Bale - a ridiculous valuation

He is valued at $ 105million.
So says the Spurs Management.
Really?
For a 24 year old who has never been tested on the big stage, I for one, will NEVER pay such an amount. Sure he has potential. But will it be realized in a SHORT PERIOD of TIME?
Madrid needs Trophies NOW. Madrid needs its DECIMA NOW.
Can Bale bring in the silverware?
Maybe.
But not in one year. He needs to adapt to the higher European standards. Before he fully integrates into the team. At White Hart Lane, Spurs played for him. At the Santiago Bernabeau, he will have to play for Ronaldo and the Team. It takes time to adjust and get used.
Further putting a $105 million price on his head - will be too much pressure on a young lad.
Then what happens to Ronaldo who likes moving to the left wing position during the match or to Marcelo who loves to go up and down the left flank?
Hold on Sr. Perez, even if Ramos has been quoted as saying he believes the price tag is reasonable, you need a STAR ( sure shot ) signing NOT a BIG PRICE signing.
I feel the Madrid supporters are saying - you don't have to do anything if the quality is not available. Keep looking.

 

Madrid winning on the road - vs PSG

Real Madrid wins away at PSG.
Kareem Benzema's goal proves to be the difference between the two teams.
Promising start.
But Madrid still needs to support Ronaldo upfront by a "star" signing.

Did Pep Guardiola really do that? OMG

OMG!!!
Did Pep really SLAP Thiago or was it a "friendly" pat on the cheek?
You decide.

The magic of Garrincha

You have seen Pele now..
See Garrincha - one of the greatest to play the beautiful game of football, in full flow

Hope you enjoyed it.

Man U's European Cup victory 4-1 vs Benefica

To all my friends - who were with me that afternoon and saw Man U win the European Cup.
To all the others who have not seen this match before - please see the video and in particular see:-
: Eusebio congratulating Stepney on his save
: George Best playing
: Bobby Charlton scoring a couple
: See Sir Matt Busby thrilled seeing the Busby Babes win

 

The silence is deafening

To all you Real Madrid fans, don't you think that something really big is going on behind the scenes?
We hear that Higuain and Albiol have been sold.
What we do not hear is who will be the new striker to join Ronaldo up front?
I for one seriously doubt that Bale would be the one. He is a left winger and plays in a position that could clash with Ronaldo. Further Marcelo, if he is allowed to play, fills a similar role - not an out and out winger but a defender who can also attack.
So who is this wonder signing?
The suspense is killing me.
 

1970 World Cup Final - Brazil vs Italy : Best forward line ever and one of best goals you will ever see

The simple TRUTH in football : The Team that scores the most goals wins the match.
This was said by the Brazilian Coach before the Final.
The background was when reporters were asking about the weak Brazilian defence line up.

The 1970 Brazilian forward line was perhaps the most entertaining, magical, deadly and effective in the history of the beautiful game.

Jairzinho the right winger created history by scoring in every match of the Tournament.

The 4th Brazilian goal is about the most perfect and beautiful goal you will ever see. The sheer beauty of this goal is the timing of the pass. Also Pele must have eyes at the back of his head to see Carlos Alberto make the run.

Have a look and enjoy.

Pele, Rivelino, Tostao, Gerson, Jairzinho and others Thank You.

Mountain Time Trial - Stage 17 - its Froome again

It was the second Individual Time Trial over 32Kms covering two category 2 mountains. The first mountain is 1173m above sea level and the second slightly higher at 1227m followed by a downhill race to the finish.

As usual the Tour Leaders were kept in the "start house" till the end.

Other riders were making their mark in the early standings.

We saw Tejay van Garderen,  Alejandro Valverde, Joaquin Rodriguez  set really fast times.

Riders like Quintana gave a surprisingly great account of his time trial skills and increased the time gap in his race for the White Jersey.

This stage saw quite a few riders change their bikes for the final descent to gain precious seconds.

Also some cyclists were disappointed to have to ride through temporary rain showers - thereby slowing down their progress and adding valuable seconds to their efforts.

As usual the race boiled down to Contador and Froome.

Contador was taking out a 20 second lead by the time he reached the second time check.

Froome somehow managed to pull another stage out of the hat and romp home with a victory.

The day's sycling was marred by the accidents to Jean Christophe Peraud - first whilst training before the start of the race and then his second during the race. The first time he had fractured his right clavicle. He had fallen again on his right side.

We wish him a speedy recovery.

This year we are having 3 days of road racing after a time trial. Usually the Time trial is held the day before the entry into Paris.

So hang on - three more exciting days in the Alps are in store.

The riders have to recover fast from today's efforts.

  

 

Breakneck speeds achieved on the descent of Stage 16 - luckily no one was hurt

Stage 16 was the day after the second rest day.

It was the day to go into the Alps.

The Stage saw a group of 26 riders go away from the Peloton and they kept increasing the time gap between themselves and the Peloton.

Since the Peloton had all the Jerseys in the Peloton, they - the Peloton, showed no interest in chasing down the breakaway riders.

The Stage was a 168 kms race over basically easy terrain with three medium climbs until the 156km mark. At this point there is a steep and dangerous11 kms, descent from Col de Manse into the Alpine town of Gap.  

We got the feeling that since Stage 17 was to be the Individual time trial over a 32km mountain terrain, the main contenders for this year's Tour would take it easy on the descent from Col. de Manse - hold back for what is to come tomorrow.

The time gap went out to over 10 minutes and it was clear that the Peloton wouldn't and had no intention of catching the breakaway group of riders.

On the climb up to Col de Manse, Rui Costa of Movistar, broke away and kept increasing his lead right till the finish.

The drama was being played out behind him.

A group of elite riders - Froome, Contador, Valverde, Mollema and a couple of others, left the Peloton and were trying to get up to the leaders.

Alberto Contador attacked Chris Froome on the climb a couple of times but to avail. Froome with the support for the most part from Richie Porte, held  off the challenge. And they more or less went over the Col de Manse together.

Again on the descent, Contador went on the attack - reaching speeds of 60kms plus - trying to break away from Froome.

Contador did all he could and all he knew - he started taking excessive risks and at one point almost fell over and very nearly causing an accident to Chris Froome. Luckily there was no mishap and Porte stayed back to help Froome and Contador to get back to the their group of riders.

Eventually Rui Costa won and Froome and Contador went over the finish line together.

 

Richest Club in the world - really?

Read the report that Real Madrid has been adjudged to be the richest club in the world.
Really?
Are the supporters really interested?
Should we be talking about $3.3bln or footballing talents and haul of silverware?
When Bayern Munich and Barcelona are bringing in formidable signings to strengthen their season, Madrid does not appear to have the same determination and energy.
I am asking a simple question, do you think with what we know so far of the "first team", we have any chance of winning any silverware in the coming season?
 

Chris Froome sprints up Mont Ventoux and leaves rivals gasping in his trail

Stage 15 the longest stage of this year's Tour - 242 Kms or 150 miles and at the end, the riders will have to climb Mont Ventoux - a 6273' beast of a mountain where legends are made and many dreams are shattered.

All great cyclists must be great climbers and all climbers have an ambition of winning on Mont Ventoux.

The Peloton let a group of riders including Sagan, Impey and Chavanel make a modest breakaway.

Today 14th July was Bastille Day and the whole of France dearly wished for a Frenchman to win the stage of the 100th Tour. But it was not to be.

Sagan won the only sprint of the stage and virtually assured himself the Green Jersey in Paris.

The Peloton was being controlled by the SKY Team for over the first 60Kms. Then gradually Team Movistar took up the challenge and we gradually saw the SKY riders disappearing off the front.

Only Riche Porte was left protecting Chris Froome.

We were waiting to see the much anticipated attacks from Alberto Contador and others - after all they took 69" from Froome on Friday and it was the feeling that Froome may not be able to respond.

The attacks never came.

It was only with 15Kms to go - Quintana the best young climber we have seen on this year's Tour decided to break away. This was expected.

Quintana effortlessly rode up the much dreaded Mont Ventoux. We were so very surprised to see this 23 year old Columbian's fearless ride - with no emotion or effort being reflected on his face.

Quintana it seemed had the race within his grasp. He kept passing one rider after another as he headed up Mont Ventoux.

In the meanwhile, Froome was being led by Porte with Contador forming a three man group of chasers. Porte gave it his all. He led Froome upto 8 Kms from the finish - till he could not lead any farther and started falling back.. And this gave Chris Froome a chance to do what he likes and what he does the best.

Absolutely annhilating and scattering rivals all over the Mont Ventoux's mountain face.

We saw it in the Pyrenees and we were treated to same domineering spectacular cycling today.

Chris Froome rode away from Contador. It would be more accurate to say Froome sprinted up  Mont Ventoux and Contador could not respond. Contador was spent and his dreams of the Yellow is Paris vanished.

Chris's only remaining challenger was Quintana - who was riding along easily. Froome overtook him and eventually Quintana cracked.

On his way to the stage victory, Froome went over Mont Ventoux first and in the process picked up 50 points on the King of the Mountains competition and that gave him the Polka Dot Jersey as well.

What we saw today was Froome's supremacy on the mountains. He showed no fear and I have a feeling, he relishes these long hard climbs with 9% plus gradients.

With his demonstrated prowess on the Mountains and his Individual Time Trial skills,  Froome is definitely the most accomplished all round cyclist in this year's Tour.

He has the Yellow Jersey ( overall leader ), the Polka Dot Jersey ( King of the Mountain ) and the second fastest individual time trial.

What more can you ask of the man.

Hail King Froome.

MS Dhoni the greatest finisher in the game of cricket

Our brave and fearless CAPTAIN INDIA - cool, calm and collected, taking India to victory in the TRI Series finals against Sri Lanka, July 2013.

 

Nice to see Real Madrid signing young rising footballing stars

I am glad that Real Madrid is investing in young rising footballing talent.

Recently Madrid signed Malaga's midfielder - Isco Alarcon. 

Then Real Sociedad's midfielder Asier Illarramendi

And finally got back Dani Carvajal a defender from Bayern Leverkusen.

Although on paper these moves look good, I would like to point out:-

: Real Madrid also needs strikers to "hunt" with Ronaldo.

: If Ronaldo does not win any silverware, he will leave - this must be stopped at all costs.

: The two young midfielders - Isco and Illaramendi must improve their game in : creating plays, scoring goals and going back to help the defenders.

: Dani should quickly step in for Abeloa.

: Bring back Marcelo - we all saw his role in Brazil's victory in the Confedarations Cup.

: Evaluate the usefulness of Khedira and Alonso 

: Will paying $ 90m for two young footballers - produce silverware?

 

 

 

 

Stage 14 of the Tour - ends tamely

The 191 Kms stage 14 race to Lyon, mainly over flatland except for a small climb at the end, did not change the overall classifications in any of the categories.

A group of 18 riders broke away from the Peloton early in the stage. Initially the time gap was a little over 30 seconds but gradually the time gap began getting wider and wider and had ballooned to 7'09" by the time the Peloton crossed the finish line.

Looking at the race and seeing how the SKY Team were cycling at the front of the Peloton, I got the feeling that they wanted an easy day at the Office after yesterday's dramatic split of the riders over the stage caused by terrible crosswinds. Further they knew that none of the 18 riders upfront could change the overall GC classification in any category.

A little nationalistic sentiment was whipped up nearer the end of the stage when Julien Simon broke away from the leading pack and made a tremendous dash towards the finish - trying to become the first Frenchman to win a stage in this year's 100th Tour.

Unfortunately he could not survive alone.

There were a flurry of attacks over the last climb and at the end, Matteo Trentin of Quickstep won the stage. It was nice to see Mark Cavendish's team winning on consecutive days.

Tomorrow is Bastille Day - July 14th.

It will be Stage15 - a race over 242 kms or 150 miles - it is the longest stage of the Tour ending with a climb of 6273' over Mont Ventoux.

See you then.

 

 

Cavendish wins Stage 13 and now has record 25 road race wins in the Tour

Stage 13 was to be a 173 kms or 107.5 miles race through flat French countryside - heading South East. It was to be a stage where the Sprinters would come out again in search for a Stage win and the Green Jersey points. Something very ordinary and natural.
We were not exciting the drama, excitement and action that unfolded.
Soon after the start a group of 6 riders broke away and built up a 4 minute lead.
However soon strong crosswinds broke up the Peloton into 4 groups. The teams and riders who were attentive to the weather conditions took advantage and brought back the leaders and then broke away themselves.
In this chaos, Marcel Kittel found himself in the second group of the Peloton. Considering he is a Sprinter, this is not where he wanted to be. He and his Team tried getting back in touch with the main group, but to no avail. He was not going to be in contention for any points today.
There was Sprint stage at 112Kms from the start and as usual the major sprinters gathered up front and eventually Andre Greipel proved too strong for Cavendish and Sagan was happy to come in third.
Then was the real shocker.
Alejandro Valverde had a flat tyre and had to fall back to wait for his team car to come and repair his cycle. He lost valuable seconds. People could not help but wonder why he didn't take a teammate's cycle and reduce the time loss. Anyway the damage was done and three of his teammates fell back to help him get back - but with no luck. The Team Movistar kept falling back and losing more time.
It was supposed to be one of the easiest days of cycling in this year's Tour, but it was turning out to be one of the hardest and most difficult.
Then Pierre Rolland, the leader in the King of Mountain - Polka Dot Jersey, also had a flat and had to fall back. Earlier he had won the only point available on the stage for the King of the Mountain Jersey.
As all this was going on, Saxo Tinkoff Team of Alberto Contador broke away taking with them Cavendish, Sagan and the main riders of the Bellkin Team including Mollema and Ten Dam - two of the top five riders in the GC in this year's Tour.
Alberto Contador kept up the pace and pushed his Team of 6 riders towards the finish. He wanted to win back some of the time he lost to Froome yesterday in the Time Trial. It was incredible that Contador managed to keep most of his Team with him till the finish. The Sky Team again had problems in keeping up with the Peloton and thereby protecting Froome. In the end Froome was left all alone.
Inside the last KM, Cavendish sprinted to his second stage win of this year's Tour and his 25th road race wins of his Tour career  - a record for the Tour.
The crosswinds and team tactics played havoc today. To get time back from Froome must give Contador a much needed psychological boost as we are about to enter the third week of the Tour.
At the end Froome's lead over Mollema and Contador was now cut to 2'28" and 2'45" respectively.
Froome lost 1'09" today but still wears the Yellow Jersey.

 

Sala de Trofeos ( the Trophy Room or Salon ) of Real Madrid

It was 1989 or 1990, Felix my friend in Madrid, requested a senior official of the Real Madrid FC to show us around the Sala.
What an experience it was for me and my family. My younger son - Uttam and I, still remember that visit with so much with awe and amazement.
The gentleman met us at the Bernabeau Stadium and took us ( me and my wife, and my two sons Ranjeet and Uttam ) to the Sala. It was not the Sala that you now see in the video. It was the old Trophy Room - bursting with Trophies of all shapes and sizes and made of gold, silver, crystal etc - you name it and it was there.
The gentleman (if my memory serves me well was the Vice President at the time ), explained the background of each Trophy and the final score. He was so well versed and immersed in the Club's history that we were filled with awe and wonder.
Ofcourse the main attraction was kept to the last. We finally came across the 6 European Cups ( now there are 9 Cups ) to be seen in all its glory. You can travel all over the world, visit any of the major Football Clubs in Europe, but you will never see that sight anywhere.
The legacy and heritage of Real Madrid was there to be seen and admired.
After the visit, he took us down to the football pitch and was showing us around when I wanted to walk on the hallowed grass. He immediately stopped me and said that it was not permitted!!! I had to have on appropriate footwear!!
I was wearing my usual office going black shoes!!
As we were leaving, he gave us a football signed by all the players - I believe we still have it; the first team football strip; a signed picture of the Real Madrid Basketball team and finally a silver key chain with the Real Madrid emblem.
We were so taken back by this generosity. Our support for the Club only got stronger.
Thank you Sir for your time and generosity. You have made us life long supporters of the Club.
Thank you Felix for making this memorable experience happen.
It was literally a dream come true. 

 

Marcel Kittel's sweet sweet victory - stage 12 of theTour

 

Following the crash on Tuesday when Tom Veelers went down after clashing with Cavendish, today's victory of teammate Marcel Kittel was sweet - oh so sweet.

The 218 kms stage 12 took us on a picture post card ride through the French countryside. Impressive Abbeys, grand Chateaus and immaculate, designed gardens were seen throughout the course.

The course was flat - flat as a pancake as it were. A group of 5 riders broke away after 2 miles and held the lead till inside the 10kms mark.

An intermediate sprint - held at 168 kms from the start had the 5 leaders take the major points and prize money. The race was for the 6th to the 10th place - important for the Green Jersey points. The 6th place was taken by Andre Greipel followed by Peter Sagan and then Mark Cavendish. Greipel keeps chipping away at Sagan's overall lead. 

The Peloton rode along assured that they will chase down the 5 leaders eventually. Which they did inside the last 10kms. This ensured that everyone in the Peloton concentrated in the chase rather than having their own ideas and breaking away.  

Inside the last few kms all the teams were coming to the front with their main sprinters. Chris Froome had plenty of support from his Sky team and stayed clear of any danger. We saw Kittel, Sagan, Cavendish, Greipel and Goss all coming to the front. It was inside the last 2kms when we were all concentrating on the leaders, a massive crash took place right behind the leaders. Andre Greipel crashed and thereby lost valuable Green Jersey points to Sagan at the finish. 

Cavendish was led into last km by his teammate and made a dash for the finish. He was closely followed by Kittel and Sagan. We all held our breath knowing that when Cavendish goes, there is no sprinter who can stay in touch and win. 

But today Kittel had other ideas. He not only followed the wheel of Cavendish but out sprinted him to the finish. He won by half a wheel.

At the end, Chris Froome kept his Yellow Jersey and maintained the same time from his nearest rivals. Peter Sagan extended his lead for the Green Jersey and Pierre Roland kept the King of the Mountain - Polka Dot Jersey.

The Cavendish controversy has not gone away - far from it. There are rumours that certain European Race organizations are beginning to "uninvite" Mark Cavendish from participating in their races.

It was interesting to hear Marcel Kittel dedicating his victory to Tom Veelers.

And Mark Cavendish did not have a word to say about Veelers in an interview before the race.

Tomorrow is stage 13. Another almost flat race.

 

 



 

Garfield Sobers hitting 6 sixes in an over - 1968

See Sir Garfield Sobers hitting 6 sixes against Nash.

Sobers captained Nottinghamshire ( Notts ) and it was a County Match against Glamorgan ( Glam ).

The bowler was Nash ( Malcolm Nash I think ) - a spin bowler and Sobers went after his bowling.

This was the first time 6 sixes were hit in one over.

A world record.

I was privileged to see it live on TV in England.

A young Indian boy,  a crazy cricket follower and now seeing the great Sobers play - live on TV and watching history being made.

Sobers was an International player and captained Notts. Unfortunately due to his other cricket commitments, he would join Notts a little late into the season. It was fascinating to see Notts climb the league table after Sir Garfield Sobers was included in the team.

Enjoy.

 

 

 

Gordon Banks greatest save against Pele - 1970 WC

See Gordon Banks save against Pele in the 1970 Mexico World Cup quarter finals.
The beauty of this save is threefold. Firstly Pele's header bounced in front of the goalline. The second was Gordon Banks dived under the ball and came up under the rising ball and pushed it over the crossbar. And the third was that normal goalkeepers would have pushed the ball into play satisfied by making a save; but Gordon Banks tipped it over the crossbar - thereby averting any chance of a goal by the oncoming forwards.
I watched this match live on TV in England and saw Pele hug Gordon Banks after this tremendous save.

 

Real Madrid vs Eintracht Frankfurt at Hampden Park - one of my favourite Finals

The 1960 European Cup Final is one of my favourites.
The last of the 7 Madrid goals is a gem.
See how Madrid scores without a single Eintracht Frankfurt player touching the ball.
This is what I call "hunting in packs".
Every great team has two, three or four players who are capable of scoring - posing a "real" threat.
I saw this match in 1970 - on BBC TV - greatest matches of the last decade.
Enjoy. I did.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_717RCKR1us
 

Cavendish vs Veelers - stage 10

To read more about the controversy, click on the link below.
It is pretty fascinating stuff.

The Cavendish controversy - stage 10 of the Tour
 

Stage 11 finish at Mont Saint Michel - majestic

Today's race was the Individual Time Trial over 20.5 miles or 33 kms - over flatlands - finishing at the majestic Mont Saint Michel.
It promised to be a battle against the clock - agonizing against oneself bringing the best out of each rider.
Cyclists start with gaps of 3' between one rider and the next- so this was going to be a long day.
All was set for the excitement. Indications were that strong winds could be a major factor in the last 10 kms.
Before the race started we had heard that Alberto Contador had said that he was prepared to concede and restrict Chris Froome's advantage in today's time trial to 90 seconds. A very negative comment coming from an ex Tour winner.
The race started and quite soon Tony Martin, who started 65th out of 182 riders on the day, set the fastest time of 36' 29". As he sat watching the other riders come over finish line, you could see the tension on his face. The main riders on the Tour would be bringing up the rear - so he had a long long wait.
The fast time of Tony Martin came as no surprise considering that he is the current Individual Time Trial World Champion.
However what was surprising were the times of the other cyclists. They were all losing over a minute to Tony Martin. It seemed Tony Martin would surely win the stage if this continued. Andy Schleck, one of the pre race favourites lost over 4 mins to Martin. This was incredible when you consider Andy is the Time Trial Champion of Luxembourg.
We were all glued to what was happening out on the course. Can Tony Martin hold on.
Richie Porte, of SKY, gave it his all. He cycled as if his life depended on the Time Trial and finally clocked in at 37'50" - giving a very credible account of himself after his shocking performance on Sunday on the Pyrenees. Readers may remember that he rode to the second place in the General Classification ( GC ) on Saturday and then gave it all away when he cracked on the mountains on Sunday.
Andrew Talansky the young US rider showed early promise in the first 10 kms but then drifted out slightly to finish with 38'37".
The race was on for the White Jersey - the best young rider in the Tour. First came the Polish rider- Michal Kwiatkowski who clocked an incredible 38' flat and then watched Nairo Quintana of Columbia coming in at 39'57" - thereby taking back the White Jersey which he had won before the Tour went up the Pyrenees - before the mountains.
We saw the big two warming up at the starting point. Chris Froome was fully concentrated on the job on hand. He had cotton balls inserted in his nostrils. These cotton balls were apparently soaked in oils so that he could breathe easier during the race. Alberto Contador was also seen going through his warm up pedalling motion.
What differentiates Chris from the average rider is to see how smooth he pedals. Poetry in motion - sheer grace and beauty.
Alberto went before Froome and although faster than the average rider, he was losing time to Tony Martin. the only question that remained was how much time he would lose today?
Chris Froome began his race and looked very comfortable and at ease with himself. He gained 1"  at the first time check and 2" at the second time check on Tony Martin and looked as if he would surely win the stage. It didn't bode well for Tony Martin at all.
However when Chris crossed the finish line, his time of 36'41" confirmed Tony Martin the winner of today's stage. This was remarkable. Did Chris slow down to preserve his body for the Alps which were coming up shortly? Or were the winds too strong? In either case Tony Martin won.
But this did not change the standings for the Yellow, the Polka Dot and the Green Jerseys. These were retained by Chris Froome, Pierre Rolland and Peter Sagan respectively. However Chris extended his overall lead in GC to 3'25" from Alejandro Valverde and 3'54" to Alberto Contador.
Froome had increased his lead from Valverde and Contador by 2' and 2'3" respectively.
The Yellow Jersey was becoming permanent fixture on Froome' back.
There were disturbing developments of yesterdays crash involving Mark Cavendish and Tom Veelers. It was said that the Race Referee had blamed Veelers for the crash. The crowds were not pleased at what had happened and showed their displeasure by hurling abuse at Cavendish and if reports are to be believed, someone threw urine as well.
Tomorrow Stage 12 covers 218 kms or 136 miles - mostly flatlands. We should see some exciting sprints.

A little coincidence for the British

It took 77 years for a Britisher to win the Wimbledon Gentlemen's Title.
Virginia Wade, the last British lady to win Wimbledon, won her title in '77.
 

Drama at the end of Stage 10 of the Tour

It was a 197 kms ride through the beautiful Brittany country side of North Western France. The roads meandering through quaint little villages with grey slate roofs, twisting and turning. There was a small climb of 500 ft above sea level - the rest was flatlands.
A group of 5 riders escaped right from the start and rode away from the Peloton for 194 kms. It was  courageous and audacious to break away so early.
This was the day after the rest day.
And the first day of cycling after Team SKY were scattered all over the Pyrenees leaving their leader Chris Froome totally at the mercy of the Spanish Teams on Sunday.
But today we saw Team SKY again come out in style and protect Chris and control the Peloton for a long time.
There were touching personal moments also. Julien Simon was cycling through his village and saw his family cheer him on. He did not see his Grandfather who was waiting for him a little further down the road. Crowds were lining the streets and the countryside all through the race cheering the 100th Tour on. This was the cradle of French cycling and the Tour was being celebrated. Flags of various countries were flying high in the strong winds.
Sometimes I got the feeling that the locals were urging a Frenchman to win a stage during this 100th Tour. I am sure it will happen but not today.
Today was a day for the top Sprinters.
The Peloton calmly but efficiently without much fuss caught the 5 riders inside the last 4 kms and continued cycling through strong crosswinds and headwinds towards the finish. There was a fear that the strong winds along the coast line would cause the Peloton to be shredded and ripped apart. But they somehow held on.
As the race was drawing towards the finish line, all the Teams kept  coming forward to deliver their Sprinter to the front. You can imagine the tense situation on the narrow winding roads and cyclists reaching speeds up to 60kph. The sprinters were locking on to the wheels of others ahead.
Then it happened.
A charge towards the finish was on full throttle, it appeared that Mark Cavendish, one of the greatest sprinters of all time and one who has already won a stage this year, went into or shouldered Tom Veelers, causing Veelers to crash, within a few metres of the finish line.
This put an end to the victory hopes of Cavendish and gave the stage win to Andre Greipel. This was Greipel's second stage win of this year's Tour.
It was a day that produced no changes in the official standings.
Chris Froome kept his Yellow Jersey and the same time difference with his nearest rivals.
Peter Sagan kept his Green Jersey and now has a 83 point lead over Andre Greipel.
Pierre Roland holds on to his Polka Dot Jersey for the King of the Mountains and Quintana holds his White Jersey for the best young rider of this year's Tour.
Although the stage has finished and the winners of the Jerseys declared, tongues will continue to ask questions about the Cavendish affair. Was it intentional or just a human error. We may never come to know the truth but we must move on to Stage 11 and for the Tour d France.
Stage 11 promises to be an exciting mouth watering treat - 33km individual time trial.
This pits the cyclist against the clock.
And I am sure they will all come gunning for Chris Froome.
It will be interesting to see who wins - will it be Contador or Valverde or Schleck or the man himself - Chris Froome.
Will Chris Froome still be wearing the Yellow Jersey tomorrow evening?
And as an added bonus we will be treated to sights of Mont Saint Michel - the third most visited tourist spot in the whole of France.
A lot to see and experience.
But

Real Madrid flexing its muscles. Or are they in the transfer market?

Sr. Perez you know much more about the game than I do but remember that I have been following Real Madrid since 1963 and the same issues that have hindered Los Blancos continue today.
Sr Perez for God's sake sign a future footballing star. I am tired of seeing Madrid getting the cast offs from Barcelona.
If Butragueno or Zidane can't identify a footballing star they have no right being in the decision making body.
We should be looking for talent not for Barcelona cast offs.
And if it takes a year or two or more, we the fans of Madrid will stick by you. But put in an effort. Your decisions have not worked so far and it is about time that you, Sr. Perez, listen to what we - the grassroot supporters, have to say. 

The first Scot to win Wimbledon

Whilst a lot is being said about the first Britisher to win Wimbledon after 77 years, few if any, have pointed out that Andy Murray - has become the first Scot to win Wimbledon.

Ride from Chandannagore to Paris

If India can be represented in the Formula 1 Grand Prix, will the next logical step be for an Indian Cycling team participating in the Tour de France?
Come on Sponsors lets see the Indian Flag flying fluttering in distant lands.
Then there is the French connection...

Chris Froome - you are the man

They attacked him. They separated him from his team. They controlled the pack. They rode from start to finish keeping him controlled in their midst. They tried every trick in the book to break him.
But Chris Froome took everything they threw at him and kept coming back for more. He withstood the successive attacks and eventually finished the race along with the best of the rest.
He did not lose a single second to his rival.
Or better yet - his rivals could not gain a single second from the Yellow Jersey even after controlling the race for 165kms.
To a great extent it reminded me of Ali's fight in Zaire with Foreman. Ali withstood all that George had to throw at him and when George had nothing more left in the tank, Ali came back with all guns blazing to take the fight to and away from George.
Valverde, Contador, Cadel Evans, Andy Schleck and the others are experiencing the inevitable. And they can do nothing about it.
Chris Froome seems so domineering over the mountains that it does not look like anyone can stop him from winning.
The frightening thing to witness today was Froome was cycling without any of his SKY Team mates riding alongside to help in anyway. They were all blown away by the tactics of the Spanish teams of Valverde and Contador. Only Froome held the SKY racing colours flying high. And what a performance it was. 
Tomorrow is a rest day. A day of reckoning for all the riders except Chris Froome.

Andy Murray - The Braveheart

The Finals was set pitting the 1st Seed Novak Djokovic against the 2nd Seed - Andy Murray.
Andy Murray, was carrying the hopes of the British Isles against Novak Djokovic from Serbia.
As I had commented after the Del Potro match, it was going to be a question about Djokovic's fitness after playing a grueling 5 set match lasting almost 5 hours and the partisan crowd support.
Andy had an easier semi final and was assured of the local crowd support.
However as the match started and progressed it was evident that Djokovic was tired - not fully recovered from his match against Del Potro, his usual sharp stroke play was missing, his service did not have venom and crucial line calls were going against him. He seemed a little frustrated with himself, the linepersons and the chair umpire. This did his tennis absolutely no good.
Murray on the other hand had to hang in there with Djokovic and keep focused on the job in hand. His tactic seemed to be a very simple strategy - let Djokovic make the unforced errors and mistakes. And Djokovic did make unforced error after error. Long rallies usually went to Murray. Nothing was going right for Djokovic. The Tennis Gods it seemed were favouring the Scot.
The final analysis will show that the usually dominant, aggressive and attacking Djokovic did not turn up for the Finals. Making Murray's quest for the elusive title that much easier.
Andy Murray won 6-4, 7-5 and 6-4 in straight sets.
The Finals was not a great match to remember for the quality of its tennis.
It will go down as the Finals where history was made. A Britisher - Andy Murray brought home the Gentlemen's Cup after a gap 77 years. The last person to achieve this feat was the legendary Fred Perry in 1936.
It was a match where to a great extent Andy Murray rode on the support of centre court crowd and the country and he was cheered hysterically and lustily to the end. 

The coincidence of 6th July, 2013

On Saturday 6th July we witnessed Marion Bartoli, a French girl, winning the Ladies Final at Wimbledon , England.
And coincidentally, across the Channel, an Englishman - Chris Froome, was winning the 8th Stage, the Yellow Jersey and becoming the joint leader in the King of the Mountains - in this year's Tour de France.
 

Hail King Froome - the King of the Tour

I know we are just starting the 2nd week of the three week race.
But guys, the way Chris Froome with the tremendous help from his SKY team ripped apart the reputations of the "stars" of the Tour and left their ratings scattered all over the Pyrenees, was just awesome.
Chris is now 1'51" ahead of Alberto Contador and 4' of Andy Schleck.
I am sticking my neck out and saying that the Tour was won by Chris Froome and lost by everyone else today - 6th July 2013.
Today's stage saw a small group of riders break away with an advantage over 7 minutes from the Peloton. But they were slowly pulled back and the danger averted. However with all this happening, a valiant young Columbian rider - Nario Quintana, raced away from the field and held off the challenge to get over the top of the highest peak first. For his efforts he got the 25 points in the King of the Mountain standings and 5000 Euros for his efforts.
The descent from the peak was exilirating. The riders were achieving speeds of up to 60 mph. It was fantastic to watch but also a bit frightening - as it was so dangerous. The slightest error in judgement or mistake whilst going around a corner could have disastrous consequences on the way down the mountain.
With the euphoria Quintana's mountain victory over, the SKY team raced steadily and surely towards the finish. Bringing along Chris Froome. The role of the SKY Team and Richie Porte in helping Chris Froome cannot be understated. They were pivotal in ensuring a fast steady pace. Ensuring that the "stars" of the Tour - Contador, Cadel Evans, Andy Schleck etc felt the pain of the fast and steady pace. And one by one they started to disintegrate and fall behind the Peloton.
To add to the magnificence of today's racing, Chris Froome himself pulled away from the remaining riders in the Peloton and hammered away at the pedals putting an end to whatever hope the "stars" had left.
Chris Froome kept increasing his lead right up to the finish line and was followed home by his teammate Richie Porte.
It was a great day's racing.
Chris Froome won the stage, won the Yellow Jersey and tied with Pierre Roland for theGrren Jersey with 31 points each. It was rich pickings for Chris Froome today.
Tomorrow we will see 4 mountain stages.
    

Cool, calm and determined Bartoli wins the Ladies Championship at Wimbledon

It promised a great mouth watering final between a young German - Sabine Lisicki, who had swept aside 3 top seeds, including the top seed - Serena Williams, enroute to the Final. A tennis player who showed tremendous guts and determination to come from behind in the third set to defeat Serena and Radwanska. We who had witnessed her tenacious play were looking forward to another exciting display of passionate and fearless tennis.
However what we had not expected was Marion Bartoli, a French girl, a the runner up in 2007,  to come out with all guns blazing.
Nothing worked for Lisicki today. Her serve, her drop shots, her backhand and forehand all let her down. Lisicki was also not moving with the fluency that we were used to. She was overwhelmed by the occasion. She just could not get going on centre court.
On the other hand Bartoli ensured that she returned serve very well, she moved well, countered the drop shots with drop shots of her own, she kept the ball on Lisicki's backhand and also kept Lisicki moving from side to side. Bartoli did everything right. She stayed focused, she remained calm and did the basics very well. Bartoli was all business today and she had a great day at the office.
It was all too much for Lisicki. I cannot remember another Final where the losing Finalist was so overcome with emotion that she was crying on court during the match.
Bartoli won 6-1 and 6-4.
However I am still convinced that we will see a lot more of Sabine Lisicki in the future when she starts her winning ways. She is definitely a future Grand Slam Champ. The only question is when?
 
 

Real Madrid 2013 / 2014 - the need for quality

Whilst Sr. Perez is busy building his team for the next season, I would like to put forward the following points for consideration:-
1. The team needs another first class striker to work with Ronaldo.
2. Karim Benzema is not really of that calibre to be a Madrid forward. May be the time has come for his
    departure.
3. What was the reason for getting rid of Di Maria? He was one of those youngsters who gave it his all and
    was back defending and going forward as an attacking mid fielder.
4. We have to review Alonso's role in the team. He is not fulfilling his role as a play maker or the distributor
    of the ball. If you do not have any ideas - think of Kaka filling this role.
5. Abeloa's role should be reviewed. He is not effective. He is weak, does not have pace and definitely out
   of sorts when up against quality attackers. Further he is prone to get yellow cards.
6. I think, although this hurts me to say so, Casillas should be replaced by Diego.
Sr. Perez please get one or two quality players otherwise you are not going to win any silverware this year. And remember Barcelona is bolstering its forward line by incorporating Neymar.

Murray rides on British emotion into the Finals

Andy Murray rode on British emotion and sentiment into the Wimbledon Finals.
Djokovic awaits him.
This year however, I would quesstion Djokovic's fitness after his gruelling 5 set match against Del Potro; will Djokovic recover well in time for the Finals? Also I question his temperament. We all saw he was rattled in the 4th set and also the first few games of the 5th. And on Sunday with the crowd going to be solidly behind Murray - it will take an awful amount of self discipline to maintain his composure.
This opens up the possibility of Murray becoming the first Brit since Fred Perry to win the Gentleman's Finals.
If he fails to capitalise, then maybe, just maybe Wimbledon will become a bridge too far.

Sagan's wins the Stage and extends the Green Jersey lead

For all you guys who do not watch cycling, please get up early and watch the Tour de France. The vistas ( scenery ) of the French countryside is a treat to watch. Then there is the Tour. We just finished the 7th stage ( 7th day of riding ) and tomorrow the Tour goes into the Pyrenees.
Todays race was dominated by Peter Sagan and his team - Cannondale. They virtually led from start to finish and managed to take Sagan to the Stage Sprint Victory earning him 20 points and giving him a commanding 224 points for the Green Jersey. His nearest rival for the Green Jersey is Andre Greipel with 130 points and Mark Cavendish with 119.
For me to see this young Slovak rider race is something special. He is not only one of the fastest sprinters in the sport today but he is also quite a competent rider up the mountains. This not only makes him dangerous for various Stage wins but clearly makes him a more complete rider than most of his sprint rivals.
This year the determination of his team - Cannondale to see Sagan go for the Green Jersey and eliminate all his rivals as early as possible is quite remarkable. The way they led the race from the start and held the head of the Peloton was impressive.
The team ensured that they protected Sagan and pulled him through the sprint and stage victories.
I am convinced that Sagan will keep the Green Jersey for a long long time - maybe even carry it onto the streets of Paris.
However the question that needs answering is how many stage victories he will have this year? 
He has landed his first today.
On the eve of the race entering the mountains, I am intrigued by the race tactics that will be used by the stars of the Tour - Alberto Contador, Andy Schelck and others. They have held back so far - just a few seconds behind the Yellow Jersey. Now it is their time to shine.
The stage has been set for the showdown.
The mountains will separate the men from the boys and usually gives us the most thrills. Hopefully this year we will be well entertained.
For the uninitiated, there are 4 Jerseys in play everyday. The Tour leader's jersey is called the Yellow Jersey; the leader of the mountains jersey is called the Polka Dot Jersey( white with red polka dots ); the leader of the sprints jersey is called the Green Jersey and the best young rider's jersey is called the White Jersey.
The Tour is divided into stages and every day's race on the Tour represents a stage.
The Tour starts in a certain part of France and winds it way through the French countryside and finishes in Paris and normally is raced over two weeks. However sometimes the Tour goes through neighbouring countries as well.

 

Djokovic rolls on

The first semi finals saw Djokovic squeeze past Del Potro 7-5, 4-6, 7-6, 6-7 and 6-3. It was the longest semi in the history of Wimbledon and perhaps one of the most passionate. Here was Djokovic the clear favourite and has been playing as if he is destined to win and on the other side of the net was Del Potro - a former US Open Champ.
Del Potro came onto the Court with his left leg heavily bandaged. He gave it his all. The match was evenly fought and really came alive in the 4th set. How Del Potro kept fighting through the pain and fatigue and eventually closed out the set was fantastic. Sheer guts and grit.
However he could not sustain his tremendous forehand crosscourts hit with such power into the fifth. During the last few games of the 4th and into the 5th, Djokovic was clearly rattled. Showing his frustrations at everybody including the ballboys for not giving him his towel soon enough. It was not a pretty sight to see a Champion stoop to this level.
However at the end, the luck of the Champion held and Del Potro left his all on the center court. He could not do more. His legs would not carry him any further nor run any faster. And we could not have asked for a more passionate match. 

Confedration Cup - Spain's downfall

Spain's performance was poor and leads me to pose the question whether their reign as Champions has come to an end. My observations are as follows:-
: The first goal was a defensive blunder. The high ball left Abeloa floundering and then Casillas was too slow to dive on the loose ball.
: Where was Xavi during the match - we saw so little of him - one of the play makers of Spain absent?
: Iniesta worked the ball along the left but did not create any dangerous plays.
: The Spanish control and passing is great to watch - but if it is all lateral play then there is no danger. The forwards rarely took a shot at goal. All possession without shots at goal is not the formula for winning.
: Winners have to score goals. Its as simple as that. And what was Ramos doing taking a penalty when the forwards were there.
: The Spanish defence were flatfooted and slow. They didn't pick up their man nor could they match the speed, agility and skill of the Brazilian forwardline.
I am sad to see the Spanish side crumble so easily.
Maybe we saw the next World Champion - Brazil.   

Ladies Semis - Wimbledon 2013

Bartoli of France, overpowered Flipkens of Belgium to reach the Finals. It was a totally one sided match and will perhaps go down in the history books as one of the tamest ladies semis ever. One of the main reasons for Flipkens's downfall was her continuous use of the backhand slice. It is inconceivable how in today's power tennis era, she hasn't opted for the two handed backhand but depended on her weak back hand slice. Bartoli realizing this, kept putting all the balls on Flipkens's backhand.
The second semi was a great match. It was refreshing to see the 23rs seed Lisicki, of Germany, come out punching from game one. Radwanska, of Poland, showed her poise and strength but in the end the sheer energy and purpose of Lisicki won the day. Yes Lisicki's game was refreshing to see and somewhat reminded me of the power play of the Williams' sisters. She played without fear but with a firm conviction that she would reach the finals. She did. And how. I can't wait to see more of Lisicki on the various courts around the world. And maybe we are watching the arrival of the next great champion.
Bartoli won 6-1 an 6-2
Lisicki won 6-4, 2-6 and 9-7
The Finals on Saturday will pit Germany against France - two of the great powers in today's Europe. Will Germany flex her muscle on Centre Court and win the Ladies Championship - the first after Stefi Graf? We will find out on Saturday.