First race, first win. Can’t ask for a better start! Kimi Raikkonen‘s 2013 campaign has kicked off in style, and if the practice sessions in Malaysia are anything to go by, the Lotus is a seriously good package this year. Qualifying was a wet session though, but if the car is as good as it is promising to be, even a lean Saturday might not hinder the Iceman too much on Sunday.

Malaysia is typically a very hot and humid race, especially demanding on the drivers due to the extreme climate, and also on the machinery. The ambient temperatures are in the high 30s. Add about 5 degrees for the track temperature, and you can get an idea of how different this grand prix weekend is, as compared to the traditional European races or the team’s test sessions. The unpredictability of the equatorial climate and high chance of rain during the race just makes it an even trickier race to predict. Sepang is a race track has its own unique demands on the drivers and the machinery. The track has a beautiful free flowing nature, with two long straights and a very challenging mix of fast, medium and slow speed corners. There are enough high speed sections and sweeping corners to load the rear tyres, and thoroughly put the aerodynamics to test. Hard breaking zones around the straights are excellent out-braking opportunities for anyone willing to be brave on the brakes.

Fortunately for Raikkonen, all of these factors play in his favor. The Lotus, as we saw from last season, has an affinity to warmer climates, allowing it to get the most out of its tyres. Being an evolution of last season’s car, the 2013 Lotus should be carrying forward the good bits and so should be, theoretically, better suited to Sepang than Albert Park. Another thing that works for the Iceman is the sheer racing room at Sepang. It is one of the widest racetracks on the calendar, and coupled with KERS, DRS and the natural overtaking opportunities presented by hard braking zones, it leaves enough for the pure racer in Raikkonen to come out and shine.

Here’s hoping that Kimi’s fridge manages to stay un-burnt this time, and he gets his ice creams when he needs them. The Finn has been underplaying his practice pace, but there’s absolutely no doubt about the potential of the Raikkonen-Lotus package. It’s looking like a promising race for him. There’s nothing like going two for two to begin a new season!

PS: The doc is a Kimi fan, and will be throwing all his weight behind the Iceman for a second world championship in 2013

Hello and welcome to the pre-show on the first  morning of the fourth and final test of the India vs England test series. Trailing 2-1 at home and having played as though they’ve been fondly commemorating the British raj, India are finally looking to turn things around. They’ve certainly stepped out determined to unleash a whirlwind of change, having decided to go in with 5 bowlers and 5 batsmen: Sehwag, Ojha, Dinda, Chawla and Ishant will be the bowlers and MSD (Well ofcourse, MSD is a pure batsman! That he keeps wickets is his magnanimity and Indian cricket should be grateful to him for doing it without shouting “Aai ga” after each delivery), SRT, Pujara, Kohli and R. Ashwin will play as specialist batsmen. Ravindra Jadeja will make his test debut as an all-rounder. In the spirit of change, they might freely swap roles as they please.

Virender Sehwag has decided he will be batting left handed in fond memory of his best friend Gautam Gambhir’s test career. He actually wanted to bat with a runner who would be yelling out misleading calls on his behalf, but looked visibly gutted when he was reminded about the no runners rule. Opening the innings with him, will be the debutante, triple first class triple centurian, the million dollar IPL baby, the utterly insipid (with the ball, well ofcourse!) Ravindra Jadeja, who will not be batting right handed. There was serious deliberation to have the in-form Pujara and Ashwin open the batting but then, that would just be too logical. Where’s the ‘change’ in that!? The likely batting order to follow, will be Kohli at 3 and Ashwin at 4 (Well of course, the team’s best batsman always bats at No. 4), with SRT, MSD and Pujara playing a game of rock, paper, scissors, lizard, spock to determine when their turn to bat comes. In the event that India do manage to survive an evening session and there is a need for a night-watchman, Piyush Chawla and not Ishant Sharma, shall enjoy that responsibility. Yes, enjoy it, for a change!

The team actually camped at the ground the previous night, and completely shunned all non-cricketing forms of warm-up and practice exercises before the game. Instead, after a prolonged net session under lights (Well ofcourse, the T20s are coming up, no?) they lit a bonfire on the wicket and done a ceremonial rain dance someone had seen on discovery channel. As to who it was that came up with such a brilliant thought, is a complete mystery (Well of course, it was Duncan Fletcher who suggested it. After all, watching Discovery channel is all he is doing when you see him staring at that laptop screen). The support staff was tasked with arranging the rain and thunder-lightning effects. For a change, they actually did a marvellous job with the stadium’s floodlights, sprinklers and PA system.

Also, this time around, MSD has decided to lose the toss, and even if Alastair Cook manages to not win it, he will be electing to field first. The strategy has been carefully thought out. Ravindra Jadeja on test debut, will be given the new ball along with Pragyan Ojha. What’s more, they will be bowling left arm swing with three slips and two gullies with no reservations about the recently baked VCA pitch which looks more like a piece of the German Autobahn than the traditional Indian dust bowl. This, because the curator, for a change, did not apply any morals or scruples or such utterly inconsequential things, and instead completely handed over the task of preparing the wicket to MSD. Ashok Dinda and Ishant Sharma will be tasked with simply changing the pace, since swing bowling will anyway be taken care of by Jadeja and Ojha. They will not be expected to take wickets, and will be bowling to a never before seen “corona” field, with all men patrolling the fence.

However, as much as things change, some remain constant. MSD will still be leading the side, SRT will still be battling it out against bowlers he should be dominating, and well ofcourse, nobody will be able to explain exactly what the heck Piyush Chawla will be doing out in India colours. Ajinkya Rahane will still be doing 12th man duties at all the ‘silly’ positions around the bat when MSD wants him to, and Virat Kohli will be wagging a finger or two whenever he gets the opportunity.

The English team, meanwhile can be seen trying their darnedest to stop giggling like little girls and instead concentrate on their (by now, from the looks of it) completely redundant pre-match net session. And just from that, we know that India’s ploy is already working!

Disclaimer – This article is a work of fiction by the author and should not be taken seriously.

April 2011 and the ODI World Cup euphoria is 20 months behind us now, and it still remains the last time India actually won something worth mentioning. Three overseas tours plus two and a half home series later, India find themselves stuck in a rut. Even at home, They have been largely listless and basically grabbing at straws. So what exactly is going wrong? My top answer would be the sense of complacent inevitability about the team composition and performances.

Honestly, this team playing against England has at least 5 players who ‘pick themselves’ based on past laurels. The opening pair of Sehwag and Gambhir has averaged 36.84 since December 2010, with just 2 century stands in 26 innings. That means you’re losing at least one wicket within the first hour of the innings. It is vital, for a team to consistently score size-able totals, that they get off to solid starts on a regular basis. It doesn’t help that both Gambhir and Sehwag have both not played a big innings for a long time now. Sehwag’s 117 was his first ton in two years, and Gambhir’s last was in January 2010 against Bangladesh! That is a long rope to give – to anybody.

The captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, has not had a big score to his name for an extremely long time. He’s been batting in situations where the team has lost the top and middle order for too few runs, too often, but that is all the more reason to dig in and score your own runs. His captaincy has been uninspired, for a major part. What came across as ‘a different take’ on the game now looks like a tactically stuck-up mind. There haven’t been many moves out of left field, and there have been plenty of situations that called for a few!

The bowling has been all over the place as well. Zaheer Khan has been unfit a lot, yet finds himself in the team as soon as he is ‘declared fit’, all when his strike rate has soared up to 100 balls per wicket in the last year. Just as the opening partnesrhip in batting is vital to a big score, wickets with the new ball are invaluable to restrict the opposition to manageable scores. Afterall, you need 20 wickets to win a test. Allowing the openers to settle means you are already conceding territory, and leaving too much to be done by the spinners. Speaking of spinners, Ashwin and Ojha are good, but not nearly threatening enough. Yet, they are almost automatic selections (like Harbhajan was for a long time) mainly due to lack of options! That India should lack spinning options is a tragedy in itself.

Before people start clamoring about why Sachin Tendulkar‘s name hasn’t featured in the list above, let me tell you he averages 54.45 over the last 3 seasons, where the team average has hovered in the mid 30s. That he hasn’t scored a hundred in two years is a big negative. But he surely deserves a longer rope than guys who haven’t scored for longer, if a uniform logic has to apply.

The fact that players like Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara are getting their chances to carve a place is a promising sign, but that only happened because Dravid and Laxman retired and that too when India still haven’t found the right batsman to fill the no.5 slot vacated by Saurav Ganguly. Seeing players like Badrinath, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Manoj Tiwary sit out in spite of scoring heavily in the domestic circuit for seasons together, when batsmen in the test team have struggled, sends a wrong signal. It just means that past performances weigh more than current form once you become a test match regular. Such inertia in team selection has a three pronged effect:

a) It breeds complacency among those playing at the highest level. They can deny as much as they like, but knowing that every performance counts towards you keeping your place in the side is sometimes an essential pressure. It makes one value his position instead of taking it for granted.

b) It means that you pass over players while they are at their peak. Badrinath is a case in point, so is Rohit Sharma. Rohit has time on his side, but form is a different story.

c) It also means that you have next to zero bench strength, making transition phases like the current one that much tougher to fight through. This has hit India particularly hard in the bowling department. Zaheer Khan’s fitness is flagging, and so is his strike rate (100 balls per wicket), but we are still ‘looking for’ a replacement who should have by now been leading the bowling attack.

If you look at teams that have been successful over a long period, you find that they have evolved constantly, in terms of personnel and also in terms of tactics. India have shown great inertia in this aspect. England, on the other hand, have done exactly the opposite. It was the same side that got shot out 5-0 in the ODI series last year, and had trouble against Pakistan in the UAE. But they have evolved their bowling to use these conditions better, and made adjustments to their batting as well. The last time we heard about something like this from India was Sachin Tendulkar using bats with a higher sweet spot in South Africa.

To re-emphasize, India need to shake things up. Take the risk when you have nothing to lose, which unfortunately is the case today. The shakedown could be something as simple as shortening the leeway given to inconsistent performers, or changing the on-field game plans. Or it could be as big as making sweeping changes to the team management and leadership. Either way, time is running out before it gets too painful for even the most loyal of fans to keep any hopes up.

Race starts: 199
Pole Positions: 33
Race wins: 51
Fastest laps: 41
World Drivers’ Championships: 4

The numbers speak for themselves. Not only do you have to be an exceptionally gifted driver, but an equally keen student of the sport; observing, adapting and improving with each day of a life lived at a breakneck speed. You need to be measured, confident, methodical and fast. And this man was exactly that, behind the wheel of an F1 car. He is Alain Marie Pascal Prost OBE, Chevalier de la Legion d’honneur, born 24th February 1955 in Loire, France.

The Career Records

Alain Prost took to karting at the age of 14 while on a family holiday, and never looked back. Progressing through the junior formulae, he won the French and European Formula 3 championships before signing for McLaren for the first time in 1980. Since then, in a sterling 13-year career as an F1 driver, Alain Prost’s record was second only to Juan Manuel Fangio before the rise of one Michael Schumacher. His tally of 51 Grand Prix wins was a record for a decade from 1992 to 2002, before Schumacher surpassed him in his bid to rewrite all record books. Prost raced for 4 different teams in his career [McLaren, Renault, Ferrari, Williams] and went on to notch up Grand Prix wins with every single one of them; a record in its own. He is the last French driver to win a French Grand Prix. He also shares an incredible record of starting all races in a season [1993] with Ayrton Senna (1989) and Damon Hill (1996). The highlight of his career, and undoubtedly a highlight of Formula 1 history, was Prost’s bitter rivalry with Ayrton Senna during the latter half of his career which saw him win 2 Drivers’ titles and miss out on 3. (More on that here: http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/05/30/tribute-to-f1-rivalries-chapter-1-senna-v-prost/). The rivalry was to lead Prost out of McLaren, to Ferrari and later Williams in search of a fourth World Title, which he won in 1993 and promptly retired on a high.

Prost would return as a team owner in 1998, but that venture was not to yield comparable success.

Alain Prost with his trophies

More on “The Professor”

Cool, collected and methodical; Alain Prost had an unflustered demeanour behind the wheel. He was known to have a very tactical thought process, even while racing flat out. His mental strength allowed him to stay focussed on the bigger picture rather than pushing for immediate gain.

“When I test I never go right to the limit. Only because when you are below the limit you can go at the same speed all day, and that’s the only way you can be absolutely sure about what you are testing.” – Alain Prost

Alain Prost’s emphasis on avoiding mistakes and ensuring calculative race finishes for best results overall, earned him a lot of negative comments and snide remarks for being too mechanical and not spectacular enough. Criticism notwithstanding, Prost was always unapologetic about his ‘mentality’ as he stood by his instinct of shunning excessive risk in favour of solid results. His was a driving style that focussed on slowing down enough, to go quick overall. The uninitiated might be unable to appreciate the reasoning behind it, but that seldom stood in his way to a quick lap-time as demonstrated by his 33 poles and 41 fastest laps. He was very particular about his preparation for a race weekend, and believed in a methodical approach to build a win. He explains it brilliantly when he says:

“I always work the same way, starting from the beginning of the weekend, so I know at the beginning of the race, from all that I have analysed during the practice, whether I will win the race or not.” – Alain Prost

But Prost didn’t earn this title just by his intellectual approach to driving fast. He not only understood the intricacies of the technical side of the sport, but also the political aspects of it. He recommended Ron Dennis to offer Senna a contract in order to lure Honda in as engine suppliers for McLaren. That move worked out wonderfully for the team. Prost was quoted once as saying that any judgement of quality in F1 can only be made over a period of a season or a career, not race by race. In extension to that, he became one of the main proponents of the scoring system adopted during the 90′s with 10 points going to the winner and all results counting towards the championship. A few of the recent down-to-the-wire championship seasons have gone down to the last race, thanks to that revision.

The teammate wars

Throughout Prost’s career, there have been very few times when his teammates have outscored him on aggregate points. First time in his debut season, by 1 point, and the next, in 1984 when Niki Lauda had half a point more than Prost (due to the rain soaked Monaco Grand Prix which was halted midway with Prost in the lead, getting half of the 9 points that went to the winner). Incidentally, that half point decided the championship in favour of Lauda (72 points vs 71.5), sowing the seeds for Prost’s backing of the 90′s points system. Triple world champion, Keke Rosberg too didn’t manage to outscore Prost when they were teammates. Even in 1988, when Senna won the Drivers’ Championship on the best results rule, Prost had scored more points (105 vs 94). Not surprising then, that he did not enjoy very amicable relationships with his teammates.

His stint in 1982-83 with Renault saw him fall out with Rene Arnoux over the latter dishonouring a pre-race arrangement to support Prost in the race, and going on for the win himself. His arrival in McLaren in 1984 brought a change in the status quo there, with Ron Dennis investing in Prost as the future rather than Niki Lauda, leading to Lauda’s exit in 1986. Similar circumstances prevailed with Senna’s rise to prominence, but the roles were reversed this time and Prost moved to Ferrari. At Ferrari, he had his car switched with Nigel Mansell‘s, suspecting Mansell’s one to be superior, without the latter’s knowledge. He went on to dominate Mansell that season. Result: when Prost went to Williams in 1993, Mansell quit and moved to CART.

In closing

Alain Prost, in spite of the Order of the British Empire, the Chevalier de la Legion d’honneur and the Four World championships, remains a greatly under-celebrated racer. Prost had an understated elegance and precision, was always silken smooth on the track, seldom off line, easy on the brakes, gliding toward the apex and shooting off out of the corner with so minimal effort, it didn’t look like he was trying to push at all when in fact he was going flat out. The timing sheets told just how effective he was. His rivalry with Senna took them both to unprecedented heights of success and fame, but the contrast in their personalities and racing styles, while enabling him to stand his own against Senna, also did Prost a great disservice by underplaying his own achievements. Where Prost was methodical and controlled, Senna was flamboyant, all-in and super aggressive, naturally attracting more attention and adulation. When people inevitably compare the two, they tend to forget that to build a rivalry so fierce and close, the protagonists must be very evenly matched. One must also remember that Senna came to Formula 1 when Prost was at his peak, and hence was Senna’s benchmark. It takes tremendous courage and natural ability to compete against someone who is determined to surpass you, especially when you’re put on the back foot and forced to fight harder to reclaim your top spot. That Prost could push himself so far beyond his comfort zone, and maintain an edge over Senna throughout, just cements the fact that Alain Prost was truly one of the greatest racing drivers of all-time.

Alain Prost driving a McLaren-TAG Porsche in the Brazilian Grand Prix, Rio de Janeiro, 7th April 1985. Prost went on to win the race

My reasons for why Alain Prost ranks amongst the greatest ever:

- Stats. The numbers speak for themselves. Winning 4 Drivers’ Championships is a feat surpassed by only two other men: Juan Manuel Fangio and Michael Schumacher, in over 50 years of history of F1.

- Edge over teammates. He had almost always outscored his teammates over a season, which in a heavily technical sport like F1, is a pretty authentic yardstick to measure one’s calibre, especially when the teammates were multiple-time world champions.

- Talented, intelligent and cunning. He possessed unbridled talent, almost sadly veiled by the lack of theatrics in the cockpit. Prost was equally competent in all conditions, and knew how to extract the last bit of performance from the machinery. His in-depth understanding of all aspects of the sport, both on and off track, really made Prost the complete package.

- Ability to push himself beyond his comfort zone when needed, and yet stay in complete control, was an outstanding characteristic of Prost.

- Never-say-die attitude. Need an example? His car ran out of fuel on the home straight on the last lap in Germany and instead of abandoning the car, Prost put in a valiant attempt of pushing it over the line!

All these qualities, irrespective of controversies, fallouts and media-shyness, make Alain Prost one of the greatest living legends of F1.

Here’s a video of Prost’s prowess in a scary Renault car on the difficult track of Zandvoort:

Sector 1: Taking the plunge
The start-finish straight feels almost claustrophobic, with the pit wall on the left and the imposing grandstands on the right, packed to the rafters with passionate Brazillian racing fans capable of drowning out the roar of the V8s. A short dash as soon as the lights go out and we’re braking hard, resisting the temptation to tip the car left for the first ape of the blind turn 1. Stay out wide till the last instant, and plunge downhill through turn-1 at 106 kph in 3rd gear, hold the car steady and pull it right to hit the apex of turn-2, already starting to accelerate up to 166 kph. It’s a steep drop and the camber changes on the slope, making it imperative to get the line exactly right, or you’re sure to spin out (and cause a pileup, in the process, as the turn is almost blind). This sequence is named ‘The Senna’S’ ” after the legendary Ayrton Senna. Significant time can be gained or lost through the exit of turn-2, as you flick up through the gears, threading the needle through the fast, sweeping left hander at turn-3 “Curva do Sol”. It’s a storming corner with just one line that allows going flat out. That the DRS activation zone starts right at the entry of the Curva do Sol makes it even trickier in race conditions. You need to take the car right up to the outside kerbs as you gun full throttle down the back straight, the “Reta Oposta” and into sector 2.

Sector 2: Over the hills and over the vales
You’re flying through the Reta Oposta, at over 325kph in top gear, as you approach the downhill left hander at turn-4 “Curva do Lago”, a fast 90 degree bend at the bottom of the hill, taken at 155kph in 3rd gear. Only the most daring would risk a move here in the past, but DRS may just throw up many more this time. Hit the apex and floor it as you climb up, going through the left handed kink at turn-5, in 5th gear, 250 kph. You continue the climb as you fly blind into the double apex right hander at turn 6,7. You’re braking from 6th gear, 250 kph, to 5th gear, 218 kph for turn 6, still climbing up, feathering the throttle a bit to keep the momentum going through the cusp of the hill, tipping rightwards at turn-7 “Curva do Laranjinha” taken in 5th gear. The G-forces acting here are tremendous, going up to 5G! Hit the apex, preserve the momentum as you drop downhill, and then slam on the brakes hard to stop the car in time for the very tight second gear right hander at turn-8, taken at 76kph. Hit the apex, use up all the track, and wring the last ounce of torque from the engine and the last scraps of grip from the rear tires as you slide downhill into the more open 180 degree curve at turn-9 “Pinheirinho”. Repeat the exercise of boosting yourself back out of the corner, use up some KERS if you need as the exit sends you scrambling uphill again, going up through the gears and a rightward kink as you climb to 200 kph, before braking real hard for turn-10 “Bico de Pato”, the very tight right handed hairpin at the top of the hill. The road opens up dramatically as you hit the apex, and drops away downhill without warning. Resist the temptation to floor the throttle too early if you want your rear tires to last. Build speed down the slope as you fly flat out through the left handed turn-11 “Mergulho” in 5th gear, 235kph, and into the final sector.

Sector 3: Citius! Altius! Fortius!
Take a wide line out of Mergulho, as you brake for the 3rd gear left hander at turn-12 “Juncao”, already having started the climb back up the hill. It’s very very imposrtant to carry as much speed as possible through Juncao, as the rest of the lap is absolutely flat out… Citius!
You’re now one with the car, willing it to go beyond its top speed, climbing all the while as you blast through the left handed kink at turn-13 going higher and higher… Citius! Altius!
And then you approach the most awesome part of the track, the identity of Interlagos, the banked turn-14 “Subida dos Boxes”, you exert all your might to counter the G-forces and steer the car left, maintaining the acceleration, reaching the summit and holding strong through the widest part of track.. Citius! Altius! Fortius!
Slide inwards, almost entering the pitlane as you fly through turn-15 and back on to the start-finish straight, and back braking for the Senna ‘S’. The run through the Subida Do Boxes has traditionally been a site for slipstreaming moves, and we’re sure to see a few this weekend.

Technically, the challenge here is to find a setup that is responsive in the low speed, twisty infield section, without compromising the straightline speed too much, as a large amount of the track is run flat-out. The cars are constantly accelerating out of slow corners, and going uphill at the same time. This puts big demands on the engine and gearboxes, not to mention the pounding the rear tires have to endure in order to provide enough traction to actually get the car out of the corner. Add to it, the banking for turn-14, and the sweeping natures of turns 3, 4, 13-14, and the camber settings need to be spot on, to keep the tires in the optimum temperature and loading windows.

Interlagos is a track that has witnessed many a historic moments. Ayrton Senna’s win in 1991, with his McLaren stuck in 6th gear towards the end of the race, and the sea of fans willing him on is an unforgettable story. It is also the site where Kimi Raikkonen completed his miracle run to come back from behind and win the 2007 drivers’ championship at the cost of Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso. It is also the same place where Felipe Massa came deperately close to winning the title in 2008, crossing teh line in the lead, only to see Hamilton take the crucial extra point, passing Timo Glock’s Toyota at the last corner of the last lap. Fernando Alonso will be using all his skill and guile to pull a similar coup over Sebastian Vettel this weekend, as the two are locked in battle, 13 points between them. There’s also the chance of rain that seems to loom around here, and when it comes, it turns things on their head. Remember Giancarlo Fisichella’s 2003 victory driving the Jordan-Honda?

SAO PAULO, BRAZIL – NOVEMBER 23: Fernando Alonso of Spain and Ferrari drives during practice for the Brazilian Formula One Grand Prix at the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace on November 23, 2012 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

This Sunday, after 71 laps of this 4.309km long circuit, Fernando Alonso needs to be on the podium to have any hopes of a third title, whereas Sebastian Vettel needs to score a decent haul to complete a stunning rally in the second half of this season, and complete a hat-trick of championships. Amid all this excitement, the 2012 Brazillian Grand Prix also marks the end of an era: Michael Schumacher‘s racing era. The great man walks away from the wheel after this Sunday, leaving behind a legacy for the very capable current generation to look up to.

Will the rain come to stir the couldron? Will Ferrai pull something out of Pandora’s box again? Will Felipe Massa go for glory in front of  his home fans? Will the McLaren’s pace help or hinder Alonso’s bid? Will Vettel dominate this last dance? Will Michael Schumacher finish on a high note? Time will tell. Till then, we wait in anticipation.

The batsman

Mark Taylor the batsman started off as a prolific left-handed opener, with a natural tendency to jump on the front foot, good through the covers but equally brilliant with a scathing square cut, and the pull. He started with 1219 runs in his debut season, the first time a batsman had crossed 1000 in the first test season, but couldn’t quite maintain the consistency towards the latter half of his career. There were times when he had to face criticism for his lack of runs, with his place in the team coming under question, let alone his spot as captain. But the Australian selectors put their faith in Mark Taylor, and he repaid them with an exemplary career as arguably Australia’s best test captain of all time.

The captain

As a captain and a cricketer, Mark Taylor came across as diametrically opposite to his predecessor, Alan Border. Where Border was an intense man, conservative with his test match captaincy, but attacking in ODIs, Taylor came across as a light hearted character, with an aggressive attitude in tests, but funnily, conservative in ODIs. The latter got him out of the ODI side a few times, but not without leading Australia to the 1996 World Cup finals. What he lacked in constant on-field intensity, Taylor made up for, with an eye for the turning points in a game. He was known to be a brilliant tactician.

His first assignment was the tour of Pakistan in 1994, without Australia’s first-choice pace bowlers, hunting for their first test win since 1959. Although they couldn’t score a win, Taylor’s adventurous captaincy got them close on two occasions. An Ashes win at home followed, but what really cemented Taylor as an exceptional leader was the drubbing of West Indies in the Caribbean in 1995. The Australian touring side was battered in the ODIs, the medium pacers faced injuries, and the replacements were inexperienced. They hadn’t won a series in the Caribbean for 22 years, no less. What followed was a 2-1 Australian win, on the back of some inspired captaincy from Mark Taylor, who got his greenhorn attack, not particularly known for consistent bowling, to bowl to attacking fields with rich rewards!

Taylor would come to be known as a captain who backed his bowlers to the hilt. Future greats Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne flourished under Mark Taylor’s leadership. Shane Warne especially can be looked upon as an example of Taylor’s nous. Leg-spinners are a tricky breed to control on their best day, and if you’re leading a side that is habituated to pace quartets, it’s very easy to slip up and squander that resource. Taylor’s understanding of the game, and his propensity to take bold decisions allowed him to use Warne’s potential and gave him the stage he relished so much. The fact that Taylor was the best slip catcher in world cricket in his time, would be of immense help, as he was always close to the action in critical moments.

The High[-and-low-]Lights of Mark Taylor’s captaincy

While the Caribbean series win in 1995 was an undoubted highlight of his fledgling captaincy career, Sri Lanks’s 1996 tour of Australia would be one of the low ones owing to the controversies that ensued. Muttiah Muralitharan, Sri Lanka’s spearhead off-spinner was no-balled seven times in the second test, for allegedly ‘chucking’ the ball. The matter worsened with allegations of racially abusive sledging and cheating being levelled on Taylor’s men by the Sri Lankans. The lowest point came in the second final of the ODI tri series, when Sanath Jayasuriya and Glenn McGrath got into a physical tangle mid-pitch, the former accusing the latter of making racist comments. The match ended with both teams refusing to shake hands.

Taylor’s effectiveness in man-management was underlined by Australia’s performance in the World Cup that followed. Without letting the recent controversies, and the matter of forfeiting a match in Sri Lanka owing to security threats distract them, Mark Taylor led his team to the finals, only to lose to Sri Lanka. Australia weren’t the favourites by any means, but they had shown nerves of steel to come back from the dead to beat the West Indies in the semi-finals.

The following seasons saw decline in Taylor’s form, bringing his place in the team under the scanner. After a long string of failures, Taylor even dropped himself from the team during the ODI series in South Africa. With his back firmly against the wall, Mark Taylor answered his critics with a fighting century in the second innings of the second Ashes test in 1997, sparking a turnaround that saw Australia win the series 3-2.

His finest moment, though came at the very end of his career, in Rawalpindi, 1998 when Taylor scored a dogged triple century after batting for two days straight. Finishing the day’s play on 334 not-out, Taylor was asked about his plans for the next day. He replied, “I’m thinking about declaring overnight, actually, still haven’t made up my mind, but that would be the best thing for the team. … The score being same as Sir Don, it might be the only thing I am compared with him for.” And sure enough, Australia declared overnight, with Taylor within reach of Brian Lara‘s then world record 375*. Australia went on to win the series, recording their first series win against Pakistan in 39 years.

Taylor’s swansong was the 1998-1999 Ashes series in Australia, which Taylor’s team won 3-1. In his last series, Taylor broke Alan Border’s record for the most catches in test cricket, finishing on 157 scalps in all. The only target that eluded him was a series win against India in India.

Mark Taylor, with a test match record of 26 wins, 11 draws and 13 losses and a wealth of accomplishments on and off the field, will certainly go down as one of the best all time test cricket captains in world cricket.

Read more on this series here.

“As the five red lights go out, in front of you, sitting in pole on the dirty side of the track, you’re a picture of concentration. You drop the clutch, hope to God for minimum wheelspin and get the power down for the short sprint ahead, sweeping left to cover the racing line before braking hard to catch the apex of the 90 degree 2nd gear right hander at turn 1. Get the power down as you hit the apex and veer right to hit the kerb before climbing uphill through the left handed sweeping turn 2, which spits you out right into the braking zone for the slowest point on the track – the 80 kph 2nd gear left hander at turn 3. You’re already through the DRS detection zone, but that’s a worry for a few laps down the line. Your immediate concern is to use all of the road as it widens out and opens up onto the main straight, over 1 km long,  wide stretch which also houses the DRS zone. The straight takes you through a big elevation change as the road drops away downhill before climbing up again. Use up a bit of your KERS to get that extra kick out of the hairpin as you launch yourself up through the gears, extending your lead through sector 1.

You’re going to hit top speed on the straight, and your gearing ratios will determine how fast you go, even as fast as 320kph. Use up too much KERS and you might just be sitting on the rev limiter for a touch longer than you’d like. At the end of the straight, there’s a slightly uphill braking area for the 2nd gear right handed hairpin at turn 4. Nail the braking point, else you’ll be struggling for grip on downward sloping the run out onto the shorter straight leading into the infield. You could use a bit more of your KERS here if required, but it’s best saved for the home stretch. Up through the gears to 5th, and the road suddenly drops away into a very technical and breathless sequence. Flick left, hit the apex at 215 kph, slide out, feather the throttle through the fast 160kph, 4th gear left-right chicane, rushing up a gear, immediately flipping right-left through the second chicane taken in 5th gear, 200 kph, the ‘Massa curve’, as it was light-heartedly dubbed after the Ferrari driver’s many off-track adventures there last year. Catch your breath as you climb up accelerating to 5th gear into the last sector. You’re going to need it as the realization hits: that you were just building speed and the toughest test awaits you yet.

Lo and behold, for here lies one of the most challenging corners on the calendar. The double apex right clockwise loop at the bottom of the circuit is one of the toughest corners to master. You’re braking and turning at the same time to hit the first apex in 4th gear, easing onto the power as the car tries to slide outwards to hit the kerb along the outer circumference, and then pulling the car back with all your might to hit the second apex at the inside of the loop’s exit, and left again, accelerating all the time through the latter bit, reaching 220kph in 6th gear by the time you’re out. The car needs to be set up just perfectly to maximize aero and mechanical grip to get a good time out of this little sequence. Barely have you straightened the car out, than you find yourself dropping to 4th gear for a fast right-left chicane, once again climbing uphill. Attack the kerbs to get a a good exit here, and power up to 5th gear with a dash of KERS before braking late into the 3rd gear right hander. Use the exit kerbs as you accelerate downhill, fighting to stay ahead as you brake for the 90kph 2nd gear left hander that brings you back on to the start-finish straight. Be careful while getting back on the power, it’s easy to spin out here, and very tough to recover from it. Get back on power, and use up the last bit of KERS to go blasting past the grand stand, in the lead and onto the next lap!”

Phew! Whose would these thoughts be, come Sunday, October 26th? The doc will be hoping against hope that they belong to Fernando Alonso. The Spaniard desparately needs some luck and a lot of speed to go his way. Another romp to victory from Sebastien Vettel, and Alonso might as well kiss his title hopes goodbye for another season. It’s been a very closely fought battle, but the late Bull-run has now gone beyond just looking threatening. There’s a certain rhythm that seems to be forming under the surface. The McLarens look strong in practice, Ferraris show promise, but the Red Bulls come into their own from FP3. Qualifying is still anybody’s game from rows 3 through 8, but at the top, the pattern seems set. Alonso’s consistent podium finishes have kept him in the lead, but he needs race wins, badly. Each race he doesn’t win is a race where he’s hoping and praying to finish ahead of Vettel, which doesn’t look like it might happen naturally.

The constructors’ title is not mathematically won yet, but it is hard to see RBR lose the plot. The real tussle seems to be for second position, between Ferrari, McLaren and Lotus. Felipe Massa‘s return to form will definitely help Ferrari’s bid to stay in P2, while McLaren need both their drivers to have problem free races and score points to move past the prancing horse in the championship standings. Lotus’ lack of race wins means they’ll be struggling to keep up in the race for P2, but that doesn’t take anything away from their phenomenal season thus far. Lotus have been the revelation of the season, alongside Sauber, both teams looking to finish one position above their respective 4th and 6th current standings by the end of the season.

Well, with so much at stake, the 60 laps around the Buddh International Circuit for the 2012 Airtel Indian Grand Prix promise to be action packed and spectacular! Be sure to catch all the action right here, as we bring you all the bytes and analysis right through the Grand Prix Week!

The advent of T20 cricket has revolutionized the way the game is being played all over the globe. Admittedly, there’s much less international T20 cricket on show than ODIs, yet there is an overwhelming amount of ‘domestic’ T20 leagues around. So much so, that it needs to be recognized as a parallel cricket-verse, with a galaxy of its own stars: some familiar, some brand new. The first T20 World Cup may be thought of as a prelude to the big bang: IPL-2007. Arguably, one of the first superstars to be born out of IPL 2007 was Shane Watson.

Before the IPL, Watson had been around for the best part of a decade, looked upon as a talented cricketer who could achieve something, if only he could manage to stay fit for any considerable length of time. There had been flashes of brilliance before, but the mentorship of his Hampshire teammate Shane Warne sparked off an evolution of Shane Watson, the all-round cricketer. He was the mainstay of the Rajasthan Royals‘ batting and bowling, emerging as a force to be reckoned with along the way to their IPL championship. It earned him a call up to the Australian side, and his international career hasn’t looked back since, but there was still something left wanting. There were good series, average ones, injuries, but Watson had been in ominous form going in to the 2011 ODI World Cup, smashing attacks all over the park in the lead up. The single handed demolition of Bangladesh in Bangladesh, where he had scored 185 with 15 sixes was a scary show of dominance, but he somehow failed to deliver when it really mattered: in the World Cup. That big announcement of arrival on the international stage was still missing.

That was until the 2012 T20 World Cup in Sri Lanka. Watson’s 2012 world Cup performances can be compared to Lance Klusener’s 1999 World Cup. Both men seemed nigh invincible with the bat, as they carried their respective teams through the preliminary stages of the tournaments. Both more than played a role with the ball, claiming crucial wickets. Both saw their teams crash out in the semi finals, and yet, both held the Man of the Series trophies at the end of the tournament. But most importantly, both players established a reputation along the way. Watson’s role with the bat is more of a set-up artist, while Klusener specialized as the finisher. Watson’s forte is clean, powerful through-the-line hitting off the front foot with a touch of class, while Klusener would be one to bludgeon almost anything dished up to him with raw power. And that extra bit of class that Watson exudes with the bat is what elevates him beyond Klusener.

Shane Watson’s T20 World Cup stats read: 249 runs at an average of 49.95, and 11 wickets at an average of 16.9 over 6 matches. Seriously good figures for any series. More so, because of the role he played in his team. Watson, along with David Warner and Michael Hussey, was tasked with the responsibility of being the gatekeeper who guards the brittle citadel. Australia’s middle order was inexperienced at best, and soft targets for the opposition attacks, at worst. The complete dominance shown by Watson and Warner at the top meant that the Australian middle order was never exposed throughout the tournament, with Shane Watson scoring one-third of Australia’s total runs in the tournament.

The Shane Watson playing in the world Cup was a completely transformed player as compared to the one who turned up for Australia against Pakistan in the series leading up to the tournament. There was a return to form, playing a role, normal cricketer, and suddenly when the Aussies landed in Sri Lanka, we saw a player hungry to stamp his authority on a grand stage, eager to make up for the lost opportunities of years gone by. It translated into four consecutive Man-of-the-Match performances through the group stages, and the Super-8s, and the deserved Man-of-the-Series crown, even though Australia didn’t make it past the semi final stage.

Australian cricket needs this Shane Watson to become the cornerstone of their rebuilt side. T20 is an all-rounder’s game, and someone who can win a place in the side both as a batsman and as a bowler is a precious asset. Watson is now proving to be that asset for Australia. It is natural for comparisons with Jacques Kallis to have come up, but even Watson would know that there’s much to do, much to show yet to consider himself part of that league. He’s certainly getting there, but the journey is still incomplete.

Sector 1: ‘Mickey Mouse’ corners
The first sector is the most twisty of the lot. It is a stern test of the mechanical grip & handling of the car package and demands inch-perfect precision from the drivers. The cars shoot off the starting line, building speeds up to 260 kph in sixth gear before yanking right and braking for the tightening double-apex right handed turns 1-2. The drivers’ test starts here, as they need to drop down into third gear, maintaining the racing line, turning right to hit both apexes. The trick here is to turn in as late as possible, and balancing brake, throttle and steer, as the first apex is deceptively deep, and the second deceptively tight. It becomes even more important, as the exit from turn two leads straight into the zig-zag sequence of the ‘S-Curves’ at turns 3-4-5-6-7, famously referred to as “The Mickey Mouse Corners” by the 1997 champion, Jacques Villeneuve. The cars fly into turn three in fifth gear, feathering the throttle at the apex leading into turn 4, 4th gear right hander, which opens up into the second ‘S’, climbing the hill all the time. The exit of turn four links right into turn five, a left hander taken at 185 kph in fourth gear, leading to the wider right hander at turn six, which throws the cars directly into the braking zone for the ‘Dunlop curve’ at turn seven. Carrying maximum speed through turn seven is crucial, as it’s a flat out left hander going up through the gears, subjecting the tyres to forces upto 3.5G. Floor the pedal, but keeping the car on track is vital to a good sector time.

Sector 2: Tip-Toe on the break pedal
The second sector is much faster than the first, and offers the most exciting overtaking opportunities on the track. The cars fly in form the Dunlop curve, reaching up to sixth gear, before hitting the brakes for the double 90-degree right handers at Degner-1 and Degner-2. Degner-1 is taken in fourth gear, 185 kph, use all the track, slide out on to the curb, drop down to second gear, and snap back right for Degner-2. It’s very easy to get the brake or turn-in point wrong, and can result in anything from a loss of momentum on the short sprint to the hairpin at turn 11, or in the worst case, one could end up in the wall on the exit of Degner-2. The exit of Degner-2 passes under a bridge, which is actually the circuit doubling up on itself. Exit through Degner-2, take the slight left kink through turn 10, braking hard for the right handed hairpin at turn 11. This has always been a site for some daring out-braking manoeuvres, and is sure to throw up some interesting altercations this time around as well. Rear tyre grip and low rev torque matter here, as the cars accelerate out of the hairpin, and unleash the full V8 power for the first time on the lap, going flat out in seventh gear, 240 kph around the downward sloping sweeping right handed turn 12, then climbing up to the braking zone for turns 13-14 that make up the famous ‘Spoon Curve’. Its important not to lose too much momentum through the apex of turn 13, the entry into Spoon. Aerodynamic efficiency matters here, to generate front end bite to get the line right through Spoon. It is equally important to hit the deceptively deep apex at turn 14, the exit of Spoon, getting on the power actually before hitting the apex, so that you get a good slingshot on to the back straight, going flat out over 300kph in top gear, and into sector three.

Sector 3: Fly!!!
The cars come in flat out, doing well over 300 kph in top gear, approaching the daunting left hander at 130R. This, after Eau Rouge, is probably the most demanding corner in Formula One. Taken flat out in seventh gear, this corner is tough on the tyres, as they go through high loading, acceleration and cornering at the same time. As the road straightens out, going downhill, the cars brake hard, on the downhill slope towards the extremely tight right-left chicane at turn 17, the ‘Casio Triangle’. This is the slowest point on the track, where the cars drop to second gear, 90 kph to make the exit apex. This corner is often the site of a lot of trip-ups, and brake problems, making for a potential overtaking opportunity, famously used by greats like Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost, and Michael Schumacher en route to famous victories. The braking zone for Casio is also the site of the DRS detection zone. Get a good exit out of the chicane, and accelerate downhill through the right handed final corner, onto the start finish straight. The DRS zone begins as the cars cross the finish line.

Suzuka was the site of 3 major instalments in the Senna-Prost rivalry, the last one being Ayrton Senna’s McLaren colliding into Alain Prost’s Ferrari in 1990, taking both drivers out, handing Senna the drivers’ championship. Michael Schumacher’s first drivers’ title for Ferrari was sealed at Suzuka, so was Mika Hakkinen’s for McLaren.

This season, Suzuka is a stop on the way, as the championship is still wide open, with another five races to go after Japan. Can Fernando Alonso‘s consistency score him another good haul? Can his good fortune strike again to get one of the rivals down? Can Lewis Hamilton get back in the fray [this might be his last shot this year]? Can Sebastien Vettel close the gap further? Can Kimi Raikkonen finally get that first elusive win for Lotus, and in the process mount a late charge a la 2007?

We’ll know the answers to these questions after 53 laps around this legendary circuit. And speaking of legends, we will be seeing Michael Schumacher go around Suzuka in a Formula One car for the last time, as he is set to retire at the end of the season. With his 10 place penalty, a victory might be far off, but we certainly hope the old master can show some vintage class in his final Suzuka outing.

All set for another super weekend. Rev it up, petrolheads!!!

The Silly season in F1 just got sillier than ever this week. As if the permutations and combinations around the championships weren’t enough to keep everyone on the edge of their seats, the whole “will they – won’t they saga” involving McLaren, Ferrari, Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton, Felipe Massa and Sergio Perez was simmering away on the side burner. The pot finally came to roast this week, with two major announcements coming back-to-back.

The media had been carrying stories about Lewis Hamilton’s rumoured move to Mercedes for months now, right from the time his contract renewal didn’t happen in the summer break. A full two months later, everybody was primed and ready to announce Hamilton’s move, when the other big news officially broke: Sergio Perez, Sauber’s sensational Mexican driver, was signed by McLaren on a multiple year contract. While it made Lewis’ announcement a mere formality, it also laid to rest all speculation about Perez and a Ferrari seat. The reasons for the moves may be manifold, but the implications fascinate me more:

1) The Obvious: Jenson Button is the #1 driver for McLaren in 2013

While the all-Brit team of Button and Hamilton was doing pretty well as a combination, McLaren’s policy of treating both drivers equal is bound to have caused some sparks to fly time and again. After-all, Lewis had been the protege, the man who almost overshadowed reigning double World Champion Fernando Alonso in his rookie year, missing the title by just one point; the man who won the title the very next year, touted as the next big thing and a serial champion in the making. Button, on the other hand, came to McLaren as the World Champion, while Lewis was #1 at the team. It was an adjustment for both, to not be the unanimous #1 driver, who gets that extra bit of backing to go for the title each season. Lewis’ move means that Button is now the team’s #1, while Perez will be his wingman. It’s anybody’s guess how long that status quo will remain, given the Mexican’s impressive performances over his two F1 seasons, and the extent of improvement he has shown. At least for the 2013 season, it would seem like Jenson Button will enjoy the unrequited #1 status at McLaren.

2) The other obvious bit: Lewis Hamilton is Mercedes’ #1 for 2013-15

It is clear why Mercedes went all-in for Hamilton. He’s a former World Champion, he has good relations with Mercedes since his early McLaren days, he still hasn’t realized his potential of becoming a multiple time World Champion, and he is hungry. Lewis Hamilton brings a certain killer instinct to the table which hasn’t quite been seen from Nico Rosberg, and is quite comparable to Michael Schumacher in his early days. Schumacher’s return to F1 had been less than spectacular, and clearly, with the new engine regulations coming in force from 2014, Ross Brawn is widely expected to pull another rabbit out of the hat a la 2009. It therefore makes sense for the team to have a proven contender who has time on his side to champion their cause when the time is ripe. The same works for Hamilton as well, since he would like to put himself in the best possible place to challenge for the title. At McLaren, it was a closer tussle between the teammates than with the rest of the field, due to their equal status. Here, Lewis is expected to be the #1 driver, and get all the push he needs. Its a win-win for both, with probably Nico Rosberg having to settle for a backup role. He still has 2013 to build on his first race win this season, and emerge as a strong championship contender, otherwise it will be Lewis all the way.

3) Michael Schumacher finds himself without a race drive for the first time since the Benetton days

Michale Schumacher has a dilemma. Probably not too tough, but a dilemma nevertheless. Hamilton moving to Mercedes means Schumacher is on the way out. At age 42, it is really upto him to decide whether he is still enjoying his racing. The results that were expected of him after his return, haven’t yet materialized. While Peter Sauber had expressed interest in signing Schumacher if he became free, one wonders if Michael will find enough motivation to drive for an emerging midfield team, and probably play second fiddle, too. With Mercedes, at least there was the hope of a podium or a win lying just around the corner, but that won’t be as prominent should he decide to continue lower on the grid. In the end, it’s all about the fire. He’s been there, done it all, 7 World Championships, 91 race wins, 155 podium finishes from 301 starts is the best stats in the history of the sport. One would love to see him go out on a high with win #92 this season.

4) Felipe Massa’s seat is safe for the time being

Felipe Massa fans can breathe easy now, since two of the drivers rumoured to replace him at Ferrari next season are officially not going to do so, with Mark Webber staying at Red Bull and Sergio Perez moving to McLaren. Although Massa’s performances since his injury lay off haven’t been anywhere near his teammate’s, his Ferrari drive hadn’t come under this much scrutiny earlier. The Brazilian has now been with Ferrari for 6 seasons, and his contract is due to expire at the end of 2012. With Ferrari’s policy of having a clear lead and support role assignment amongst its drivers, and the comfortable relations between Massa and the Ferrari team, a contract termination at the end of this season seems unlikely now. Although rumour mills are rife with a possible switch featuring Nico Hulkenberg!

5) Paul DiResta isn’t racing for McLaren next year.

While the Scot was being linked to a move to McLaren in the event of Hamilton’s departure, it is now clear that any such move will not be for a racing seat for the 2013 season. DiResta has shown good pace and racecraft during his two years at Force India, but he might just have to wait a bit longer to really get into the big leagues.

6) How’s the rest of the season going to play out?

We have a very curious situation now, where Lewis Hamilton, McLaren’s only realistic title hope this season is certain to be leaving them at the end of the year. Being the thorough professionals that they are, it shouldn’t really affect the efforts put in to give Hamilton that push in the remainder of the season. McLaren have been struggling with reliability issues though, and a failure on Hamilton’s car is sure to look that much uglier.

Michael Schumacher might be competing in the last few races of his illustrious career, and won’t we all love to see that victory leap on the top step, one last time!

Amid all the chaos, the drivers’ Championship picture is just getting more and more interesting.  Fernando Alonso is sitting pretty at the top of the charts, with only Vettel, Raikkonen and Hamilton having any chances of catching up with him. With six races still to go, it is a wide open championship, but the unpredictably close nature of this season can only help Alonso’ case as long as he keeps finishing races in the top 5-6 places. At any rate, the 2012 season has been a fascinating watch and the events of the last week have certainly heightened curiosities about 2013 already!

COLOMBO, SRI LANKA – SEPTEMBER 19: Yuvraj Singh of India celebrates with teammates after dismissing Asghar Stanikzai of Afghanistan during the ICC World Twenty20 2012: Group A match between India and Afghanistan at R. Premadasa Stadium on September 19, 2012 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images,)

That India, undisputed heavyweights of the game, would be counted as strong contenders for the World T20 championship is no surprise. What is surprising, is the lowly ranking the 2007 champions hold currently. India’s recent track record in T20 internationals is far from impressive, and a washout and a loss to the Kiwis can hardly be construed as a good lead up. Be as it may, the abundance of batting talent and the guile of captain MS Dhoni are factors too big to be discounted while looking at their prospects.

India’s strength is their batting. Yes, it’s worth repeating, because in T20, batting goes a long way in wresting the advantage from the opposition. However, in reality, the batting is very heavily reliant on one man: Virat Kohli. He’s been in the form of his life for the past year, and shows no signs of letting up. He would still need support from Gambhir, Sehwag, Raina, Yuvraj and Dhoni. Rohit Sharma has been far from his fluent self, which could hand Manoj Tiwary a go as the 7th batsman. Another option would be to go with Irfan Pathan as a number 7 batsman and opening bowler, but that isn’t the Dhoni way.

HOBART, AUSTRALIA – FEBRUARY 28: Virat Kohli of India celebrates after hitting the winning runs during the One Day International match between India and Sri Lanka at Bellerive Oval on February 28, 2012 in Hobart, Australia. (Photo by Scott Barbour/Getty Images)

India’s fielding has been top class in the shortest form of the game, with the side packed with young and athletic fielders. This is one area where the IPL has certainly had a positive effect. It has brought the fielding standards much closer to the international benchmark.

It’s no secret that India’s biggest weakness and worry is their bowling; especially the death bowling. It has been a bane in ODIs and even tests (bowling the tail out cheaply is something we seem to struggle with). Dhoni has a lot of slow bowling part-timers at his disposal: Sehwag, Raina, Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj and should he play, Manoj Tiwary can all roll the arm over, but it is a high risk game of hit and miss. The brunt has to be borne by Ashwin, Zaheer, Irfan and/or Umesh Yadav. Ashwin will be Dhoni’s trump card, as he is at CSK as well, while Zaheer will be the spearhead of the attack, as he was in the 2011 ODI campaign, which is where the problem starts. Zaheer hasn’t looked anywhere near being as effective, and the wickets have almost dried up.

There’s a comeback man with a bag of wickets we have almost forgotten, though. The million dollar question that might just solve India’s problem is: Will Dhoni gamble with playing Harbhajan in the same lineup as Ashwin? Also, how ready and hungry is the Turbanator? His return can give India a much needed fillip in the bowling department.

Speaking of comebacks, how can one not talk about Yuvraj Singh. Back from an almost impossible layoff, he has looked the part in the games played so far. The timing, power and the fire are right there. There’s some rust and a considerable way to go before the stamina gets back up to 100%, but he has been such a talisman for Indian cricket, that even at 85% fitness, India needs Yuvraj to play. The team will want to win this for him, the way they did for Sachin. This is what makes having Yuvraj around such a masterstroke. The talent is all there, but it takes a bond and a fiery desire to win big championships, and that’s what Yuvraj’s presence is really sought for. Will he be the glue that binds this team’s desires? Will he rise against all odds when the chips are down? Time will tell, but just the fact that he is out there is a monumental achievement.

The challenge then for Dhoni and Fletcher, is to get the right men to rally around Kohli with the bat and give the right launch pad for Yuvraj, Raina and Dhoni for the finish, while judiciously using Ashwin’s mystery balls and getting the other frontline bowlers to chip in with wickets. The latter will matter a lot as the tournament kicks into higher gears.

So, as we look forward to the final (essentially warm up) game before India’s campaign really kicks off with the super eights, here’s wishing the men in blue all the best. A fourth star above the heart would look nice on the blue jersey….

http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/09/11/icc-world-t20-the-contenders-part-1/

http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/09/13/icc-world-t20-the-contenders-part-2-sri-lanka-pakistan/

In this installment of the series, we take a look at three sides, which are yet to win a T20 World Cup. The Southern twins: Australia & New Zealand, and the band of marauders from the Caribbean: The West Indies.

Australia : A team in flux

Australia playing T20 cricket is somewhat an awkward sight. First of all, there’s so many unfamiliar faces in every series that one instantly gets spooked. The fact that they have not to-date been able to establish any sort of dominance on the format adds to the unsettling feeling. After all, you see the green and gold, and you expect a ruthless display of foot-on-the-throat cricket. But Australia in T20 cricket has been a team in a constant state of flux. They’re playing under their 6th captain since their T20 debut. This, and the fact that George Bailey, their current captain, made his T20I debut as the captain, stands testament to the instability at the helm. Bailey has his work cut out to establish himself at the international level, and build a team despite incessant chopping and changing, and mount a World Cup campaign in his 1st year, all at the same time.

But if you look at the squad, outside this context, you’d wonder what all the fuss is about. The dynamic David Warner and Shane Watson to open, with the ever reliable Michael Hussey to follow (who can forget the heroic 2010 semifinal winning assault on Saeed Ajmal!!), supported by George Bailey and Mathew Wade in the middle order, with David Hussey, Daniel Christian and/or Cameron White to finish. That is a potent arsenal, given White actually finds some form on his comeback (given he actually makes the playing 11). The strength with Australia is that they bat deep: number 11 – deep.

It is the Australian bowling that is the biggest unknown. The only established faces are Shane Watson – who is actually an all-rounder – and Ben Hilfenhaus. Clint McKay has been around, but isn’t yet a permanent member of the team. Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins in their first full year of international cricket will have to bear the responsibility of being Australia’s strike bowlers. Dan Christian is useful with the ball. But the biggest surprise is the inclusion of Brad Hogg at the ripe old age of 41. It is as much a testament to the spirit and determination of the man, as it is to the dearth of quality spin bowling options at Australia’s disposal. We expect him to get the nod ahead of Doherty, and possibly even Maxwell.

When the bowling attack isn’t intimidating enough, that responsibility falls onto the fielding unit. Australia have always been one of the best fielding sides, and this time they will be heavily reliant on fielding to cover any bowling shortcomings. Don’t be surprised if we see a lot more of the classic Aussie swagger and sledge intimidation technique on the field. They’re going to need it.

New Zealand : The Perennial Underdogs

The Kiwis enter yet another tournament as underdogs. They always have, even when they won the ICC Knock Outs in 2000-01 in Nairobi, even when they made the 1992, 1996, 1999, 2007, 2011 semifinals in the ODI World Cup. They’re never really fancied, but they always seem to find themselves somewhere near the last four in a major tournament. The secret to that is team-play and occasional individual brilliance. The most unique feature of New Zealand’s cricket is that stars don’t matter. The team does.

They will be hoping for some of that individual magic from their big guns: Brendan McCullum and Ross Taylor. Both are capable of single-handedly winning matches, yet have this distinct hit-or-miss feel about them. The bowling will be heavily reliant on Kyle Mills for the initial burst with Doug Bracewell and Tim southee to support, and Daniel Vettori to control the middle overs. Vettori has the most miserly economy rate, and probably the best strike rate in T20 Internationals. His experience and guile will be vital to holding New Zealand’s campaign together. He will be supported by another senior Kiwi who finds himself in a rather favorable position after a brilliant SLPL: Jacob Oram. The likes of James Franklin, Nathan McCullum, Ronnie Hira will have to chip in with some useful filler overs.

At an individual level, this is a great opportunity for the younger generation to step forth and be counted. Southee, Bracewell, Williamson are New Zealand’s future core team, and solid performances will be expected of them.

In the form book, they have struggled since beating Australia last year. Not so successful tours of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, West Indies, and a Test thrashing in India aren’t a good lead up to a world tournament. However, they can take heart from their ODI World Cup campaign. And also from the speculation about the wickets not being the typical flat, spinning Lankan wickets, but more alive like ones back home.

All in all, as always with the Kiwis, it’s about grit. The will to shine at the world stage, and the understanding of the ‘team’ aspect of the game will see them through. An outright win will only come if they are able to collectively lift their game up a couple of notches.

West Indies : The Caribbean Pirates

The West Indies, once the most feared team in world cricket have now been in decline for far too long. It is nature’s law that whatever goes up, must come down, and whatever hits the ground, must bounce back up. West Indies cricket still has potential to bounce back up. It is their internal conflict, discord amongst administrators and superstar players that has delayed the rise of the Calypso Kings.

Things are finally looking like coming together though, which is what makes the West Indies team one of the most intimidating units on paper. Imagine getting Chris Gayle out, only to see Dwayne Bravo walk in, followed by Marlon Samuels, Dwayne Smith, Darren Bravo, and if you do manage to limit the damage, there’s Keiron Pollard waiting in the wings, with Andre Russel and Darren Sammy padded up for the final dash. What bowling side wouldn’t be in sweats! The likes of Gayle, Bravo, Smith, Pollard have been scaring the pants off bowlers in all T20 leagues around the world. IPL, BPL, Big Bash, English County leagues, you name them, they’ve pulverized them. For the past few years, these stars of the Carribbean have been playing as mercenaries, plying their trade across the world. Finally, now when they come together in West Indies colours, one can only hope they still remember how to play together as a team.

However, if you think it’s just the batting that is heavily stacked, and West Indies matches are going to be all about thier 20 overs of striking, you’ve got another thing coming. The bowling attack headed by Ravi Rampaul and Kemar Roach with support from Pollard, Russel, Gayle, Sammy, Samuels is by no means a weak link. Rampaul in particular has improved a lot over the last couple of years. But Darren Sammy’s Ace of Spades is going to be Sunil Narine. The diminutive off spinner had been nigh unpickable during KKR’s IPL victory, and he will definitely deliver 4 overs of mystery every game. It is up to the captain and the other bowlers to capitalize on that, and restrict the opposition.

The main challenge before the West Indies, then, is to manage the prima donnas in their squad, and get the team to gel together, work together as a unit on the field. The superstars have to play for the team, putting individual goals aside. If they can do that, and fire at a consistent rate, the West Indies are going to be a very very tough force to beat.

In the last installment of this series, we will take a deep look at team India. Just around the corner.

When we talk about Formula One, we think of unbridled speed, infinitely intricate mechanics, rocket-like cars, legendary tracks hosting thrilling races. The glitz, glamour and fanfare is heady, and often showered on the men behind the wheel, taming the mechanical beasts. But we must be mindful of what makes it possible, what makes them feel like they can take those risks every other weekend, what makes them feel – safe. Safety is paramount today, and the advances in safety standards have come a long way over the past two decades, the credit for which goes cheifly to a man the Formula One world knew as ‘The Professor’. He was Dr. Sid Watkins, a neurosurgeon by qualification, and a life saver for a number of people, including Formula One aces like Mika Hakkinen, Rubens Barrichello, Martin Donnelly, Gerhard Berger and Frank Williams. Yet, his most famous acquaintances remain a few of the ones that got away: Gilles Villeneuve, Ayrton Senna. He passed away at the age of 84. Here’s a tribute to the great man:

Life before F1

During his formative years, Sid Watkins had worked hands-on with his father in his garage, repairing bicycles and motor vehicles. During his graduation, he had conducted research on the effects of heat stress on performance, finding that increased heat greatly affected intellectual performance. A tenure with the military in Africa, and a stint as professor of Neurosurgery in the States came and went before he returned to England, and was eventually pulled into F1 by Bernie Ecclestone himself, in 1978.

Early F1 years

The Prof’s first brush with Motorsport safety was during his involvement with speedway tracks, which later graduated into running the safety and medical operations at the British Grand Prix, then held at Brands Hatch. Ecclestone got him on board with the Formula One establishment in 1978, at a time when medevac wasn’t even a thought. Medical Centers were makeshift huts, and on-call hospitals weren’t much to talk about either, let alone the modern facilities like air pick-ups and immediate evacuations. Dr. Watkins’ body of work started from ground zero, level zero. The stern support offered by Bernie Ecclestone was of major aid as it firmly emphasized driver safety for the first time. Accidents and injuries were still a very matter-of-fact phenomenon. However, when Gilles Villeneuve’s Ferrari crashed at Zolder in 1982, it was a big big shock. Dr. Watkins was the man who put a tube down Villeneuve’s throat to keep him alive until he could be hospitalized. He was there when Villeneuve had to be taken off life support. Later that year, when Riccardo Paletti’s car crashed and caught fire on the first lap, Prof. Watkins was at the scene within 16 seconds, battling against the fire in an attempt to save the fatally wounded Paletti.

Association with Ayrton Senna

Ayrton Senna, in particular was very close to the Prof., who was like a father figure for the Brazilian great. There are numerous anecdotes about their interactions, of which the ones regarding Martin Donelly’s crash at Spa and their exchange after Ratzenberger’s fatal crash at Imola during that fateful 1994 weekend are the most talked about. As is vividly documented in the film ’Senna’, while returning from the crash site, a pensive Dr. Watkins had said to a very visibly disturbed Senna that he had already accomplished a lot, he was the fastest driver around, and that it was probably time to walk away. That he would also retire and they could just go fishing. To which Senna had fatefully replied, that there are some things over which we have no control, and that he couldn’t quit. He had to go on. It was ironic, that it was the same man whom he had to attend to after the fateful crash.

The Motor Racing World probably wouldn’t have got the chance to celebrate Senna’s genius though, had it not been for a witty quip from the Professor, to Peter Warr, the Lotus team principal in 1985. Senna was in his first year at Lotus, had contracted Bell’s Palsy, a condition caused by swelling of facial nerves. A possible complication was an inability to shut his eyelid, which could have meant forcibly suturing it to avoid long term damage to the eye. When contacted by Warr regarding his concern over Senna recovering in time for the racing season, the Professor had quipped, “Don’t you think it is better if racing drivers keep both their eyes open?” His reputation, and confidence in Senna’s recovery was probably what convinced Lotus to wait, and the rest is history.

Contribution to modern F1 safety standards

That 1994 Imola weekend changed F1 for ever. A lot of misconceptions about safety in F1 were deeply shattered by the three accidents that happened. Rubens Barrichello survived, Ratzenberger and Senna didn’t, and the motor racing world took the issue of safety with the due seriousness that it should have. Prof. Watkins was named Chairman of the expert Advisory Group of Formula One, with a mandate to bother with no restraints on the safety front. What followed were simple, yet impactful changes. Prof. Watkins headed a team of scientists carefully chosen, to analyze everything from chassis design, crash resistance, to drivers’ biomechanics and even circuit design. The results trickled in gradually: widened seatblets, hightened cockpit sides, better padding on the inside of the cockpit and monocoque, stronger materials and extremely stringent validation for the monocoque integrity, collapsible steering columns, all step-by-step contributing to a much safer environment. The HANS [Head And Neck Safety] device that we see the drivers wear on their shoulders these days comes as a product of the chain reaction that started under, and was catalysed by Prof. Watkins. To put things in perspective, this research and responsibility was undertaken by a man in his 70s, an age when most would be content to count their days in the sunshine. It was this dedication and this care for everyone involved that endeared The Professor so much to all the Formula One fraternity. During the course of his involvement with motor racing, he authored two books: Life at the limit, and Beyond Limits. The fact that 1994 was the last fatality in an F1 car is a testament to the standards achieved by his work.

With his passing, a stalwart of the world of Formula One has departed, leaving behind scores of eternally grateful eyes. We take this chance to pay our respects to the man who Professed the value of life at the limit, and beyond it. Salute to Prof. Sid Watkins.

ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA – MARCH 08: Farveez Maharoof of Sri Lanka and team mate Upul Tharanga celeabrate during their partnership during the third One Day International Final series match between Australia and Sri Lanka at Adelaide Oval on March 8, 2012 in Adelaide, Australia.

Continuing our peeks at the ICC World T20 2012 contenders, I take a look at Sri Lanka and Pakistan in this second installment.

Find Part One here: [http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/09/11/icc-world-t20-the-contenders-part-1/]

Sri Lanka : The Good Hosts.

Sri Lanka, the hosts have quietly got themselves perched at #3 on the ICC World T20 rankings, yet not many people are talking about them. Not many people were talking about them in 2011 either, or for that matter in 2007, or even 1996! But it’s the Lankan Lions’ pedigree to punch above their weights and leave a big impression. If there’s one thing you could point out as the characteristic of Sri Lanka’s cricket, it would have to be the way they always enjoy their game.

This is a team that is in the initial stages of an impending transition, the leadership has come full circle to the inimitably classy Mahela Jayawardena, giving Tilekaratne Dilshan total freedom to do what he does best: decimate attacks at the top of the innings. Kumar Sangakkara‘s form was a bit of a worry throughout the last year, but he seems to be getting his touch back, if the brief India series was any indication. Sri Lanka’s hopes will revolve around the batting of these three big guns, with Thilan Samaraweera, Dinesh Chandimal and Ajantha Mendis playing supporting roles, and the likes of Thisara Perera and Angelo Matthews to be called upon for the finish.

Sri Lanka’s bowling might look heavily dependent on the pace and guile of Lasith Malinga, but there’s more to them than meets the eye. The spin of Rangana Herath could be an unforeseen stumbling block for many a side. Their real strength though, is in their all rounders. Nuwan Kulasekara, with his propensity for belligerent counter-attacks is expecially invaluable. Angelo Mathews has been earmarked by many as a future leader, and his cool temperament will be a big asset in tight situations. Their performances will make the final telling difference to Sri Lanka’s prospects.

The challenge that befalls Sri Lanka is to offload the seniors, and extract performances out of the up-and-coming stars of tomorrow. A lesser concundrum is choosing Dilshan’s opening partner. Jayawardena might have to step up to the opener’s slot at the cost of Tharanga to get the balance perfectly right. They have the potential, they have the right attitude, but there’s something intangible that hasn’t quite clicked yet, which holds us back from naming the hosts as red-hot favourites for the title.

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND – JULY 06: Pakistan batsman Saeed Ajmal in action during the 2nd Twenty20 International match between Pakistan and Australia at Edgbaston on July 6, 2010 in Birmingham, England. 

 Pakistan : The Men from Mercury?

Think of Pakistan Cricket, and the first word to jump to your mind, is ‘mercurial’. Pakistan’s talent pools are as incomparable as their inconsistency and propensity to self-destruct from winning positions. Even so, the Pakistan team, riding  on the back of some inspired cricket from the ageless wonder (or blunder? Maybe thunder!) Shahid Afridi in what could have been called their ‘[adopted] home’ conditions shone through to win the World T20 Championship in 2009. They were very sore when they had to defend their title within 10 months of winning it. And sure enough, as fate would have it, the defense had to take place in West Indies, the scene of their sorriest World Cup show in 2007, and the campaign proved doomed from the outset. Fast forward to 2012, and we see a young Pakistan side, under a new captain, another new coach and a clutch of fresh faces gathering themselves for another stake at the crown.

There are some familiar faces, too. Shahid Afridi as long as he un-retires, will be a de facto selection, so probably will Abdur Razzaq (especially in big matches). On their umpteenth comebacks are Imran Nazir, Shoaib Malik and Kamran Akmal (seriously have to wonder about the drought of wicket keeper batsmen in Pakistan). Be as it may, these names aren’t to be written off lightly. Pakistan’s real strength though, lies in their bowling – slow bowling. Umar Gul may disagree, and rightfully so, for he is one of the best in the seam bowling clique, but there is no talking around the fact that the single largest threat opposition batsmen face against Pakistan, is the magician Saeed Ajmal.

Saeed Ajmal and Umar Gul have been the backbone of Pakistan bowling for the past couple of years, and their outstanding wicket-taking abilities have propped up many a win. Mohammad Hafeez will do well to utilize his two main weapons smartly, and get the likes of Sami, Sohail Tanveer, the promising spinner Raza Hassan and himself to play the supporting roles.

The batting at the moment is a mix-n-match, with Hafeez leading at the top. Youngsters like Asad Shafiq and Nasir Jamshed have looked good, but they’re yet to announce themselves properly on the world stage. This might be as good an opportunity as they will get. A lot was expected of Umar Akmal, and a lot still is. He will be one of the pivots the middle order will look to bat around, with specialists like Afridi, Razzaq or Yasir Arafat to come in and apply finishing touches.

Pakistan are coming off a good tour of Sri Lanka, which will stand them in good stead. The ground conditions suit their style of play, The series win against a rebuilding Australian side will have further boosted the belief in the Pakistan camp, and for a side as naturally gifted as Pakistan, more often than not, it’s just a matter of belief that makes the crucial difference between winning and losing when it really counts.

In our next installment, we’ll glance at the band of Calypso T20 Mercenaries, and the quarrelling neighbours from Down Under. So stay tuned!

The ICC World T20 Championship is right around the corner. Everybody is busy putting the finishing touches on their preparations as they descend on the Emerald Isle of Sri Lanka. We are busy whetting our appetites for what should be a closely contested tournament, and muttering prayers under our breaths for the rain Gods to have some mercy and let the games actually begin. The scheduling of such a major tournament in an island nation, in the middle of monsoon can only be termed extremely hopeful at best, but that’s the way the cookie seemingly crumbles (or gets soaked.. whatever). In any case, we’ll be taking a look at the top contenders for the crown this year as we count down the days to the start of the 4th edition of the ICC World T20 Championships. Let’s start with the teams topping the World Cricket rankings: England and South Africa.

England – The Defending Champions

Will Kevin Pietersen be missed in this line-up?

England, the defending Champions from the 2010 edition would start as one of the hot favourites in this edition of the ICC World T20 Championships. Their major strength comes from the momentum they will be carrying into the tournament. ICC T20 in 2010 was in many ways, a turning point for the English team, then captained by Paul Collingwood. Since that time, they have won the Ashes in Australia, whitewashed India, had a good tour of Sri Lanka and are coming off a well fought series against South Africans. Their Emirate sting may have been a low note, but there is no undermining the team that stands as World #1 in ODIs and #2 in Tests and T20.

Ever since splitting the captaincy between the three formats (becoming the first team to do so), England have gone from strength to strength. Specialist players like Craig Kieswetter, Ravi Bopara and Jade Dernbach lend solidity to the line up headed by Stuart Broad. Graeme Swann, one of the two best off spinners in the world is a big big threat in any format, and the spin friendly wickets of Sri Lanka would definitely aid his craft. Eoin Morgan will be a key player in the middle order, and will have to deliver the goods for England to be in with a chance to defend their title. Tim Bresnan, who impressed in the ODI World cup will also have a role to play, should England feel the need for a fast bowling all rounder.

The catch with England, as has been for quite some time now, is Kevin Pietersen, or his absence, as it were. A lot of credit for England’s ascension must go to Pietrsen’s explosive batting. His dominating presence on the crease will be sorely missed, but the controversial distractions that come as a package deal, surely won’t. England will be faced with questions about their contract policies that led to Pietersen’s initial exclusion, at different points in the tournament, especially because of KP’s presence in the media box, a move which has rumoured to have angered ECB. Coach Andy Flower will have a tough job on his hands to keep all the off-field distractions strictly off the field, and get his contingent to perform at their best in their bid to become the first ever repeat T20 Champions.

South Africa – The Perennial Dark Horses

Hashim Amla has been in sublime form, scoring boundaries at will

The Proteas will once again start as one of the favourites to win the Championship, and will once again be asked the same old questions that have haunted them for decades. Yes, the ones about the ‘C-word’. Ever since their comeback to international cricket, the South Africans have been a formidable force, almost too good to fail in the number of tournaments they have not won. Yet they have found novel ways to do exactly that. The mandate this time, is clearer than ever. They are the No. 1 ranked team in Tests and T20s, and were only marginally edged out of the triple crown in the ODI rankings. There is no room for error.

One look at the South African squad, and the only thing that hits you, is that they really don’t need ‘specialists’ for this form of the game. Hashim Amla is in sublime touch, scoring boundaries at will. Jacques Kallis is the epitome of adaptability and re-invention in the modern game. Of today’s players, Kallis is the most complete cricketer around, and has affected the biggest transformation in his game just to make it suitable for this super short format. The fact that he can practically walk in to any team as a batsman, or a bowler or even a slip fielder is no mean fact, and nearing the end of his career, he would definitely be anxious to add some gold to his trophy cabinet. Holding the batting together is the explosive captain AB DeVilliers. His single handed match winning abilities need no introduction. Bowlers around the world know exactly how unmanageable he can be due to his fearless and unorthodox ways, and can turn games around in a matter of an over. Players like JP Duminy, Francois DuPlessis, Colin Ingram need to step up and build innings around these kingpins. The surprise package of Richard Levi needs to be used sparingly, as although he can be an impact player at the top of the order, he was found wanting against spin in the IPL, and can easily backfire.

The bowling is often a neglected area in T20s, but when a team boasts of an attack that opens with Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel, most of us would prefer to just shut up and stare in awe. Especially in a 20 over game, which often hinges around a couple of overs at the beginning that can wreck an innings before it can get started or a couple at the death to derail a strong beginning. And with options like Johan Botha, Lonwabo Tsotsobe, Robin Peterson or Wayne Parnell, the middle overs don’t look like a cakewalk either. Combine that with the highest standards South African teams have traditionally upheld in the field, and you understand why they are the perennial dark horses of any competition.

Like many previous occasion, all the ingredients are in place yet again. All it needs is a dash of the maverick spirit, and a hint of good fortune to get South Africa their first World T20 championship.

After the first five races of the season,  Fernando Alonso‘s superhuman will power had pulled his Ferrari across the line enough times to have him tied at the top with the defending champion Sebastian Vettel, whereas team Lotus were proving to be a dark horse, sitting comfortably in 3rd position in the Constructors’  Championship ahead of Ferrari and Mercedes. The action on track though, was just getting hotter.

Monaco

With a never before seen competitiveness amongst virtually all runners, the 6th stop on the calendar, F1′s most glamorous event, the Monaco Grand Prix promised to be a spectacular one, and it delivered an exciting, yet processional race. Mark Webber became the 6th man to win a Grand Prix this year, thereby creating a new record. 6 races, 6 winners was an unprecedented event. Monaco also saw some vintage Schumacher magic, as the veteran stormed to provisional pole position in qualifying, only to be pushed down 5 places due to a penalty he had recieved in the previous race. Nico Rosberg proved that he was equally quick, as he closely followed Webber for majority of the race to take a strong 2nd place. Fernando Alonso continued pulling the Ferrari across to score another podium, taking the lead in the points standings by 3 points over the thwo Red Bull drivers in joint second place.

Canada

The 7th round took us across the Atlantic, to the city of Montreal for the Canadian Grand Prix held at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Memories of last year’s race were fresh, where a rain delayed race saw Jenson Button come up from the back of the field to take the win from Sebastian Vettel on the last lap. This year’s event though, was completely dry. It turned out to be a race of tyre management. Ferrari were, for the first time in the season, fighting for an outright win, unaided by weather or safety cars. Fernando Alonso led the race until the final 7 laps, when his Pirelli tyres fell off the proverbial cliff, enabling a late stopping Lewis Hamilton to come back and pass him comfortably on the back straight for the win. By the end of the race, Alonso had slipped to 5th behind Hamilton, Grosjean, Perez and Vettel. Both Grosjean and Perez took full advantage of the ambient heat and their cars’ good tyre wear management to finish on the podium. The record was stretched once again as Hamilton’s win made him the 7th different winner from the first 7 races of the season.

Europe

Round 8, the European Grand Prix in the dockyards of Valencia, another home race for the Spaniard Fernando Alonso, and did he reign supreme on that Sunday! Sebastian Vettel led the race comfortably until a safety car intervention bunched the field up. On the restart, Alonso, who had started in 11th, but was up to 3rd by this time, jumped the Lotus of Romain Grosjean at the first corner to get right up in the hunt for the top spot, and when theRenault engine in the back of Sebastian Vettel’s RedBull failed, Alonso was lying in wait, eagerly taking the lead and running off with it. Grosjean was mounting a strong challenge, when his Lotus Renault also came to an abrupt hault, leaving Alonso in the lead, and Raikkonen chasing Hamilton. Raikkonen did manage to pass Hamilton, who was punted out in the closing stages of the race by Pastor Maldonado, gifting the 3rd place to Michael Schumacher. It was a moment for the old scrapbooks, as we saw Fernando Alonso, Kimi Raikkonen and Michael Schumacher back together on the podium after 6 long years, with their colors interchanged. Alonso beacme the first repeat winner this year, finally snapping the record streak.

Britain

Silverstone is always an exciting track to race on and the layout changes from last year have just added to the challenges. To add to it this year was torrential rain on Saturday. So much so that the qualifying session had to be stopped mid way to ensure safety of the drivers. Fernando Alonso emerged on pole position yet again. He led the race imperiously on a dry track yet again, choosing to opt for a long final stint, whereas the pursuing Red Bull of Mark Webber chose to do a shorter last stint, enabling the Aussie to make a remarkable on-track pass on Alonso, with just a handful of laps to go. The third podium place went to Sebastian Vettel. Felipe Massa had his first decent race of the season, taking 4th place, while Kimi Raikkonen continued to impress in 5th. The star of the day however, was the other Lotus driver, Romain Grosjean, who after having to pit on lap 1, battled all the way from the back of the field to take a strong 6th place finish. But with both McLarens finihsing well below par, the championship now looked to be developing into a three horse race between Alonso and the two Red Bulls of Vettel and Webber.

Germany

The German Grand Prix took us to Hokenheim this year, as opposed to Nurburgring last year. Another wet qualifying session saw Lotus impress whilst it was dry, but the masterful Alonso bagged another pole, and the rainmeister Schumacher propelled his Mercedes to a 3rd place on the starting grid. The race was all dry though, and the resurgent McLarens stole the show. Jenson Button put in an amazing drive to hold second position for the better part of the race. His teammate Lewis Hamilton pulled a real stunt, as he raced the leaders to unlap himself in the middle phase of the race, earning a few earfuls in the process. A controversial move by Sebastian Vettel on Jenson Button for second place at the hairpin ended badly for the defending champion, as a time penalty dropped him down from 2nd to 5th on the grid, giving Button 2nd place and Raikkonen 3rd. While all this was unfolding behind him, Fernando Alonso drove yet another superb, incident free race, and managed his tyres just well enough to secure a comfortable victory, extending his lead in the drivers’ championship standings. Button’s performance allowed McLaren to hold on to a slender one point lead over Lotus for 3th place in the constructors’ championship led by Red Bull and [with daylight spearating them] Ferrari.

Hungary

With 10 rounds done, at the halfway point of the season, The championship scene was starting to get a bit clear, but there was no time to catch one’s breath as the next Grand Prix was to be held the very next weeekend, at the Hungaroring. The Hungarian Grand Prix is traditionally known for processional races, attended by a heavy Finnish fan following. This was was no different in those terms, but was not short of drama. Lewis Hamilton continued McLaren’s resurgence by snatching pole position by a big margin in an otherwise tremendously close qualifying session. Romain Grosjean put his Lotus on the front row, teasing if this would be the race when Lotus finally bag a race win. He followed Hamilton around for 2/3rds of the race, through slow first pit stops, and quick second stops, but the Iceman had other things on his mind. Stuck behind Alonso with a misfiring KERS, Raikkonen Put in some absolute storming laps as soons as Alonso pitted to get the jump on him, and in his second stint, was awesomely quick to make time up on the duelling Button and Vettel, coming out of the pitlane, right beside Grosjean on track. The absence of team orders in Lotus became apparent as Raikkonen edged out Grosjean for the second spot, exiting turn 1. The flying Finn went on to put in thunderous laps to open up a 14 second margin by the time the final pit stops came around. 18 seconds would have been enough to come back out in the lead, but as it turned out, Hamilton retook the lead in the pits, and despite a spirited charge from Kimi, managed to retain his slender lead until the chequered flag.

At the end of 11 rounds, and going into the summer break, Fernando Alonso finds himself well clear of his chasers, though he cannot quite feel comfortable yet, given the closeness of the competition, the resurgence of McLaren, the resilience shown by Lotus and the ever competitive RedBulls. The Drivers’ Championship standings now look thus:
1. Fernando Alonso 164
2. Mark Webber 124
3. Sebastian Vettel 122
4. Lewis Hamilton 117
5. Kimi Räikkönen 116

Lotus are the real surprise package of this season. With a revamped driver lineup and an extremely solid basic design, they have managed to surpass a lot of expectations. Finding themselves leading powerhouses such as Merceds and Ferrari, given their relatively meagre resources is a great achievement. They now trail McLaren by just one point. RedBull are predictably the championship leaders, since Alonso has been the lone consistent Ferrari driver, and McLaren have been largely mercurial in the early season. The Constructors’ Championship standins tell the story really well:
1. Red Bull Racing-Renault 246
2. McLaren-Mercedes 193
3. Lotus-Renault 192
4. Ferrari 189
5. Mercedes 106

The summer break will last throughout the month, and racing will resume in Belgium, at the legendary Spa Francorchamps circuit. It also marks the start of the silly season, when transfers, renegotiations and rumours are rife. Mark Webber has already confirmed his drive at RedBull for the next year, but Lewis Hamilton’s contract was up for renegotiation at McLaren. Felipe Massa’s fortune has been a subject of much discussion, linked with a possible Ferrari signing of Webber or Perez. Webber is now out of the equation, making Perez a strong contender for a scarlet driver next season. Another high profile driver with an uncertain future is the legendary Michale Schumacher. His provisional pole at Monaco and podium finish at Valencia have shown that he still has the speed and hunger, but his comeback has been undoubtedly overshadowed by Nico Rosberg’s performances in the Mercedes car for two and a half seasons now. Whether he will find it in himself to keep going is something we’ll all be looking very intently at.

With that, I’ll take your leave for the time being, see you when the racing resumes!

The 2012 F1 season: Too close for comfort !

The 2012 Formula 1 season has seen the most competitive and closely contested F1 championship in recent times. It has been a breathless roller coaster thus far, with quite a lot of unprecedented events taking place. We’ve seen 7 different winners from the opening 7 rounds of the championship, and could very well have had 8 or 9 in all. We have seen qualifying times for the top 15 cars to be within 1 second of each other on multiple occasions and there have been lots of scraps going on, up and down the field, throughout the races. Different teams have responded to different conditions with varying results, and almost everyone has tried their own version of a strategy to cope with the much talked-about Pirelli tyres. This is probably a good time to take stock of the events that have unfolded thus far, and brace ourselves for what is still to come.

Australia

McLaren and Jenson – On the Button from the start

The introduction of the platypus-nosed designs throughout the field to adhere to new regulations [barring a couple of exceptions] was a much fancied chat topic in the pre season. They looked ugly and they looked “un-F1-ish”. McLaren chose to ignore the Platypus option and produced a car that didn’t just look elegant, but proved to be the best of the field in the opening race with Jenson Button taking a comfortable win. The much-hyped return of the “Iceman” Kimi Raikkonen got off to a reasonable start with a points finish in the first round after being out-qualified by his teammate, Romain Grosjean. The late-race scrap in the midfield with a strong showing from Williams and Mercedes was a sign of things to come, but a bigger warning sign was the lack of pace shown by Ferrari, and the way Fernando Alonso had willed it into a points position.

Malaysia
Round 2 led us to the rainy equatorial surprise that is Sepang, and rain it did! After a refrigerator fire in Raikkonen’s garage that melted his ice creams became headline stuff, expectations weren’t too high from the weekend as it was still a flyaway race; and McLaren’s Australia advantage seemed enough to carry them through. However, rain intervened, nullifying Ferrari’s disadvantage, and it was an unlikely Ferrari-Sauber battle between Fernando Alonso and Sergio Perez that livened things up. Perez had a real chance of passing Alonso for the win in the closing stages of the race, but a late mistake meant that he had to settle for 2nd, with Alonso becoming the 2nd race winner of the season.

China

Nico Rosberg celebrates his maiden F1 win

Still a flyaway race, but teams were already starting to bring upgrades. By now it was clear that tyre wear was going to be a major issue for everyone, more so for the Mercedes team. Ferrari had conceded that their rear end design was not upto scratch and it could be a very uphill battle ahead. The race itself, though sprang another surprise. Nico Rosberg, in his 6th season of Formula 1, raced to his maiden Grand Prix victory and in the process, giving the Mercedes team their first win of the season. Given the tyre wear predictions, Rosberg’s win was a big surprise and viewed as Mercedes having turned the corner. Fernando Alonso had silently put in another strong performance to finish with a decent points haul and take the lead in the championship standings. Red Bull looked to be on the comeback trail with Webber successfully trying out new aerodynamic updates.

Bahrain
After much trials and tribulations, last year’s cancellation and amid civilian protests, the Bahrain Grand Prix was staged at Sakhir as round 4 of the 2012 season. Marked by multiple racing incidents involving Alonso, Rosberg and Hamilton, the usually processional Bahrain Grand Prix was a much more eventful race this season, with Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber demonstrating that the Red Bull was still a force to be reckoned with, and that the first three races might just have been a temporary glitch. Vettel, with the updates Webber had run in China, took pole. Raikkonen gave him a real scare midway through the race as he attempted to pass Vettel at turn 1, but Vettel held on, storming to the finish line, becoming the fourth different driver to win a grand prix this season, and jumping into the points lead.

Spain [Catalunya]

The F1 circus headed to Spain for the first of the Europen rounds, at the Circuit de Catalunya. Ferrari were in the news for their rear end updates, hoping to do the ‘new rear end design the way it should have been’. Alonso promptly took pole in his home race, but the real surprise was the pace shown by Pastor Maldonado’s Williams, which earned him a front row slot. Maldonado seized his opportunity and grabbed the race lead, never to relinquish it. Kimi Raikkonen mounted an inspired late charge in his Lotus, but he ran out of time before being able to put himself in a position to really challenge for the lead. Maldonado, thus became the 5th driver to win a Grand Prix this season, in the 5th race of the season.

All of a sudden, the world was wide awake to the fact that it wan’t witnessing just a freak string of results. We were on the verge of history, and the definition of a closely contested F1 championship season was being rewritten. All teams were finding out that the Pirelli tyres were posing more interesting questions than anticipated, and it wasn’t just about raw horsepower, aerodynamic efficiency or fuel consumption. Tyre degradation was here to stay, as a major factor to consider while planning race strategies.

Sector 1
The cars sprint down the 700m start-finish straight, reaching top speeds of under 300kph (yes, you read it right. under 300kph) before braking hard for the right handed hairpin at turn 1, taken in 2nd gear. This section of the track was extended in 2003 to make it a longer straight and a tighter corner in hope of creating a genuine overtaking opportunity. Good traction out of this corner means either a getaway from a pursuing car or an overtaking move that sticks. A short climb up leads to the left handed 3rd gear turn 2, at the top of the climb. The exit road drops down sharply as the cars head down through the right hander at turn 3. The slop into turn 3 can catch one out if taken too aggressively. The road bottoms out through the kink, and gradually climbs up the hill, allowing a flat out ride through turn 3 and the straight, reaching upto 290kph in top gear. The exit of turn 3 had a chicane in the original layout, but was changed to quicken the track up, in 1989.

Sector 2
The cars enter sector 2 flying in over the hill in top gear, lifting off slightly to drop down a couple of gears through the very fast left handed kink at turn 4, in 5th gear, 210kph. Good mechanical grip and bravery on the brakes can earn a lot of time through turn 4. The long 180 degree right hander at turn 5, requires the cars to drop down into 3rd gear, 150kph, in preparation for the twisty inner section. The cars are constantly in a corner for the rest of the lap, somewhat like the turn 3-4-5-6 sequence at Suzuka. First comes the 2nd gear right-left chicane at turn 6-7, with high kerbs and no run-off if you miss the braking point. Exit turn 7, and keep left to line up a faster left-right sequence of bends at turn 8-9, turn 8 taken in 4th gear, 171 kph, followed by a slight brush on the brakes to hit turn 9 in 3rd gear, 150 kph. blast yourself out of turn 9, immediately pulling the car left, to line up the entry into the next, even faster sequence of left-right corners at turn 10-11, turn 10 is taken in 5th gear, 240 kph, while by the time the cars exit the right handed apex at turn 11, they’re already up to 6th gear, and out of the twisting maze.

Sector 3
A short spurt out of turn 11, at full throttle brings us into a slow 90 degree right hander at turn 12. The cars need to brake from 270 kph to 100kph for this corner, leading into another slow left handed hairpin at turn 13. The apex is slightly deeper than what appears, and is made tougher to hit due the the slope that runs down into the corner. The exit leads into the final turn, another 3rd gear right handed hairpin bend turn 14, and a slingshot back on to the start-finish straight. The track modifications of 2003 also changed the turn12-13 sequence. It earlier used to be a tight chicane at turn 12, throwing the cars into the penultimate corner, which used to be a 90 degree left hander. The current layout provides an opportunity to capitalize on any mistakes made in the tight inner sector by a leading car.

The 2012 Hungarian Grand Prix will be run for 70 laps around this track. Hungary is usually hot and dry around this time of the year, and it is tough work for the drivers and engines due to the twisting inner section and low deviation in speeds. The setup requirements are similar to Monaco, as we said earlier, due to the twisty inner section, and the relative difficulty in overtaking. The ideal setup here means a car with good rear end grip and high torque to get a good push out of the slow corners, a stiff front suspension and high front wing angle for downforce and turn-in response, and relatively soft rear suspension to be able to ride the kerbs well, and manage rear tyre wear that will be generated due to the demands of the longer corners. Pirelli will be bringing their Soft (Yellow) and Super Soft (Red) tyres, which will make tyre strategy that much tighter. Of course, a wet race nullifies that, but brings on its own set of challenges. The weather forecasts for this year are for a dry Saturday and a wet Sunday, which should make for an interesting race weekend.

The last time (which happens to be the only time) we had a wet race start here, Fernando Alonso did a magical first lap to go from well in the midfield to being right at the front with his blue Renault. A pit stop error cost him a wheel, and the race win went to Jenson Button; his first ever F1 race victory. Incidentally, Hungaroring in 2003 was also the site of Alonso’s first career victory, which at that time made him the youngest Grand Prix winner in F1 history. Heikki Kovalainen gets an honorable mention for winning his first race here as well, in 2008 for McLaren (replacing Alonso at McLaren). It was also at the Hungaroring that Michael Schumacher cemented his total domination by taking the 2005 world title with plenty of races to spare. And, another trivia, the Alonso-Hamilton rivalry became a feud in the McLaren garages, in 2007, at Hungaroring!

Clearly, Fernando Alonso has a lot of memories linked to this track, and he’ll be hoping to add another winning memory this weekend. Sebastian Vettel (who incidentally made his debut for Toro Rosso here in 2007) needs to step up his game a bit more to stay well and truly in the hunt for his third successive championship going into the 3 week long summer break. Renault may try out their new evolution of a ‘Double DRS’ update, which might just help them stake a firm claim for the #2 position in the Constructors’ Championship standings. As the summer break looms large, teams up and down the grid would be looking to finish on a high before sitting down to take stock of the season’s progress. Let’s hope that makes for some great all-out racing throughout the field!

India play Sri Lanka in the second game of the bilateral 5-match ODI series, on Tuesday. They would be looking to carry forward the positives from Saturday’s game, and get well and truly back in the winning habit. There were positives aplenty to take from the first match, but some areas as one would expect at the beginning of a new season need a little more limbering up.

What clicked:

Virender Sehwag! After the world record 219 against the West Indies, Sehwag had an absolutely abysmal Australia tour. His ODI scores have always been mercurial, but even Test matches weren’t any different. He didn’t feature in the Asia Cup, but showed that the hunger, the skill and the belligerence were still there in plentiful throughout the IPL. It was great to see him apply himself the way he did on Saturday, seeing off the initial tough period before settling down nicely on his way to 96.

Virat Kohli‘s innings building; Kohli, carried his sublime ODI touch to notch up another impressive ton. This is surely a man growing in stature day by day. He has shown character by putting a disappointing IPL season behind him and resuming India duties as if there was no gap between that brilliant 180 in Dhaka and this innings.

The final acceleration: the dash by Dhoni and Raina at the end was reminiscent of their early days, when these two were being groomed as the finishing pair for India in ODIs. Dhoni seemed to bat with much less apathy and much more freedom while Raina seems to be gaining in confidence, at least in subcontinent conditions.

The new-ball bowling: in the second half of the game it was Irfan Pathan who struck early, keeping the Sri Lankan top order in check with some controlled swing bowling. The bowling unit did keep picking wickets at important times. The overall success is underlined by the fact that a 100 from Sangakkara, and a late charge by him and Perera couldn’t save the day for Sri Lanka.

What needs a bit of polishing:

Batting starts. Gautam Gambhir got out in a strange manner that he isn’t a stranger to: shuffling across and seeing the ball graze his pads before hitting leg stump. A clear case of wrong judgement. Rohit Sharma on the other hand, looked rooted to the crease in his short stay. While just one false start may be a bit too early to judge their form, but it is certainly enough to put them on the list of rusty joints.

Death bowling. The creakiest cog right now seems to be the bowling in the dying stages of the innings. The start and middle overs were tight enough on the day to keep Sri Lanka far enough from their target, but it is evident that India’s achilles’ heel is still pretty much vulnerable. The batting or fielding may not be enough every time, to cover for the weakness in finishing the bowling innings.

Fielding. It’s always an area where one can do more. A couple of chances in the slips went down early on, and they could have cost India on another day.

What we’ll be hoping for:

A solid batting performance, especially from the likes of Rohit Sharma and Gautam Gambhir, who missed out the first time around. It is important to get as many batsmen match practice as possible.

More control over the death overs. New ball bowling is an art, but old ball bowling is probably tougher. It is important to preserve and accentuate the advantage gained by a tight opening spell as the innings wears on. India have shown this tendency to leak runs towards the end when the batsmen go for an all-out charge. It is as much about having contingency plans as it is about executing them.

India would be working towards getting these kins out of the system before the competition really heats up into the run up to the T20 World Cup. It will also help to have things in place as the season is just getting longer with a Pakistan tour now thrown into the mix. Still early days, though. Well begun is half won.

Timo Glock of Germany and Marussia, Mark Webber of Australia and Red Bull Racing and Nico Hulkenberg of Germany and Force India, (L-R front) Nico Rosberg of Germany and Mercedes GP, Sebastian Vettel of Germany and Red Bull Racing and Michael Schumacher of Germany and Mercedes GP attend the drivers press conference during previews to the German Grand Prix at Hockenheimring on July 19, 2012 in Hockenheim, Germany.

The 10th round of the 2012 Formula 1 season brings us to Germany for the German Grand Prix to be run at the modern Hockenheim ring. The current track layout is the result of a complete overhaul of the legendary run-through-the-forest Hockenheimring. The track was redesigned in time for the 2002 German Grand Prix, and the revised layout came under a lot of criticism for being too homogeneous and similar to the modern circuits, taking away from the distinctive technical challenges and the unique character of the original layout. It still retains the stadium section as a tribute to the old track.

Sector 1

Sector 1 is made up of just one straight punctuated by a fast right hander and a right handed hairpin. The lap starts with cars going almost flat out through a tightened ‘Nordkurve’. During the race it is a drop from 6th to 4th gear. The kerb at the exit here is pretty tricky, and known to catch some people out. Good rear end grip out of the corner is important as it leads on to the first straight, reaching speeds of over 310 kph before braking hard for the 2nd gear hairpin bend at turn 2. The new section of the track begins here. The hairpin lies where the old track used to run off into the dense forest towards what used to be the ‘OstKurve’. Exit out of turn 2, through the right-left kinks at turn 3-4, and we’re through sector 1.

Sector 2

The cars exit turn 4, flying out onto the ‘Parabolika’, a turn only in name, as from the driver’s perspective, it feels like a gentle left bend, taken at full throttle, accelerating all the time. It will also double up as the DRS zone. This is the first time DRS is being used at this track. The Parabolika leads straight into the slowest point on track, the ultra tight right handed hairpin at turn 6. This is the best overtaking opportunity on track, even without the DRS zone. With the DRS zone, we might just get to see people being re-passed due to missing the braking point, a very common mistake here. Rear end traction and sheer horsepower again come to the fore as the cars rocket out of turn 6, going through the right handed kink at turn 7, flat out in 6th gear before braking hard for a tight left hander at turn 8 that doubles up on top itself, and connects to the turn 9 apex in front of the Merceds Benz stand, which has become an indentity of the modern Hockenheim. A 90 degree right hander at turn 10 brings us to the entry of the stadium section and back onto the old racetrack.

Sector 3

The stadium section is still probably the most challenging and trickiest part on the track. On the old layout, the cars needed to be setup for ultra low downforce due to the very high speed nature of the ring-like track, and finding the right compromise through this twisty section was a tough problem. That has been simplified a bit due to the relatively higher downforce requirements of the current layout, but they’re still pretty low downforce settings. So, the sector begins with the cars in 5th gear, lifting off slightly and dropping to 4th through the right handed turn 12, blasting down towards the Sachs curve, a tight 2nd gear left handed hairpin. The exit leads out onto a very fast left-right chicane at turns 14-15 leading into the double apex right hander at the SudKurve, which leads us back onto the start finish straight. The altitude changes dramatically in the braking zone between turn 15 and the first apex of the SudKurve at turn 16, making it tricky to get the car stopped, and the gap between the two apexes makes it that much trickier to get a proper slingshot onto the start finish straight.

The German Grand Prix always sees a lot of support for German drivers, and this time there are 5 on the grid. The reigning World Champion Sebastian Vettel, the 5 time world Champion Michael Schumacher, his teammate Nico Rosberg, the up-coming talent Nico Hulkenberg and Timo Glock who has tasted some success here in his Toyota days. Whether any of them will prevail after 67 laps of the Hockenheimring on Sunday remains to be seen. The championship leader Fernando Alonso will be looking to extend his lead, while Mark Webber would be looking to set the record straight [his best finish here is P6 with Jaguar] and cut further into Alonso’s margin. Lewis Hamilton would be keen to repeat his victorious performance en route to the 2008 title. Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean are still looking for the illusive race win that has been so nearly theirs on multiple occasions this year. The weather here is usually hot and sunny around this time, which would as we all have come to expect this season, favour the Lotus cars. However, the predictions are for rain on Saturday and cloudy skies on Sunday. Well, we wouldn’t really mind a Silverstone encore now, would we!