Author: adeelrauf1

Olympics Diary: Part 1 – A New World

It was a mild sunny midweek day in the Estadio Joao Havelange in Rio which was  serving as the main hub for the track and field events.The 5,000 metres heats were on.Abbey D’Agostino of USA and Nikki Hamblin of New Zealand  were vying for a place in the final.Four laps fromt he end , they collided. D’Agostino twisted her leg and Hamblin pulled her up.The two helped each other to the finish, where they came in last.The spirit of Olympics was clearly reflected in this act of  sportsmanship displayed by the two athletes, as Hamblin waited at the finish line for considerable time for Abbey to finish and end up in  a warm embrace.They both were given entries to the final in a good will  gesture by the authorities.The Pierre de Courbertin medal from the IOC was awarded to only its second and third woman recepients.

The opening ceremony of the first Olympics staged in South America was held at the historic Maracana stadium on 5 August amidst a colourful display that also showcased environmental concern with appeal for conservation and prevention of global warming. Famous for the football it has given to the world, Brazil welcomed the parade of a record 207 nations.They featured  Kosovo and South Sudan, IOC’s newest members.Two new sports were added, Golf and the  Rugby sevens.With the ceremony, all the pre games hype of Zika virus and the doping scams were laid to rest.The Olympic cauldron was lit by Vandelei Cordeiro de Lima, the Men’s marathon bronze medallist at the 2004 Athens Summer games.

For many,the Games represented a culmination of intensive hard work and dedication that took four years to achieve.For some,even a lifetime.Many won’t get another shot. Some like Michael Phelps overcame a childhood of  difficulties to become the most decorated Olympian. Achieving five golds, he took his tally to a record 28 in these Games, 23 of them golds,in the pool.Truly sensational from the Baltimore Bullet.The pool had other amazing feats. Katinka Hosszu carried on Hungary’s swim medal run taking 3 golds.Katie Ledecky ,the Stanford grad, had one better with four golds while her colleague Simone Manuel became the first African American female to win a gold in individual event when she tied in the 100 metres freestyle.Adam Peaty began the record for British overseas haul  by smashing a  world record en route to his 100 metre breaststroke gold.It was soon going to become a memorable haul for Team GB.

Away from the pool,at 19, Simone Biles became a star in the Rio Olympic arena, capturing four golds and a bronze, becoming the most decorated medallist in a single Olympics.as an American gymnast.The Ohio teenager’s routines in the floor exercise, vault, individual and team all arounds  were unmatchable.Nadia Comaneci would be proud.

In the Velodrome,cycling lay witness to an amazing feat. Each member of the British track cycling team bagged a medal as their domination from London 2012 continued.The had six golds in ten events. Such  achievements  exceeded expectations even though in the track world championships earlier in the year,Team GB had five golds in tally of nine medals. The track team were led by lovebirds Jason Kenny and Laura Trott who surpassed national records in golds winning the Kierin and Omnium events.

China claimed a sweep of the table tennis events in all four disciplines.Ma Long and Ding Ning captured individual golds beating compatriots and then  led the team events to glory. Ning defeated compatriot Li Xiaoxia in the women’s individual finale but combined with her to take the team events.Long led China to the team victory  after  beating Zhang Jike in the individual final.China added the women ‘s team Volleyball gold.One of their popular successes was in  Badminton men’s singles where world champion Chen Long beat an industrious Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia in straight sets.

Asia  was well represented in the top honours. In addition to the Chinese honours,their eastern neighbours were also in form.Korea cleaned up the Archery events. The hosts of the next Olympics, Japan, found wrestling to  their women’s expertise, nabbing four of the six golds on offer.Judo provided them with three more gongs.Whilst west of Xinjiang province the Uzbeks were on fire leading the boxers  with three golds.Iran laid claim to five wrestling medals and two weightlifting golds and in the blue ribbon swim meet of 100 metre freestyle, Joseph Schooling was head of the class for Singapore.Even Vietnam made a name for themselves in shooting event of 10 metre  air pistol.

Speaking of the shooters,the first gold of the Olympics was taken by an American teenager, Virginia Thrasher initiating a huge medal run  for the Stars and Stripes.The Barra Olympic park was left buzzing,the Favelas of Rio chirping, Copa Cabana whistling,the global  media tweeting and the Olympic  torch which crossed 300 Brazilian cities including all 26 state capitals  was continually blazing.Rio de Janiero welcomed all and  had become the ” New World”  for the Olympics as per its motto but more was to come. As the sun will have to give way to change in weather, a certain thunder of energy from the skies and on  its earth  was imminent. Pode Vir Rio !

(To be continued)

olympics part 1

 

 

Mastering the Oval

Mastering the Oval

The finale of the English test cricketing summer at the Oval has always been memorable. Ever since Pakistan’s cricketing inception on the British Isles, it  held a special place.The 1954 series ended with Fazal Mahmood’s huge 12 wicket haul of a revered English batting lineup that was regarded as the best of its time.The win notified the cricketing universe of Greenshirts’s appearance on the world stage. Fazal nearly had missed out on being part of Pakistan cricket.It was testament of courage,skill and Abdul Hafeez Kardar’s leadership that Oval bled green.

Similarly, whether its been W’s in the 1992 test series,Mushtaq’s 6 for in 1996 test or Wahab and Amir ‘s 5 fors last time in 2010,the bowlers have found purchase with the bounce and spin on this track to their liking. Since 1967, if one disregards the forfeiture of 2006, Pakistan has been undefeated in tests here.

On this occasion it was the turn of Sohail Khan to take yet another 5 for on the tour. Like in 2010,Wahab and Amir supported.Day one and England were bowled out again on 328 as was the case in Edgbaston.The pitch was supposed to be a belter once the moisture wore off. Cook didn’t want to bat last and it showed.The hosts were at one stage  5 down for 110. Moeen Ali continued his form from that test with his 3rd test 100.He was in blistering mood. His series strike rate bordered on 70.Pakistan lost Sami Aslam early but Yasir Shah finally played a night watchman’s role for Greenshirts scoring 26 key runs either side of stumps.

Asad Shafiq bagging a pair in Edgabston  found himself in a position to amend that stain. He didn’t look back, becoming the first Pak batsman since Wazir Mohammad in 1958 to follow up with a ton after the bagles.His stand with Younus of 150 steadied the ship.Younus was on a mission of his own. His 6th 200+ score especially adding a huge 97 with Amir in that 9th wicket stand meant the visitors abnormally had scored 222 for the last 4 wickets.The lead was 214.Younus had accumulated 218,an innings of sharp contrast to his poor series form as he took the attack to all the bowlers,especially Moeen.

Now the temperature of the game changed.Knowing the lead was almost double of what it was a week ago,the Greenshirts stormed in.It was day 3 but Cook and Hales were in a  defensive shell.Cook was the first to depart, gone early to a scorcher of a delivery by Wahab in the slips.Hales ,who has had a forgettable series so far,was in hot waters with match referee prior to taking guard the second time. Yasir’s splendid 1st inning catch infuriated him.Maybe it was a fair reflection of his stressors, as he went to Yasir himself,plumb lbw at 49.Vince was clueless and perished to the leggie for nought.Leading man of the series runwise, Joe Root rampantly scored 39 but was also caught plumb on the back foot.England were reeling at 88/4 by day 3’s close.Pakistan had started sniffing a famous win.

Johnny Bairstow and Moeen Ali have been the star performers of the English lower order.Why they continue to be in that late an order is a mystery as both averaged 50 plus in this series.On day four,the critical time just before lunch when their stand of 65 in double quick time was finally dissolved by Yasir’s 4th wicket of the innings.England lunched at 191/6 still 23 behind.After the interval,it was a procession waiting to happen,as Wahab ran out Woakes first then got Bairstow caught on mid off within 2 balls.The last pair put on 32 runs to set a meagre target of 40.The leg spinner Yasir Shah claimed a five for to join the club of  all of his fellow bowlers, who all now had 5 fors at the Oval.

Pakistan knocked off the runs in style. Azhar who had scored a 92 six years earlier here smashed one high in the sky from Moeen with an unbeaten 30 to send Misbah’s men victorius.Younus took the man of the match deservedly  whilst Woakes was the Pom’s Man of the series.Only Smith’s South Africa had beaten or levelled England in a four or more  test match series of the English summer since 2001.The series ended on a good note for the visitors after 2006 and 2010 debacles and more importantly the spirit of the game was resurrected by how Alistair Cook and Misbah ul Haq had conducted the affairs throughout.Misbah notched a 23rd win as Greenshirt skipper in his 46th test, a fascinating conversion rate. Kardar must be happy knowing this.Regardless of his future plans, this was his swansong on English soil for sure and he capped  it with the hosts’ Man of the Series award.

This has been Pakistan ‘s fifth win at the Oval overall ,a fair attestation since Fazal’s conquest of 1954.One of the legends of the game, “Little Master” Hanif Mohammad who opened that game for the visitors passed away on day one of the test.He is an all time legend and a grace of the game.A sporting pioneer and a true gentleman.Words are not enough to describe his efforts in Bridgetown Test of  1958.It was only appropriate that Misbah paid tribute to him alongside fans back home considering it was 14 August.

The team that no one had given a chance pre series to impress once again changed perceptions.On the eve of the test,Osman Samiuddin,a well known Pakistani analyst speculated  a 2-2 series score would mean as good as a series win.Capricious as it sounds,that’s how the Greenshirts play.They came, to play on the back of demoralising loss and mastered  the Oval…. again.The Little Master must be pleased up there.

 

Oval

Edgbaston: Gabba of the West

Edgbaston: Gabba of the West

By lunch on the the Final day of the 3rd Investec Test between England and Pakistan,the crowd had started building up in the famed Hollies stand of this renowned stadium known as the County Ground,Edgbaston that has stood since 1902.In the morning, Moeen Ali had fired England to commanding position,his second brisk fifty accumulating 149 runs in the test.The target set 343 in 84 overs  was a ground record if chased.Alistair Cook ,it seemed, had declared after making sure he couldn’t lose the game rather than giving the bait to the opposition.The visitors started hesitantly, a typical 4th inning spectacle punctuated by the shot played by the opener Mohammad Hafeez which captured everyone’s attention.In over number six, he had swivelled a semi hook shot straight down the safe paws of Chris Woakes at long leg.Indeed,Stuart Broad couldn’t have believed his luck.Nasser Hussain remarked “Another soft dismissal from Hafeez”.Mike Atherton couldn’t have been more clear “for an experienced player,thats a poor dismissal”.Jarrod Kimber had to write a whole article about it titled ” Pakistan has been full Hafeezed “.This was on the back of the fifth ball duck in the 1st innings,the  way he was dismissed then being equally repulsive.

Even despite the double embarrassment,Pakistan’s second wicket stand had taken them to some safety again getting to 69/1 and an odd shout of chasing the mighty target still existed.Azhar finally came on board this tour with a 38 following up on a much needed ton in the first innings.Sami Aslam, possibly the find of the tour as like Moeen, produced a second fifty.His 152 runs in the test were highlighted by sturdy defence and playing his strokes late.A physique and display of talent that reminded some of the famous Saeed Anwar,he had played a brilliant rookie innings of 82, wearing out the new ball from all the English seamers.He was bowled by Finn for 70 in the second, who alongside obtaining Misbah’s wicket had taken his first two of the series in a span of 73 plus overs. The afternoon session saw the all too familiar “collapse”.Six wickets had fallen as the ball reversed. Moeen had initially found some rough and softened up the path getting Azhar out before four fell for one run in the space of 22 balls to have the visitors in wraps and pleading for a Tea break.The tail wagged with a 50 run final stand but Moeen finished it off at 201 as the overs diminished.England had won in Edgbaston… again.

Until that afternoon session,it had been an exciting game.Both sides played well in sessions.Each day was contested well.Pakistan dismissing the Poms for 297 was not exactly a justification of Misbah’s toss win but the fact the so called “moving” nature of the pitch made him fear of Pakistan capitulating early.They had scored 72 six years back.Sohail Khan,brought back after five years by the skipper,took a five for which was more impressive than his “press ups” routine later.Gary Ballance starred alongside Moeen but the tall quickie extracted good length balls from a pitch that had some seam on day one rather then when Pakistan batted.Pakistan’s strong reply could have been better had on the third day, they had added more than just  143 for the last seven wickets to land them on the 400 mark.They had secured a lead of 103 which evaporated in the post tea session by the openers.

Cook and Hales’ 126 for the opening stand was an enigma from English standards but on day four both went in quick succession on the same score.Root was on 25 when he was grassed in the 1st slip,who was none other than Mohammad Hafeez off Rahat Ali.The pathetic fielding has been another drawback of their tour and it took 111 balls to avenge the drop.That meant Joe Root had accumulated 62 and the highest tally for the tour at 447.The world no 1 ranking looks not far way now.At 282 for five,England had a lead of 179 before Johnny Bairstow,joined by Moeen opened up his shoulders.Another productive post tea session had the hosts push to 414 at stumps. Sohail Khan now was clearly out of gas and at 32 doesnt seem stamina is on his side.The Pak attack of just four frontline bowlers seem drained taken to 215 overs in two innings.

Pakistan have been second best in this series so far with the feeble batting and poor fielding leading to their demise.The fact that Younis Khan at No. 4 hasn’t really taken off like in 2006 has been a key factor.Misbah can’t carry the weight all  the time.Asad Shafiq normally reliable grabbed a pair here.Its  a long tail made longer once Wahab doesn’t play. The quicks have been less than convincing at times especially when the workload increases. Amir has just come back into the test arena after a long duration even though looks the best of the lot.Yasir when Pakistan bowls first doesn’t come into the picture much and England has read him well since Lord’s as well.The final test at Oval will serve a bigger battle for Misbah than Cookie.

England’s win at Edgbaston is their seventh in their last ten tests here. They have lost here on only 7 occasions in 114 years here.On top of that,no Asian team has won a test here. The Hollies stand continues to roar raucously.One can recall in 1987 test here on the final evening when Imran and Wasim triggered a late collapse when England were left 15  adrift with three wickets remaining in chase of  the 124 in 18 overs.Both sides could have won and it eventually was drawn.All three decisions were alive by the lunch session here as well 29 years on.Until that “Cacoethes” was set loose again at the Gabba of the West.

 

The Red Letter Test

The Red Letter Test

For 15 years, Old Trafford stands a fortress in the North for English cricket.Driving through the famous A56 Chester Road is the interesting Warwick Road that divides it into Sir Matt Busby Way  on the North side which leads to the home of Manchester United whilst in the south,it takes one to Brian Statham Way,the home of Lancashire Cricket Club since 1864.

England hadn’t lost a test in 9 outings here.Seven of them had resulted in home wins.Coming into this test, the hosts were stunned by Pakistan taking a 1-0 lead in the series with a historic win at Lord’s.But in their minds would be the 2014 series at home when they lost at Lord’s only to come bouncing back and win 3 in a row against the visiting  Indian team.

The toss has become a focal  point around which this test series seems to revolve.Cook won the flip on this occasion and it was about to reflect.Despite an early peach of a delivery that swung late from Amir and  got Alex Hales packing, the Pakistani bowlers struggled to trouble the hosts.Cook and Root produced a huge 185 run stand.If Cook’s 105 hadn’t rattled Pakistan enough , Root’s mammoth test best of 254 would have.He totally dominated Yasir Shah who looked a shadow of his previous week’s form.Fifties from Woakes and Bairstow compiled more pressure and it seemed at one point on the second evening that England would be aiming for a much higher score in the range of 600 plus.Root’s innings ended and Cook declared.The match already had a feel of resignation in the opposition camp.

Old Trafford normally takes a bit more bounce than Lord’s.This didn’t imply Pakistan couldnt have scored a big total.Hafeez had seen off Jimmy Anderson who continued like in the Gulf to antagonise Shan Masood.As is typical on the final ball before tea,Hafeez edged one to slip and England had their main breakthrough.Azhar’s return catch to the man of the moment,Chris Waokes  and Ben Stokes’ having Younus caught behind put on the brakes. As if it wasn’t as hideous in Lord’s Misbah continued in the same vain of putting Rahat Ali on the night watch. It was a futile decision.He was clueless in the dark centre and Woakes got him marching.The Greenshirts had capitulated on a batting turf to 57/4.Their batting was in disarray.Even the Mancunian rains didn’t come to aid and give some respite.to the poor batting at display.

The skipper restored some pride with the lower order again. A Sarfraz cameo took the score to three figures.At 112/8, it seemed ominous,England would enforce follow on but   Wahab lingered  with a 39 after the skipper had accumulated 52.The Visitors reeled off 79 runs off nearly 19 overs to finish with 198.Cook’s criticism of not enforcing the follow on lasted a few rain breaks and 30 overs.England declared a second time at 173/1.Joe Root was again in excellent form dispatching every one in his quick 48 ball,71.Cook remained unbeaten at 76, getting to his fastest test fifty in 55 balls.Pakistan had no answer.

One thing that didn’t change from the win at Lord’s was the state of Pakistan’s fielding. Its as worse can be with once again drops becoming a routine, whether its Younus bobbling it or Hafeez not catching at height stooped low or the keeper sinking dollies.I guess Steve Rixon might have to re evaluate how he could make this is a stronger unit.The slip corden looks slippery in the view of a Duke ball carrying on in the humid conditions and the moist turfs of Brittania.

The Greenshirts eventually had to chase 565 which was their second  highest set target. They were in no hurry though …. to stay on the wicket. Hafeez who is finding it very difficult as an opener to justify his spot top scored with 42.And if he has factors to expel him then Shan Masood isn’t far behind.Jimmy has taken him now on six occasions with that defining  off stump line at the angle which he finds it hard not to fish at.Pakistan has only picked 3 openers for the entire tour and so Sami Aslam now looks certain if Shan won’t be retained.The problems don’t end there. Azhar ‘s leg stump dismissals are becoming a nuisance.Younus and  his increasing need to punish Moeen Ali  has landed him being dismissed twice to the off spinner. If Younus played like  a “cat on a hot tin roof” then Woakes must be the “dog with two tails” because he claimed Misbah’s wicket off a bad ball whilst on 35. The Pakistani tail on the other hand  wagged  just a bit to last 70 overs.The winning wicket on this occasion was Amir’s by Woakes who now has series leading 18 wickets.

England kept their streak alive winning by a colossal 330 runs, the 5th largest win in terms of runs and the visitors 4th heaviest defeat in the same format.Why the turnaround ? The reasons are plenty but scoreboard pressure put up by Cook and Root stands out.They as well as the batsmen who followed curbed some of the poor shots they were offering at Lord’s.Pakistan continue their “nervous breakdown” with the chasing scenario. Psychologically when Pakistan plummet there is no coming back.Its one of the reasons follow on enforcers would have had no doubts on the third evening when the Poms led by 391.

The numbers represent a momentum swing in the series.The highs of Lord’s for the visitors have been manipulated to pretty damaging lows.England also has problems.Ben Stokes limped off with calf issues and looks suspect for the remainder of the series.Vince is not convincing at all at no 4 whilst marginally better Ballance also hangs on for now. Moeen has seven wickets but very pricy ones indeed.England continue their streak at this age old arena. The series is still poised to be a cracker but the hosts would revel their position heading into their favourite hunting ground at Edgbaston.

 

 

In His Reverence

In the Subcontinent,there was once a cricketing story told by a father to his son about a speed merchant of the North who used to roam unchallenged but when provoked act like a beast similar to an urban legend called the “cornered tiger”.Legend has it there was a tamer who contained the rage in that beast at various times especially on the cricketing field.Legend also has it that this merchant’s  father,an economics professor in Islamia College,Lahore used to make him walk 5 miles and then run 5 miles for seven years straight in a well drilled regime.The speed demon in question was a lad called Fazal and his tamer was his national team skipper called Abdul Hafeez.In 1952 a fledgling nation in the North West beneath the Himalayas called Pakistan was just entering the sport formally.

On their first ever cricketing tour of India, Fazal, faced defeat in his debut test in October 1952 and was provoked by a group of home fans in Delhi such that he went on a limb saying to change his name if he wasn’t able to avenge the loss in the next test.Abdul Hafeez, reprimanded such behaviour, though fully knew Fazal’s capabilities were central to the tour and continued to contain him.Lucknow was the venue of the second test. It was first time Fazal was bowling on a jute matting wicket intended to negate swing and speed. After seven overs of his spell, he found no luck and he switched tactics and started using the seams so that some movement was generated.Thanks to those fans in Delhi,Fazal ,with his pride at stake,never looked back and produced one of the greatest overseas hauls by a Greenshirt ever witnessed in test cricket such that it stands as a national record to this date. He produced match winning figures of 12/94 on a jute matting track.Fast bowling was finally born in Pakistan.As the story unfolded, the son’s excitation increased to recognise those two as Fazal Mahmood, the 1st ever Wisden’s Cricketer of the the Year for Greenshirts in 1955 and Abdul Hafeez Kardar who went on to captain Pakistan to 23 tests in a row and is widely recognized as the Pakistan’s “Father of Cricket ”.

A cornered tiger can sometimes indulge in unfavourable behaviour like Fazal’ s rage did then.It was insightful to learn a term from a famous Pakistani novelist Kamila Shamsie now based in London on a TMS interview at the recently Lords Test about this.The term was called “ Cacoethes” and is synonymous with Pakistan cricket particularly their batting. Speaking of the test itself,one such speed demon in question being the attention of the world’s media was making his comeback.Yes,it was the speedster Mohammad Amir and his skipper Misbah ul Haq on this occasion took the role of Kardar like saviour . Misbah controlled all of his boys on cue like Kardar used to in the 1950’s.Like Kardar’s various innings when he would for the sake of team stay for long intervals in unfashionable batting stints and play risk free innings knowing fully his wicket spelled the end of a resistance,Misbah pronged into full “pressup” mode at Lords.His 154 ball crisis ton in the 1st inning came at a time when the team were 134/4.Pakistan went on to make 339 with Asad Shafiq’s technically sound 73 in support to his skipper.

Chris Woakes troubled Greenshirts continuously with both bat and ball at Lords, picking up his first 11 wicket haul as a result. England however didn’t have it their own way batting either as stand of 111 between Cook and Root ended by the leg spin of Yasir Shah.Cook was dropped twice at 22 and 55 on both Amir’s deliveries which edged  the bat only to be spilled behind. It was understandably a nervous start  for the quickie but he gave shades of what he can do still as he finally rattled through Cook’s defences at 81.Yasir was pure  quality though with a  six for ensuring the visitors took a 67 lead.Pakistan’s second innings didn’t have an orderly start as the skipper indulged into a “ Cacoethes”of his own going for a duck leaving them at 60/4.Asad,Sarfraz and Yasir all contributed to set the target at a tall  283, considering only Windies of 1984 has achieved a successful target higher that that figure in 132 years of test cricket here.

Nevertheless,England charged ahead and made a match of it.Rahat was a God send or as back home they would say “khota sikka” as he took the top 3 out.The visitors continued to assert themselves as the middle order didn’t stay long enough to occupy a platform of resistance.The two ripping  leg breaks from the Nursery end rough  that Yasir exploited in taking Ballance and Moeen was the  writing on the wall.Bairstow and Woakes hung on and survived  the thunderbolt known as  Wahab Riaz who produced one of the spells of the match.With the ball reverse swinging memories of Adelaide 2015 in the World Cup were  rekindled.It was a reflection of what Fazal was going through in those seven overs in Lucknow with no luck.Yasir finally broke through Johnny’s defenses with him at 48 bowling him again after a setup of wider ones before the one that went straight.The tail fumbled with England losing by 75 runs.Yasir finished with figures of 10 /141 himself, the  man of the match award and now has the fastest 86 test wickets in history.Misbah stuck by his men all throughout and claimed  a 21 st win,the fastest to that number by a skipper in just 43 tests.His team fought bravely for him much like Kardar’s eleven in 1952.

Misbah controlled the rage of Pakistan fuming for the last six years with his calming demeanour just like Kardar controlled Fazal’s.Lords has granted its own redemption to Amir as he took the winning wicket,a far cry from his 6/84 in 2010,but it was just the first test back.The Greenshirts celebrated on pressups akin to the skipper’s ton reaction,with the tribute of the win to Edhi sahib being  equally commendable.The series is set to be a cracker.

They might not be like Imran, Sarfraz, the 2 W’s or the Great Fazal himself,but Wahab, Rahat and Amir and Yasir at Lord’s all withstood and exhibited in ability a testament to Fazal’s passion in Lucknow as did Misbah to Abdul Hafeez Kardar’s.Maybe in 30 years, this story will be told to the next generation as the Cornered Tigers’ return to Lord’s having their pride restored.Just like my father recited that of Fazal’s and Kardar’s to me.

 

 

The Djoko Slam

In 1969, Rodney George Laver completed what is known as the most recent men’s singles grand slam to date.It was his second Grand slam ,after 1962 , technically known as winning the all the four major tennis  tournaments  in a calendar year namely the French Open, Wimbledon, US Open and Australian Open. That was the sequence Laver undertook in 1969 when the Australian open used to be the last grand slam of the year. Though the International Tennis Federation relaxed this technicality of winning all four in calendar year in 1982, Martina Navratilova by winning the French Open in 1984 was not acknowledged when she held  all four together and  so called non calendar grand slam took shape.

Strictly speaking, only 6 calendar grand slams have ever been achieved.In addition to Laver’s two feats  others in the group include  1938 Don Budge , 1953 Maureen Connolly, 1970 Maragret Court and 1988 Steffi Graf.In total  17 ( 10 women and 7 men ) have won a career grand slam , that is having won all the four in their career.Whilst Martina and Serena Williams have achieved the non calendar slam, Laver’s feat remains as the last time a men’s singles player has held all four simultaneously.

There have been recent close calls.Roger Federer had two  attempts foiled in 2006 and 2007 as did Novak Djokovic in 2012 all by  Rafael Nadal at the French Open finales. Rafa’s streak a  year earlier in 2011 Australian was stopped in the quarters by fellow countryman David Ferrer. Pete Sampras in 1994 French Open lost to Jim Courier in the quarters halting his run. Novak ‘s wins in last year’s Wimbledon, US Open and earlier in the year in Melbourne meant alongside a chance to complete career grand slam, he could hold all four slams at once.

Heading into Paris, for the French Open there couldn’t  be anyone more nervous than Djokovic. Its the slam he has struggled to win all along. 3 times a loser in the finals in 11 attempts in Paris prompted to jog memories of Ashe , Connors, Edberg, Becker, Sampras Hingis and  Davenport amongst the 12 who haven’t won it to complete a calendar grand slam.Would Novak Djokovic be the unlucky 13th to join that club ?

His anxiety showed in the inital rounds.Against Steve Darcis in the second round, he definitely didn’t look himself.The 4th round clash against Roberto Batistuta Agut was more gripping. He lost the first set and then the match was interrupted by rain which was another factor in Paris this year. He managed to claw back characteristically the following day  and negotiated Thomas Berdych in quarters without dropping a set. The new kid on the block Dominic Thiem was projected to cause issues in the semis.However, Novak played some scintillating tennis of the fortnight dropping just seven games.

In the final , Andy Murray awaited. Murray himself had reached a new high reaching his first French open final. Having dispatched big serving Ivo Karlovic and John Isner, he produced a sort of a shock downing defending champion Stanislaw Wawrinka in the semis. His ardent clay court run stretched in to the final as he took the first set 6-3. But back came Novak with some vengeance. Levelling up the second at 6-1, he meant business.He never looked back. It seemed Murray had deflated and couldn’t pick any momentum.The crowd for a change was backing Novak after what happenned in the previous year’s presentation ceremony. Novak dropped just six games in the next two sets closing out a four set win and laying claim to the famous Musketeers trophy.

Novak Djokovic can now claim his legendary status in the ranks of other past greats and not to mention greats of his own era .Nadal and Federer will always be his contemporaries and he finally is able to match them . Whether he makes it 17 of beyond is early to speculate but he definitelt will enjoy slam no 12 the most when all is said and done. Paris has accepted Novak in the end .

“The Greatest Champ”

They said the ring was never big enough for him.Was this world ever gonna be? Watching “Rumble in Jungle ” or “Thrilla in Manila” just doesn’t begin to tell what his impact on sport was or even beyond it. Like Manny Pacquiao stated on his death ” We lost a giant today.Boxing benefitted from Muhammad Ali’s talent but not nearly as much as mankind from his humanity.” Manny’s was one of many tributes rolled out last Saturday as the world poured its heart full of emotion, something that can only be reserved for a legend like Ali.

Known as the “Louisville Lip” for his origins in the Bluegrass State of Kentucky and being quite loud mouthed  in his exchanges with the press and competitors there was nothing more louder in the ring  than those pair of boxing gloves he wore.Crowned an Olympic champion in Rome olympics of 1960, the lean Cassius Clay became pro not long after. In a short time he went up the pro ranks and landed up the big fight against Sonny Liston which will change him forever. The People’s champion had arrived in 1964.In the prime of his career, he was put in sporting exile after his refusal to fight the Vietnam war or that’s what we thought.

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For the record, he regained the world heavyweight crown 7 yrs after taken from him by the boxing authorities after he refused to be inducted for army service for the Vietnam War.The venue was interestingly, Kinshasa in  Zaire now known as Democratic Republic of Congo and the bout labelled as ” Rumble in the Jungle”.In October 1974 , in one of the greatest bouts ever fought against then champion George Foreman, Ali took the stage again.That in itself was an achievement. But how he did was incredible.Many had feared for Ali’s life.Deemed as heavy underdog against the huge George Foreman, and shunned by many as a “has been”, Ali did what he does best.Solid footwork and waited for his time.The crowd in Kinshasa going with with every punch he landed. “Boomaye, Ali” chants  which were present when he landed in Zaire let alone the ring itself couldn’t have been heard any louder. The People’s champion had won.And it wasn’t his last fight like he had advertised either.That build up in Kinshasa taught him a thing or two about the world.

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More thrills were to come.His rivalry with Smokin Joe Frazier was huge.Labelled the “Fight of the Century”, in 1971 when both were undefeated, Frazier took the fight on unanimous points decision.Ali returned the favour in non title bout  in January 1974 was when neither were champs but after reclaiming the title from Foreman in Zaire, set up what many see today as the greatest fight of all time ” Thrilla in Manila”. It took place in January 1975 in the Araneta Coliseum ,Quezon City which is now the Philippines’ largest city. Jab after Jab received, Ali said afterwards he was closest to dying by round 9. By Round 13, Frazier could hardly see and his gum shield had fallen.Ali unleashed  barrage of punches in the following round enough for the referee to stop the bout before a 15th round. Ali had retained his heavyweight championship.

 

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To have regained the heavyweight title is not a major feat in today’s era but to have done it twice in those conditions was an amazing feat. Many said he should have hung up in 1975 after the Frazier era.Ali would have struggled against a younger fellow Olympic champion by the name of Leon Spinks.Spinks beat an out of shape Ali in his only his 8th fight in 1978, the fastest to a heavyweight championship in history, but then refused to fight Ken Norton,the challenger in waiting. Instead he went for  re match. In then the relatively new and huge arena called the   Louisiana Superdome in October 1978,  Ali fought tooth and nail after coming back in shape. He won on  the unanimous point decision and became the 1st three time heavyweight champion.It was also his last professional win in  his 59th pro fight.

Ali’s reign in the ring ended  with a loss to Larry Holmes in 1980, but his influence outside it was just beginning. Known long before his retiring days that he’ll invest heavily in the people all around the globe, he did just that.Parkinsonism in 1984 didn’t halt his journey.He travelled all over the globe and everywhere he went,he attracted attention and became a great spokesman for human relations,peace and prosperity in addition to his charity work.He was the show stealer in the opening ceremony of  the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.During the last years of Vietnam War, he had become a hero rather than a traitor.He now became a social icon after his gloves were hung.His  gloves are still enshrined in the Smithsonian Institute.

He was dubbed the Best Heavyweight of the 20th century  by Associated Press and finished Fighter of the year more times by Ring Magazine than any other boxer.BBC Sport awarded him “Sports Personality of the Century”. Sports illustrated likewise named ” Sportsman of the Century “.The people loved him. Sport adored him.He was after all the ” People’s Champion.”

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Words fail to describe the impact he had on generations to come.A Sportsman, a revolutionary,most importantly,a human being.The day would come when the whole world would mourn his loss.Billions did.So many tributes on so many platforms showed he touched so many lives.He changed many a generation.Regardless of age, race, creed, gender,people all over the globe felt the loss. Many continue still. There will be no one like him, ever in sport or in the larger context in humanity on this planet.Champion he was , is and he will be. He was truly like his own admission,”The Greatest”.

The European Showcase !

When Germany played France last November in a friendly in Paris , there wasn’t an expectation that this friendly  game would be remembered for anything but sporting reasons.As things transpired on that Paris evening  around Stade de France ,long revered as the home of France’s 1998 triumphant comeback in world football, the Euro 2016 became an afterthought.

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However as challenges bring added motivation,  a spring arose after a long european winter  and brought hopes.Preps for the biggest Euro to be staged in  Western Europe’s largest  country took an added incentive.Four new stadiums have been produced in Lyon, Lille, Bordeaux and Nice. Five  other venues including Parc de Princes in Paris and the Velodrome in Marseille have been upgraded. Only Stade de France retains its original state, site of France’s greatest footballing feat in July 1998. A special mention here to the Stade Pierre Mauroy in Lille which has a unique shiftable  field capacity in order to make a lower level seating capacity for indoor events like basketball or tennis, in addition to the 15 minute retractable roof arrangement.Its called “Boîte à Spectacles”. 

A spectacle for the home crowd will be the performance of the home team as always.1998 gave us Zidane and Henry.Who will be it this time ? Coming of age, Paul Pogba carries the burden of the French nation on this occasion.He won his 4th straight league championship with Juventus earlier this year and largely been crowned as the French Poster boy for the Euro.Hugo Lloris,Dmitri Payet and N’Golo Kante  have had outstanding domestic seasons and with  Antoine Griezmann  and Anthony Martial,they possess a scoring capacity as well. France last won the Euro in 2000 when they were world champions.They open  the Euro in Group A vs Romania on June 10 in Paris. Switzerland and Albania are the other teams in Group A.

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The threat to France taking the Euro will always come from the usual suspects. Germany have recruited youth again to complement the world cup winning squad . Manuel Neuer, Jerome Boateng, Thomas Muller and Toni Kroos are all back. Marco Reus who missed the 2014 world cup is fit for this one. And as always , EPL’s assist leader Mesut Ozil , is the lynchpin of their attack.Germany are in Group C,with Ukraine,Northern Ireland and a Polish team that has someone they know very well, Robert Lewandowski.

 

Spain and Italy won’t have the same punches as they did when they played the final in Kiev in 2012, but in competition play,both have the knack to advance deep.A Xavi less Spain has an average forward line.Iniesta and Fabregas look past their best.David Silva didn’t star much in Epl this year.Lucas Vasquez and the much talked about Saul Niguez are still an unknown quantity.Casillas still skippers and is in goal  despite De Gea s impressive form.  Spain also play in the difficult Group D with Croatia, Turkey and Czech Republic.Sparks will fly.

Italy led by Chelsea bound  Antonio Conte  have similar predicament. Daniele De Rossi and Antonio Montolivo are ageing as is Giorgio Chiellini. The forward line with Ciro Immobile , El Shaarawy , Graziano Pelle and Lorenzo Insigne is inexperienced still. But like Spain their captain also has a wealth of experience  in Gianluigi Buffon now on 156 caps.They will face an opening tough challenges in the group with youthful Belgium, who ranked no 2 in fifa rankings are led by Eden Hazard  and play them on June 13 in the extravagant Parc Olympique Lyonnais in Lyon.Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s  Sweden and a resurgent Ireland also complete in Group E.

 

 

In Group F,Portugal look a safe bet behind their skipper and Champions league winner Cristiano Ronaldo.Austria led by Leicester’s championship winning fullback Christian Fuchs are joined by neighbours Hungary who have arrived in major cup since 1986 and Iceland who are the smallest european nation to qualify.

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Another recent Champions league winner is Gareth Bale who stars for Wales in Group B as it provides one of the high octane  matches when Wales and England clash on June 16 at Stade Bollaert Delelis. England have plenty of forwards to pick from as Harry Kane and Jamie Vardy are coming off impressive scoring seasons in EPL alongside Marcus Rashford who has had a dream start to his senior career.Dele Alli, Kyle Walker,Danny Rose,Eric Dier have starred for Spurs heavily but the midfield is not as experienced and traditionally England have struggled in the Euro, so a lot to prove still.Russia and Slovakia provide the opposition for two british teams.Marian Hamsik of Napoli is one to watch out for in a Slovakian team captained by Liverpool Martin Skrtel.The Russian squad  have bulk of their squad made up of CSKA and Zenit St Petersburg players.

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It has been a long footballing season in Europe.The majority of the leagues finished 3 weeks prior to the opening  game of the tourney, with the domestic cup finale s being staged a week later.And in case of some such as  La Liga in Spain and the Premeira Liga in Portugal, the championship was decided on the final day.It raises the question of  how fit the squads will be,how injuries will be managed and will the best product be displayed. The prize of winning the Euro is an entry to  the Confederations Cup being held in Russia next year as a tuneup for the 2018 World event.

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24 teams , 6 groups , a round of 16 making the playoff predictions a bit more complicated than before as 4 best 3rd placed teams will advance with group winners.Marseille hosting a quarter and a semi with the final at St Denis on July 10.How ironic it will be if the same two teams who played that November evening in Paris when France beat Germany 2-0 end up playing 8 months later in the Euro Finale.It promises to be a showcase event.Super Victor can’t get any more excited. Vive la France !

 

 

Will there be a Foxcatcher ?

 

Stocksbridge is a small town close to  the city of Sheffield.Le Havre is an urban commune in North France.The distance between them is 334 miles.What could possibly link the two?

Stocksbridge Park Steels play in the 8th tier of English league system,7 divisions below the Premiership.In 2010,a young footballer ,playing for Stocksbridge Park Steels for majority of his career,gets transferred to Halifax town who are in 5th tier of the english league system.To many,it doesn’t seem much of a move jumping a few lower tier divisions.He carried on to play for Fleetwood town a fellow non league club  the next season before a break in 2012 came when he gets signed for hefty sum of 1 million to a Leicester City.Leicester had just been in the Championship for a few seasons following promotion.

Le Havre AC  was then,in 2010, a team in the French second division.It had bought a young French born Tunisian in its reserve squad from the French 4th division that year.He plays 4 yrs for reserves and first team of Le Havre before accepting a transfer to Leicester in the year they get promoted to the Premiership,2014.The players in question now both are ranked the top 2 players in Premiership for the majority of 2015/16 season Jamie Vardy and Riyadh Mahrez.

 

Leicester have a strong pair  up top. But that is not to say they lack support.N Golo Kante like Mahrez came from French 2nd division and has been a gem in the midfield,leading the interceptions stat.The centre backs,Wes Morgan and Robert Huth,a low profile buy  for coach Claudio Ranieri in his Chelsea days,have played non stop all season for 1st team.Marc Albrighton and Danny Drinkwater have been instrumental in providing passes to Jamie and Riyadh in key situations helping them to bag huge goals.Add to that,Peter Schmiechel’s son Kasper’s meteoric rise as one of the best keepers of the league has enhanced Leicester defensively as well.He has been excellent  and reminds one of the great Dane himself. Claudio Ranieri,” The Tinkerman” himself was a crucial piece to link all these footballing talents this season.

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Its ironic that Jamie, who is a life long Sheffield Wednesday supporter and started out in their youth team in 2002, finds his rise this season complimenting the Owls goal scoring form in the Championship.Fernando Forestieri and  Gary Hooper probably the best duo  in the league below currently matching Vardy and Mahrez’s  elevation this winter.Jamie Vardy’s impressive goal scoring streak in  most consecutive EPL games pre christmas and  Riyadh Mahrez’s assists and goals support makes them the dynamic duo that’s electrified the Premiership,not to mention make them household names.Jamie Vardy was player of the month in Premiership for October and November whilst Riyadh is the pundit’s  bet for player of the season.

Ball possession is not the Foxes’ bright spots.They struggle controlling it during majority of their games but their fast pace on the break is exemplary matched with passing finesse and clinical finishing.The midfield has been supportive.Vardy’s goal against Liverpool was possibly a candidate for the goal of season while Mahrez’s finishing against City decimated the Sky Blues afternoon at Etihad a few weeks back.Their loss at home in September against Arsenal was supposed to break their bubble, it never did.They went on a run that made them top by Christmas and beyond.

Coach Claudio Ranieri’s return to Premiership has been a fantastic one.He left Chelsea at 2003/04  end following Chelsea losing to an unbeaten Gunners side.This year,Gunners pose another challenge to him having completed a double in league, 5-2 at King Power in September  and just last week in a “clash of titans” challenge winning in  injury time through a Danny Wellbeck winner.Mauricio Pochettino and his high flying young spurs pose an equal competition if not a bigger one.The best defensive team in the league behind Toby Alderweireld  and buoyed by young guns,Harry Kane and Dele Alli.Spurs continue their rich tradition of providing great footballing talent.The perennial favourites,Manchester City having Sergio Aguero,David Silva,Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne have wilted a bit in their challenges in the chase for 4 trophies but injuries have played their part again in another hectic EPL season.

 

One of the deciding factors,it seems is the amount of games Gunners, Spurs and Sky Blues have left in the season.Potentially the count  could increase to mid 20’s  pending each team’s  progression in the FA Cup, Champions and Europa League competitions.Leicester don’t have to worry about cups, just 12 league games left to end season . The challenging bit though could surface right in the end with away ties at Old Trafford and Stamford Bridge. Chelsea could once again figure in the final say of where the league goes this year for the 3rd year running.

Leicester’s success is huge for the Midlands city. It also has great repercussions for the league. The EPL is enjoying huge success in television ratings than ever before  and with even a bigger mega deal sorted for 2016/17 , a Premiership presence  will be a big boost to all clubs such as Leicester and the 3 new promotees from Championship.Needless to say, the Premiership  will continue to be banked as the no 1  football league played.1978 was the last year a promoted side,Nottingham forest, won the league against all the odds.The Foxes promoted in 2014, have a shot doing that in their 2nd year and nailing Champions League qualification.The neutrals are loving it from Stocksbridge to Le Havre.So will the FA .

Will they be caught though?  Will there be a Foxcatcher?

My Name is Hashim

November 28, 2004. India hosting Proteas at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens. A bearded 21 yr old gent with a strange first and surname by the visitor’s standards took the South African cap. One could surely be deceived that he was playing for the wrong team. After all, Zaheer Khan and Irfan Pathan were opening the bowling for the hosts. At 3/130 on  day 1 , he went in as the No 5,scored 24 in just under an hour and ended up being bowled by Irfan himself.He went on to bag just a couple more in the 2nd innings. His name was a surprise to all but it raised intrigue. A forgettable English series at home followed where he scored a meagre 36 in 4 innings. It looked as if he wouldn’t be heard of again, as he disappeared.The hopes of many were dashed. But he came back and rose. His name-Hashim Mahomed Amla.

 

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In 2006, he marked his comeback with a match saving 149 vs New Zealand in the test scene after improving his technique.In 2008, he went back to India scoring 159 in Chennai, but his next tour in 2010 would be even more defining. On the back of a 253 at Nagpur in the first test,he entered Kolkata again. Enter the same Eden Gardens, where he made his debut.He went on to score 114 and 123 not out in the repeat encounter. He never looked back. A  star was born. But a very different one.  The South african selectors never looked away either. To this day he still averages 51 plus in both tests and Odi ‘s.The world asked his name. He would humbly say  “Hashim”.

His career blossomed in the background whilst  worldly controversies prospered and new  leagues and a format ignited glamour and glitz. He just carried on doing what he did best, kept his head down and played technically sound. His cricketing achievements are for all to see and reflect. If the 253 in Nagpur was an eye opener, the 311 scored at Oval was the first by a South African,in 2012 thrilled even more. Later that year his 196 at Perth was unsurprising as well en route a Protean test series victory on Aussie shores.He scored against all oppositions, on every earthly surface from the bone hard  tracks of the Gulf to the low slow Sri Lankan surfaces with equal ferocity. Maybe he should play on the moon . This with the fact he fasts on occasions on match days which are played in mostly hot and humid conditions begs to question one about this human endeavour. The application is all in the mind. Its his mental aptitude which has grown alongside his technique which allowed him to play long and solidly.

 

 

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He recently finished the series against England as the highest scorer in the test series. This was after he relinquished the captaincy in favour of improving his batting though he did manage a double century in his last match as the skipper in Cape Town. It was sad to see him give up the captaincy but in light of the recent Indian series where his form  suffered greatly.  The  visitor’s long overseas unbeaten streak had ended .After  a 3-0 series defeat in the subcontinent , they  lagged behind in the home series versus England. The Proteas required many more of his calibre to put up a challenge. Nevertheless he carried Proteas in the final test vs Poms with a 109 to set up  a consolation win in Centurion Park.

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Few people in the world of sports stand out both on and off the field. I say that because often in the increasing world of social media and technology, word gets out soon when there are issues pertaining to physical ,mental and social health off the field that affect an athlete’s  performance. The ever rising stressors that come with fame and attention have been a common struggle in all fields and cricket is not alien to it. It seemed Hashim had a mental balance to counteract all this and still be a part of the cricketing culture.He also had a good grounding from an early age in which played a variety of sports and worked hard at cricket. He led from an early age captaining the under 19 South African team to the world cup final in New zealand in 2002 .

What is it about Hashim that the world respects him too much ? Is he a symbol ? Is it the beard ? Is it the identity he carries ? Is it the fasting during play ? It might be all of this. To quote Mark Nicholas the revered cricket commentator of Channel 5 here in UK who recently wrote about him ,” He stands for an ideal. He speaks for the marginalised. He is hope. He is strength. He is faith. His elevation made all things possible.”

Its the fact he carries and conducts himself how an ideal human would  on and off the field. Sometimes it seems unreal in this world. Most of the times, its a relief to see him standing in that oval field. For once , cricket delivered the ” Righteous”one.  The same cricket which   has had  its  fair share of corruption, controversy , apartheid and racism.Sanity had prevailed after a long time.

 

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In a  generation of T20 leagues  full of auctioning and branding  players as Icons, it s important to focus and reflect on  who the real icons of cricket are today. Who is l

egendary ,iconic , eminent  and venerated ? The list will be finite . If truly there is a name that comes to mind amongst the top, there can be no doubt it will be of – Hashim Mahomed Amla.