Naveen's Journal

Last to last Sunday, I had the chance to be at Clara Zetkin Park to enjoy the carnival atmosphere for the 5 and 10 KM races sponsored by Sportscheck. Actually it was Ronny’s participation which excited me even more to go and see. He finished a commendable 15th with a time of around 39 mintes for the 10 KM, with winner clocking around 32 minutes. It has already pumped me enough to decide that I’ll be aprticipating in the Leipzig Marathon next year

Few pictures from the event -

The Aragorn of World Cricket is BACK… And with a bang so stupendous, even the deafs dare keep their ears open! The way SACHIN pulverised the Lankan Tigers (read cats) in the first two games, all his critics (me included… to a certain degree) were shown the class he has, and justified the GODLY status he commands in this country. The teams were almost the same (India & Sri Lanka) the matches – very much the same (ODI), the conditions – idectical (Indian Subcontinent). But the results exactly opposite – referring to the spanking India got in Sri Lanka 3 months ago.

What do you think made the difference… Was it Dravid’s captaincy… or falmboyance of Pathan… or poor bowling by the Lankans (you can put your money on Murali n Vaas any day). Indeed the bowlers were good and fielders did well.. Batting was classy too… But the MAN who led the assault did it with such authority that it left the opposition gasping for breath. Such severe was his strokeplay that the destructive Sachin of yesteryears came to mind of all — Indians to have something to cheer about, and Lankans (and probably other oppositions) to grief about.

As humble as the legend is, he never felt it necessary to speak with anything but his bat, which, when did speak, re-established the fact that FORM IS TEMPORARY, BUT CLASS IS PERMANENT. Even the super-duper Greg had signed him off while taking charge of Team India, stating that the maestro has left his prime well behind. So Mr. Perfect(or not-so-perfect Chapell), as with your comment above, it is just a matter of time that your thoughts regarding the Prince of Calcutta, (not surprisingly the most successful Indian Captain ever) come back as a slap on your face and Indian cricket be served by the ones who deserve most.

With such ominous signs being shown by Sachin, i wonder how soon will we be privileged once again to witness the Sandstorms of Sharjah or the massacre of bowlers in World Cups which have for years been the folklore out here. A complete darling of everyone, and being burdened with the weight of Indian Batting alone for a long time, he now has a battery of explosive batsmen to take the mantle and the only thing he needs to do is play like a true champion that he is. With age on his side, and GOD willing, injuries not disturbing him anymore, we can surely hope for a final knockout punch by the GOD himself, to bring back the glory of 1983, which has eluded us so much in the past!

Sachin@man-of-the-match.com
RahulDravid@Jam-Jam.com
AnilKumble@Hurt-Keeper.com
AjitAgarkar@Give-Runs-To-Opponents.com
VirendarShewag@Will-score-200-in-200onedays.com
IrfanPathan@Shatapdi-Express.com
RoshanGavaskar@Never-ComeBack.com
Kaif@Indian-Jonty-Rhodes.com
YuvarajSingh@Only-fit-to-do-modeling.com
Azharuddin@match-fixer.com
AjayJadeja@another-match-fixer.com
HarbhajanSingh@Turbanator.com
ZaheerKhan@Always-Yorker.com
Balaji@Where-Is-He.com
KapilDev@Cry-On-BBC.com
ManojPrabakar@Video-Cassette.com
Sponsors@They-Earn.com
CricketFans@Are-They-Fools.com
Coach@No-Use.com
IndianTeam@When-Will-It-Win.com
ganguly@2minutesnoodles.com

Yet again we’v entered a new week, carrying forward in our minds the heavenly feeling one gets after spending two days without being under any kind of deadline pressure and enjoying the weekend fiesta that the last two days were! More so for sporty studs like me – witnessing the best of tennis, cricket and F1 in a difference of 24 hours – what more can one ask for!
To start with, the women’s final of the Championships on saturday was arguably the most thrilling tennis encounter one could have seen for a long time. Even the patrons of the game would vouch for it. We all love to hate her, but the strength of character and stunning display of power and commitment which Venus Williams showed against Davenport, sent a chill down the spectators’ spine. Rising like the proverbial phoenix from the ashes, she for sure gave a display that would be indelibly imprinted on the viewer’s minds, perhaps never to be obliterated.
On the male front, what can one say about FedEx. Roddick’s power game on saturday gave a hope that the swiss’ 35 match unbeaten streak on grass could be under serious threat, but he too bit the dust in front of Roger’s superlative game, giving him his third straight Wimbledon.
Last but not the least, how many ODI finals have been a TIE! One was, on saturday in a nail biting finish between England and Australia.
OOPS…How could i forget to talk about our Indian weekend in sports! Who else but Narain Karthikeyan. Not a bad race for him as he managed to finish it at least, Alonso running away with yet another title. Perhaps time for Ferrari to do some serious thinking (for next year that is )
Codes calling again…gotta sign off
Naveen