. In 2008, she took the Girl's title at the World Junior Chess Championship

Neha Aggarwal – Table Tennis - Qualified for the Olympics at the age of 18

Dola Banerjee - Archery - Became world champion in archery by winning the gold medal in the women's individual recurve competition at the archery world cup in November 2007

Mithali Raj – Cricket - Became famous for her score of 214 runs in a test match against England, which broke the record for the highest score in women's Test cricket. She led the Indian team to the finals in the Women's Cricket World Cup of 2005 where the team lost to Australia.

There are three options that you can choose

Other – If you think someone else is more deserving. Please post a comment with the name

I didn't know women played sports in India – This is self explanatory. I hope this post helps you to become more informed.

No sports woman is good enough to be my favourite – Again self explanatory. I am sure you have very high standards. Tell me who your favourite Indian sportsman is?

Is the Indian Tennis League on?

2008-09-11T23:12:00.004+05:30

Back in May, AITA secretary Anil Khanna announced plans for an Indian Tennis League. An inter-city competition on the lines of the ICL and the IPL, this was supposed to feature tennis greats from the days gone by - Boris Becker, Mats Wilander, Bjorn Borg, Goran Ivanisevic and company.

Although I am not a huge fan of Khanna, I have to admit that this was a brilliant and highly original concoction – the inter-city format might not be a new idea but the ploy to get veterans involved is masterly.

My generation grew up on a regular dose of these players and all of them are almost household names in middle-class India – the class which couldn’t see them in flesh and blood when they were at their peak but would surely love a chance to do so now. Moreover with the packed tennis calendar it is impossible to get hold of the current players for a six –week period. No such problems with the veterans.

But now I have serious concerns whether the original thought will be followed by efficient execution on part of the Tennis federation. There have been no subsequent announcements (unless Google failed to take note of it) and the AITA website also fails to offer any information on the proposed ITL.

Does anybody have any clue – is the Indian Tennis League really on?

Is this the same guy who owns the Bangalore Royal Challengers in the IPL?

2008-09-11T17:37:00.002+05:30

Vijay Mallaya went from one “I put my foot in my mouth’ moment to another in the inaugural season of the IPL. So much so, that a few awards were bestowed upon him. But now the ‘King of good times’ seems to have matured as a team owner.

Cheer up Royal Challengers. This calls for a few rounds of Kingfisher !!!

What happens if Lance Armstrong really gets back for an 8th Tour de France?

2008-09-11T13:42:00.004+05:30

Does Lance have enough in the tank to win an 8th Tour de France

Seven time Tour de Champion Lance Armstrong has declared his intention to get back in the saddle and mount a challenge for his 8th title.

I am absolutely delighted by this – he is the only reason that I have bothered to watch an event that I have boycotted off late. And if he really gets back, I will start watching the race once again, I promise.

But I am not jumping with joy, yet - in spite of the declaration and in spite of the subsequent announcement of the great man’s new team.

I am still not sure if Lance will be there as a competitor when the race is flagged off from Monaco next year.

This because in doing so, he will put his entire legacy at stake – and going by the kind of legacy that he has already established that’s risking a lot.

What if he fails miserably – the doubters will have a field day – ‘he was successful earlier as the doping norms were lenient and he won with the aid of chemicals and now that they are stringent he cannot do the same and hence cannot win’. His position as one of the greatest sportspersons ever and probably the greatest cyclist of all times will be considerably damaged. Unlike other greats like Michael Jordan who attempted ill-advised comebacks but still got away with it, the drug –tainted nature of cycling will ensure that Armstrong’s legacy takes a serious beating.

That also partially explains why the race organizers are not too thrilled about the comeback. They have been on a constant damage control exercise to maintain the sanctity and sanity of their sport with riders failing dope tests left, right and centre. They fear that if Armstrong fails one of the newer far more stringent tests the proud history of the tour and the future of the sport will be damaged beyond repair. They also stand to suffer if Armstrong’s comeback is a disappointment - for the reasons mentioned above.

So why is the great man making a comeback. What does he have to gain from it? Does he know no other life other than that of a cyclist? He has had success with his book and with the Armstrong foundation. He has sole ownership of the ‘maximum titles’ record and his attempt is tantamount to a comeback by the likes of Borg and Jordan (which was a failure) or a Sampras (which was called off)

I can think of only reason – he is attempting to do the exact opposite of what I am dreading. A successful comeback will put the doping theories to rest once and for all. It will also do a world of good for the Tour and the sport itself. And finally it will make Armstrong greater than the greats – the likes of Jordan and Sampras. He will stand alone in the pantheon of the greats as one who risked everything to make a comeback and prove the honesty of his efforts.

So what are his chances?

I for one will not bet against him. I will look forward to watching the Tour de France once again.

Mirror Mirror on the Wall – who’s the richest club owner of them all

2008-09-07T17:23:00.010+05:30

For a long time the owners of Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan were the richest owners in football. Technically, Barcelona and Real Madrid had no owners but had purses which were just as deep.

Then Roman Abramovich came in. He took the battle to the Spaniards and the Italians giving Chelsea more financial muscle than any other club. The likes of Man United, Liverpool, West Ham, Aston Villa and Man City have since got billionaire owners of their own but nobody has quite matched the Russian oligarch.

The Russian is the current big daddy of super rich owners

This was followed by the part ownership of Queens Park Rangers by Laxmi Mittal. Mr Mittal is the richest man in Britain and has more billions than Roman but unlike the Russian he hasn’t quite got down to throwing his millions around. While his disinterest in football is bad news for the club, people in India don’t mind – as long as the Mittal Champions Trust continues to be endowed magnanimously. There are other super-rich part owners as well – but minor compared to Mr Mittal – the likes of Alisher Usmanov and Bernie Ecclestone.

The Sheikh has quickly taken ownership of the British transfer record

Now a real challenger has emerged – in the form of the Abu Dhabi group which has bought Manchester City. While the full extent of their money power will be known only during the January transfer window and much beyond that, they have already shown a glimpse of their ambition and their recklessness. Their last-ditch signing of Robinho can beat anything that Abramovich has expended for thus far.

The premiership is the perfect platform for Anil to display his global ambition

And then there are more pretenders. Anil Ambani – the fourth richest man in the world lurks. The Ambani has great ambition and will hold nothing back (meaning no expenses will be spared) in his quest for success.

Paul's an old hand at money games and knows no limits

Paul Allen is another – Microsoft’s co-founder has been linked to Southampton in the past and can be counted upon to make an entry if some other club becomes available. He has less money than Mittal or Abramovich but is far more profligate – has already contributed to changing the money dynamics in the NBA and the NFL.

While the likelihood of the richest man in the world – Bill Gates – jumping in the fray is quite slim, we cannot rule out two others – men who have more money than any of the current owner or the pretenders – the Mexican Carlos Slim and Anil Ambani’s brother Mukesh. Carlos Slim could do on a far larger scale what Thaksin Shinawatra dreamt of - use a premiership club to boost his own popularity in his football-mad homeland. Mukesh Ambani has already tasted blood with the IPL and always loves to take on his younger brother. So Anil’s entry into European football could quickly lead to a purchase by the elder brother as well.

The battle of Britain could be like no other. That there is a fair correlation between spending and foot balling success has already been proved and is a fact known to all the rich guys. The coming times could well become a battle of the purses. I now wonder - If it ever comes to a ‘let the richest man win’ win kind of situation - then who will be the winner? What do you guys think ?

This article was originally published on Goal.com

Just for arguments sake – why the Americans should re-look at their gun laws – an Olympic perspective

2008-09-07T15:09:00.006+05:30

First the facts
America is a sports mad country and extremely competitive at most sports. Even in a sport like football – a sport most citizens snigger at – they have now managed to reach a fairly decent level

A lot of Americans have guns and use it a fair bit. They have no shortage of ammunition or practise facilities – like Indian shooters do.

Therefore we have established that the sport of shooting has a high participation level in a nation where sporting excellence is part of the DNA.

Now the Olympic fact
American shooters stink – India could beat the Americans any day.

Has there been lack of motivation
No. Historically the Americans and the Russians (or the Soviets) have always gone toe-to-toe in most major sports and a win over the cold war foe has been highly coveted in both nations. Look at basketball, volleyball, athletics, wrestling, boxing, skating, tennis, gymnastics, swimming, diving and many more.

Shooting is one sport where the Soviets have excelled and won a bagful of medals whereas the Americans have been horrible. So do you think the Americans would have lacked the motivation or the ambition to excel at shooting? Wouldn’t they have been totally driven to beat the old enemy?

But in spite of that they have stunk.

What does that prove?
The Americans are hopelessly bad with a gun in their hands - for all their motivation and all the participation in the sport.

So should so many Americans be allowed to roam free with a gun in their hands - When it’s a known fact that they are hopelessly bad at taking aim and in most likelihood will end up shooting the wrong target?

That’s some food for thought for the lawmakers in the US

Muhammad Ali - the greatest heavyweight boxer of all times ?

2008-09-07T11:14:00.004+05:30

Forget what the great man thinks about it. Graham Houston of ESPN makes an effort to pit Ali against the greatest heavyweights of different eras.

Houston is not a nerd who's written a computer program to simulate this. By his subjective analysis Ali would have toyed with the likes of the unbeaten 'Rocky' Marciano. But one guy gets to edge past the boxer formerly known as Cassius Clay. Funny coz this guy got knocked out by two guys ( Hashim Rahman and Olivier McCall) who find no mention in the article otherwise.

Muhammad Ali remains and will forever remain the greatest heavyweight in my eyes. And I entertain no debates on this one.

Why are we Indians so bad at football – the mystery of 153 - part 2

2008-09-07T11:07:00.005+05:30

This is part 2 of the article. You can read the first part here.

Indian parents and careers in sports

Indian parents play an extremely important role in defining the careers of their children. Usually their approach is to take the safest, most proven path to a great life i.e. through education. When the child is 16 or 18 and its time to make your first career related choice, the parent of a talented kid will look at the worst case scenario of a sporting career before letting his child take the sporting path. There is an exception if the parent is an extremely successful sportsperson (or associated in some other capacity) and is more open minded about sports as a career and can also groom and guide his child to improve his chances

Other than that the parent will only let his kin take up sports as a career if

The child is extremely gifted at sports and has already made quite a name for himself by the time a decision has to be taken. He is certain to go all the way and have a wonderful career.
The child comes from a poor background and has little chance of getting an education. In such a case, sport is the only way to get away from life’s miseries. The parent usually has no choice in this case. The poor kid will at least land up a decent job in the sports quota of a public company
The child’s sporting achievements can actually improve his chances of getting a good education. This happens a lot with middle class families who know the ancillary benefits of sports like securing a college admission or a scholarship.
The child excels at a sport which is adequately rewarding even for those who fail to reach the top of the pyramid and therefore there is no risk of failure

Now to understand why, other sports have an advantage over football when it comes to parental support.

Few footballers qualify for the first situation. It comes down to precocious talent and except for Baichung Bhutia; we haven’t had one in years. On the other hand look at the amount of junior talent in cricket, tennis, football, chess, golf, badminton and squash.

The second scenario is common to most sports including football in India. Football still has a slight disadvantage as compared to cricket, hockey, athletics and boxing as the large public entities like the services, railways and the police are active participants in these sports and recruit heavily but not so much in football. Sometime back there were two exceptions in Kerala Police and Punjab Police which had strong sides in the national arena and encouraged football a lot. Sadly for the sport, that is no longer the case.

The third scenario largely applies to sports which are popular in the US. A young golfer, tennis player or squash player has a great chance of getting a US scholarship based on his sporting achievements. The strong support system in the US gives the player a better chance of making it big. Additionally he has his US degree to fall back on if things don’t work out. Look at most of the top players in these sports in the recent past – Jeev Milkha Singh, Mahesh Bhupathi, and Shiv Kapur – they have all benefited from this option and so has their sport

The last option is available in sports where even the second and third rung talent can make decent money from the game. This can happen if the domestic structure is cash rich and players can make good money through playing/coaching/managing/scouting/reporting/commenting/amalyzing or if similar opportunities are available abroad.

Cricket and hockey players have been playing in the foreign leagues since ages and now there is good money in the domestic game as well. Golf is another sport which has a cash rich domestic circuit. Running a coaching academy is another money spinner for tennis and cricket players. Even chess has many prize money events and offers scope for coaching. But what about football. The only time you make money is when you play and only the top club stars make good money. The sport clearly lags behind cricket, hockey, tennis, golf, and chess when it comes to making a livelihood out of sport.

As we have seen, Indian parents don’t a have very good reason to let their children take up football as a career. At least most of the sports have one scenario in which the parent will encourage his child to go all the way.

Therefore the answer to my question is this

Indians are fundamentally not very well endowed to play the sport; have no system to nurture the precocious few; have a cultural issue which afflicts a team game like football; have no ‘real’ support for the game (our passion is misleading); have not developed a football identity in spite of having played the sport for so long; and most importantly our career planning mechanism usually vetoes football as a profession owing to its poor ‘livelihood quotient’.

The journey to 153 is now complete

Why are we Indians so bad at football – the mystery of 153 - part 1

2008-09-07T11:02:00.003+05:30

This article was originally published in the Advanc'edge magazine brought out by IMS and was written before India's stunning AFC Cup win. This is the first part of the article

The idea for this article came when a friend asked me this – why does a country where so many people stay up nights to watch and be passionately involved in football cannot attain global standards in the game

The simple answer would be that football is the most popular sport in the world and our passion for the game is nothing compared to the passion exhibited by fans in South America or Europe or even Africa for that matter. If there was some way to rank nations in terms of their passion for football, India’s ranking would be in the neighbourhood of their FIFA ranking of 153. Therefore my friend, we have nothing to complain about our failure to attain global standards as our passion for the game is not at par with global benchmarks.

But then , there is another side to it as well- we are a nation of 1.2 billion and even if a small percentage of the population was dedicated to the sport, we will have a large enough pool of players (more than the population of many nations) to be able to field a quality side.

Also the fervour for football in India compares favourably to most sports. A tournament in faraway Europe evoked such passions that national dailies were forced to give cricket news (involving the national team no less) second class treatment in favour of football news. Few sports can claim to have matched football in that regard but most of them can make another claim – India fares far better at them as compared to football. Therefore my friend’s original question can now be reframed as

A) Why are we ranked number 153 in football in spite of our huge population (and supposed ability to have a large pool of players) and all the passionate support for the game

Or

B) Why for all the passion, our football team fares poorly as compared to teams in many other sports which enjoy far less viewer interest?

Now for the answers. First the ones to do with the nature of the game itself

Football is a physically demanding sport

Top quality football requires a high level of stamina, strength, speed, fitness and agility – Indians are typically lacking in all of these. We typically fare better at sports whose physical demands are far less - like cricket

But how come we do a lot better at tennis and hockey which are also very physically demanding. Well we could have done a lot better at these sports if not for our physical ineptness. Our decline in both hockey and tennis has coincided with these two sports taking on a more physical nature. We have always depended on the dribble in hockey and on touch play in tennis

Run of the mill African players manage to become stars in Indian football owing to their vastly superior physical conditioning as compared to the Indians. Other sports where we have done well in the recent past – Chess, Golf, Shooting, Billiards - none of them are very physically demanding

Indians don’t have a lot of natural football talent

Extravagant talent can make up for lack of physical prowess and a lot of other things as well. Like it does in the case of the South Americans. The dribbling and juggling skills of average Brazilian kids would put International players from other nations to shame.

Sadly for us, we don’t have the natural talent to cover for our physical shortcomings. I have never seen an Indian player, not a single one, whose natural talent could take my breath away. The fact that there are more than a dozen Indian-origin players playing county cricket but a mere one (Michael Chopra) playing in the premiership is also proof of a genetic lack of talent.

As compared to football, we still mine outstanding talents in other sports – Vishy Anand in Chess, Sachin Tendulkar in Cricket and Dhanraj Pillay in Hockey. Very clearly, we aren’t naturally blessed to play the game of football.

These two reasons are primarily why India can never be placed in the top 40 of FIFA’s ranking. But we are ranked 153. So obviously there are other reasons which help us cover the distance from 40 to 153. Time to look at them now

The lack of good coaching infrastructure for young kids with talent for football

Suppose you are the father of talented young footballer in India. Where will you send him to hone his football skills when he is eight years old - A football coaching centre in your city? Chances are that unless you live in a Mumbai or a Kolkata, there will be no such centre available in your city. Your kid can either learn from you or pick up another sport. He will have a far better chance of sporting success if he was into cricket or tennis or chess or even golf for that matter.

So what does a lack of good early coaching do to a potential footballer?

The footballer will suffer from poor technique, all his life. And most Indians, even national and international players actually do. The next time you watch a national tournament or see the Indian team in action, watch the players struggle with the most basic stuff – trapping a ball cleanly, heading and executing a simple flat pass. Most players develop their own make shift technique and manage with it somehow, till, they get exposed by a technically superior opponent.

The footballer also suffers from lack of football intelligence. Football involves a lot in terms of formations, positional sense and tactics. The team is usually more or less, than the sum of its individual parts depending on how well it does in these departments. A good coach exposes his wards to all these different aspects of the game and prepares them to adapt to different situations in their future football life. Sadly, young Indian footballers are not so well educated.

The fact that football is a team game and not an individual sport makes it worse

Prakash Padukone went to Denmark and practised regularly with Morten Frost. Both players improved tremendously. In an individual sport you need just one good practise partner to improve. Now consider the case of a team sport like football.

First, your team needs to have a lot of good players for you to get better. You will never learn to become part of a cohesive unit unless you do that. And then for this cohesive unit to get better you need to play against good opponents. So, a young footballer needs to play with 21 equally talented players to improve in all aspects of the game. This could only happen at well run youth clubs or coaching academies. Sadly, young footballers can’t do what Eklavya did in the Mahabharata – practise alone. This problem is something which afflicts hockey also.

And then there is the problem we have as a nation when it comes to team sports

Fundamentally all team sports have a problem in India because as a nation we always aspire for individual glory and are rarely willing to sacrifice it for the greater good of the team. The only team sport where we have improved is cricket and that is hardly a team sport in the truest sense. The need for teamwork and synergy is far less in cricket.

But forget cricket, other true team sports like hockey also have some advantages over football

Hockey has an identity but football doesn’t

The whole hockey world and sports fans all across the country know that Indian Hockey teams play in a 5-3-2-1 formation. This attacking style is adopted by teams all over India; at all levels. This is the bedrock of Indian hockey. Young players grow up with this formation in mind.

On the other hand football has no identity in this country. Even the biggest football buffs would be hard-pressed to answer questions about India’s style of play or its formation on the field. And not just about the current crop; questions about more successful teams of the past will also be difficult to answer.

An identity is important as it gives the young sportsman a clear path of his sporting life ahead. A hockey player can settle in a playing position at a young position and will possibly live with it for the rest of his playing life. He gets accustomed to a style and is already living and breathing it by the time he comes to the senior level. An Indian footballer on the other hand never learns a system. Every successful football nation has an identity. Dutch kids take their first steps with ‘total football’ on their minds while Italians are imbibed with the principles of ‘catenaccio’ from an early age.

Sadly, we have no football identity of our own in spite of the long history of the sport in this country. Getting closer to 153

But what about all the passion. Well time for another harsh reality of Indian football

Indians are passionate about football but only of the kind played by the very best

We don’t love football as such. We love top quality football – the kind played in the World Cup or the Euro tournament or by the top clubs in Europe and South America. Our passion is a seasonal occurrence. We are not football romantics who would stop on the road to watch a bunch of kids run after a ball. Except for some ardent souls in West Bengal, Kerala, Goa and the North-east, we do not have any local affiliations. In Europe, fans are crazy about their local side, even if it is the worst side in their country. In that sense we are football connoisseurs (who appreciate the finest quality) and not football lovers who love the game itself.

The unadulterated madness for cricket has created a cricket revolution in this country. Football, sadly, will never see a revolution as the passion is selective and highly diluted. The influx of foreign leagues on TV has been a bane for the domestic game. Earlier football lovers looked forward to watching top domestic tournaments like the Durand Cup and Federation Cup. Now you reject it as sub-standard and don’t care

But, In spite of everything, 153 is unjustified. So, we now come to something which is critical to the popularity of any sport in this country – the livelihood factor of a sport. This is the final step to 153

The second part of this article is in the next post.

All hail Indian Football, Indian Boxing and Indian Chess

2008-08-17T14:54:00.005+05:30

This one is all about celebration. So please leave your skepticism at home. Forget what we had been doing as a nation of 1.2 billion. Just enjoy what we have done in the last one week.

Just when the heady feeling of basking in the feats of Jeev Milkha Singh, Abhinav Bindra and Saina Nehwal was wearing off, there was more sporting joy in store.

First the much maligned national football team capped off a memorable AFC Challenge Cup by routing the Tajiks in the final. Its probably Indian football's finest moment since I was born - and after years of joy with my favourite club side ( Man Utd) , I have reason to cheer for my national team. All the credit has been rightly bestowed upon coach Houghton - Indian football joins the bandwagon of sports which have benefited from having a top quality foreign coach and increased international exposure.

The same could have been said of Indian Hockey but alas. Rick Charlesworth who wasn't considered good enough to coach Indian will soon become coach of the Australian men's side - replacing Barry Dancer, a highly successful coach who won the Olympic gold and the Champions Trophy with Australia. So its fitting that Indian Football's high has coincided with Indian hockey's lowest point.

Then there was a landmark achievement in Chess. Dronavalli Harika and Abhijeet Gupta gave India the unique distinction of becoming the first nation to win both the women's and the men's individual title at the Junior World Championship. This is something which even the mighty Soviet Union could never manage. If only Chess could become part of the Olympics - we would become a permanent fixture in the medals tally.

And finally the most adrenalin rushing event happened in boxing. Three Indians and three super victories. Akhil Kumar set the tone by toppling a world champion and then Jitender and Vijender followed with comprehensive wins. And the best part is that these guys were bursting with confidence before the bouts and are setting their sights on nothing less than gold. The chances of a second medal are extremely high and I am keeping my fingers crossed. Like these boxers I also want gold.

While all this was going on there was a setback in tennis - the much heralded pair of Paes and Bhupathi failed in what was probably their last attempt at an Olympic medal together. But it hardly mattered to me. These guys only have themselves and their super inflated egos to blame for it. Their coming together , their success and their break-up will forever remain one of the biggest 'what ifs' of Indian sport.

We will talk about the 'what ifs' on some other day. This day is to celebrate the new stars of Indian sport. Forget cricket, tennis and hockey. Lets raise a toast to football, chess and boxing

For an Indian sports fan it doesn't get any better than this - Will remember 11th August 2008 for the rest of my life

2008-08-11T21:05:00.010+05:30

I got up this morning and checked the scores for the PGA Championship. I am a die-hard Jeev Milkha Singh fan and even though the rest of the country and the media doesnt give a damn, I do. The golfer finished 9th and thereby became the first Indian to finish in the top ten of a Major championship. This was a huge achievement and will further boost an already flourishing game in the country. As an Indian sports fan, it was the best way to start your day.

Then the day got ten times better by the time I got settled at work. Thanks to a friend who provided live updates on gtalk, I followed Abhinav Bindra's gold medal-winning effort shot by shot. And what an effort it was. As an Indian sports fan, it was one of those OMIGOD moments - the kinds you will probably have ten times in your lifetime.

Suddenly, the entire nation knew that the Olympics were on in Beijing. Half the people on my gtalk list had a status message which had something to do with Bindra's feat - right from NRI's in the US to middle aged aunties in India.That is something which I have never ever seen happen - the enormity of the shooter's achievement is loud and clear.

And the most ironical thing is that on a massive day for Jeev,even his father had no time for him and still the golfer will probabaly not mind. Milkha Singh called this day the happiest of his life and meant every word of it.

Emboldened by the gold, I decided to check on how the other Indian's were faring at the Olympics and soon chanced upon another moment of pure sporting joy - Saina Nehwal's stunning upset of the world's fifth best player. An Indian beat a Chinese player, ranked in the top five, in badminton, at the Olympics, in China, in an extremely close match. Thats a combination of six rare things.

She is now just one win away from a medal. We could end up with two medals for the first time since 1952. Take that. How much more do you want in one day.

Then someone reminded me of a cricket match taking place in Srilanka. When I checked the score, the host nation needed 122 to win - a fairly easy thing to do. But when Sangakkara fell and the Lankans were reduced to 25 for 2, it looked as if Indians were not supposed to lose on this day. A comeback victory by the cricketers could have stolen most of Bindra's thunder.

But then the bubble burst. India lost the test match and the best part was that nobody bothered. Who cares for a bunch of over-paid and over-hyped losers when we have an Olympic Champion in our midst. And the best part is that the youthful and good-looking Bindra also has the potential to do what Rajyavardhan Rathore couldnt - become a media and brand endorsement darling. That he has a steady head on his shoulders and will not get carried away is another matter altogether

The day was not over. Late in the evening I found out about Sania Mirza's disappointing exit from the singles event. And again I didnt care. I stopped caring for her when I discovered on opening night that she didnt know how to wrap a sari. She has enough time to learn now. And importantly Saina can have all the attention for once.

The day was bittersweet. But the sweet part was so damn good that I really didnt care how the bitter half felt. More glory to Indian sport !!!

The Commonfan’s Football Poll – What should Man United do with Cristiano Ronaldo

2008-07-30T23:35:00.010+05:30

The statistical relevance and bias prevention steps for this poll are the same as the last Commonfan Poll. So if you agreed with that one then read on. If you didn’t, I hope you are wiser the second time round.

Poll – What should Man United do with Cristiano Ronaldo?
Results - Send him to a first division club on loan – 35%
Sell him to Barcelona to spite Real – 28%
Sell him to Real for a fortune – 21%

I am totally sick of the Ronaldo – Real Madrid saga and I am sure other United fans are too. Forget United fans, I think every football fan has had enough of it. The voting clearly shows what they think about the three protagonists in the drama

The biggest villain as clearly shown by the votes is Ronaldo himself. He is full of himself and probably thinks he is god’s gift to football; a mediocre Euro 2008 notwithstanding. Every morning he makes a new statement and then sits back to enjoy all the attention that brings. He surely feels he is at the centre of the football universe right now. So it’s not surprising that the fans would love to give him a taste of some solitude and isolation, away from all the media glare. How about a little club in the English first division - preferably some place cold where Ronaldo is forever wrapped in mufflers and woollen caps and the media can barely identify him. That will serve him right!!!

The other villains quite obviously are Real Madrid – who think they can get away with anything. They think they have a divine right on every footballer on the planet – they will just make a wish and the player will come running to them. They might have the seal of Spanish royalty but we aren’t ready to treat them as kings. Man United could spite them real bad by offering Ronaldo to Barcelona. As part of the deal, Ronaldo should be allowed to take all the penalties Barca get against Madrid. I would love to see Calderon’s face when Ronaldo scores against Real at the Bernabeau.

United should let Real Madrid have Ronaldo if they can get a fortune in return

And finally, a fair portion of fans also think that United could do well to make the most of this opportunity. I guess most of these are United fans like me, who can see the benefits of a mega transfer kitty - which Ronaldo’s move to Real could bring. United could use that money to buy a right-back, a striker and also pay for Carlos Tevez’s transfer fee. They haven’t managed to ad a single player to their squad this year. The heavy expenditure made last year seems to have tied down Fergie’s hands this season. And how good is a disgruntled superstar. And nobody will pay more for Ronaldo than Real Madrid. The first two options will give us (United fans) a lot of wicked pleasure but option three is most beneficial for the club. Man United and their manager should just shed their pride and sell Ronaldo to Real Madrid for a fortune.

Farewell Ric Charlesworth – We will never know what a top-class international coach could do with all the hockey talent in India

2008-07-28T23:19:00.005+05:30

Long ago, legendary German hockey coach Paul Lissek had commented that, with the kind of natural talent available in Indian hockey, any top-notch international coach including Lissek himself, would give an arm and a leg to coach the Indian National team. Modern hockey calls for high levels of fitness, preparation and tactical manoeuvring and Indian teams and their home-grown coaches have always been found lacking. According to Lissek, a top coach could change all that and roll back the glory years.

Like a true sporting romantic, I was in total agreement with Lissek. I really hoped that his words would come true and India would be an all-conquering hockey nation once again. I had read a lot about our glorious past and yearned for a magnificent future under the tutelage of someone like Lissek. The fact that Lissek himself was ready to take up the job, if offered by the IHF was further proof that he really meant every word that he said.

Unfortunately for Indian hockey and sadly for fans like me, the IHF was not interested in what Paul Lissek had to say. They continued to hire and fire ‘desi’ coaches and Indian hockey continued its downward spiral.

Usually, former hockey greats are extremely critical of the IHF but they were fully supportive of the federation’s policy of not hiring a top international coach. They behave as if a foreign coach is like the second coming of British rule and are totally oblivious of the short comings of Indian coaches. I really hate them for that. It’s nothing but false jingoism.

Then Gerhard Rach happened.

One fine day the IHF went ahead and appointed an unknown German, Gerhard Rach as the Indian Coach. They claimed that they had pursued Paul Lissek but he was too expensive for them. So they got another German coach instead. The IHF’s logic was flawed and their explanation pathetic. Rach was not even worthy of being called a poor man’s Lissek. He was probably an impoverished, malnourished, critically ill man’s Lissek.

The move was a horrible blunder from day one and ended in acrimony- Rach was sacked unceremoniously and accused the IHF of not paying his full wages. Forget Lissek, the IHF could not even afford the third –grade German coach.

The Olympians were delighted though. They had been vindicated. A foreign coach had failed miserably. Nobody cared for the fact that he was a hopeless coach in the first place and then a foreigner

It’s interesting to note that around the same, Pakistan managed to hire a world-class coach in Dutchman Roelant Oltmans and found great success with him.

Indian hockey fell a few more notches and then Els van Breda Vriesman happened.

For years the FIH has been accused of systematically trying to kill the Asian style of hockey with constant rule changes in favour of the more physical Europeans. But that changed when Dutch woman Els van Breda Vriesman took charge. She took a personal initiative to help Indian hockey. India was awarded the 2010 Hockey World Cup. It is hoped that this mega event would revive interest in the sport in India. But more importantly she made my wish come true. She ensured that India would finally have a high-calibre coach. At least that is what I thought

Australian Ric Charlesworth arrived in India to take charge of Indian hockey. Thankfully, he was funded by the IHF and the IHF didn’t have to bother. His role however was not clear. He was called a consultant by the IHF and entrusted with the task of working at the grass roots. Ric wanted a more active role with the national side. I hoped that sooner or later the IHF would see the fault in their ways and make Ric the national coach. And then Ric would do what Lissek had prophesized long back. For once we would get a chance to see what a top –coach could do with all the natural talent that India has. I kept waiting and hoping as the IHF and Ric continued to tussle.

Then the Australian finally threw in the towel and resigned. The IHF called him names and abhorred him for his unprofessional behaviour. The Olympians rejoiced and some went to the extent of calling all former Australian greats turned coaches as money hungry mercenaries. The obvious reference was to Greg Chappell. Not that it mattered. What mattered to me was that my dream was over - After having come tantalizingly close to seeing the light of day. This was the closest we would ever get to having a world class coach. Lissek claims would forever remain a theoritical hypothesis. We would never get a chance to see the marriage of Indian talent and foreign coaching. Let the assembly line of desi coaches be set in motion again.

Finally some cheer for Akhil Kumar and some for me as well

2008-07-28T23:10:00.003+05:30

Finally someone somewhere has had a little pity on Akhil Kumar - the boxer will have physical trainer Heath Mathews by his side in Beijing. I wish all the best to Akhil and hope he wins a medal.

Someone somewhere seems to have had some pity on me as well. I keep ranting all the time and nothing happens. Finally, some cheer and new energy to get going again.

Thanks to the Indian Olympic Association, Boxer Akhil Kumar stands the risk of becoming another Sriram Singh

2008-07-27T18:57:00.001+05:30

One of India’s genuine medal hopes at the Beijing 2008 Olympics – Boxer Akhil Kumar was extremely unhappy as he boarded the flight to China. His unhappiness was due to the fact that his physical trainer – Heath Mathew was not cleared by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to be part of the Olympics. The IOA had fixed a total quota of 42 officials overall and 3 for boxing. Two places were taken by the coaches, one by a manager and the South African trainer had to be sacrificed.

Heath is one of the best in the world at what he does and has helped Akhil recover from two wrist injuries in the past. He has also worked extensively with the other boxers making the trip to China. His role is critical and the need for a physical trainer in a physical sport like boxing cannot be overstated.

I don’t understand why the manager was not sacrificed. What is he going to do? What exactly is he going to manage there? Is he going to act as Akhil’s sparring partner? Or will he play trainer? What help will he provide if one of the boxers were to get injured? Will he apply a band-aid in that case?

Unlike many of the other members of the Indian contingent who have just about managed to meet the qualify mark for Beijing and have no realistic medal hope, Akhil has a really good shot. I am rooting for him to win a medal and just pray to God that the IOA’s best efforts to de-motivate him and leave him at the mercy of a manager in case of an injury come to no good.

The worrying news is that there is a historical precedent of a similar occurrence. In the 1976 Olympics, Sriram Singh had a great chance of winning a medal in the 800 metres. He finished second in the semi-final heat and made the finals. But he ran the semi-final race on a synthetic track. This was his first experience on an artificial surface and the effort took a toll on his legs. Sadly there was no physiotherapist available to massage and relax his legs. Undeterred, Sriram Singh ran valiantly in the final and led till the 550 metre mark before fading out to finish seventh. The lack of a physiotherapist probably cost him a medal.

I just hope Akhil doesn’t suffer the same fate as Sriram Singh. But if he does suffer from an injury and if that affects his performance, I hope Randhir Singh and Suresh Kalmadi and all the others in the IOA rot in hell forever and get no medical attention for the rest of their lives.

Note to budding footballers in India -Want to become a professional player – then do what the Kiwis do

2008-07-20T13:18:00.005+05:30

In India, the path to becoming a professional footballer is a rather difficult one. Let’s not even get into what makes it difficult. I can probably write more than a few thousand words about it and we will still not be done. So we will concentrate on an alternate path – one which has been laid out by some footballers from New Zealand and is a lot easier than the current one.

This is what the Kiwi footballers have recently started doing.

They move to US Universities on a football scholarship. Play in the collegiate system and then try getting into the MLS. A good stint in the MLS brings them on the radar of the European clubs – not the big ones but more of the middle of the road variety – which is still far better than toiling in the obscurity of their domestic league or the A-League in Australia

This is why it works

Football is decently popular at the collegiate level in the US and there are enough scholarships on offer. A decent junior from New Zealand has a very good chance of winning a scholarship to one of the numerous universities. The competition is far less intense than what one will encounter at one of the coaching academies in Europe. The infrastructure, training and coaching facilities are world –class. But the competition is not too great – making it easy for someone with a modicum of talent to shine and get picked by an MLS club.

The college system serves as the main feeder for the MLS clubs and again there are plenty of opportunities. It’s far easier to get noticed by an MLS club when you have played in the US. Again the level of competition is nothing compared to the tough trials at European clubs. An MLS career in itself is good enough. If you are really good you have a chance to get noticed by European scouts. The MLS is flush with veterans from Europe who act as pseudo-scouts for their old clubs and also enrich a young player’s football intelligence with their experience.

You can end up getting a direct contract rather than going through the grind of trials. The competition is just good enough to help you improve and too tough to leave you frustrated.

The US collegiate system has already worked wonders for Indian Tennis and Golf and it could do the same for football as well.

The gulf between Indian players and their European or American counterparts starts to really swell around the age of 16 as fitness, stamina, coaching and exposure to quality competition starts becoming increasingly important in a players development. At around this age an Indian footballer still has a fighting chance to win a scholarship to the US. Once he gets there, he will have access to everything that players in the US have and players in India don’t – world-class coaching, fitness and training facilities. He can then compete on an even keel with footballers from other nations and win a spot on an MLS side. That would be more than anything that an Indian footballer has achieved till date. We can have football’s version of a Jeev Milkha Singh or a Mahesh Bhupathi. A path like this will appeal to those who get de-motivated by the road to becoming a professional footballer in India and its rewards.

The mantra is simple. Go the Kiwi way.

This article was originally published on www.goal.com

Important note to sportspersons who really give a damn about the China –Tibet issue: Do what they did in the 1968 Olympics

2008-07-20T13:10:00.010+05:30

Some athletes like Baichung Bhutia refused to run with the Olympic torch in protest against China’s human rights’ violations in Tibet. They were not willing to become part of China’s grand attempt to make a global statement. Sadly, their efforts have barely amounted to anything.

Don’t lose heart. Stephen A. Smith has a solution which could have a lasting impact –something which could really spoil China’s grand party. However, it will take an athlete who really gives a damn about the Tibetans’ plight and one who really has the courage and conviction to stand up to his beliefs.

So this is my message to all the sportsperson competing in Beijing 2008

DO YOU REALLY CARE?

If you do, then do something similar to what Tommie Smith and John Carlos did in Mexico 1968. MAKE A STATEMENT OF LASTING PROPORTIONS.

Here's a list of options that you have

Why I don’t want the UPA government to lose the trust vote – so that Mr M.S.Gill can continue as Sports Minister

2008-07-20T01:07:00.021+05:30

The Congress-led UPA government faces a massive test when it faces the no trust vote on the 22nd of July. I am mostly indifferent to their predicament and will reserve judgement on the nuclear issue and the state of the Indian economy but there is one thing which makes me pray for their survival – this government has finally given us a capable sports minister in M.S.Gill and as a sports loving Indian, I dread the thought of a new government in New Delhi which will mean a return to the days of good for nothing sports ministers once again.

So what makes M.S.Gill better than the other sports ministers?

M.S.Gill is an avid sports enthusiast and hence he is concerned about the state of affairs of sports in this country.Most others have not known the A B C D of sports and haven’t really bothered about doing anything. More importantly, he is willing to take initiative and actually make a tangible difference. Unlike the previous incumbent, Mani Shanker Aiyer, who was also a ‘sports fan’ (at least he claimed to be one) but a spineless and dormant minister, M.S.Gill is action orientated and willing to use the power he wields

In a short stint of less than six months this is what Mr M.S.Gill has done

He first went ahead and forced the supremely dictatorial and grossly incompetent K.P.S Gill to step down from the post of IHF (Indian Hockey Federation) chief. This in spite of the fact that K.P.S still holds a lot of clout in Punjab – home state of both Gills and his sacking could have had far reaching political implications. Mr Aiyer should now be literally forced to wear ‘Chudis’ (bangles) and sit at home.
He then incurred the wrath of politicians and film stars by calling for only sportspersons to be allowed as torch –bearers in the Olympic torch relay. He then practised what he preached by refusing the invitation to be a torch bearer himself. The likes of Amitabh ‘UP’s poor farmer’ Bacchan were incensed but Gill cared a damn
Mr Gill has lambasted the public broadcaster – Doordarshan for giving the Junior Asia Cup Hockey a miss. Most ministers have let Doordarshan misuse its position and dictate terms to sports federations and private channels but have rarely taken it to task for failing to fulfil its national obligations.
Mr Gill has also taken the initiative to talk to Real Madrid President Ramon Calderon and invite him to bring his side to India. The Spanish club are already interested and the minister’s move could give a major fillip to football in India. Compare that to the initiatives taken by another minister in the same UPA cabinet – Mr Priya Ranjan Das Munshi, who is also the head of the AIFF ( All India Football Federation) – he has ensured that India have dropped 60 places in the FIFA rankings in his tenure.

Is there a scenario where the BJP could just settle for making the likes of Das Munshi the scapegoats for everything and let the others like Gill carry on?

Or can the Congress offer Das Munshi’s head to pacify the Communists in West Bengal in return for their support?

Just imagine what all Mr Gill could achieve, if he was allowed to continue. Based on the above points we can say with reasonable confidence that M.S.Gill is easily the best sports minister that India has had in living memory. I would be very pained to see him go and be replaced by a total jack-ass in the next cabinet.

It’s the possibility of that pain that forces me pray for the UPA government to survive their acid test. I appeal to all the sports-loving members of parliament to forget their party loyalties and vote for the greater good of sport in this country.

A question for Mr Lalit Modi – what’s happening to all the money made from the IPL?

2008-07-13T20:08:00.026+05:30

Dear Mr Modi

First I would like to thank you for giving us the IPL.We got to see some great cricket and also witnessed a professional franchisee format for the first time in India. It was also a good opportunity for me to write and talk a lot. As promised by you, the league also unearthed some new talent and gave the first-class players a chance to rub shoulders with the top international players. That they got some pocket –money for doing so and also managed the occasional stay in five –star hotels was an added bonus.

But there is one small IPL-related matter that I still have no clue about. It’s about all the profits that accrued from the league. If I remember right, the money was supposed to have been utilized to develop the game at the grass-roots level in the country. More than a month has now passed since the IPL got over. We have heard a lot about the proposed Champions League but I haven’t heard any announcements made about the launch of new initiatives to develop cricket. We heard about the BCCI building a world-class gym for the parliamentarians and giving 50 crores to the IOA to aid other sports in their preparation for the Olympics. But have heard absolutely nothing about cricket and about the game's development at the grass-roots level.

You are generally not averse to press conferences and mega announcements. Why are you quiet now

I tried googling but couldn’t find anything - At least not in the first 100 odd search results. It’s possible that the announcements were made in far flung small towns (the grass roots) and the newspapers in those small places don’t have online editions for Google to index. But still, the country’s 24 hour news channels should have covered the announcement. They don’t miss even a dog’s bark in this country.

So then the only explanation is that these announcements have not been made public. I am sure you (Mr Modi) have already launched multiple programs to develop the game at the grass-roots. And we will soon see lots of new stadiums, practice facilities, coaching clinics and fitness centers coming up all over the country. And as usual you don’t want to announce it to the world and get credit for developing the game. But we are a country of skeptics and always want to know where all the money went, unless we see something tangible happening.

So, for the benefit of skeptics like me who will falsely tarnish your name, I request you to kindly announce to the world where all the IPL profits are being spent. I and many others who are interested in the development of the game would be forever grateful.

Thanks

Common fan

Was Federer-Nadal 2008, the greatest men’s final at Wimbledon in the modern era - Don’t think so

2008-07-11T10:35:00.005+05:30

The final between Federer and Nadal was an outstanding tennis match and as expected many experts including the likes of John McEnroe were caught up in the present and forgot the past; calling this the greatest men’s final in the post-modern era. I beg to differ. And I will go ahead and list all the men’s finals that I think were better. I will include the matches since 1980 (a period that we can safely call the modern era of tennis)

I have watched all the finals since 1980 (either on live TV or recorded) and will use a simple criterion for determining whether a particular final was better than the 2008 final or not – will I prefer that match over the 2008 final if I had a choice to go back in time and watch one of those two finals, live in person. If I would, then that final was better. I ran the test for the 28 finals from 1980 to 2007 and the four matches made the cut

Also before you start roasting me for this list, let me make it very clear that this is based on my personal parameters of deciding the greatness of a Wimbledon final. And those parameters are

The level of competition and the amount of drama in the match
The personality quotient of the match-up
The quality of grass-court tennis on display and by that I mean the serve and volley and the passing shots. After all this is Wimbledon
The history of the rivalry
The story line associated with the match

The 2008 final saw some intense tennis with lots of drama. The match was eagerly anticipated and the rivalry is already one the greatest ever and could be the greatest by the time all is said and done. But this wasn’t a signature moment for grass-court tennis. We had two guys largely slugging it out from the back of the court. We have seen better and cannot label this as the greatest final. Additionally this was a game between two well-behaved good boys and that scored poorly on the personality quotient.

Now for the four that scored better

1980: Bjorn Borg def John McEnroe (1-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-7 (16-18), 8-6)

I would go one step ahead and call this the greatest final of the era. The two personalities involved – one an ice–cool sex god from Sweden and the other a wildly temperamental American. The clash of styles between a baseliner and an out an out serve -and -volleyer produced grass court tennis of the highest order. The drama was gripping - the fourth set tie-break is probably the most memorable ever - McEnroe was diving for volleys with Borg one point away from a win. This rivalry was the focus of all attention in that time and produced many memorable finals.

1982: Jimmy Connors def John McEnroe (3-6, 6-3, 6-7, 7-6, 6-4)

This was a 4 hours 14 minutes scuffle between two ‘bad boys’ who couldn’t stand each other and were always at loggerheads. Connors hated the young upstart for taking his crown and once told McEnroe at a changeover that his two-year-old son was more mature. Fuelled by immense hatred the two men produced a match which was fiercely brilliant. There was high drama and match just kept swinging back and forth. This was another memorable day for grass court tennis. The only reason why this match doesn’t match up to the last one is because McEnroe- Connors never developed into a full-blown rivalry on the courts

1990: Stefan Edberg def Boris Becker (6-2, 6-2, 3-6, 3-6, 6-4)

In the late eighties, Wimbledon fans were divided into two halves – one half who supported Becker and the other who loved Edberg. This rivalry between two dyed-in -the -wool serve and volley exponents was the poster child for grass court tennis and produced three finals in a row. The last one in 1990 was the best. Becker made an amazing comeback from two sets down and led 4-2 in the final set before Edberg fought back to win. Needless to say the tennis was a Wimbledon lover’s delight – I still yearn for the good old days of Becker and Edberg.

1992: Andre Agassi def Goran Ivanesevic (6-7 (8-10), 6-4, 6-4, 1-6, 6-4)

Goran served brilliantly and volleyed well. But for once we were caught up in the sheer beauty of Agassi returning serve and passing the Croatian at the net. This was a once in a lifetime display of genius from the Las Vegan. This match-up of two lovable characters - Andre Agassi and Goran Ivanesivic produced an epic five setter in 1992. This final was also the culmination of a fairy tale for Andre – he turned up for his first Wimbledon and won the title upsetting a gaggle of Wimbledon legends on the way. This match suffers on account of the build-up and the rivalry between these two but I’ll still take it.

Other finals which are noteworthy even though they failed to make the cut

1981: McEnroe – Borg
1998: Sampras – Ivanesevic
2001: Ivanesevic - Rafter

What will be the lasting memories of Euro 2008

2008-07-05T15:29:00.021+05:30

The final of the Euro 2008 was played last Sunday and most soccer fans are already over it and involved neck deep in the transfer activities that will go a long way in determining the destiny of their favourite clubs in the coming season. It is therefore a good time to look back and try and identify what could possibly be the lasting memories of Euro 2008.

After all, the euphoria is already over (except for in Spain) and we can no longer re-collect the amount of tiny details that we could do a week back. The short-term memory bank of Euro 2008 has already been wiped clean and the condensed reminiscences that are still with us are finding a place for themselves in our long term storage.

So lets pick out the memories which will define Euro 2008 and remain entrenched in our minds forever – much in the same way as the Van Basten volley of 1988, the double strike of Olivier Bierhoff in Euro 96, the Danish fairy-tale of 1992 or the heroic performance of the Italian defence in Euro 2000.

To ensure that the process is robust, I am not going to be relying on the internet and I saw enough of the tournament to not miss anything important.

So here goes (in no particular order)

The ‘wonder goal’ scored by the Dutch against Italy

Most of us never saw the ‘Total Football’ of the 70’s (in person that is). But we caught a glimpse of what it would have been like as the Dutch scored a spectacular counter-attacking goal against Italy. Holland had a disappointing exit from the tournament but their performance in the first 270 minutes was a thing of sheer beauty. We should be hearing more of Van Basten the coach in the future.

The ‘heart-breaking’ Turks

Grabbing one win with a sensational late goal is usually gratifying enough. The Turks managed three in a row!!!. Their late comebacks were heart-breaking for the opposition fans - the Swiss, the Czechs and the Croats. No one would have broken so many in the course of one tournament. Their exploits could usher in a new term – doing a Turkey, every time someone gets a late winner. And all this with nearly half the squad injured or suspended.

No suffering as an English fan

I am an Indian. But we identify a lot with the English – having been ruled by them for so long and then from watching the comprehensive coverage of the EPL week in and week out. Not having our home nation India to cheer for, we invariably end up supporting England at most major tournaments and needless to say, we are a dejected lot when all is said and done. Therefore for once, we could watch the tournament in peace without the threat of a heart break looming large (I am not counting the 1994 World Cup as we had no EPL coverage then). Unluckily for us and luckily for England (now that Capello is on board) this might be a one off. The memory will surely last.

For once the Spanish were victors

Will not delve too much into why this would be a lasting memory. We all know why

The ‘Master Coach’

It takes a really special manager and an outstanding coaching job to pass the ‘lasting memory’ criterion. Guus Hiddink and his effort with the Russians got full marks on both. The most accomplished manager heading into the tournament was also the ‘best manager of the tournament’ – like a top seed who also ended up winning – doesn’t happen too often in major tournaments. We’ll always remember the Dutchman who brought the Dutch juggernaut to a grinding halt and did that with such attacking verve that we almost forgot that it was the team at the receiving end (Holland) which had been winning hearts for their attacking play. As a neutral fan (who just supports good football) I had been rooting for the Dutch yet there was no sadness when they went out.

The blunders and the ‘what if’ discussions

There is a chance that we might forget the guys who did well but rarely are the villains forgotten. Usually their blunders have a decisive impact on their teams fortunes and spawns a ‘what if’ discussion for the ages. Romanians will talk about Mutu’s missed penalty and what could have been. Same goes for the Czechs and the horror goal conceded by Petr Cech. Portuguese fans will debate the impact of Scolari’s Chelsea announcement and then there will be the regulars – the referees and the usual set of refereeing decisions which could have gone either way.

And finally

Euro 2008 did not have a single player who took the tournament by storm – a clear cut ‘player of the tournament’. Many like Ronaldo were expected to do so but failed. There were some wonderful performances no doubt but no player stood out like a colossus. We will not be associating this tournament with the brilliance of any player. Rather we will remember the team efforts. The ‘total football’ of the Dutch. The crisp passing of the Spaniards. The boundless energy of the Russians and the indefatigable spirit of the Turks.

This article was originally published on www.soccerlens.com

Why Andrey Arshavin should not go to FC Barcelona

2008-07-02T21:12:00.005+05:30

Arshavin and Barcelona should avoid a repeat of Riquelme's frustrating spell at the Spanish giants

Andrey Arshavin has openly expressed a desire to join Barcelona. While players do this all the time, in this case the Spanish Club has opened negotiations with the player’s current club, clearly showing intent to add the player to their squad.

As an opening salvo, the player’s current employers have agreed to let the player go provided Lionel Messi goes in the opposite direction. The offer also includes a payment of 20 million pounds to be made to Barcelona. While the offer sounds preposterous, there is actually some logic to it. But in spite of the logic, which I will come to later, it will be in Arshavin’s best interests if Barcelona rejects the offer outright and there are no further negotiations.

And here’s why

There is no place for Arshavin in the Barcelona playing eleven. A player of his class and age (at 27 he’s not a youngster exactly), should not be wasting his time getting frustrated on the bench. He will hardly have a role to play for Barcelona. And that is precisely the reason why the club should not be wasting their time chasing him and should concentrate on their other more important transfer targets.

Why there is no place for Arshavin in the Barcelona playing eleven

Arshavin can either play as a playmaker or as a second striker. Provided he joins Barca, he will be denied a chance to play in either role by Lionel Messi (the reason why Zenit’s offer could actually improve his chances of playing), Bojan Krkic, Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta. These guys are proven performers at Barcelona and Pep Guardiola would not break a settled combination. And remember we are assuming both Deco and Ronaldinho will be leaving and not competing for the same spots – something which could still not materialize and worsen Arshavin’s chances.

Additionally, Arshavin is at his best when the attack is built around him; like it is at Zenit and the Russian National team. There is no way he will enjoy the same luxury at Barcelona. In a best case scenario, Arshavin will be forced to play out of position or in a role that he is not too comfortable in and therefore there is little chance that Barcelona will be able to fully benefit from his talent.

Arshavin and Barcelona should learn from the past

In their recent history, Barcelona have had an embarrassment of attacking riches. Many wonderful players have borne the brunt of this surplus. The name which comes most easily to mind is that of Juan Roman Riquelme. He never got a decent chance to show his worth at Barcelona but prospered on moving to Villarreal – a club which built their attack around him. Arshavin with his close control is in many ways similar to the Argentinean. Playing at Barcelona is a privilege but the Russian would be wiser to move to a lesser club. Not only will he get to play regularly, he will also get to play to his strengths.

This article was originally published on www.soccerlens.com

Open Challenge to all cricket fans – Can anyone solve ‘Times Of India’s Cricket Trivia Quiz

2008-07-02T07:44:00.010+05:30

The following trivia question appeared in the Chennai Edition of the Times of India on Sunday, the 29th of June 2008. It is also available online on http://epaper.timesofindia.com in the section marked PLAYFULL

I will first repeat the question in the picture for you

Question - This dashing Indian batsman put the Pakistani attack to sword as he scored a swashbuckling 119 to help India chase with ease in the Asia cup clash in Karachi on Thursday.

The options are
A) Sourav Ganguly B) Sachin Tendulkar C) Rahul Dravid

As a hint, they have provided a photograph of the lower half of the cricketer’s face – a pair of specs and a light moustache is visible. The player also happens to be chewing on his nails. Looks very much like a cricketer who once took his shirt off on the Lords balcony but wait there’s another hint.

The picture has been captioned as “Dadagiri Continues”. The first word reminds me of a very popular cricketer’s nickname. I am fairly certain that I know this one. But wait, it says Asia Cup in Karachi in 2008. I guy I was thinking about isn’t playing for the national senior team and as far as I know isn’t part of any rebel league or tournament going on simultaneously with the BCCI-approved Asia Cup in Pakistan.

I give up. I should’ve watched the Asia Cup more closely.

The reward for the lucky winner - to have his name published on the same trivia section the following day. Well, now I have an additional prize for whoever has the right answer. I will be his slave for the rest of my life. And I will build two monuments in his honour – one on the moon and one on the Lords cricket ground and name them as “this is to celebrate the Genius who correctly answered Times Of India’s quiz”

There is no time limit to answering this question. Keep trying. But please don’t come up with inane answers like – the options are all wrong or there is a typo error or that this was done to celebrate National Media Horrors Day or something.

Thanks to Aneesh Deepak for noticing the unsolvability of this question

Guus Hiddink is the Miracle Worker 2.0 - a new and improved version of Bora Milutinovic

2008-06-27T00:29:00.022+05:30

Guus Hiddink has done it again. I don’t have words to describe his magical feats at Euro 2008 – have simply run out of clichés. So I’ll make my life easy and do a simple analogy.

Guus Hiddink is the new and improved Bora Milutinovic

First a little something about Velibor ‘Bora’ Milutinovic

Long before Guus Hiddink gained a reputation as the coach with the magic touch; there was Bora Milutinovic. The Serbian had the uncanny and almost ungodly ability to get the football team of any nation to play out of their skin and achieve the seemingly impossible. Succeeding with one foreign team is difficult enough – there are issues about understanding the culture, the football mindset and sometimes even the language. But rather then succumb to it; Bora Milutinovic seemed to thrive on the challenge.

Savour this – He got Mexico to the quarters of the 1986 Football World Cup;Costa Rica to the second round in 1990, the US to the second round of the 1994 World Cup;Nigeria to the second round of the 1998 World Cup and finally China to the World Cup of 2002. He has a flawless resume when it comes to taking the most ordinary of football nations to the biggest football event in the World and then getting them to do well in the main tournament as well. Teams like Mexico and Nigeria at least had a modicum of football pedigree. The likes of Costa Rica and the US were supposed to be lambs to the slaughter but Bora got them to roar like a lion

In his prime, Bora was the closest thing to a ‘Miracle Worker’ – a nickname bestowed upon him by Alan Rothenberg, the president of the US Soccer Federation. Rothenberg had turned to Bora when the US faced the certain ignominy of becoming the first host nation to fail to qualify for the second round of the World Cup. The miracle worker blew his magic whistle (to use a coaching term) and saved them the blushes.

Those who know Guus Hiddink well would now be smiling to themselves in the knowledge of having figured out the rest of the article. But for the benefit of those who haven’t, here’s why Guus is an improvement on even the great Bora.

Because taking Holland into the semis of the 1998 World Cup beats taking Mexico into the quarters in 1986

Because taking hosts South Korea into the Semis in 2002 was more sensational than the achievements of hosts USA in 1994

Because taking Australia into the second round of the 2006 World Cup, where they almost knocked eventual champions Italy out of the tournament is on par with the feats of Nigeria in 1998.

Because Hiddink’s magical journey into the semis of Euro 2008 with the Russians eclipses the Costa Rica’s dream run in the 1990 World Cup.

And for those who are still not convinced here’s the clincher – Bora was a poor club coach failing with Udinese in Italy and with the Metrostars in the US. Hiddink on the other hand won the European Cup with PSV Eindhoven in 1988 and went on another magical run with the same club in the UEFA Champions League in 2004-05 making the semis.

Various people have tried to honour Guus Hiddink by bestowing impressive nicknames upon him – notable being Tsar Hiddink, Aussie Guus and Guus Geluk ( meaning lucky Guus) . But I can think of only one which gives the Dutchman and his achievements the right scale and perspective. He is the Miracle Worker 2.0 – a new and far improved version of the original ‘Miracle Worker’

This article was originally published on www.goal.com

Why you should avoid the TIMES NOW channel if you are looking for football news and analysis

2008-06-22T01:16:00.003+05:30

Because the football guys at 'TIMES NOW' don’t know that penalties converted in a shoot-out are not counted as goals scored. Check out the following picture.

Yes, the great football experts at TIMES NOW added the 3 penalties converted by Turkey and one by the Croats to the score line and showed it as 4 goals scored by Turkey and 2 by Croatia. The statistics also show that Turkey had only two shots at goal. So how did they manage to score 4 goals when only two shots were on target? How does one score a goal in football without the shot being on target?

What I cannot understand is that how no one in the news channel noticed it - the presenters, the camera guys, the production guys and everyone else who is involved in bringing news to us. Surely someone in the organization must know a little about football.

Now to give you a cricket perspective of this football blunder. Imagine a Twenty-20 game which has a bowl-out. Team A loses 9 wickets during the game and team B hits the stumps five times during the bowl-out. Then TIMES NOW’s analysis would have shown Team A lose 14 wickets in the game. That is how bad they are. Continue watching TIMES NOW if that is not bad enough for you

The Roger Federer - Tiger Woods 'best sportsperson' debate is now over - The fierce tiger just gobbled up the Swiss cow

2008-06-17T21:24:00.004+05:30

The fierce tiger got the better of the meek Swiss cow

Roger Federer will go down as the most talented tennis player of his generation and one of the most talented of all time. He will also be considered one of the best tennis players of all time. Another claim that he can make involving the word 'greatest' will also have the word 'choker' associated with it. He has been building a strong case over the years and the meltdown in the French finals on June 8, 2008 sealed the deal for him.

It is high time we stopped the comparisons with Tiger Woods about ' who is the greatest sportsperson on the planet'. Tiger has comprehensively bested Federer on one important parameter and clinched the verdict. Mental fortitude and ability to perform in the clutch are important pre-requisites for great players. And that is where Federer has drawn a blank and Tiger has scored full marks. Federer is like the student who scored 7 A's and an F and hence is not eligible for the big scholarship. The stage was set up perfectly for him at the French- a chance to beat his arch nemesis and cement a place in history. And what did he do - rather than raise his game a few notches, he dropped it way below - so much so that the spectators had a good reason to ask the Swiss for a refund on their tickets. Can you imagine Sampras succumbing to the pressure like that? Never!!!

Additionally great players don’t get dominated by anyone for too long. They always figure out a way to overcome the fiercest of adversaries. Roger has failed on that count as well. His rivalry with Nadal is becoming more one-sided in Rafa's favour with each passing day. Rather than come close to solving the Nadal puzzle Roger is moving away from it. Rafa on the other hand is tantalizingly close to unlocking the mystery of beating Federer at Wimbledon. That is another F for Federer.

Now for proof of why Tiger scored A’s on the same parameters to close the debate.

Tiger Woods overcame a badly damaged left knee - bad enough for him to use his club as a walking stick and delivered in a pressure cooker situation with the US Open on the line. His powers of concentration were at their peak as he made more than one tournament saving putt. His victory was more a reflection of his never say die attitude than of his talent. The last 6 holes on day three proved conclusively that he has the ability to raise his game to superhuman levels whenever the situation demands. His performance was a story of sheer grit, physical hardiness and mental toughness - the exact requirements to qualify as a great champion and fully deserving of an A for mental strength.

Tiger has had his fair share of dangerous rivals. Ernie Els challenged him for a while. Then Vijay Singh ran him close managing to snatch Tiger's world number one ranking. And finally there was Phil Mickelson – who almost out-hit Woods off the course. Each rivalry made for an interesting duel. But in the end Tiger out duelled them all; to the extent of totally shattering their confidence. Tiger gets another A for this as compared to Federer’s F (for being on the receiving end of his only major rivalry.)

The debate could not be settled by arguments about talent or dominance of their chosen sports. It finally came down to a battle between a tiger and a Swiss cow. The tiger was too fierce and the cow was too meek. That was the only difference between two supremely talented individuals but the difference was good enough to settle the debate once and for all.

Ladies and Gentlemen: Introducing Eldrick ‘Tiger’ Woods – THE GREATEST SPORTSPERSON ON THE PLANET

Important note to Sir Alex Ferguson and Man United – Remember what happened the last time a great player called Ronaldo moved to Real Madrid

2008-06-15T21:41:00.012+05:30

Real Madrid’s pursuit of Cristiano Ronaldo is becoming a major cause of concern for Alex Ferguson and all United fans. Now here’s a precedent which should cause more concern.

Real Madrid were successful the last time they pursued a player called Ronaldo – Ronaldo Luis Nazário de Lima - the Brazilian striker who was a three –time World Player of the Year in 2002 when Real got him from Inter Milan. Like Cristiano he was also one of the top players in the world.

The Ronaldo on the left could repeat what the Ronaldo on the right did in 2002

United believe Cristiano has enough reasons to stay at Old Trafford.

Beware !!!

There was a good reason to believe that ROnaldo would also not want to move to Real. He had just been through 20 months of rehab. Inter Milan had been fully supportive, not only paying his full salary but also his medical bills. Ronaldo was expected to feel grateful and stay at Inter. But he got lured by Real. Such is the attraction of Real.

Now for the scariest part

In exchange for Ronaldo, Real gave Inter 35 million euros and the option to take one of two players – Steve McManaman or Santiago Solari. The valuation of these players was put at 10 million euros each, thus making Ronaldo transfer value 45 million euros.

Fair deal? Not really

Inter Milan choose Solari but the player refused to join the club. It took more then six months and a lot of trouble before Inter finally got hold of Solari. The player, however, was a disgruntled man and his frustration showed in his performances. He was a shadow of the player he was at Real. It became a bad investment of 10 million for Inter.

Now for the remaining 35 million. Real Madrid paid one instalment but defaulted on the balance payment. Inter had to go to FIFA and another painful saga ensued. Finally, Real compensated Inter by giving them another player. Needless to say the player was highly over-valued for the deal and did not make a name for himself at Inter. A bad deal became worse for the Italian club.

So as a Red Devil and a well-wisher of Man United, I have just one piece of advice for Sir Alex and his legal team

United should not settle for mediocre players like Solari

You are dealing with a Club who are absolute crooks. They have already made illegal advances. They are fully capable of luring Cristiano to the Bernabeau. Prepare for the transfer well in advance and do your homework. Please ensure that you get your pound of flesh for Cristiano. Don’t settle for Real’s rejects like Robinho or fall for a complicated payment plan.

Just remember what happened the last time a superstar called Ronaldo moved to Real. Please for god’s sake; spare us (Red Devil fans) the same heart break.

Choosing between cricket(Asia Cup) and football( Euro 2008) - let the TV commercials decide it for you

2008-06-13T07:48:00.008+05:30

The third most important football tournament in the World (after the World Cup and the UEFA Champions League) is on right now and the 19th most important Cricket tournament in the World will start shortly. Ok fine, I just made up that number. But with a million cricket tournaments and series' in a year, and many of them one-off events, it is impossible to do a real ranking.

With these two big tournaments on simultaneously, Indian Sports fans have a problem of plenty this summer. And we haven’t yet spoken of Wimbledon and the US Open golf event. I am just sticking to the most popular sport in the world and the most popular sport in India. With little time on his hands how does the Indian sports fan prioritize his sports watching on the telly? The Euro is a more important football tournament but we are a cricket mad nation and our national team happens to be playing in the Asia Cup.

Well, I have a new way of resolving this dilemma. It’s called 'LET THE TV COMMERCIALS DECIDE'

There are two TV commercials dominating the sporting airwaves tight now. One is the Nike football commercial called ‘Take it to the NEXT LEVEL’ which makes a pitch for football and the Euro tournament. Then there is the Star Cricket commercial which calls on cricket fans to start cheering for India in the Asia Cup.

Watch both and watch the tournament which has a better commercial.

Watch the Nike commercial.

This commercial really takes a football fan to the next level. You almost experience what it feels like to be a player on the field. You score, you tackle, you get tackled and you even get to kiss the babes.

The ad also leaves you guessing – who is the player in the ad – the guy through whose eyes we see the entire ad unfold. He is a goal scoring Dutch forward who plays for arsenal. Points to one Robin Van Persie. But this player is right-footed and can’t be Van Persie. Anyways this is an outstanding ad.

Now take a look at the Star Cricket commercial

I am sorry but this ad is not fully available on the internet. None of its 4 versions. It’s actually so infantile that I have a feeling Youtube refused to upload it on their site. You can’t miss it on TV though. There are no other ads which show grown up men shouting INDIA, INDIA for no rhyme or reason. One guy enters a parking lot and looks around as if he’s a car thief and then starts shouting INDIA INDIA. The other versions show similarly demented men shouting in offices, homes and elevators. The ad line says – time to start cheering for INDIA.

But shouldn’t we wait for the games to start at least. Do we have to act like the village idiot to show our loyalties? People in this country have enough intelligence to know that the IPL is over and they need to cheer for the national team in the Asia Cup. I guess the commercial is meant for people who don’t understand that – people who behave like the guys in the ad.

Final Decision – The commercials have clearly made the decision for me. However, you can watch the cricket if you are planning to watch each and every cricket tournament in the year and do the ranking analysis for the Asia Cup and other tournaments. In case you do. You know what to do next. Start shouting.

A Commonfan’s Euro 2008 Diary - 11/06/2008 – A lone Englishman and a scouting report on the Portugese

2008-06-12T08:00:00.014+05:30

Scouting note for future opponents of Portugal

1. The Portugese defense is poor in the air. The shorter Turks couldnt take advanateg of it but the taller Czechs neraly made the portugese pay. Teams like Germany who are strong in the air would be taking note of this weakness with glee.

Please note - The right-footed guy in Blue is playing left-back for Portugal

2.There's a guy with a poor left foot masquerading as a left back for the Portugese. He has been a right back all his life and has not been a very good one the last few seasons. Wonder why his coach thought he would do well on the left when he was bad on the right. Is it simply because the Scolari has no other defensive options available? That is a scary thought for the team's fans.

The 2006 World was a bad nightmare

Check this

1998 World Cup - 36 goals in 14 games between European nations ( both teams from Europe)
2000 Euro - 85 goals in 31 games
2002 World Cup - 24 goals in 8 games between Europen nations
2004 Euro - 77 goals in 31 games
2006 World Cup - 31 goals in 16 games between European nations
2008 Euro - 23 goals in 10 games so far

Average number of goals per game have been - 2.57, 2.74, 3.00 ,2.48, 1.93 and 2.3

Notice the trend - The 2006 World Cup won by Italy was a nightmare for attacking football. Thankfully, there has been a revival at Euro 2008. The goal average at this tournament will improve further if Italy or France are not present in the second round.That looks a real possiblity and fans of attacking football can rejoice furtjher.

The lone Englishman at Euro 2008

Turkey's Kazim- Kazim was born in England and given the name Colin Kazim-Richards at birth. He got the name as his mother is Turkish Cypriot. A prodigy in England he failed to live upto his early promise and his career floundered. It has seen a revival in Turkey and now Kazim gets to be the solitary Englishman at Euro 2008.

Calling himself Kazim Kazim is a nice move. It makes him more Turkish and less English. Saves him from the curse which befell the the 'Englishmen who are not at Euro 2008'

Rising transfer prices

Ronaldo’s outstanding displays at Euro 2008 would have whetted the appetite of the Real bosses even more. His already high transfer value is now going through the roof. And he’s not the only player increasing his market value by impressing at this tournament.

Deco's signature just became a hell lot more expensive

Deco is another. Already on his way out of Barcelona, he will have more suitors then he can handle if he continues in the same vein. And then there is David Villa. Rafa Benitez would be kicking himself for not signing him when he was available for far less than what he would cost after this tournament.

On the flip side players like Karim Benzema could hurt their transfer valuations if they don’t improve their play quickly.

A Commonfan’s Euro 2008 Diary - 10/06/2008 – Spain have an embarrassment of attacking riches and Greece are paupers

2008-06-11T20:49:00.007+05:30

Spain can keep these guys on the bench and still look good

Spain

Spain started with Xabi Alonso and Cesc Fabregas on the bench and played fluently. How many teams at euro 2008 would love to have them as their starting central midfield pair. Everyone except for Portugal, France, Italy and Holland. And even these 4 teams would be tempted to play at least one of them. That is the level of quality in the Spanish side.

For all the talent in the world, Coach Luis Aragones deserves a lot of credit. His teams play a wonderful brand of attacking football that others in Europe can only dream about (except for Portugal and Holland). He has also instilled a lot of confidence in his young side and they don’t start choking from day one like the Spanish sides of old. In fact, they don’t choke at all. They are lacking in international experience but they force the opponent to beat them and don’t end up beating themselves.

Spain should qualify easily as group toppers. I am not counting on them to win it all but they should progress beyond the second round. Their attack was the hero against Russia but their defence will be critical once the knock-out round begins. The form of Ramos and Puyol would be crucial.

My most heartfelt desire is to see a Spain- Portugal or a Spain –Holland game. That would bring even the football gods to earth

Russia

Thank god, the English didn't qualify. We would have never seen the free flowing game we saw last night. The Russians lost 1- 4 but they displayed enough attacking verve and could have scored more than the one goal they managed. Credit is due to their manager Guus Hiddink for playing to win and not playing 'not to lose'. Their approach however could prove costly if they end up tied on points with another team and the qualification decision comes down to goal difference.

Russia's qualification now depends on Hiddink's tactics and mind games

The Russians will compete with Sweden for the second spot in this group. Drawing with the Swedes will not serve their purpose as they have a far inferior goal-difference. They will need to go all out for a win. The Swedes know this. They will just stay back and take a counter-attacking approach - something which they do really well. The odds are all stacked up against the Russians. But they have the best tactician in the world to bail them out of this precarious position. Its time for Guus Hiddink to start his mind games and prepare a few surprises for the upcoming games.

Sweden

The Swedish team reminds me of the New Zealand Cricket team. They have a handful of stars (Ibrahimovic, Larsson and Ljungberg) and then a whole bunch of decent players (most of them happen to be role-players at big European clubs) who combine beautifully to ensure that the whole is always more than the sum of the parts.

They almost always qualify for the big tournaments, do well in the group stages and then get knocked out early in the knock-out rounds. They have regularly failed to emulate their semi-final efforts at the 1994 WC and 1992 European Championship. Another repeat is likely at Euro 2008. A comfortable 2-0 win over the defending champs was a big step towards the second round but they didn’t display enough to suggest that they could be considered serious title challengers.

This strike pair could be deadlier if they had better service

Their biggest strength is the strike force of Larsson and Ibrahimovic. But the duo would struggle to repeat their club form as their more modest international team- mates will fail to match the service that they are used to at club level.

A special word of praise for the Swedish fans. Their section behind the goal was completely yellow – not a single speck of another colour. Every fan seemed to be dressed in the same uniform. Way to go fans.

Greece

The ride is over. With a sound beating at the hands of the Swedes, the Greeks no longer carry the aura of defending Champions. In fact they look ripe for a last place finish in this group. They had a dream run the last time round where their ‘defend first and then snatch a goal’ worked like a charm.

Otto and his boys can rest on past glory

These European Championships are about teams which can go out and take over the game with their attacking firepower. The defensive minded Greeks do not belong here. The fans want to see the likes of Holland and Portugal and wouldn’t min an early exit for the Greeks. But Otto Rehhagel and his boys have nothing to be ashamed of though. Their place in the history books of football is already etched in gold.

A Commonfan’s Euro 2008 Diary - 09/06/2008 – Unravelling the Group of Death

2008-06-10T20:43:00.010+05:30

France
France reminded me of the last French side which played a major tournament without Zinedine Zidane - the 2002 World Cup team, which finished last in the group. At least that side could call on Zizou for their last group game. This team will not have that option an to make matters worse for them, two of their other talismanic players - Thierry Henry and Patrick Viera were also unavailable for the Romania game and could miss more action. The Romania game was a must win and the two dropped points could come back to haunt them.

No more Zidane comparisons for Benzema if he continues to play like this

It was actually painful to see such a fine collection of talent give such a disjointed display. Many of the youngsters have been anointed with Zidane related monikers (like the new Zidane) and its time for them to step up and live up to their Zidanesque billing. But more than anything else, the return of Viera could revitalize the side. He has the ability to dominate the midfield and set the tempo for France.

There is still a lot of football to be played in this group and France is still in complete control of their destiny. They are a veteran side and their experience, especially in defence will be very handy for the crunch games against Italy and the Netherlands. It will be imperative to get the formation and tactics right and the French fans can count on Domenech to get it right. They are still my favourites to make it out of the group of death.

Romania

Romania has had their moments in the big tournaments, most notably their win over Argentina in the 94 WC and over England in France 98. This time, however, they have a far bigger mountain to climb - they are in the group of death and even a second place finish will be reason for massive celebration at home.

Their defence is ably marshalled by Christian Chivu and was rock solid against France. However, their job was made easier by the lack of coordination in the French side and the Italians and the Dutch might not be so generous. Even then the defense is the least of their worries. This team needs to win at least one of their remaining games to have a realistic hope of qualifying and to do that they will need to score goals. And that is where the bigger problem lies.

Their attack is solely dependent on Adrian Mutu. While this was good enough for the lesser nations in the qualifying tournaments, it’s grossly inadequate for the big boys. Expect Romania to go down fighting but with their head held high.

Netherlands

They hammered the defending World champions 3-0 and are on pole position to qualify from this group. Their attack was hugely impressive and if you can shred the Italian Catenaccio defence three times, you can score against anyone in the world. The offensive players were a source of great joy but the fans can draw greater cheer from what was missing from the Dutch squad.

We dont miss you - thanks for not coming

Question marks were raised about the Oranje's chances after the withdrawal of some big names before the tournament. Looks like these withdrawals did more good than bad. The Dutch have self-destructed through infighting at almost all major tournaments. The withdrawals meant there were fewer egos and fewer trouble makers, creating a healthier team atmosphere and reducing the chances of infighting. The depth of Dutch talent ensured that Coach Van Basten had no trouble finding suitable replacements.

A united Dutch side which could go all the way

Marco Van Basten is the common element from Holland’s title winning squad of 1988 - their only international title. His lucky touch combined with an offence which is in top form and a side which is united for a change could land a second international football title for the Dutch. The football purists can brace themselves for a treat of attacking football.

Italy
The 3-0 defeat to the Dutch was a shocker. I had been unable to pick which side will miss out in the group of death before the tournament began. Now I think the Italians will endure that ignominy.

It's risky to bet against Italian sides as they are known to start slowly and have an innate ability to rebound from defeats. But I will take that chance for one simple reason - Italian sides never concede 3 goals in a game. Usually they let in that many in a tournament. I think the last time it happened was in the 1988 Olympics in the third place play-offs against West Germany. That is right – 20 years back when Germany was still divided.

Can someone find the Italian defence please

There is something seriously wrong with the Italian defence. And an Italian team which loses its defensive identity is like a singer who has lost his voice – they are no good.

Roberto Donadoni was a surprise choice to replace Marcello Lippi. Failure to qualify for the second round could possibly end his reign. He can complain about missing Fabio Cannavaro but his pleas will find no takers if the Azurri cannot pull themselves up in the next two games.

A Commonfan’s Euro 2008 Diary - 08/06/2008 – First impressions of group B

2008-06-09T23:46:00.004+05:30

Germany

Germany have almost the same side from the last World Cup, almost the same coaching ideology as the last World Cup and are almost at home , geographically speaking ,like the last World Cup. And I would expect them to almost repeat their performance of the last world Cup – they will play well and make the semis at least.

The coach is no longer there but his ideology and players remain

After two horror European tournaments, the Germans are finally back with a strong side and have re-discovered their swagger and winning mentality of old. In a closely fought tournament like this, a winning attitude is often the difference between victory and defeat. The Germans have a strong side which plays a busy attacking style based on team work and efficiency. They don’t have any big stars but are solid at every position and are a tough nut to crack. Their biggest star is Michael Ballack who has returned to form at Chelsea this season. His midfield leadership will be crucial to an extended run for Germany in the tournament.

Their opening game against Poland was expected to be a dog fight but Germany emerged with a convincing 2-0 victory which was remindful of their displays at the 2006 WC. The Germans are all fired up and should top the group.

Poland

The Poles were knocked down by a polish born-German. They have no reason to complain though. They have also benefitted from emigrant footballers, most notably the Nigerian born striker- Emmanuel Olisadabe.

They have already over-achieved by qualifying for the tournament and their display against Germany was nothing to be ashamed of. They are a side of no names which has been turned into a fighting unit by the wily old Dutchman – Leo Beenhakker. I would expect the Poles to make their coach proud by beating the Austrians and challenging the Croats for a second round berth.

Croatia

For all the talk about this team being on the verge of a major international breakthrough, the Croats were horrible against arguably the worst side in the tournament - the Austrians. They were lucky to get the win; else they would have done their qualification hopes some serious damage.

Their coach is quite hopeful that his team is capable of much more. I am sure they are, having beaten the English in England to top their qualifying group. But most managers in Euro 2008 are far better than Steve McLaren and their sides will know how to handle the Croats.

Croatia has no one in the class of Boban and Suker

In fact, I would go as far as saying that this isn’t the best side to come out of Croatia. Previous sides have boasted of the likes of Boban and Suker – established names at big-time European clubs. The current side has no such pedigree and will find it difficult to go one better.

Austria

Quite simply the poorest side in the tournament. They suffer from a hopeless lack of quality. Their best player is a mediocre member of a mediocre Middlesbrough side. But they put up a valiant fight and would have made the home fans proud. I hope they manage to get at least one point in the group and have something positive to remember about a tournament they had been so excited about.

A Commonfan’s Euro 2008 Diary - 07/06/2008 – First impressions of Group A

2008-06-08T14:14:00.006+05:30

Portugal

Hugely impressive in their 2-0 win over the Turks. The ball movement was a treat to the eye and the defense also looked solid. Could have won by far more. In spite of the fine performance two fatal problems remain and unless Portugal can prove me wrong, I don’t see these guys winning the tournament.

The first is the lack of a proven goal-scorer. Except for France at the 1998 World Cup and Greece in the last Euros no team has won a major tournament without a top striker. In fact Portugal’s inability to produce a top-striker baffles me. They have a regular assembly line which churns out world –class talent on a regular basis but somehow the line fails to produce a quality finisher. Portugal’s best case scenario would be to do what France did in 98 – get goals from all over the field. They did just that against the Turks with the goals coming from mid-field and defense.

Portugal will need more goals from defense and midfield

The other is the lack of leadership. This was an easy game. But who is going to rally the troops in the heat of the battle against the likes of Italy, France and Germany. Cristiano is the captain but is he a leader? I don’t think so. The only one who comes close to being a leader is Ricardo Carvalho. Scolari is a smart coach. I didn’t expect him to make Ronaldo captain. More than goal-scoring, lack of leadership could be Portugal’s biggest undoing.

The lack of leadership also stems from the fact that this team has finally broken away from the Golden Generation of Portugese football – the likes of Figo, Paulo Sousa, Fernando Couto and Rui Costa – players who won two junior World Cups together and served the senior side with distinction for many years. There is a clear absence of veterans in the side. But this could serve as extra motivation for this team as they would look to create a new identity for themselves and come out of the shadow of the Golden Generation. I love to see them play and would hope they do so

Turkey

They lost to Portugal but they are my favourites to qualify second from this group. They have greater balance than the Czechs and the Swiss and have the best striker in the entire group in Nihat Kahveci. Their superior offensive prowess should see them prevail and make it to the next round.

Fatih Terim’s presence is also a major plus for them. He inspired Turkey to a third place in the 2002 World Cup and can get them to play out of their skins once again.

They had some positives to take from the loss against the Portuguese. They kept the game alive till the very end and had scoring chances of their own. On another day the referee could have been more benevolent and the Turks could have snatched a draw.

Czech Republic

The Czechs made a stunning start to the last World Cup and then just crumbled. Things haven’t improved a lot since then. They were missing the creativity of Nedved, Poborsky and Rosicky from the last tournament and it showed, quite palpably. Their offense was almost non-existent and I don’t know how things can improve for the side. Their big striker, Jan Koller has denigrated and the lack of supply made him look even worse. Milan Baros was not even considered worthy of a substitute appearance. A far cry from Euro 2004 where he netted five times.

This was an extremely lucky win for the Czechs. Even their reliable defense was stretched by the plucky Swiss who don’t boast of any big names in offense. The going will be far more difficult against the Portuguese and the Turks who are far more potent in attack. The Czechs exited the 2006 World Cup with a win and two defeats and a repeat at Euro 2008 is quite likely

Switzerland

The Swiss fans made the second round in the 2006 World Cup and did not concede a single goal. That performance and the fact that the tournament was at home gave the Swiss fans a lot to aspire for. Their hopes came crashing down after a defeat against the Czechs and their hopes of qualification are extremely bleak now.

Important Lesson – The European Championship is very different to the World Cup for European sides. The Swiss side is built on a well-organized defense. It served them well against non-European sides at the World Cup. But isn’t much of an advantage against European sides. They are all accustomed to playing against European defences and know how to break it down. When it comes to attack, the Swiss are all industry and running but that isn’t good enough to bring in the goals against well marshalled sides.

A smash-and-grab goal that undid the organized Swiss defense

All these elements were on display against the Czechs. The Swiss held possession and pressurized the opposition defense but had little to show in terms of clear-cut chances. And were unable to take the few that did come their way. They defended well but were done in by a smash-and-grab goal that is the trademark of European sides. For once the Swiss got a taste of their own medicine.

Predictions for Match Day 2

Austria – Croatia

Easy win for Croatia. Possible score line 2-0. Another home defeat

Germany – Poland

Expect the Poles to play hard and push the Germans who should prevail eventually. Possible score line 1-0

The Commonfan’s IPL Polls – Awarding the Icons, commentators and brand ambassadors in the IPL

2008-06-07T13:02:00.011+05:30

I recently put up three IPL-related polls on the blog. The IPL is over, the polls are closed and its time to analyze the results.

Two points before we start

Point no 1 – I have myself abstained from voting to prevent any kind of human bias while analyzing the results.

Point no 2 – I am a trained but hopeless statistician. Still I remember enough to say with more than 95% confidence that the sample size is not statistically relevant. But how can we have large sample sizes when the popular forums refrain from popular polls. They cannot go beyond the ‘who will win the match’, ‘who will hit maximum sixes’ and ‘who will win man of the series’ type of polls. These Polls test your clairvoyance and don’t ask for your opinion. And if they do ask for opinion they don’t dare touch the gods of Indian sport. A hard nosed poll which puts the greats in the dock is pure sacrilege. Therefore I will throw the statistical relevance out of the window when I analyze the poll results

Poll 1 – Who is the worst commentator in the IPL?
Results Aamir Sohail – 37%
Ranjit Fernando – 20%
Rameez Raja – 12 %
I watch matches with the volume turned off – 12%

The overall standard of the commentary in the IPL was shambolic. Amit Verma has written a delightful piece on state of commentating in the IPL and I suggest you please read it. Krishnamachari Srikanth escapes this list as he was classified as a brand ambassador. I hope all the commentators find great jobs elsewhere and spare the poor fans.

Aamir Sohail - incorrigible

Aamir Sohail takes the cake and a word of advice for him – stay away from India. You always end up making an a** of yourself. You did it as a player (against Venkatesh Prasad in the 96 WC) and have now won the Razzies of the cricket commentating world. You will do a better job modelling for hair cream.

Ranjit Fernando’s eloquence has also been well-documented. A piece of advice for Set Max – cricket telecasts don’t need the lone representative from each participating country. Foreign fans watch the telecast to watch their cricket team and not to cheer their native son doing commentary. I would give an arm and a leg to hear Ian Chappell and Richie Benaud but would rather turn deaf when Laxman Sivaramakrishnan and Ravi Shastri come on air.

Poll 2 – Which Icon was the biggest dud in the IPL?
Results Sachin Tendulkar – 36%
Rahul Dravid – 22%
VVS Laxman for being a chicken and backing out – 22 %
Sourav Ganguly -12%
The biggest dud was the concept itself – 12%

There was a lot of criticism of the concept and the last option should have been the most preferred option. However as Shane Warne and MS Dhoni showed, there is definitely a need for iconic players in the League. But rather than the IPL committee anointing ICONS it should be left to the franchisees to decide their Icon or franchise player. Even the US Leagues have franchise players. The concept is ok but its modalities need serious tweaking.

It was a tournament to forget for the big 4 of Indian cricket. Sachin Tendulkar escaped the criticism but did little justice to his icon status in the IPL or his mega-iconic status in Indian cricket. Rahul was disowned by his owner and Laxman benched for mystifying reasons. Sourav Ganguly’s last few efforts and especially his last innings did a lot of damage control for his icon status.

The new brigade made another claim to replace the old icons. The likes of Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina and Gautam Gambhir cannot be denied for long.

Poll 3 – Which team had the best set of brand ambassadors/mascots in the IPL?
Results KXP with Preity Zinta - 38%
DC were smartest for not wasting any money on it– 33%
KKR with Shahrukh– 16%
DD with Akshay Kumar – 11%

Based on poll results the possible line-up of brand ambassadors for next season’s IPL -Sherlyn Chopra, Mallika Sherawat, Rakhi Sawant, Pamela Anderson(for Mallya’s team as he doesn’t believe in the desi babes), Bipasha Basu, Shilpa Shetty and Deepika Padukone. Their agenda – to beat Preity Zinta at her game of hugging and kissing, no holds barred. Don’t be surprised if you see much better performances from the other teams next season.

Preity has set the bar for future brand ambassadors

Other than that nothing else will work. So if you can’t get a hot babe to be your brand ambassador and shower her love on the players, then you might as well drop the idea of having a brand representative.

NBA Finals – Game 1 – Seeking the positives and the negatives for my beloved Lakers – the anti-Sports Guy column

2008-06-07T09:34:00.008+05:30

Important Note – Iam a great fan of Bill Simmons’ columns on ESPN. But Bill is a Boston fan and I am a Lakers fan. So no point reading Bill’s writing during the finals and getting foolishly carried away by the Celtic Magic. This is my anti-Bill Simmons column in support of my Beloved Lakers. Go Lakers

The Boston Celtics have defeated the Lakers 98-88 in game 1. As a Lakers fan Iam a little worried because

The Boston defense was at its very best

For the third time this season the Boston defense managed to clamp done on Kobe Bryant. If KB24 cannot be a dominant scorer in this series, the Lakers will struggle for sure.

The supporting cast and the bench also wasn’t great for the Lakers. Except for Derek Fisher in the first half, nobody really came out with his reputation intact. Three-point shooting was atrocious

The big 3 fired for Boston. This is something which hasn’t happened a lot these playoffs. Have they raised their game for the biggest series of their individual lives?

Young point guard Rajon Rando played quite well against wily veteran Derek Fisher. He was unfazed by the occasion.

Boston Coach Doc Rivers won the battle of the coaches against Phil Jackson. Has he finally learned to coach I the playoffs.

The Lakers were supposed to have an edge down the stretch. But Boston controlled the game really well and there were no late runs from the Lakers.

Kevin Garnett had a monster game. The Lakers had struggled to contain a great power forward – Tim Duncan in their last series and looks like another great one is going to fill the stat sheet in this series.

Paul Pierce on one leg turned the game on its head. Iam scared to think of what he would do on both legs

That’s quite a list. Seems everything went right for Boston and nothing clicked for LA. Exactly. And that is why I am only a ‘little’ worried. Because on a day when Boston played perfectly and LA were horrible, the game was still close till late in the fourth quarter. Actually, there are other reasons as well

This game was played in Boston. These playoffs have seen an extremely high percentage of home wins. And no one exemplifies it better than the Celtics. They won two series’ by just winning their home games. So, no need to worry too much.

The home game also explains the great play of Rajon Rando and the poor play of Lakers’ supporting cast. But the Lakers have every reason to believe this will change. They lost their first away game to both the Jazz and the Spurs but rebounded to win subsequently on the opposition’s home court.

The Boston defense had initially choked LeBron as well. But James managed to overcome them and get back to his regular scoring self. I would expect Kobe to do the same and sooner. Infact Kobe’s bad game 1 was still far better than LeBron’s bad game 1. And this is a different Kobe my dear Bostonians. He will not be trying to become the man and self destruct.

Paul Pierce on 1 leg was the difference makes in game 1. But he might not be around for a few games. Boston will find it extremely difficult without their main go-to guy. Remember he scored 15 points in the decisive 3rd quarter. And Boston fans have no reason to crib about it. Remember the Lakers are also missing Andrew Bynum.

The big 3 played well together. But the big 3 might be reduced to a big 2 for a few games. And even if it that doesn’t happen, Lakers need not worry too much. These guys were playing their ‘first’ NBA finals and must have been overflowing with adrenalin. Will not have the same energy for the later games and will be back to their disjointed ways.

Doc Rivers had a great game right. But this was game one and this was in Boston. We’ll talk coaching stratagem when the series really heats up and the LA crowd is baying for Doc’s blood. Or when Doc makes his typical mistakes and even the Boston crowd starts chanting for his blood. Then the real Doc Rivers will make an appearance.

As for KG’s great show, let him play. The Lakers won 4-1 against the Spurs with Duncan getting a 22-17. KG can win the finals MVP trophy as long as Kobe wins the NBA trophy.

There was enough proof that Lakers triangle offense will work against the Boston defense. The Lakers lead and scored consistently till the one-man on one leg show happened. So the Lakers just need to continue to do what they have been doing all play-offs long – execute their offense and pass the ball around.

I love your writing Bill, but not when my Lakers play your Celtics

This column will continue till the Lakers win the NBA title. Then Bill will be back to his objective best and will write in honour of the new champions. But till that happens Bill Simmons will do his very best to derail the Lakers with his jinxes and reverse jinxes. The anti-Sports Guy column will continue to balance the cosmic influence on the NBA Finals.

Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid - the good and the bad of it

2008-06-03T23:01:00.002+05:30

Real Madrid’s chase of Cristiano Ronaldo is the biggest story in European football right now. Other than the soon-to-start Euro 2008 that is. Real have been undaunted in their pursuit of the Portuguese, while his current club – Manchester United have been equally determined to hold onto him. Off late there have been some ifs and buts from both parties. The player himself has been giving mixed signals and adding to the confusion. Let’s analyze all the angles and all that could be good and bad about this move.

Why Ronaldo might go to Real Madrid

Ronaldo has already achieved all he could with Manchester United. He has won the EPL, the FA Cup and the Champions League. He has been the Player of the year in England, won the golden boot and will end up as the European player of the year in all probability. He will want to go to Real in search of new conquests.

By winning the Champions League, Ronaldo has also repaid the debt he owed to Sir Alex Ferguson for giving him a chance at Old Trafford and for standing by him when the English media was berating Ronaldo for his role in Wayne Rooney’s red card at the World Cup. The Scot wanted the Champions League more than anything else and will have little to begrudge Ronaldo if he walks away.

Ronaldo is an Iberian from Portugal. Becoming a star in Spain (another Iberian country) at Real will be a dream come true. It doesn’t get any bigger than this for him.

Why Ronaldo might not go to Real

Ronaldo was completely overwhelmed with emotion during the Champions League final. The final reminded him of his own mortality and probably gave him a new perspective in life. He would have realized that he has a great thing going for him at Old Trafford and would be a fool to jump ship and run off to Real. He would want soak in the glory of his efforts and not want to start afresh at the Bernabeau.

Ronaldo also happens to be part of a great Manchester United side which is on the brink of greatness. They just had a brilliant season and still have scope for improvement. With a young core of outstanding players, they could reel off a slew of titles in the coming years. The scene at Real is not that great. And neither is he going to be winning titles galore with Portugal. This is Ronaldo’s chance to become a football legend. He might not want to let this chance go.

Ronaldo is the biggest star at Man United and their primary goal-scorer. The likes of Rooney and Tevez play second –fiddle to him. This will not be the case at Real. Ronaldo will have to share the spotlight with Raul and many others.

Ronaldo still has age on his side. He can go to Real later also.

Why Man United should let Ronaldo go

This could be the mother of all football transfers. Real are desperate and United can make them pay dearly for their desperation. If they play their cards well, they could end up with a ton of cash and more than a couple of world-class players in return. Every player has a value attached to him and if Real’s price is far in excess of Ronaldo’s value United should pull the plug.

United have holes to fill at right back, centre forward and on the right if Ronaldo leaves. This single transfer could fill all the gaps with world-class players. Real have many redundant players like Robinho who mean little to them but are proven quality otherwise. They will be undervalued in such a deal, much to United’s advantage.

United benefited from addition through subtraction the last two times they sold a player to Real. This could happen once again. Ronaldo’s exit will provide more opportunities for the likes of Rooney, Tevez and Nani. This will bring out the best in these guys and United will be able to compensate for Ronaldo’s loss.

Why Man United should not let Ronaldo go

All the transfer money in the world will count for nothing if there are no players available. The likes of Chelsea, Milan, Real and Barcelona have bottom less trunks of money and could out-bid United in any bidding war. Players of Ronaldo’s quality are few and far between. Man United could be left with a pile of money and no replacement.

It is never advisable to break up a winning combination. United have finally managed to put together a side which can compete with the very best in Europe. To add to it they have also had their share of transfer busts, in spite of all the experience that Fergie has. There is no guarantee that a world-class player will fit in perfectly in the United side. Remember Juan Carlos Veron. United had nine years of frustration before they returned to the centre stage in Europe. They should not be risking another spell on the European fringes.

What I would want United to do

I want to see more of Ronaldo at United. But if push comes to shove, United should make Real pay heavily in return - enough to get at least two players, who can walk into the current United side. I don’t want them to settle for Robinho and cash. Traditionally Brazilians haven’t done well in the rough and tumble of the premiership. The odds of the slightly-built Robinho getting knocked around are very high.

I want United to bargain for Arjen Robben and Wesley Snijder. The former is a proven commodity in England who will at least be a medium term replacement for Ryan Giggs. He will also have extra motivation for the games against Chelsea. Snijder on the other hand will be the best possible replacement for Scholes. Few midfielders have had the kind of impact that he’s had in his first season at the Bernabeau. He will command an immediate place in the United mid field and make them an even greater force.

If United can get only one of Snijder and Robben, then they should get enough additional cash to buy the likes of Ronaldinho, Samuel E’too, Karim Benzema, Dani Alves and Franck Ribery. Nothing short of that will do. And if they fail to land both Dutchmen, then the money should be sufficient to buy two such players.

Ronaldo will be missed at Old Trafford but Real’s benevolence and United’s shrewdness could ensure that Red Devils like me don’t miss the success that United have enjoyed this season.

IPL Daily Dose – The Final – The day Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar did battle on a cricket field

2008-06-02T23:10:00.005+05:30

Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar are considered to be the two greatest generals of all time. A showdown between the two of them would probably have been one of the greatest battles in history. Two great leaders well versed in tactical warfare leading well trained and highly motivated armies in the definitive face-off. While historians can only dream and envisage, cricket fans got to see the cricketing equivalent of the ultimate battle between two outstanding generals in the final of the IPL.

Like Caesar and Alexander, Warne and Dhoni were inspirational getting the best out of their troops. They led from the front, were masterly in their tactics and showed remarkable composure in the heat of battle. The performance of their men was also heroic with each man rising to the occasion and doing his bit for the cause. The result was a roller –coaster which kept swinging back and forth till the very end.

In the end every man was a hero and there were no losers. This game was a celebration of team performance and the ‘Man’ of the Match award seemed unnecessary and pointless. Yousuf Pathan threatened to become the ‘Man’ and appeared to be kissed by destiny as he continued to get life after life. Raina’s direct hit reduced him to a mere mortal.

The run-out was one of the many incidents which had the potential to become a killer blow in another game. Not in this one though. On this day the two teams were unwilling to concede defeat and kept coming back at each other with renewed vigour. Kind of like the Rocky versus Apollo Creed match-up in the first Rocky movie.

Aamir Khan in Public

A public appearance made by the actor who only considered the Oscars to be worthy of his presence. So is the IPL big enough (a matter of pride for Lalit Modi) or was it simply to give company to Mr Mukesh Ambani. The two have been seen together quite often these days.

Can someone provide information on Salman Khan’s accent?

The actor’s accent reminds me of call centre employees who work the US shift. But he couldn’t have done that as he’s from a pre-BPO age. So did he go to school and college in America? Wonder how he gets rid of the accent when he mouths Hindi-film dialogues.

An Iceman who lost his moniker

At the Twenty-20 World Cup, Joginder Sharma bowled the last over and the media made him the ‘Iceman’. The IPL cruelly exposed his limitations. Forget an Iceman encore in the final, the poor guy was not even on the field and nobody seemed to miss him.

MS Dhoni finally lost but only just

Mahi’s winning streak as captain finally comes to an end. But no need to fret over it. It took an outstanding performance from a brilliant side to beat Dhoni’s team off the last ball of the match.

Dudes of the Day – The twenty – two players who lined up for the final. Thank you for a memorable game. The only guys who remember the two semis are the players of Delhi and Mohali

Duds of the Day – The people who planned the pre match song and dance program. The songs, the dances, the costumes and the performances were completely disparate. Even the third-rate film awards have better choreographed shows.

IPL Daily Dose – 31/05/2008 – Night out for the IPL widows and making a case for India’s McGrath

2008-06-01T12:44:00.002+05:30

The IPL has spawned a new breed of ‘cricket widows’ in India like the football widows in England. Poor women whose husbands have no time for them once the cricketing action begins. There is some good news for these distraught wives. IPL games now get over in an hours time (the competitive action that is). That leaves enough time for the man and woman to spend with each other. It gets even better when this happens on a Saturday night. The Chennai Super Kings saved a lot of troubled marriages last night and will have the good wishes of all the cricket widows for their final clash against the Royals.

Disclaimer – This does not include wives whose men were glued to the telly for the full game. I suggest they seek professional advice.

MS Dhoni stuck to the same modus operandi which has served his team well in the last few games. He gave an extended spell to his opening bowlers and let them do their thing.

Ntini and Gony first tie a noose around the batsman’s neck and then slowly tighten it. The batsman cannot take it after a while and in his struggle to break free chokes to death. Facing off against the most explosive batting line-up in the tournament, the two hit men were at their stifling best. KXP never got going and the game was as good as over after they lost their first 6 wickets cheaply. CSK’s opening pair can now lay claim to being the best opening attack in the IPL on current form.

Making a case for MS Gony

Check Gony’s figures in the last five games.

Semis - 4-1-13-2
DC - 4-0-21-1
RR - 3-0-32-0 (in a game which saw more than 425 runs scored)
RCB - 4-1-11-2
KKR - 4-0-17-0

When was the last time you saw an Indian bowler bowl impeccable line and length ball after ball, game after game. He is the closest thing we have had to a Glenn McGrath and has delivered against the most attacking of batsmen, bowling largely with fielding restrictions. He has been better than the other Indian bowlers on view and deserves a chance in the Indian side. If the BCCI is not going to consider such outstanding performances then what was all the rhetoric about unearthing new talent and giving them a chance.

What makes MS Dhoni such a winner?

He seems to have a Midas touch. The Twenty-20 World Cup, the Tri-series in Australia, the Pakistan series and now the IPL. Can’t really put a finger on what makes him such a winner. Is he a master tactician, an inspirational leader, captain cool or simply a lucky guy? Whatever it is, let’s not bother as long as he keeps winning.

Superman edges ahead

Shane Watson now leads Shaun Marsh in the ‘Best Player of the IPL’ race. Sadly for Marsh his failure on the big stage will undo all the good work done previously. Any other contenders? I would think Yousuf Pathan is a dark horse depending on what he does in the final.

Dudes of the Day – Ntini and Gony. At least the first semi-final was interesting till about 25 overs. These guys made this one a non-contest ten overs in.

Dud of the Day – Arjun Rampal. Saw his anguished face after Marsh was dismissed. He had disappeared after taking a victory lap with SRK to celebrate KKR’s victory over DD in Kolkata. Who does he really support? Is he the president of the ‘Support the Filmy IPL owners’ Club.

The basketball gods have blessed me - It’s the Celtics against the Lakers once again

2008-06-01T01:20:00.006+05:30

The Boston Celtics are through to the NBA finals with an 89-81 win over the Pistons. This has set up the 11th NBA final between the two most storied and most successful franchisees in the NBA.

Ever since the Celtics acquired KG and Ray Allen and the Lakers got Pau Gasol, this is the match-up all neutral fans have dreamt about. And finally the two teams have negotiated the obstacle course that is the conference play-offs to set up the dream match-up.

This rivalry has been blessed by intense competition and outstanding performances of the greatest names in the game. This rivalry has seen the duel between Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain, the face-off between Magic and Bird and it is their performances on this great stage which made these players legends.

This time we will see KG and Kobe – two men who have more then just a title at stake. The former has been regarded as the greatest player of his generation never to have won a title. Questions have been asked of his ability to perform on the biggest stage and now he has the chance to answer all his critics. Kobe will get a chance to show that he can lead the Lakers to a title without the help of Shaq and that will shut up O’Neal for good. This is also their chance to be counted in the same breadth as the guys mentioned earlier.

The two franchisees have had contrasting fortunes since they last met in a final. The Celtics lost Reggie Lewis and Len Bias to early deaths and have never contended for a title since. They were the joke of the NBA last year and even the most die-hard fans were losing faith in the team. A title could wash away all the pain suffered in the last 21 years.

The Lakers have been in multiple finals and have added three more rings to their collection since. They are on the verge of starting a new dynasty with Kobe, Gasol, Odom and possibly Bynum. A title will cap off the dream season they have had this year – a movie script which could have only been written in LA (Hollywood)

This dream match-up can only be compared to Borg – McEnroe in a Wimbledon final, or Brazil – Argentina in a World Cup Game or India- Pakistan in a cricket Cup Final. Yes, this is how big it is. This is the opportunity of a sports fan’s lifetime. Go watch the finals even if you don’t understand a thing about basketball. You will learn all about historical rivalries and fanatical support.

IPL Daily Dose – 30/05/2008 – IPL version of the Hare and the Tortoise and why I stopped making predictions

2008-05-31T14:14:00.007+05:30

Remember the story about the Hare and the Tortoise. The one where the hare lost a race to the tortoise because he had no focus, no concentration, was over-confident and had no luck as well.

Now try imagining the same race with a different hare. A hare who was extremely motivated, totally focussed, had the race well planned out and could count on a little bit of luck if needed. What a one –sided washout it would be? Just like the Rajasthan –Delhi game last night, right. Absolutely!!!

The hare would have started out fast and continued to build on his lead. Similarly, Rajasthan batted well in the beginning, in the middle overs and at the end. They bowled well at the start, bowled well in the middle overs and then bowled well towards the end. As for their fielding, even guys like Sohail Tanvir were taking outstanding catches.

The number of things I was wrong about (and Iam sure so were many others)

1. Delhi had a better chance if they bowled first – doesn’t matter if you are outplayed in both innings of the game

2. Delhi’s experience could be the key in a knock-out game where there is more pressure – I am an idiot. Should have learned from the Rajasthan – Mumbai game. On a day when McGrath, Sehwag and Gambhir crumbled and Munaf and Asnodkar fired, experience was the last thing that mattered.

3. Delhi’s bowling could make the difference on a bouncy pitch - wrong again. All the Delhi quicks were taken to the cleaners. And Rajasthan’s bowlers gave a clinic on line and length.

4. The game would be decided by one great innings from one of the many power-hitters on display – this was a game which was the epitome of the word ‘collective’. RR were collectively great and DD were collectively bad. No need for individual feats.

Superman Returns

After meeting kryptonite against Mumbai, Shane Watson gave a display which would have made Superman proud. Could have won two separate MoM awards – one for batting and one for bowling.

A display which would have made the great Indian spin quartet proud

On a day when bats were flying at every delivery, Amit Mishra added to his growing reputation. Rather than cower down and start bowling defensively, he showed the full range of his arsenal. He continued to toss it up in a manner which would have made Bedi and Prasanna proud. The wicket of Pathan was a perfect example. We need to see more of this guy. He’ll do us proud in other forms of the game as well. I hope we don’t need another IPL to find his whereabouts. Are the Indian selectors watching?

A day when Sohail ‘Purple Cap’ Tanvir was the weak link in the bowling

The Rajasthan bowling was so damn good that Tanvir’s extremely decent opening spell of 2-0-16-0 was made to look bad. His economy was the worst and he was the only one who went wicket less. Don’t think Sohail will mind a repeat in the finals.

Dude of the Day – Extremely difficult to judge when you have so many heroes. So award goes to Shane Watson for doing what two heroes can do. How soon before we see him doing a dozen ads on Indian Television.

Dud of the Day –Yours truly for the 4 reasons mentioned above. And all the others who thought of at least three of the 4 reasons. I am not going to be making any predictions anytime soon.

Cricket Se Aapko Kya Mila – Humko Cricket Se Sirf Cricket Hi Chahiye

2008-05-30T21:56:00.002+05:30

One of the most visible ads during the IPL matches is Zapak’s “Cricket Se Aapko Kya Mila”. This one is based on the premise that we meaning the fans don’t get anything out of cricket. The cricketers seem to be getting everything and fans also deserve to get something out of the game. I know money means everything to Reliance but don’t think ‘real’ cricket fans will agree with their philosophy.

First about the ad itself. I kind of recognized most of cricketers in the spoof but couldn’t identify the guy with the sanitary napkin. Will someone in Zapak or any of the Reliance companies please tell me the name of the cricketer who endorses a sanitary napkin brand? I think it’s a tasteless joke.

Now for the message in the ad. Here’s my answer to Zapak. We watch cricket for the cricket itself. It gives us great moments of pleasure, pain and joy and that is what we crave. We marvel at the amazing skill and that is what we want to see. We need to identify with something and cricket gives us that identity. Yeh Sab Kuch Humko Cricket Se Mila.

Obviously Reliance and Zapak don’t understand all this. They always look to make money in whatever they do. This is a great philosophy and has made reliance what they are today – India’s largest business empire. But we are poor cricket fans and we will manage with whatever cricket has been offering all this while. Cricket Se Hume Sirf Cricket Hi Chahiye Aur Kuch Nahin.

IPL Daily Dose – 29/05/2008 - Srikkanth, Arun Lal and Raj Thackeray win non-cricketing IPL awards

2008-05-29T22:00:00.004+05:30

The league stage of the IPL is over and the knock-out games start tomorrow. Like the American leagues we will also hand out awards separately for the regular season and then for the knock-out round. In today’s daily dose we will first hand out the non-cricketing awards. Part two will have all the cricketing awards.

Award for the ‘Best Fan Attire/Apparel’ goes to the Blue Chiffon Saris worn by the female fans of the Rajasthan Royals. Forget the jerseys and the Tees; this is as truly Indian as it will ever get. And full marks for original thought. Historically the Rajputs have worn saffron to battle but blue seemed to have done the trick this time round.

Award for the ‘Most Inhospitable Team’ is jointly shared by the Kings XI Punjab and the Kolkata Knight Riders. These teams don’t even have enough accommodation for their own players. On second thoughts the award only goes to the Punjab side. They are part-owned by an hotelier for god’s sake.

Award for the ‘Most Unsporting Parent’ goes to Krishnamachari Srikanth. He disappeared into thin air the day his son made a disappointing debut in the IPL. He didn’t have the gall to make his customary post match player bashing appearance. We wanted to hear his analysis of Anirudha’s performance.

Award for the ‘Most Indigestible Comment’ goes to commentator Ranjit Fernando. On being asked to comment on the poor early form displayed by the Kings XI Punjab, he commented that the foreign players from Sri Lanka were taking a while to get settled as they were suffering from jet lag!!!. Has the island nation drifted away and become part of the American mainland?

Mr Fernando kindly stay back on the stage please. We have another award for you.

Award for the ‘Most Abused Remark’ also goes to Ranjit Fernando. Till the time I could manage to keep count he had already used “and that is the best thing about the IPL format” 23, 387, 543 times. Everything that he saw had to do with format it seems. The world was not created on the day the IPL started, Mr Fernando.

In a manner similar to the way congressman fall over each other in trying to praise Sonia Gandhi, IPL commentators were trying to out-do each other in their efforts to praise Lalit Modi. The theme was to eulogize him as the great visionary who started the IPL. The winner of the ‘Praise Lalit Modi’ suck-athon is Arun Lal. He happened to know that Lalit Modi wasn’t second to Subhash Chandra in thinking about a league like this and that Modi had dreamt of the IPL long before anyone knew. So how did Arun Lal know? Was he in bed with Mr Modi, when the IPL commissioner was dreaming about the IPL?

The Award for the ‘Best Proof that India is far ahead of the World in Gender Equality’ goes to the male cheerleaders in the IPL. Many countries now have female heads of State. But no nation has thought of semi-clad male cheer leaders. Who said there was nothing for female fans in the IPL?

Award for the ‘Worst Team Owner’ goes by a landslide margin to Dr Vijay Mallya. No time to wax eloquent about his efforts. We have more awards to hand out.

Award for the ‘Best Incentive provided by a Team Owner’ goes to Preity Zinta and the kisses handed out by her. No wonder the guys in her team are rocking. Her team also saved on spending for a brand ambassador.

Award for ‘Most Uninterested Politician’ goes to Raj Thackeray. The Mumbai team was playing a ‘Bihari Bhaiya’ in the form of Saurav Tiwary. That there was no reaction from Mr Thackeray and his cohorts is proof enough that he gave the tournament a complete miss.

Award for the ‘Biggest form of Chamchagiri’ goes to all the film stars who came out to support SRK’s Knight Riders against the Mumbai Indians. This game was played in Mumbai and these Chamchas were all decked out in gold and black against a city which has meant a world to them. They also win the Award for ‘Most Disloyal Fans’. Hope their fans turn disloyal too.

And finally the Award for ‘Best Holiday Travel package’ goes to Mr Lalit Modi. By creating various quota requirements for the teams, he ensured that there was tremendous scope for free loaders – guys who were in the sides just to make up the numbers. These guys got to travel with the players, stay in the five star hotels, practise with the game’s greats, sit in the dugouts and run on the field to celebrate. Cricket –mad people in this country will pay a fortune to get such an opportunity. Is there a better holiday package available in this country?

Thanks all of you for coming. We will be back shortly with all the cricketing awards

IPL Daily Dose – 26/05/2008 – Mumbai can handle Superman but not Rajasthan’s version of Mohammed Ali

2008-05-27T12:45:00.004+05:30

Shane Warne is mining heroes by the truckloads in the Rajasthan desert. Keeping count of the match winners in the Rajasthan side is becoming increasingly difficult. On a day when it seemed that Shane Warne had run out of all his aces, the Royals unearthed another champ who grabbed his rare chance to perform with both hands. Welcome to the Shane Warne show of unending magic tricks. The latest act – Niraj Patel delivered what could be a killer blow to the semi-final hopes of Mumbai Indians.

Talking of blows, the partnership was reminiscent of Mohammed Ali’s ‘Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee’ boxing style which was on view on ESPN. I switched over to watch Ali box when Patel and Jadeja were struggling initially. Just like the two of them Ali did little in the beginning. After watching Ali absorb punches and give his opponent a false sense of victory on ESPN for a while, I switched back to Set Max and watched Patel and Jadeja make an Ali-esque comeback and sting Mumbai like a bee.

Mumbai have every reason to feel gut wrenched. Just like the Punjab game, this one was in the bag with RR needing 43 off 18 on a wicket which had been low-scoring till then. They were numerous ‘only-ifs’ associated with the last ball and Mumbai will need all the strength of will and character to pick themselves up for the next game.

A load off Viru’s head

Delhi Daredevils are through to the semis and Virender Sehwag can get rid of the memory of the over he bowled against Punjab.

Mumbai almost joined a club every other team is a member of

Wicket-keepers have never had it as good as they have in the IPL. With the bat that is. Almost every team has had a match winning batting performance from their stumpers. Last night the Mumbai Indians and Yogesh Takawale almost joined the list which currently has KKR (Brendan McCullum) , RCB(Mark Boucher),CSK ( MS Dhoni), DD( Dinesh Karthik), KXP( Sangakkara) , DC ( Gilchrist) and RR ( Kamran Akmal). Mumbai’s entry based on Takawale’s cameo seemed such a ‘destined to be thing’ till we know what happened.

The day Superman met kryptonite

Shane Watson has all the physical attributes to play Superman on screen. His performance in the IPL has also been like a Superman who has won games with bat or ball depending on the need of the hour. Last night, Superman was reduced to a mortal being in both innings of the game. But he can afford to do that when he has the full assortment of super heroes for company

Rajasthan's embarrassment of riches

Teams have been happy to have one decent opening pair. Rajasthan have 4 quality openers who can combine to form 6 different opening pairs. The captain can randomly select two guys from the likes of Smith, Asnodkar, Pathan and Kamran Akmal and count on them to get the team off to a flier.

Dude of the Day - Sohail Tanvir is as deserving as Niraj Patel. But Tanvir's already got the Purple Cap and the MoM award for his efforts. Therefore, on a day when bowlers were on top for a change, Niraj Patel is our Dude of the Day.

Duds of the Day - All the experience in the Mumbai side which counted for nothing. In the heat of the battle a pair of greenhorns came through while the wily veterans floundered. The think tank of Sachin and Sanath erred by bowling Raje when Jayasuriya and Dwayne Smith were available. They should have remembered Dhawal Kulkarni's 15 run over which tilted the balance in Delhi’s' favour in the last game. And I haven’t mentioned Jayasuriya’s missed run-out chance off the last ball

IPL Daily Dose – 25/05/2008 - A day for motivational owners and discovering a new quota in the IPL

2008-05-26T14:04:00.002+05:30

Sourav Ganguly has done it again. Once more he’s come back with a bang to prove his doubters wrong. Dada can exit the tournament with his head held high. He is the highest run getter for his team and has the best economy among bowlers (save for Ajantha Mendis who played just one game). Moreover, he was almost single-handedly responsible for 3 of his teams last 4 wins. I don’t know if SRK and John Buchanan love him but his last effort has ensured that cricket lovers across the country are in love with him all over again.

Talking of SRK, this was also a day when both he and Dr Mallya managed to end up on the winning side. Both of them should take credit for their teams’ wins having motivated their teams in their own unique ways. SRK’s SMS seems to have done the trick for Kolkata. Airtel will soon be coming out with a new Value Added Service – receive motivational SMS’ from Shahrukh Khan. As for RCB, there seems to be some correlation in Dr Mallya having put a lid on his mouth and the team winning two games on the trot. This is called silent motivation.

There was a lot of talk about Hyderabad being one bowler short and it costing the side the game. But no one seems to be talking about the side missing a batsman or two. The side was in control of things till they introduced the fifth bowler. But the side were also on top till they lost their fourth wicket. How can the side end up short on both bowlers and batsmen when it is playing its full quota of 11 players and has a wicketkeeper who is good enough to play as a specialist batsman? This is because DC plays a few dummies that neither bowl nor bat and are there to just make up the numbers. A player whose father happens to be an influential cricket administrator is a case in point. After all the league has to maintain its nepotism quota.

Award for the best runner between wickets goes to

Wasim Jaffer for managing to get run-out twice in the same game. He wins the Dada-Inzy award for best runner in the IPL.

1992 World Cup revisited

RCB opened their bowling with Anil Kumble. Martin Crowe seems to have provided some input finally

Talk of a twenty-20 hangover

IPL Participants Ricky Ponting, Jacob Oram, Ross Taylor, Shivnaraine Chanderpaul, Brendan McCullum, Dwayne Bravo and Andrew Symonds seem to have made the transition from twenty-20 to test cricket with effortless ease. They have all been in splendid form and don’t seem to be suffering from a Twenty-20 hangover.

A story of two Australian coaches

John Buchanan has come out strongly against all the praise being showered on Shane Warne for being a great coach and a great leader. He says that one IPL doesn’t prove anything. Will Mr Buchanan care to check Shane Warne’s county record with Hampshire and also try talking to a guy called Kevin Pietersen about Shane Warne’s motivational skills? Once he’s done that he’ll be as talkative as Dr Mallya has been off late.

Dude of the Day – Umar Gul was a deserving Man of the Match but Dada is the Dude of the Day. Having faced a lot of flak from all quarters, he responded with a brilliant innings. His unbeaten effort ensured that KKR’s weak batting managed one of the best chases in the IPL.

Duds of the Day – All the beneficiaries of nepotism in this tournament. The various quotas allow for some free-loaders in each side. Forget domestic players, some lucky kids are also getting a chance to rub shoulders with the greats of the game. And for this special privilege they are the duds of the day

IPL Daily Dose - 24/05/2008 - A day when history was almost made and a candidate for Indian coach

2008-05-25T12:12:00.005+05:30

The great Marathas could never capture the crown of Delhi in their proud history. On 24/05/08 they laid siege again under the leadership of the new Chattrapati – Sachin Tendulkar and it looked as if history was in the making. They were thwarted, however, by the troops recruited from the South (Karthik and Maharoof). Sachin and his men were glorious even in defeat; quite unlike the last big battle the Marathas fought for control of Delhi – the humiliating defeat in the third battle of Panipat.

Virender Sehwag and team have kept their semi-final hopes alive and have good reason to feel confident of making the next stage. For them to get knocked out now, the Mumbai Indians and the Chennai Super Kings will have to win all their remaining games.

The Daredevils have other positives to take from this game. Their middle and lower-order finally fired and delivered in a situation where they generally tend to crumble and roll over. This win was also their first against somebody who is not a minnow (RCB and DC) in their last 9 games. The team will be in a very positive state of mind should they line up for the semis.

Mumbai lost a thriller for the second game running and have every reason to feel despondent. They also have the harder task of needing to beat both the Royals (quite a proposition) and the Royal Challengers in their two remaining games. Bu they have been playing good cricket overall and a little bit of luck or pluck could see them through. The veteran presence of Sachin, Sanath and Shaun will come in extremely handy

I wrote in the Daily Dose of 18/05/2008 that somehow Chennai manage to win all their tight games. They were either super lucky or simply super cool in pressure. Whatever it was, they are no longer the same. For the second home game running, they lost a match they were in control of till a very late stage. They have the easier task of just beating the last-placed Chargers but the Super Kings have lately developed a habit of making life difficult for

A mouth watering match-up in the making

Forget Warne against Sachin, I want to see Sohail Tanvir go against Jayasuriya and Tendulkar. Tanvir has been ‘awkwardly’ outstanding and extremely difficult to get away; at the beginning or at the end of the innings. Jayasuriya is back to his 1996 World Cup best. This contest will set the tone for this high stakes game.

Note to the BCCI

Please keep a close watch on Shane Warne. He continues to get the best out of his guys. Kamran Akmal and Pankaj Singh came in for this game and made their skipper proud. Employing him in some capacity with Indian Cricket should be priority number one. And make him the coach when Gary Kirsten gets sick of the Indian board. If anyone can make India true world beaters, it is Shane Warne. He’s managed to get even Munaf Patel motivated and kicked up.

A special word of praise for the Mumbai Indians Management

Getting Dwayne Smith and Andre Nel as late additions has been quite a coup. Compare that to the reinforcement jobs done by the CSK (Kapudegara), DC (Chamara Silva) and KKR (Brad Hodge). Getting the big guns is the easier task. Making key additions late in the season is the hallmark of well-run teams. Just check the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA – 4 time winners in the last 10 years.

Dudes of the Day – The Delhi middle-order with the exception of Dilshan. Dinesh Karthik was the man of the moment but key contributions came from Tiwary and Maharoof also. In a do-or-die game when the big three failed, these guys got the job done.

Duds of the Day - the Chennai Super Kings. They are hell-bent on giving their fans sleepless nights. Home game, player of the tournament Shane Watson sits out, 35 required off 18 with Dhoni and Morkel at the wicket and they still lose. MS Dhoni’s superstar status in Chennai could take a real beating if these guys miss out on the semis.

IPL Daily Dose - 23/05/2008 - Why do the Marshs love India and a new leaf in Punjab

2008-05-24T13:42:00.006+05:30

Shaun Marsh passed a very important personal or rather family landmark during his innings of 60 against the Deccan Chargers. It’s a little lateral but lateral is what you look for when Mohali plays Deccan – this was as inconsequential as it can get at this stage of the tournament.

Shaun’s dad Geoff Marsh scored 428 runs in the 1987 Cricket World Cup held in India and the son’s IPL haul crossed that number during last night’s game. Here’s how father and son stand as of today.

There are striking similarities in the efforts of the father-son duo. Like Shaun in the IPL, the senior Marsh also had a break-out effort in the Reliance World Cup, which like the IPL was held in India. An opener just like Shaun, Geoff Marsh was outstanding in the World Cup ending up as the third –highest scorer behind David Boon and Graham Gooch with 2 centuries and a number of match-winning efforts. Shaun is second right now and should definitely end up in the top 3.

And how did the tournament end for Geoff Marsh and his team? Underdogs to start and deserving champions at the end. Now that is a storyline Shaun and his team would love to match. Going by the team’s current form, an encore looks quite likely.

The Deccan Chargers have been batting quite well off late. They have scored 181/7, 182/9, 153/7 and 175/4 in their last 4 games. This game was inconsequential but they could really benefit from their good batting form in the coming games. The clash against RCB will decide the wooden-spooners of the IPL and DC have the chance to play party poopers against CSK on 27th May.

Why do Mohali play Tanmay Srivastava when they don’t have any confidence in the youngster’s ability? What is the message being sent out to this specialist batsman when bowling all-rounders like Chawla bat ahead of him? This guy is a big game performer – having scored a century in the Ranji Finals and top scored in the U-19 World Cup final; apart from being the top scorer in the tournament. Other U-19 internationals have performed decently in the IPL. Guys like him should be given a chance in the league stage (especially now that KXP is already in the semis) so that they are ready if called upon in the crucial knock-out games.

Evidence that Sreesanth is turning over a new leaf

His cool and calm reaction to Romesh Power’s almost comical attempt to mis-field, which resulted in a four. New age saying – Spare the Slap and spoil the cricketer

Dude of the Day – Kumara Sangakkara. Once the proud owner of the orange cap, his injury had pushed him far back in the run scorers list. But he showed great hunger and put the issue beyond doubt in the early overs.

Scary thought – Mohali had been winning all their games without this guy

Dud of the Day - RP Singh. He owns 4 of the top 40 worst bowling performances in the IPL (in terms of runs conceded) and nearly added a fifth. RP Singh has been a shadow of the bowler he was in the Twenty-20 World Cup.

IPL Daily Dose - 22/05/2008 - No cricket and rainy relief for Chennai

2008-05-23T12:52:00.004+05:30

For once the folks in Chennai weren’t envying the rains in Delhi. Rather they were overjoyed. They have been lifted out of the grave they started digging for themselves in the game against Bangalore. We can no longer have a scenario where Delhi and Mumbai both have 16 points, making it necessary for Chennai to win both their remaining games. Chennai just have to win one game now and MS Dhoni and his boys will not have a sword hanging over their heads when they take on the Royals.

Mumbai’s Situation hasn’t changed though. Their run-rate is better than Delhi and they still need to either beat the Daredevils or win their other two games. And if it rains again in the DD-MI game, then Mumbai just need to win one of their two other games. The Indians are totally in control of their destiny.

The Rajasthan Royals are already through but their games against CSK, MI and KXP will determine the semi-final pairings. There will be no easy teams in the semis but Rajasthan know that Mumbai will have the added advantage of a raucous home crowd. It should be in their best interests to avoid them or eliminate them.

Delhi must be gutted. And to make matters worse for them the next game could be washed out as well. One point helps no one. Couldn’t we just have a bowl-out? Iam sure Dada and Viru would have preferred to take a chance and try and get 2 points rather than helplessly get knocked out of the IPL. Even a simple toss, with winner takes all would have been better. Can’t let the rain play such an important role. Surely some food for thought for Mr Lalit Modi.

Krishnamachari Srikanth was asked on Sun TV to unravel the mysteries of the Duckworth Lewis system for the benefit of the viewers

His reply – “I don’t think anyone understands the D/L system. It’s just understood by the computer which does the calculations. Even Messer’s Duckworth and Lewis who devised it don’t understand it.”

I don’t know who will be most aggrieved by this answer. Duckworth and Lewis, or the University where they devised this system as a course project, their project guide or the Sun TV fans who have to bear Srikanth. Here’s an explanation of the D/L system for Srikanth and anyone else who wants to know. And if this is not enough, I will arrange for the statistical modelling paper also.

Dudes of the Day – All the fans who turned up for the game in spite of the forecast. You truly love your cricket and your team.

Dud of the Day – Whoever is responsible for not foreseeing the possibility of rain and not planning for such an eventuality.

Man United are Champions but Chelsea are winners too - all the sub-plots from the UEFA Champions League final

2008-05-23T00:18:00.006+05:30

Man United are Champions of Europe once again. We’ll quickly talk about the game and then get to the sub-plots. There were so many in this game; each with the potential of becoming a fairytale ending for the parties. But first about the game.

Match verdict – Two well matched sides that played their hearts out in a game which was of the highest quality. I have never seen attacking football of this high standard in such a big game. Rather than play safe, Man United and Chelsea went for the jugular. Most games end up in penalties when the teams are overly defensive, but this game went to the shoot-out because Chelsea and United were too closely matched.

It’s a pity Chelsea had to lose and I say that as a hard core United fan. For the first time in my life I felt sorry for a side which had lost to my beloved ManU. In just 3 hours Chelsea went from enemy no one to a club I began to show some appreciation for. That I guess is the beauty of this game. A fan can get so mesmerized by its magnificence that he forgets all about enmity and hatred. More glory to football.

Now for the sub-plots.

God and the Busby Babes were with United tonight

2008 marks 50 years since the Munich air crash. This tragedy is one of the saddest incidents in all of sport. The Busby Babes could have gone on to win more than one European Cup. The loss left a huge emotional scar on the clubs psyche. God couldn’t have found a better time and a better way to heal some of United’s wounds. God provided United the slice of luck they needed to edge Chelsea. Fifty years on, the spirits of the Babes must have finally celebrated

Ronaldo the big match player – the good part

Questions have been asked of Ronaldo’s big match temperament. He answered his detractors in the best possible manner – a coolly taken header to give United the lead. Ronaldo continued to create havoc on the left flank and all seemed destined for a perfect finish for the Portuguese and for United; till Frank Lampard equalized throwing the perfect finish out of the window.

Ronaldo the big match player – the bad part

Ronaldo is United‘s regular penalty taker – supposed to be their best. But when his run-stop-run penalty was brilliantly read and saved by Cech, he was on the verge of becoming the villain of the piece. John Terry’s missed penalty ensured that Ronaldo escaped without any deep emotional scars.

Ronaldo and his move to Real Madrid

The chances that Ronaldo moved to Real if United won the title were huge. Having won the biggest club title, he would have had nothing left to prove. Delivering another UCL crown for Fergie would have also liberated Ronaldo of all the obligations he owed the manager for having nurtured him and having stood by him after the controversy of the England- Portugal WC clash.

In the end United won but chances are that Ronaldo will stay at Old Trafford. The Portuguese experienced great emotional upheaval during the game and was totally overwhelmed when United won. The experience should bind him closer to club and manager. Real can wait.

Roman Abramovich and the perfect ending

The Russian oligarch finally had a chance to lay his hands on the trophy he covets most. A victory at home in Moscow would have been almost a dream sequence for him. Roman might end up winning a UCL crown with Chelsea after all, but there is no chance it will happen in Moscow.

What if Andriy Shevechenko had been playing?

Andriy Shevechenko scored Chelsea’s last goal in the premiership. He also happens to have scored a Champions league winning penalty for AC Milan. Therefore, he had the right credentials to be a penalty taker based on historical pedigree and current luck in front of goal. Sadly for Chelsea the closest thing to a home-town boy in this game wasn’t even on the bench.

A reverse déjà vu for United which almost was

The final was eerily similar to United’s victory in 1999; in the reverse however. In that game United’s opponents Bayern Munich took an early lead and threatened to finish the game with a second goal. United had the world’s best goal keeper – Peter Scheimeichel in goal and the big Dane kept his side in the game with some brilliant saves. These saves proved crucial as United nicked two goals in the end.

This time United took and early lead and threatened to finish the contest with a second goal. Chelsea was kept in the game by their keeper Peter Cech – supposedly the world’s best. As Chelsea pressed for a winner towards the end, the events of 1999 flooded back. A late winner for Chelsea would have created the perfect reverse déjà vu. Luckily for united, Chelsea’s best efforts were kept out the by the woodwork.

The impact of the two managers’ new signings on the game

Fergie brought in Owen Hergreaves, Nani, Anderson and Carlos Tevez this season. All of them scored in the penalty shoot-out to keep United’s hopes alive. Avram Grant brought in Nicolas Anelka, whose missed effort buried Chelsea’s hopes. It’s a freakish coincidence but Fergie’s new pieces seem to have fitted in perfectly to create a Champions League Jigsaw for United.

Michael Ballack and a choice of clubs

Chelsea and United had both vied for the Germans services when he was at Bayern. Ballack chose Chelsea; apparently influenced by the fact that Chelsea stood a better chance of European glory with their heavy pockets and big players. On this day Ballack dreams were shattered by the same club he snubbed for Chelsea. Any hints for future players targeted by both clubs?

A fairy tale ending for John Terry that wasn’t

Chelsea has been expensively assembled by Roman’s millions. John Terry is a notable home-grown exception. John Terry miraculously recovered from an arm injury to play the final. He was heroic as usual; making what could have been the defining block of the game in extra time off Ryan Giggs’ effort. A trophy winning penalty by Chelsea’s favourite son would have been the icing on the cake. JT even sent the goalkeeper the wrong way. Unfortunately, he slipped and fluffed the penalty. A horror ending for the brave man. The poor man couldn’t even bear to see the trophy presentation.

The Greatest UEFA Champions League final ever

I saw Roberto Baggio miss a penalty in the World Cup final of 1994. I supported him and the Italians anguish saddened me as well. John Terry was a foe when the game started. He was a bitter enemy when he denied Ryan Giggs. But I felt for him when I saw the brave man cry. Football plays with our lives and binds us with its emotions. The emotions on display in this game make it the greatest Champions League final in living memory.

Glory Glory Man United and the Reds go marching ho ho ho

2008-05-22T03:08:00.002+05:30

We are the Champions of Europe...full stop....more later....first for some celebrations

IPL Daily Dose - 21/05/2008 - an eventful day and an out of fashion hairstyle

2008-05-22T02:15:00.008+05:30

21st May 2008 will probably go down as the most eventful day in this edition of the IPL

First Mumbai lost a humdinger to Mohali by 1 run. They were coasting with 34 needed off 24 with seven wickets in hand and Sachin at the wicket to guide them home. They just had a bout of complete madness. The 2 points dropped here could be the difference between a semi final spot and an early exit in the IPL for the Mumbai side.

Then there was Mohali captain Yuvraj Singh shooting himself in the foot. His side had just won a great game and he had played a key role in it. But rather than celebrate his teams brilliant performance, he chose to berate the Mumbai crowd for being too one-sided and not showing respect for the ‘Indian players’ in the Mohali side. Grow up Yuvraj. This is exactly what home support is meant to be. If you want to be cheered for whenever you play in India, please stay away from the IPL or any other league.

What Yuvi also forgot was the fact that the semis and the final of the IPL will be played in front of the same crowd. By riling the boisterous Mumbai crowd, he has ensured his side has little support when they come back to Mumbai to play the knock-out rounds. Yuvraj needs to either learn to talk sensibly or talk like Mohd Azharuddin – so that no one can understand him.

And then to round the day off, Chennai lost a game which looked so winnable at 80 odd for 3 in 13 over that I left the stadium early to avoid the monotony of Chennai going through the motions of winning the game (and the post match traffic).

Chennai’s defeat has given new hope to both Mumbai and Delhi – two teams whose net run rate is far superior to that of the Super Kings. What that means is that Chennai must have at least one more win than each of those two sides to make the semis. It is no longer assured of a semi-final spot with 8 wins. Delhi and Mumbai could easily end up with 8 wins each; ensuring that they edge CSK for a semi-final spot.

Therefore, CSK needs to win both remaining games including a difficult one against RR to be absolutely certain of a semi –final berth. Finishing the job today would have saved all the uncertainty that surrounds the Super Kings now.

Quick Question 1

Which hairstyle is going to become unpopular in India very soon?

Ans: The striped corn rows of Robin Uthappa. People will avoid it unless they want the Robin Uthappa reference which changed from the ‘guy who won the game in England’ to the ‘guy who cost the Mumbai Indians a vital game’ or the ‘guy who ran Sachin out’

Quick Question 2

I was not surprised to see four specialist wicket-keepers in the RCB Vs CSK game. Why?

Ans: Because we could see more than 4 wicket keepers play a game very soon. Bangalore will continue to select more wicketkeepers to do the batting as their glovemen (Goswami, Boucher) are more reliable run -getters than their batsmen (Misbah-ul-haq, Virat Kohli, Bharat Chipli, Cameron White and Jacques Kallis)

Dude of the Day – could have gone for Yuvraj if not for the post game remarks. Award goes to Anil Kumble for coming back from a dropped catch and a scolding from the skipper to script a remarkable win for RCB. Second good bowling effort from Jumbo. RCB suddenly looks a good bowling unit. Ominous signs for the Mumbai Indians?

Dud of the Day – MS Dhoni. He promoted himself up the order and got out carelessly. He dismissal set the tone for the collapse. Very atypical of Mahi. His effort spares Uthappa for today.

IPL Daily Dose - 20/05/2008 - A special prize for Shah Rukh and why the Rajasthan Royals have fans all over India

2008-05-21T00:45:00.004+05:30

The Knight Riders have been trying to persuade the NZL cricket board to make Brendan McCullum available for the semi-finals and have been willing to pay them USD 1 million for this special arrangement. I don’t know how it fits in the cap structure but this was surely a way of showing to the world that they were quite confident of making the semis. A very typical SRK stunt. Should have been quite a boost for the side ahead of a must win game.

The King Khan’s absence from such a big game, however, showed that this show of confidence was merely a filmy stunt. He had either already written off his team’s chances or had more pressing matters to attend (like Blogging against Aamir Khan). Wonder why all the fuss about getting an all access pass when he wasn’t going to be using it? He has to have it just because Preity Zinta and Vijay Mallya have it. I would love to hear from SRK, once KKR is finally knocked out of the tournament. Arun ‘Aryabhatta’ Lal thinks the Knight Riders still have a mathematical chance to make the semis.

The Bengalis had been highly aggrieved at the booing Dada received in Jaipur. It was a good chance to give chief culprit – Shane Warne some real stick. I was expecting a jam-packed Eden. Instead I saw a stadium which had enough empty space to seat the entire film community of Mumbai. Not just the ones who turned up to support SRK in Mumbai. The Knight Riders still have a long way to go before they can garner the kind of support the likes of Mohun Bagan and East Bengal enjoy.

Now here’s a new theory which I have.

The Royals come from Rajasthan, home of the Marwari community. This business community has a fair presence in all the major cities of this country. Wouldn’t this ensure that the Rajasthan side will always a decent number of supporters wherever they play? It’s similar to Indians being found all over the world; thereby ensuring that the Indian cricket team is never short of support in any venue in the world.

Quick Question 1

Ans: Who is the spinner’s biggest nemesis in the Kolkata batting line-up?

It should have been Dada till two games back. But not any more. Introducing Debabrata ‘his captain doesn’t know his name properly’ Das. Just check with Murali and Warne.

Quick Question 2

Who does Ajit Agarkar remind me of; every time he gets tonked for a four or a six, which is quite often?

Ans: Ranadeb Bose. Poor guy. Didn’t even get a chance to field in the IPL. Was he a worse option than Agarkar?

I have one last wish before KKR wind up their league engagements.

To see Laxmi Ratan Shukla bat higher up the order. I am tired of seeing him doing a salvage job all the time.

Dude of the Day – Yousuf Pathan. Gets the wicket of Kolkata’s best batsman and plays a blinder just when Kolkata were sniffing a chance. Also for speaking in fluent Hindi rather than trying to talk in broken English. No pretensions here.

Dud of the Day – Shah Rukh Khan. You can now frame the all access pass and hang it in your office. That’s your only prize from the IPL.

IPL Daily Dose - 19/05/2008 - A new fan club and getting cheerleaders with a winning record

2008-05-20T09:55:00.007+05:30

RCB finally have some reason to cheer. They were competitive till the 17th over of the game. All thanks to the Daredevils middle-order which remains as solid as the dugouts in the Eden Gardens (the ones which collapsed). They also managed to win all the post match awards (most sixes, MoM), except for the one that really mattered.

There was an interesting debate on the cricinfo match commentary about the Washington Redskins Cheerleaders not being a lucky mascot for their teams historically. Someone suggested getting the girls from the Dallas Cowboys instead. Tell you what – none of those teams have won a title for ten years. If you really want winners get the girls from the New England Patriots – winners of 3 Super Bowls in the last 7 years and a team which went 16-0 in the regular season this year.

A Cricinfo staff writer thought that this was not a must-win game for the Daredevils. I cannot understand how. Can someone explain to me how Delhi can even dream of making the semis with 7 wins? Rajasthan have already won 8 and Chennai and Mohali are on 7 with 3 and 4 games left respectively. So, is the writer counting on Mumbai to lose all their remaining four games? Does the writer know something that we don’t? ( The claim was made in the preview and was also there in the first -inning bulletin. Has been removed in the post game bulletin. Iam sure there are enough readers who read the preview and will vouch for me)

Pradeep Sangwan bowled 3 overs and each over went for 14 or more. Is that the worst bowling performance in the IPL? Wonder why Tillekratne Dilshan was given only one over (1/0/3/1)

Now for a quick quiz
Question: Guess who are the founders of the Shoaib Malik Fan Club?

Ans: Pakistani commentators – Aamir Sohail and Rameez Raja.

Sample this

After DD lost to KXP in the last game

Aamir Sohail: “How could Viru bowl himself ahead of Shoaib Malik?”

Delhi had Maharoof and McGrath available and Sohail could only think of Malik. Does he remember the over Shoaib bowled against CSK?

In the RCB Vs DD pre-game show today

Rameez Raja: “Anytime you pick a one-day side, Shoaib Malik is the first name on the team”.

Really!!! Wonder why none of the franchisees were going all out to secure Malik’s services.

Dude of the Day – Farvez Maharoof. Outstanding with the ball (4/0/13/2) and took the side home with the bat. I was shocked to see Goswami getting the MoM award.

Dud of the Day – Will spare Sangwan. He’s just 17. This award is still open. I have challenged the Cricinfo staff writer’s claim that this game wasn’t a must win for the Daredevils. I will be the Dud of the day if her claim is right. Else we will have the first female Dud of the Day in the IPL.

isport Soccer Podcast - Episode 3

2008-05-19T19:17:00.004+05:30

Amidst all the cricket action, we keep the voice of soccer alive. Managers are getting sacked all over Europe and League Champions are getting crowned. Enough issues to discuss. Listen to all the arguments here.

IPL Daily Dose – 18/05/2008 - A new super-hero and a cool team in the IPL

2008-05-19T00:07:00.005+05:30

MI Vs DC

Sachin Tendulkar is the biggest star in Indian cricket. Every venue in this country greets him with a raucous cheer and wildly applauds every single run he scores. Usually, silence descends when his wicket falls. Today the Hyderabad crowd cheered loudly when Tendulkar was dismissed. Indian crowds have truly passed the local loyalty test. No more blind support for Indian players. This is a great sign for the future of the franchisees and the league in general.

Robin Uthappa is a very straight player. He always looks to play in the ‘V’ – behind the wicket that is. His propensity for the sweep and the late cut will cut his international career real short.

Venugopal Rao reminds me of a regular guy who became a super-hero one fine day. He’s either met ‘Jadoo’ like Krrish or been bitten by spider like Spiderman or probably hit in the head by a cricket ball to become a ‘BatsMan’. A stroke less misfit to start the tournament, he is now one of the most explosive and most consistent players in the tournament.

Quick question – Which team would you rather want to end up last in the IPL - the Chargers or the Royal Challengers?

Without a doubt it is the Royal Challengers. The Chargers keep fighting till late in the game. RCB only makes an effort to win the toss. And if that is not enough, the Royal Challengers are owned by Dr Vijay ‘cry-baby’ Mallya

CSK Vs KKR

A crucial game for both sides more so for the home side, tantalizingly poised and finally decided in the most anti-climactic manner. KKR have every reason to feel hard done by.

As per the Duckworth- Lewis rule for T-20 games, only a minimum of 5 overs are required for a result. So there is scope for greater absurdity in this tournament.

Ntini grabbed the third hat-trick of the tournament. Suddenly taking a hat-trick doesn’t seem such a difficult thing to do.

Chennai have won 7 out of 11 games and Delhi and Kolkata have won 5 out of 11. Still the southern side has an inferior net run-rate as compared to those two sides. The Super Kings have won every close game they have played and their losses have come in games where they have hardly been competitive. Is this the sign of a lucky side or a side which manages to keep its cool better in the tight games?

Dude of the Day – Dwayne Bravo. He injected new life into the Mumbai’s innings just when things seemed bleak at 96/4 in 13 overs. He then returned to stifle the likes of Gilly and Rohit Sharma contributing to their early fall. And he had three key wickets of his own. What a send-off. Andre Nel has big boots to fill.

Duds of the Day – Messer’s Duckworth and Lewis. They wouldn’t have known that their system would make a mockery of Twenty-20 games. Heck, the format didn’t exist when the system was born. But someone needs to bear the brunt for today’s disappointing end to the game.

IPL Daily Dose – 17/05/2008 - IPL improves TV ratings in Dhaka and why bookies were missing in Jaipur

2008-05-18T14:09:00.008+05:30

RCB Vs RR

Rahul Dravid arrived at the crease at 31/4 and stayed on till 132/9, scoring 75 runs. Therefore, he scored more than 75% of the runs scored off the bat while he was at the crease. That is a tremendous achievement by the Bangalore captain and also a sorry reminder of RCB’s batting woes in the tournament.

Abdur Razzaq’s debut was the other notable point in the game. Was this move intended to increase TV ratings for the IPL in Bangladesh? I cannot see the cricketing reason for his inclusion. Vinay Kumar had figures of 3/0/15/0 and 2/0/11/1 in the last two games and was dropped for no justifiable reason.

Misbah-ul-Haq continues to make Dr Mallya look like an idiot. The owner had apparently fired Charu Sharma for not communicating his desire to play the Pakistani to the team management. Another failure (golden duck) later the decision to keep Misbah on the bench looks like a stroke of genius.

And by the way the Royals won again as expected. Were the bookies even offering any odds for this game?

KXP Vs DD

A game of two overs - both of which brought Mohali right back into the game, just when Delhi looked like gaining the upper hand. The cardinal rule for all rain truncated games is to bowl your best bowlers first. You never know when the overs could be reduced further and the quota for each bowler gets whittled down. Sehwags logic was flawed in multiple ways.

Bringing on a part time spinner (himself) just because a regular spinner (Amit Mishra) bowled well completely ignored the fact that Mishra was the most successful spinner in the IPL and Sehwag was close to the worst of the lot. Bowling himself well before Maharoof was even introduced into the attack and before McGrath’s quota was finished was foolish bravado and nothing else.

The Daredevils now need to win all their games to keep their hopes alive. And even that might not be enough. If Mumbai win 3 of their 5 remaining games (quite possible even if they lose to DD) and Chennai beat RCB and DC (shouldn’t be too much trouble) then we could have the possibility of an 8 win team missing out on a semi-final berth. Rajasthan and Mohali should win more then 8 and qualify for sure. Net run-rates are going to be extremely important.

The game also showed that the Kings of Punjab have the most explosive and the deepest batting line-up in the tournament. All their batsmen are attacking players and collectively they offer no respite to opposition attacks. Every batsman has also played at least one important innings in this tournament so far. They didn’t flinch when they lost Shaun Marsh and Yuvraj early. Mahela’s performance was like a cold blooded assassin’s which showed that he had been suffering from lack of opportunity and not lack of ability.

Dude of the Day – Close call between Mahela and Dravid. The award goes to Dravid. This guy has been under immense pressure and answered his critics in the best possible manner. At least the ones who questioned his batting and fighting abilities.

Dud of the Day - Cannot include the entire RCB side. The villain of the day is Virender Sehwag. Forget his fifty; his decision to bowl himself will haunt him when he is watching the IPL semis on television.

IPL Daily Dose - 16/05/2008 - The 'gaddars' of Mumbai and why India leads the world in gender equality

2008-05-17T14:36:00.004+05:30

Sachin Tendulkar scored a duck in this game. But his post-match smile was a lot wider than the ones he’s sported after most of his tons. He couldn’t have helped it. His team had just achieved the most one-sided win in the IPL.

The Mumbai Indians now have the best net run-rate and the greatest momentum in the IPL. Chennai’s position is no longer safe and Kolkata have just gone from being biggest winners to the biggest losers in the tournament. No points for guessing what it has done for their net run-rate. The race for the semi-final spots gets more intense with every passing day.

With only 20 odd overs of cricket to talk about, we’ll utilize the space to handout two special IPL awards.

The Award for the ‘Best object/prop/accessory to show support for your team’ goes to the blue flags of the Mumbai Indians. While it’s not in the league of the giant flags and the scarves in European Football, it’s easily the best in the IPL. Actually the only thing around. Wonder why the others including SRK didn’t think of anything?

The Award for the ‘Best proof that India is far ahead of the world in gender equality’ goes to the male cheerleaders in the IPL. Many countries now have female heads of State. But no nation has thought of semi-clad male cheer leaders. Who said there was no future for male strip-tease artists?

Most disappointing moments of the night – hearing ‘Korbo Lorbo Jeetbo Re’ blaring in the stadium every time the Knight Riders had a good moment in the game. And not hearing ‘Duniya Hila Denge’ even once. Was this match really in Mumbai?

Dudes of the Day – Shaun and Sanath. One was unplayable as a bowler and the other was un-bowlable to as a batsman. If you just looked at their performances, you’d be left wondering whether the pitch was batsmen friendly or bowler friendly.

Duds of the Day – All the film stars who turned up in KKR jerseys to support the Kolkata side. And that too at home in Mumbai. Most of them were born and brought up in Mumbai and all of them are what they are because of the film city that is Mumbai. These ‘gaddars’ took ‘chamchagiri’ (for SRK) to a whole new level.

IPL Daily Dose – 15/05/2008 - Kamikaze batsmen and a bowler who needs brain surgery

2008-05-16T16:45:00.007+05:30

The Daredevils have finally won a game and I am extremely relieved. A return to their home stadium seems to have brought a sea change in fortune as well. Home conditions are increasingly becoming relevant as the chase for the semi-final spots heats up. Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata have all won their last home games. The crowd factor is becoming a bigger factor as the locals are getting more involved in their team’s fortunes and showing passionate vocal support. This augurs well for the Delhi side as they have the most favourable schedule amongst the sides jockeying for the 4th place.

Amit Mishra has been outstanding for the Delhi side. They have an array of international bowlers but a desi spinner seems to be doing the trick. As of now, Mishra is the best spinner in the IPL, statistically speaking – both in terms of strike rate and economy. In a format where spinners are meant to be cannon fodder, the success of guys like him is refreshing. Most people wouldn’t have heard about him. Where has he come out of? Real cricket aficionados will tell you that he was once a top India prospect who was dropped after a couple of chances – the story of Indian cricket and its selectors. They expect some players to get the Man of the match award on debut to justify a second game.

The Hyderabad batsmen reminded me of Japanese Kamikaze pilots in the First World War. They came out with all guns blazing and threatened to run away with the game. But like the suicide bombers who couldn’t win the war for Japan, the batsmen were on a futile death mission. Delhi’s gunners led by Mishra just kept knocking them down.

Mohd Asif’s pairing with Glenn McGrath had fans licking their chops in anticipation. It was supposed to be like a Federer versus Sampras. A chance to do a real comparison between two greats. Ten games into the IPL, Asif seems to be competing with Palani Amarnath and Dinesh Salunkhe. This is like Sampras playing Rohan Bopanna. The Pakistani will need a few brain surgeries to get over his IPL trauma.

Dude of the Day – Amit Mishra. Every time the Chargers seemed to have a chance he delivered a sucker punch. And his economy of 4.25 when in a game where McGrath went for 10.5 is absurdly good.

Dud of the Day – Virender Sehwag was the front runner but his astute captaincy under pressure was commendable. The award goes to the moron who threw a stone at Sehwag. The idiot should be banned for life from all cricket venues across the country. And I know the BCCI has the power to do so.

We need more rules and rule abiders like Rajiv Shukla and Mani Shankar Aiyar

2008-05-15T22:51:00.009+05:30

When the Indian Hockey team failed to qualify for Beijing, there was a clamour for the IHF chief - KPS Gill’s head. The Sports Minister, the honourable Mr Mani Shankar Aiyar felt the pain but refused to go against the Olympic Charter which calls for the non-interference of national governments in the running of sports bodies. So if all the sports bodies are going to run on their own, what is the need of a sports ministry?

For all his impotence, the minister could at least claim to be the only righteous and rule abiding man in the parliament. Well, at least till some time back. Now there is a parliamentarian who not only goes by the rule book but is also a man of action. We are talking of the one and only Rajiv Shukla.

Mr Shukla is a BCCI vice-president and he was recently asked about providing financial assistance to the poverty stricken family of former India U-15 captain Subhash Dixit. For the benefit of the uninformed, Dixit’s inability to provide two square meals for his family drove him to commit suicide recently.

Shukla responded by saying that the BCCI had no rule to provide financial assistance in such cases and as such his hands were tied. He added, however, that they do provide pension to former Ranji trophy players and help in treatment of terminal diseases. Well done, Mr Shukla. Unflinching under the media gaze and refusing to break rules the way a regular ‘human’ being would have done in this case.

And that’s not all. Mr Shukla is also ensuring that this country has more and more rules to obey. He has convinced the BCCI president, Mr Sharad Pawar to donate 1.5 crore rupees to build a gym for the rule makers of this country – Mr Shukla’s fellow parliamentarians. Most sportsmen in this country do not have a world class gym to work out but so what. The parliamentarians have a greater need for it as they have more flab to burn. The Gym will also ensure that the rule makers are always in fine fettle and can start making rules with renewed vigour and energy. Rules which will ensure that the likes of Aiyar and Shukla always have something to fall back on for their ineptitude.

Some of the possible new rules

1.No minister (read MS Gill) can sack long serving sports administrators like KPS Gill and Jyothikumaran. This will ensure that the likes of MS Gill cannot do what Mr Aiyar cannot.

2.The pension provided to Ranji players be cancelled and instead be given to old parliamentarians. Thus the media cannot complain about preferential treatment for some cricketers (Ranji players) and neglect of some( Subhash Dixit)

The BCCI will fund a lot of noble ventures with the money generated from the IPL. The 1.5 crores spent on the gym, however, would be the money best spent.

IPL Daily Dose – 13/05/2008 - Dada the great fielder and why the Daredevils are similar to Roger Federer

2008-05-14T00:08:00.006+05:30

On this day Sourav Ganguly made history. He picked the ball one handed and hit the stumps directly. But jokes aside, the Knight Riders have now defended scores of 133 and 129. In a tournament where the batsmen have done all the talking, this is an outstanding achievement.

Questions were asked of Kolkata’s ability to beat the big boys. Seems we overlooked the fact that 3 of their 4 defeats happened away from the Eden Gardens. The stadium looked every bit the cauldron that forces visiting sides to self -destruct. Kolkata have 3 more games in the cauldron and look good for 3 wins.

Delhi’s quest for their fifth win in the tournament is beginning to look like Roger Federer’s attempt to win the French Open. No matter what they try, they still end up losing. The changes - like bringing in Maharoof and Mishra have worked but victory still remains elusive.

The only thing that Delhi can do now is to juggle their batting a little. They desperately need some experience in the middle. Right now they open with their two most seasoned campaigners. One of them needs to come in at 4 and hold things together. AB de Villiers or Shikhar Dhawan can move up to open. Moving to his customary opening slot might also bring out the best of de Villiers, who has shown little of the form that made him the player of the tournament in South Africa’s domestic twenty-20 competition.

Dude of the Day – Shoaib Akhtar. Quite easily the most destructive spell in the IPL so far. Even better then the six-wicket haul of Sohail Tanvir.

Dud of the Day – The top six batsmen of the Daredevils. Made a complete hash of a paltry target. The chase was made respectable by the lower order

IPL : The Delhi Daredevils have a schedule advantage against Kolkata and Mumbai in the home stretch

2008-05-13T13:20:00.003+05:30

Rajasthan, Mohali and Chennai are favourites to make the semis of the IPL. The fourth spot is poised to become a shoot-out between Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai. Mathematically, Hyderabad and Bangalore are still alive but going by their latest displays, the two southern sides have already thrown in the towel.

Amongst the three contenders for the last semi-final spot, Delhi’s current form is the worst having lost 3 games in a row. Kolkata and Mumbai are riding a winning streak of 2 and 3 games respectively. But as we have seen umpteen times in the tournament, teams have blown hot and cold. Therefore, not much can be read into the form the teams are carrying into the home stretch of the tournament.

What might be a little more relevant could be coming schedule of games. So let’s break down the coming set of games for each team.

Kolkata Knight Riders

The Kolkata side has been unstoppable against the minnows from Bangalore and Hyderabad, winning both home and away games against them. Unluckily for them, they don’t have any more game scheduled against either of those teams. Except for Delhi who they haven’t played so far, all of Kolkata’s games are against sides they have lost to so far in the tournament. What changes the equation somewhat in their favour is the fact that 3 out of these 4 games are at the Eden Gardens.

Their games against Delhi and Mumbai would be extremely crucial. They are unfavourably placed for these encounters as 2 out of 3 games are away.

Mumbai Indians

The Indians have completed an exact set of games, having played all the 7 teams exactly once. They have won 2 out 4 at home and 1 out 3 away. They are marginally better at home and hence a schedule of 3 out 7 games at home is slightly unfavourable. Luckily for them, 2 of the away games are against Bangalore and Hyderabad. Although the Chargers and the Royal Challengers won away against Mumbai, they will be low on motivation for the home fixtures and that should help Mumbai.

As for the games against their closest rivals, Mumbai play Delhi away and Kolkata at home - an even situation

Delhi Daredevils

The Daredevils started with a bang but have slumped off late. As they bid to put their semi-final challenge back on track, they couldn’t have asked for a more favourable schedule. They have 6 games to play but none against the mighty Royals or the Super Kings and have two against the whipping boys from the South. For a side with 2 wins in the 3 home games so far, having 4 out of the next 6 at home is quite an advantage.

Delhi also has a home ground advantage against Kolkata and Mumbai. They play Kolkata home and away and Mumbai at home.

Going into the final stretch of games, Delhi quite easily has the most favourable schedule even though their current form is not the best. Kolkata on the other hand has the most difficult road ahead. Now it’s up to Sehwag and his boys to make the schedule count for them

IPL Daily Dose - 12/05/2008 - The BCCI has a genius of their own and a new excuse for Mallya

2008-05-13T00:05:00.005+05:30

Kings XI Punjab have walloped the Royal Challengers from Bangalore. Don’t know what Dr Mallya is going to say now? "That I was sloshed after having 10 bottles of Royal Challenge, when I decided to bid for the franchise."

Rahul Dravid was gracious in defeat. He accepted his team’s shortcomings and was full of praise for Shaun Marsh and gang. That’s the Dravid we have all come to love and admire. Thank God he’s back.

There’s not much a bowling captain can do when the game is over with almost five overs to go. But I cannot understand why both Praveen Kumar and R Vinay Kumar were not given their quota of 4 overs. Their figures of (2.4/0/15/0) and (2/0/11/1) respectively were outstanding in the context of the game and the format. But no more criticism of Dravid. He’s been through enough already.

Now for some praise of Tom Moody. He continues to excel wherever he goes. And he’s got an eye for talent as well. The likes of Shaun Marsh and Luke Pomersbach might be relative unknowns in the cricketing world but Moody saw enough of them during his time at Western Australia to select them for Mohali. And he must’ve had a say in getting Sangakkara and Mahela as well. It’s a blessing to have a well-travelled coach for an international league. Guys like Moody also end up doing the de-facto job of chief scout. His experience in England will come in handy when the English players join in.

And come to think of it that when Moody came to interview for the India job, some Einstein in the BCCI questioned his credentials on the basis of his mediocre record as a player. Will the great man be kind enough to show his own resume?

Dude of the Day – Unquestionably it has to be Shaun Marsh. Not many guys would have smashed Steyn the way he did; in any form of the game.

Dud of the Day – Dale Steyn. The biggest bowling star in the RCB ended up with the poorest figures in the match by some distance.

isport Soccer Podcast - Episode 2

2008-05-12T10:18:00.004+05:30

The panel talks about the Champions League final, Valencia’s free fall , a selfish Ronaldo ,what Wenger needs to learn from the ladies and more. Listen to all the arguments here

Mohali’s defeat to the Super Kings is further proof of Yuvraj’s limitations as a captain and a speaker

2008-05-11T12:48:00.003+05:30

The five-match winning run of the Punjab Kings XI finally came to an end at the hands of the Chennai Super Kings. The match was well poised after Chennai set a target of 182 but the Mohali side’s chase fizzled out quite early and the Super Kings romped home comfortably.

At the post match prize distribution, the losing captain – Yuvraj Singh was as articulate as a country bumpkin in a technology conference. That he rather conveniently and ungraciously forgot to credit his ex-India colleague – Laxmipathy Balaji is totally unpardonable. That he also forgot the time-honoured tradition of congratulating the winning captain – MS Dhoni, smacks of his personal frustration at losing out to the Jharkhand lad in the superstar sweepstakes. And finally, for failing to acknowledge the tactical mistakes that probably cost his team the game. The tactical blunders are also reflective of his limitations as a captain at this level.

182 was a very competitive target. Mohali needed to get off to a flier. James Hopes started off with a bang but got out in the second over itself. So who did Yuvraj send out to maintain the momentum? He sent Karan Goel - one of the two batsmen in the Punjab side whose strike rate in this form of the game is less than 100. Was he the best pinch hitter around, with Pathan and Chawla in the ranks? Or was Yuvi giving Goel a chance to run into form; the youngster having been in poor form off late. Whatever might have been the reason for his promotion, Goel ensured it was not justified by scoring 1 off seven balls and repeatedly frustrating a red-hot Shaun Marsh by staying on strike.

It was imperative that Yuvraj came in after Goel’s dismissal. As the captain and best batsman of the side the stage was set for him to take charge. This is exactly what; all captains who are batsmen do all the time.

Instead Mr Genius sent out the other batsman in the Punjab side whose strike rate in Twenty-20 is less than 100 – Ramnaresh Sarwan!!! If Yuvraj was not courageous enough to face the situation, he should have sent out Mahela Jayawardene and not Sarwan. What Yuvraj was waiting for I cannot fathom. By making an entry in the fifth over itself, he also afforded to give himself a little time to get settled in. He chose to give this chance to Sarwan who grabbed it with both hands. The West-Indian took 22 balls to get to 20, failing to hit a single boundary in the process. And then he promptly got out after getting his eye in.

Sarwan’s efforts ensured that Shaun Marsh’s blitz at the other end went completely wasted. Marsh scored 44 off 24 balls during this partnership. But Sarwan’s frugality ensured that the pressure built up considerably. So much so, that it consumed them all – Sarwan, Marsh, Yuvraj and Jayawardene. Yuvraj being forced to play the high-risk shot that led to his downfall was a result of his own doing.

Mohali has one of the most well balanced sides in the competition. Its Achilles heel is its captain. His leadership will be fatal for the side in crucial situations. Rajasthan, Chennai and Mumbai have benefitted from the wisdom of seasoned captains. And Mohali needs to do the same now. It has in its ranks both Mahela – a fine captain with Sri Lanka and Sangakkara – one of the shrewdest cricketing brains around. Make one of them the captain if you are serious about winning the IPL. And these guys happen to be far more articulate also.

Dr Mallya can become the 'King of Great Sackings'. Here's how

2008-05-09T08:08:00.009+05:30

Finally the reason for Charu Sharma's sacking is known. He committed the major blunder of not communicating Dr Mallya's wish to include Misbah in the playing eleven to the team management. And although it was Dravid's decision to bench the Pakistani, Charu really deserved it. After all what is sport without a few scapegoats. Dr Mallya deserves a lot of kudos for not having the balls to take his 'icon' player on.

The team has responded well to the sacking by being consistent in its performance. The skipper led from the front. Dravid's efforts to 'get his eye in' during the middle overs was a crucial moment in the game. His handling of Ganguly ensured that Bangalore continued to separate itself from the rest of the pack.

The pressure is again on Dr Mallya. The skipper has run out of excuses for his 'test team's' splendid run in the IPL. The owner needs to make a few more sackings to justify his team's performance to the fans. As of now the coach is safe and the captain untouchable. Having removed the big kahuna last time, Dr Mallya can now move to the bottom of the food chain. He should sack the guy who handles the team cricket equipment. After all the team's cricket bats haven’t behaved well so far.

And then he can move to the others. Sack someone after every defeat. The conditioning coach for not ensuring the bodies were moving perfectly. The assistant coaches for the team's batting, bowling and fielding. The bus driver for....well, we will think of something after he gets sacked.

The team has six games to go and we could be set for an interesting finale after the team's final game. Dr Mallya should top everything he has done so far by sacking himself. That would be one sacking that no one is going to complain about.

IPL : Do the Delhi Daredevils have the guts to drop Mohd Asif

2008-05-08T21:57:00.009+05:30

The Delhi Daredevils have now lost two games on the trot. I am not going to make the foolish mistake of prophesying doom for them. They still remain one of my favourites to win it all. However, the team now needs to do what champion teams do to win professional leagues.

Champion teams are flexible and know how to make adjustments. If plan A is not working out, they have a plan B in store. Also champion teams don’t pick players on reputation alone. They will drop a superstar without a second thought if he’s not performing and pick a lesser name as a replacement. Putting the best team on the field is more important than massaging star egos.

Delhi can prove that they have the makings of a champion side by dropping Mohd Asif and Shoaib Malik.

Mohd Asif is a great bowler. He is the modern day twin of Glenn McGrath - probably the most accurate bowler of the last 15 years. But while McGrath has been superb, bowling at an economy of 6.1 (best for the Daredevils and fifth best overall), Asif has been poor. His economy of 8.87 has been seventh-best for the Delhi side and 52nd best overall. Farveez Maharoof’s rate of 7.09 (the next best after McGrath’s amongst the Daredevils) is far better and he’s been cooling his heels on the sidelines. Asif’s also been poor in the late overs – getting clobbered for 3 sixes by Pollock in the penultimate over (of a low-scoring game against Mumbai) and then conceding 11 against Chennai with 33 required off 18 balls.

Therefore the Daredevils need to pick Maharoof and drop Asif. Maharoof’s batting will also add steel to the suspect lower-order.

Shoaib Malik has been poor with bat (9th best in the side) and ball (8th best in the side). Also guilty of bowling a terrible last over against Chennai and failing to guide the side home against Mumbai. AB de Villiers has also struggled but having played half as many games as Shoaib, can be given another chance. Delhi has an ideal replacement for Malik in the form of Tillakratne Dilshan - an aggressive middle -order bat who can also bowl some tight overs.

Inspite of the twin setbacks, the Daredevils dont have to lose sleep over it. Like most good sides, they have the bench strength to make the necessary adjustments. Making those changes would be the first step towards bouncing right back in the fray.

Vijay Mallya is now the Herb Kohl of the IPL

2008-05-08T13:01:00.007+05:30

Owning sports teams is a hobby only the super-rich can indulge in. The IPL finally created such a club in India. Amongst its prominent billionaire members was one Dr Mallya. He had tasted blood through his part-ownership of Force India, but owning the Bangalore IPL franchise was the real deal – a chance to compete for bragging rights like only the super-rich can.

He spent an exorbitant amount of money to buy the franchise and the players and also on the entertainment. Most of the money has been badly spent. The team was ill-suited to the format and lies at the bottom of the pile. The novelty of the cheer-leaders has worn off and the Force India F1 car sits like an orphan in one corner.

But all that is pardonable. There are other teams performing horribly and the entertainment efforts generally stink.

What is not pardonable, however, is the disgraceful manner in which Mallya has sacked his CEO – Charu Sharma. No reason has been given for the move – typical of tyrannical sports owners –they are accountable to none.

That captain Rahul Dravid was given a free-hand to pick the side is a well-known fact. And I am sure Mallya planned all the entertainment action. So, what is Charu’s fault? I don’t like him as a commentator and as a host but he hasn’t done anything to be treated this badly.

With this move, Mallya has a strong case to be anointed as the first ‘bad owner’ of the IPL. My heartiest congratulations. We need all kinds.

What defines bad owners is their knack for irrational and dictatorial moves - Hiring and firing the wrong guys at the drop of a hat. Charu’s unexplained sacking makes Mallya’s resume look complete. Giving Charu only 7 games to make winners out of RCB and that too with his hands tied to his back has to be considered a move worthy of membership.

I am tempted to compare Mallya to George Bush (a hopeless owner with the Texas Rangers in the MLB) but I’ll stick to the NBA. After all Lalit Modi has learnt the most from that league.

So I will call Mallya the Herb Kohl of the IPL. Herb is a senator like Mallya and spends a lot of money on his home-town team - the Milwaukee Bucks. But for all the money, the team stinks. They give big contracts to mediocre player (again sounds familiar, right) and change coaches and GM’s as a man changes his clothes.

A word of caution for Coach Venkatesh Prasad. Expect to be fired when you least expect it. You have a bad owner as a boss.

We have no need for icons in the IPL – new article on isport.in

2008-05-08T10:05:00.002+05:30

The IPL had this unique concept called icon players. Halfway through the tournament the concept seems to be taking a massive beating. And here’s why.

IPL : Jingoism takes a back seat and objectivity is in

2008-05-03T14:22:00.004+05:30

Sydney, Dec 2007

Harbhajan and Symonds got embroiled in a racism controversy. India was hard done by bad umpiring calls. There was clear lack of sportsmanship from the Australians.

Entire India gets behind Bhajji and condemns the Australian cricket team. Even the Australian media and fans express disapproval of their national team.

Mohali, April 2008

Sreesanth is at his obnoxious best and gets ‘one tight slap’ from national team-mate Harbhajan. The two try to diffuse the matter but Bhajji ends up getting banned for 11 games and Sreesanth is let off with a warning

Most cricket lovers welcome the move and wonder why Sreesanth was let scot-free.
His antics against Mohd Kaif earlier in the tournament were also in bad taste. A ban on the Malayalee, similar to the one imposed on Marco Materazzi for provoking Zinedine Zidane would have tempered his mad streak to some extent.

Quick question 1 – what would have been the reaction had Bhajji slapped Symonds and gotten a ban and fine in return?

Iam sure Indian fans and the cricket board would have pooled enough money to cover the spinner’s financial losses. And he would have become a cricketing martyr at par with the likes of Bhagat Singh.

Quick question 2 – what would have happened if Sreesanth had infuriated big André Nel to the point that the burly South – African hit him with a beamer and got banned for a year?

Sreesanth would be hailed as the second coming of Javed Maindad – a master of the mind games and looked upon as future captain and high-performance trainer.

Jaipur, May 2008

Shane Warne calls out Sourav Ganguly for violating the spirit of the game. He accuses Dada of delaying tactics and for refusing to accept the fielder’s word on a clean catch. The fielder is South- African captain, Graeme Smith. Ganguly retorts with a ‘Look who’s talking’, questioning Warne’s right to make a statement like this in light of the spinners colourful and controversial past.

A case of an Australian and a South- African pitted against one of India’s biggest cricket stars.

Expected reaction from an Average Indian cricket fan pre- IPL – blind faith in Sourav and criticism of both Warne and Smith.

Reaction from Bengali fans and media – How can an Australian (Warne) accuse Sourav of lack of sportsmanship, when they (the Australian test side) themselves were found short of it in Sydney?

Iam a great admirer of the Bengali intellect but this excuse is as pathetic as they come. Aren’t they aware of the fact that Shane Warne is long retired and wasn’t a part of the Australian side at Adelaide. You cannot classify every Australian in the world as unsportsmanlike for something done by a group of eleven. Going by that logic, Saurav and every other Indian cricketer should be as ill-tempered as Harbhajan and Sreesanth. Ironically, the leader of the ugly Australians – Ricky Ponting was a member of the Kolkata side. Wonder why no one brought that up?

And what about Graeme Smith’s word? Have they clubbed all the residents of the Southern hemisphere together now?

As for Dada being late for the start of both innings, this is not even a debate. We all know this is second nature to him.

Reaction from the Jaipur crowd – Rather than being jingoistic and supporting the Indian against the foreigner, the Jaipur crowd showed loyalty for their local team by loudly booing Sourav Ganguly. There is pride in identifying with a franchise, which doesn’t have a single star from Rajasthan. Their biggest hero is Shane Warne – a man who has inspired the so-called whipping boys to four straight wins.

Thanks to the IPL, the fans are no longer obsessed with members of the Indian cricket team. We have started noticing their flaws more than ever before. Jingoism is out and performance is all that matters. The league levels the playing field and everyone has to perform to be loved. The absence of a competitive domestic structure has been made up to some extent by the IPL and the ICL. Guys like Shikhar Dhawan, Yousuf Pathan and Manpreet Gony are slowly becoming household names.

Some folks, however, are incorrigible. The recent performance of their team is a just reward for their loyalties.