Will London 2012 herald the advent of sporting culture in India?

What do Indians have in their “London Dreams?” I asked myself. Indian sports have never been as good as they are now so 6-7 medals this time looks to be a sensible estimate with just 30 days left for the world’s most supreme sporting display. If I had been asked the same question four years back, my answer would not have been the same. I would have just laughed and ignored it. Now the question arises – What has changed in these four years?

Training has become more sophisticated, satisfactory global exposure has been provided, prospects have increased and the most significant thing is that the approach of people towards sports has changed. I strongly believe that this time the athletes will become the omens of what can be considered as the national sporting culture in years to come.

First individual Gold medallist for India

Since Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore won the silver medal at Athens Olympics in 2004, inclination towards other sports than Cricket has undeniably changed. In 2008, Abhinav Bindra, Vijender Singh and Sushil Kumar cast aside the heavy shadow of disappointment of our past that branded the Indian Olympic Sport for 108 long years. The three medals won in Beijing proved to be a catalyst in shaping the performance of Indian athletes at the international level. Abhinav Bindra became the first Indian to win an individual gold in 2008. With state governments setting up academies to promote various sports, India looked self-possessed to make a statement at the world stage in the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi and the following Asian Games in Guangzhou.

India’s quest for medals in Olympics has never been satisfying. We have partaken in Olympics 22 times since our first appearance in 1900. We have won just 20 medals in 22 Olympic Games. This implies we have an average of less than one medal for each time we take part in Olympics. Moreover, out of those 20, we have 11 in hockey that we won before 1980. Our performance in 1984, 1988 and 1992 Olympics was pathetic. But since the last three Olympics, our ranking in the medals tally is improving. We ranked 71 at Sydney Olympics in 2000, held 65^thposition at Athens Olympics in 2004 and rose to 50^th place at Beijing in 2008.

India’ Badminton Queen – Hopes of Olympic glory lie on her shoulders

Who can end India’s hunger for medals this summer? Who will complete the hunt for gold? India is sending its biggest ever contingent for the London Olympics , a 81 member strong squad that includes the stars of Beijing- Abhinav Bindra, Vijender Singh and Sushil Kumar and the Badminton Queen Saina Nehwal. We have MC Mary Kom a.k.a. ‘Magnificient Mary’ in women’s boxing and CWG 2010 Gold Medalist Krishna Poonia in Discus Throw. In tennis, a lot of hopes are from the Men’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles. In shooting, we have Ranjan Sodhi in Double Trap and Gagan Narang in 10m Air Rifle with Abhinav Bindra. In wrestling, CWG Gold medalist Yogeshwar Dutt will prove his worth with Sushil Kumar.

With Indian Olympic dreams being showered by immense potential, I hope we win as many medals as we can to mark the commencement of a new era in which we will not be far behind nations like USA and China.

“Will there be no domination in the most eminent class of auto-racing known to manhood? Seven races and seven drivers conquering the checkered flag”. An unanticipated thought came to me when Lewis Hamilton of Britain raced past the checkered flag as he won the Canadian Grand Prix 2012. The thought was bewildering because all the F1 fanatics have seen some sort of supremacy of legends over the years. Juan Manuel Fangio reined the racing circuit during the initial phase of the sport. In seven Formula One seasons, he was World Champion five times and runner-up twice. Then there were legends such as Jack Brabham and Jim Clark in the 60s, Jacky Stewart in the early 70s, Nikki Lauda in the late 70’s, Alain Prost and Nelson Piquet in the 80s, Ayrton Senna in the early 90s, and the there was the ‘Michael Schumacher era’.  He is considered to be the finest driver of the fastest form of circuit racing. After Schumacher, I don’t think that there has been any kind of influence of a single driver in this sport.

Still, there are a couple of drivers who are talented enough to rule in the near future. The amazing success of Lewis Hamilton and Sebestian Vettel in such a short period makes them the most likely to be termed as the ‘Juan Manuel Fangio’ of this generation.

Lewis Hamilton

In his very first season in 2007, he finished second, just one point behind Kimi Raikkonen and won the World Championship in the subsequent year. He has always been in the top 5 of the Drivers rankings. This year, the British driver is leading the race for the Championship title with 88 points, two points ahead of Fernando Alonso of Spain. He has won 18 out 98 races and has occupied the podium finish 45 times with a success rate of 45.91%. This criterion makes him the all-time fifth best driver in the history of the sport. The top four in the list are Juan Manuel Fangio, Alain Prost, Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna respectively. I still remember him quoting “I was born to race and to win”, after he attained the first pole-position of his career.

Sebestian Vettel

He debuted alongside Lewis Hamilton in 2007. He has won 22 races and has 38 podium finishes to his name.  At present, the German racing driver drives for Red Bull. In 2009, he finished his first season with Red Bull as the youngest-ever World Drivers’ championship runner-up. In 2010, he went on to become the youngest driver ever to win the Championship. This season he ranks third in the list, just one point behind Fernando Alonso. His consistency makes him one of the best drivers of this generation. He holds the record for the most number of pole positions in a season. His accuracy, flawlessness, concentration and the dedication he possess, makes him the most terrific racer of the current generation.

 His recent success has once again demonstrated that he can dominate on any sort of surface. The best thing about Federer is that he has a natural instinct for getting better. While most of the other sportspeople need someone else to tell them their mistakes, Federer just feels it himself. His mental toughness and fitness is a kind of deadly weapon. Federer has become a standard for tennis brilliance and creativity that goes hand in hand with his concentration and resilience on the court.

In Roger’s case, he has one of the best forehands ever. His backhand slice is known as the best to have entered the game. It is true that he does not serve the fastest in the game but he serves the most accurate. His calmness while he plays is superb. That’s the key to his graceful performances and his endurance in the game. In years to come, the tennis maestro can win many more titles with his Swiss Army knife variety.

There are many things which make him the most versatile player of the game. In my opinion, his take on the much debated blue courts in Madrid Masters 2012 illustrates his respect for the game and his positive attitude towards the change. Federer has not spoken anything provocative about the courts. In contrast, Nadal has been the biggest critic of the blue clay of Madrid, blaming it ceaselessly for his poor performance in the tournament. Other players need to learn to play on any surface rather than crying about it publicly. The whole controversy has proved that if one wants to be a good clay court player, he must be able to play anywhere. Federer emphasizes fair play to show respect for the game and its rules. All these qualities make me say that tennis really deserves players like him.

]]> http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/05/14/tennis-deserves-federer-roger-that/feed/ 2 231322 http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/05/08/rise-of-a-new-cricketing-nation/ http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/05/08/rise-of-a-new-cricketing-nation/#comments Tue, 08 May 2012 07:22:30 +0000 Anant Ranka http://www.sportskeeda.com/?p=221923

Dreams do come true; but realization of dreams at a pace as swift as cricket in Afghanistan is an impressive and rare illustration for the rest of the world. Emergence of Afghanistan as a cricketing nation amidst the downfall of countries like Zimbabwe is a progressive sign for the gentleman’s game.  One in a million would have ever expected Afghanistan to manufacture anything other than terrorists and refugees, but the recent success of  the Afghanistan national cricket team is remarkable. The success has not come due to a magical spell, but the results are really magical. The tale of Afghans discovering the true love for game is unbelievable. They have grown bit by bit in the last two years overcoming all the hardships caused because of the war, such as lack of sponsorship and security issues.

Their rise from division five to division one in the the world cricket league is striking. In the recent years, they have dominated the associates and the affiliate nations in the four-day format and have emerged as a decent cricketing side.

In 2010, they made their way through the T20 World Cup, but failed to qualify for the ODI World Cup in 2011. Even in the matches they lost, they still managed to win the hearts of the cricket fans by exhibiting a reasonable game of cricket. The momentous juncture came this year when they played an ODI against Pakistan – their first ODI against a full-time Test playing nation. Although they lost, focusing on the result would mean completely missing what they taught the cricketing world. This match could be considered as a landmark in their journey of rising to the topmost level in cricket. As they have qualified for the T20 World Cup 2012, cricket lovers have their hopes raised. Although they will enter the tournament as underdogs,  this team is surely the one to look out for.

Lots of expectations are attached to the Afghan team, hoping that they will take small steps to rise to the top rather than fantasizing about the overnight success. In this way they will be able to show the world what they are and what they can do.

The new culture of cricket in Afghanistan will prove as a tool to bring peace and harmony in the war-hit nation.