Murray is a player more suited to the hard courts but his grass game seems to have come on a lot over the past year. He pulled out an outstanding array of shots in the Queen’s final against James Blake and made victory look relatively easy. I have great admiration for Blake as a player and the way Murray dealt with him was impressive to say the least, the American seemed to have no response to Murray’s high-tempo game.

Where the Scot has come unstuck in previous Wimbledon Championships has perhaps been his failure to kill a game off, often making sloppy mistakes meaning he has to play a full five sets before he beats his opponent. This has a big effect on his fitness for the following matches and you can often see Murray feeling the effects of fatigue later on in competitions. His displays at Queens demonstrate Murray seems to have overcome this particular problem and he should see off the lesser known players with greater ease meaning he is fresher when he faces the greats such as Roger Federer. Obviously, Rafael Nadal’s absence will make things easier for him (ever so slightly).

A problem that seems to haunt British players at Wimbledon is the expectations of the British media who always put the pressure on the best British representitive to lift the trophy. For some players this helps them, Tim Henman, for example, arguably overachieved by reaching the semi-final stage of the competition four times. Henman never won a Grand Slam and in all fairness never really looked as if he was going to, yet the British media continued to talk up his chances. Similarly Greg Rusedski’s chances were always talked up but in reality it would have been highly unlikely for the big-serve specialist to have gotten much further than the quarter finals in a Grand Slam.

Without a doubt Murray is the best British tennis player in a long time and if anyone is going to end the 73-year wait winner it surely has to be him. However, the player himself remained cautious on his chances of upsetting the tennis odds and lifting the trophy at the end of the tournament.

Speaking after his Queen’s victory Murray said: “I’m a long way from winning Wimbledon.

“I feel confident but I try not to get too far ahead of myself before I’ve played my first match there.”

If Federer does indeed lift the French Open title he will finally have matched that 14 Grand Slam record that is currently held by Pete Sampras. The 27-year-old has made the last three finals in France but has been bettered each time by Nadal, who usurped him as World Number One around this time last year. He faced a tricky semi-final tie against World number five Juan Martín del Potro, getting past him in a very grueling five setter. Federer is now the tennis betting favourite to get past Soderling.

It would be a massive milestone for him to match Sampras’ record and one he thoroughly deserves after such an impressive career. If he does indeed match the record set by Sampras you wonder how long it will be before Nadal betters it anyway, at 23 he already has six Grand Slams under his belt and a blip at this year’s French won’t put him off his hunt for silverware during 2009. If you’re betting on the French Open final I would without a doubt go for Federer.

In the end, it was Lionel Messi who put the finishing touch on Barcelona’s incredible season by heading in Xavi’s pin point cross into the goal - a goal that would effectively finish off Manchester United’s own hopes of winning the Champions League. And as Barcelona passed the ball around in their usual unparalleled style leaving United players chasing shadows - it just seemed like the team from Catalunya was playing football from a different planet. The fact that Barcelona were missing their first choice wing backs, had two 35 year olds as their replacements and had a central defender who had played in midfield all season absolutely didn’t matter because quite simply their midfield didn’t give United the ball. And let’s not forget that the team they were outclassing had just won the league title and had the best defensive record in the Champions league.

 It had all started so differently for Manchester United - with a flurry of chances and almost 80% complete posession in the first ten minutes of the game. Things started to go awry when Samuel Etoo scored in what was Barcelona’s first shot on goal in the tenth minute. United almost certainly never recovered from that shock and if it wasn’t for Van der Saar’s heroics and the goal post, they could have very well ended up losing the match 4-0.

Following Etoo’s goal, Barcelona just seemed to find the same composure and rhythm that has seen them score over 150 goals this season and with every passing minute a United comeback seemed less likely. On a night when Barcelona had atleast six players stepping up to the big ocassion, it was a sad indictment of United’s performance that the images that will be most remembered were there of Ronaldo losing his composure repeatedly on the left flank towards the end of the game. United quite simply missed both Darren Fletcher and Owen Hargreaves - Anderson and Carrick simply not having enough quality to put brakes on Iniesta and Xavi’s relentless passing. 

  There is no doubt that Barcelona absolutely deserved this victory, their third in European history and their first since that famous victory in Paris in 2005. Pep Guardiola’s amazing transformation of this team which had previously gone three years without winning a title will become the stuff of legend.

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Week One La Liga: Cop-out by Barcelona by V on August 26th, 2007
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The Rabbit joins Real Madrid by V on July 11th, 2007
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Barcelona welcomes the Arsenal Great by V on June 25th, 2007
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Raul,Uno,Dos,Tres

Madrid took on the Andalusians Sevilla at the Sanchez Pizjuan looking to score a win and cut down Barca’s lead to 4 points. Sevilla started using their wings pretty well and with a packed up 4-5-1 with Kanoute leading the attack. Perotti constantly troubled Sergio Ramos and Sevilla took the lead in the 16th minute through a fine header by Renato. Real Madrid sat back allowing Sevilla to attack and looking for the elusive counter attack. They managed to equalise just before HT through Raul who latched onto a Metzelder pass into the box with a characteristic poacher’s finish. Raul continued to show his maturity and talent and scored twice and thrice in the 2nd half to give Real Madrid an unassailable 3-1 lead within 65 minutes. Sevilla kept attacking and managed to pull one goal back through 2nd half substitute Diego Capel but that wasn’t enough to win them any points as Marcelo scored a late 4th goal to seal a win for Madrid.

This makes next week’s El Clasico a great match up with Real Madrid looking to win to cut Barca’s lead down to one point. Barca on the other hand will have one eye on the midweek CL semis against Chelsea in what seems to be a heart attack week for the Catalans and a mouth watering one for the neutrals.

First of, let us get to the game at the Santiago Bernabaeu, a heated encounter between the bourgeouis darling Real Madrid CF and the blue collar suburbs,Getafe. Getafe being almost a feeder club of Real as Valladolid used to be in the past played with all the valour and physical effort. Higuain opened the scoring for the Merengues just before half time. Getafe played with a lot of heart after the break and managed to put two goals and take the lead in the Tie. Then started the great show.

In the 84th minute Pepe the tall Madrid defender of Brazilian roots lashed out at Getafe Skipper Casquero after the latter won a penalty after a push by Pepe. Pepe lost his head big time and started a fight with the players which included kicking Casquero twice and punching Albin in the face and also swearing at the assistant referee while being sent off.Then amidst all the chaos Iker Casillas stopped the penalty which was a stupid lob and Real Madrid scored twice in 10 mins to take home a great win which put them -3 with the league leaders Barcelona. Pepe meanwhile lost his head again after being sent off by running back onto the pitch to celebrate Higuain’s winner.In one of the biggest abuse of professional standards, Pepe Le Phew landed himself in hot soup and got himself a 10 match ban,which i find to be very minimal considering the history of punishments accorded for such violent incidents in the past. Even that fight between Diogo and Fabiano got a 6 match ban. Real Madrid get to pull some strings as always and get away with it.

Barcelona hammer Sevilla

Then Barcelona took on Sevilla at the Nou Camp and what followed was a total demolishment of a very good Sevilla side missing Palop and left winger Adriano.INiesta was the star of the show as he opened the scoring for Barca with a neat long range shot and followed it up with assists for the other three goals.The little man from Albacete ran the show running circles around the Sevilla defence and Barca quelled the Sevilla challenge running winners with a 4-0. Etoo,Xavi and Henry being the other scorers.

What this means for the teams

In this edition, the teams that will succeed will be the ones whose seamers can bowl tight in the initial overs - and garner wickets for the spinners bowling later. More importantly, the teams in the final four will be the ones that have their batsmen scoring the most singles and twos in the process of getting set. While we will see the occasional 100 from 40 balls knock, we will more likely see the 60 from 40 balls with 30 runs in boundary hits. And as this becomes the key, the teams that can save the singles and cut down the twos will be more successful. We will see a twenty20 tournament that will be a throwback to the era of one day cricket before WC96. Where the ‘Dean Jones’ kind of batsman is preferred to the ‘Kris Srikkanth’ kind. Finally, as most people point out, the performance of the senior cricketers in the teams will be critical especially in the first half of the tournament. Based on all this and the way the next few matches go, where do the teams stand? Who do we think are the favourites ? Watch this space for more…

If the first edition of the Indian Premier League started with a barrage of sixes off the bat of Brendon McCullum, the second edition was a much more sedate affair. The first six of the tournament didn’t come till late in the Mumbai Indians innings in the first match. Batting was a little bit more trickly in the South African conditions and as the Rajasthan Royals found out - even a score of 133 was extremely difficult to chase under the lights. The first day was disappointing for both of last year’s finalists- Chennai Superkings and Rajasthan Royals. If the Superkings got all their tactics wrong, the Royals went better by putting up a dismal batting performance. Clearly, the Mumbai Indians and the Bangalore Royal Challengers had upped their games and upset the odds. But the most interesting part of the first day were the performances of three Indian veterans - two of whom were deemed by selectors and most fans to be too old for both the 50 over and 20 over formats of the game.

On a day when all expensive signings such as Andrew Flintoff, Kevin Pietersen and Tyrone Henderson didn’t set the matches on fire - it was the old warhorses who shone the brightest. While Sachin Tendulkar’s performance came as no surprise considering he has been in very good touch of late - with fantastic hundreds in New Zealand, it was the performances of the Bangalore duo that would have made a lot of their fans happy. 

Proving Vijay Mallya wrong

I have only seen Rahul Dravid react the way he did after his fifty once before - after reaching his century against the Australians in that famous Calcutta test. The way he pointed his bat to the stand was clear - he was sending a message out to the owners and critics who were doing their best to undermine him even before the tournament had started. All of last season, Dravid had to endure severe criticism for putting together a team that couldn’t do much right. The team’s poor performance completely hid the fact that Dravid had a pretty impressive tournament personally - ending up as Bangalore’s highest run getter and at a good strike rate. Coming into bat at a very precarious 17 for 3 - he played a wonderful innings with shots to all parts of the parks. There were on drives, delicate nudges, powerful sweeps and even a powerful six over midwicket.

The value of Dravid’s innings can truly be measured by the fact that only Kevin Pietersen managed to cross 11 in both sides. Dravid’s 66 ensured that the Royal Challengers got to 133 - giving them atleast a fighting chance against the defending champions.  It’s going to be a big loss for the Royal Challengers when in two weeks they are not only going to lose Kevin Pietersen (who goes away to play the West Indies) but also Rahul Dravid who is scheduled to fly back to be with his pregnant wife. Then came Kumble - who bowed out half way through the series against Australia. Three overs and four really poor shots in he had astounding figures of 5 wickets 5 runs. A lot of sports websites (including this one!) completely discounted the impact of Anil Kumble on the IPL and judging by his performance yesterday - Kumble could make a difference provided his fitness levels stay up. The Royal Challengers have spent a lot of money in trying to remake their squad - Kevin Pietersen, and Jessie Ryder have come in along with Roban Uthappa. Interestingly, it looks like it will be the two gentlemen in their mid 30s who could have the biggest say in their fortunes this year. 

After the four semifinalists and the Mumbai Indians today is the turn of the only team to turn a profit in the first season of the IPL

Team: Kolkota Knightriders

Captain: Good Question!

Coach: John Buchanan

Trump Card: Brendon McCullum

X-Factor: Ajanta Mendis

Whats changed from last season:

Umar Gul misses out because he is from Pakistan. Brendon McCullum will be available for the whole tournament which is a big plus. Mashrafe Mortaza will make his debut for the Knightriders - meaning big support from the other side of the border in Bangladesh.

  What happened in 2007

As much as we dislike Shahrukh Khan for his over the top acting, we have to admit he ran the Knightriders well last season. Shahrukh convinced companies whose brands he endorses such as Nokia and Pepsi to sponsor the Knightriders as well. He charmed the media, consistently made the headlines through the tournament and incredibly managed to win the support of the neutrals. Polls conducted in India showed impressive support for the Knightriders even among people in Mumbai and New Delhi. However, despite putting together a reasonably strong team in the auction, the Knightriders flattered to deceive and ended up outside the top four.

 This year, Kolkota has been making news for all the wrong reasons - Buchanan’s controversial and frankly ridiculous four captain theory has strained his relationship with Saurav Ganguly. While the idea might seem revolutionary, the idea that you might have four different captains in a team might lead to unnecessary pressure on the four and too many messages being sent to the youngsters. How Chris Gayle might make a difference in 2 weeks with a bunch of kids whom he doesn’t even know remains to be seen. Buchanan’s announcement and the resulting attack by Sunil Gavaskar has turned into a spat between Gavaskar and Shahrukh Khan. How it effects the team will be interesting to see. 

The Batting: 

The batting will of course be bolstered by the presence of the Brendon McCullum through the whole tournament. In the recent series against India, McCullum showed a more responsible side to his batting leading the Kiwis to victories in both the T20s, something that augurs well for the Knightriders. And let us not forget that this is the guy who kicked off the IPL last year with the most incredible knock against Bangalore. Interestingly, McCullum has also been nominated as the captain for their first match this weekend. Saurav Ganguly has been in half decent form leading up to the tournament and so has youngster and future Indian hope Cheteshwar Pujara. David Hussey will be available only for the latter half of the tournament anyway. Chris Gayle’s presence in the first half of the tournament should be a great boost for the Kolkota side. 

The Bowling: The bowling looks a little stronger than the batting but is not the best in the league- Ishant Sharma will have to lead the attack and in the absence of Umar GUl will have extra pressure on his young shoulders. He has done a lot of bowling and a lot of traveling in the recent months and for someone so young, it is going to take a lot of mental effort to stay on top of his game. Giving him support will be men like Ashok Dinda, Ajit Agarkar, Charles Langeveldt, and Mashrafe Mortaza - all of them good bowlers but none you would expect to light the tournament on fire. The spin department looks better with  Mural karthik and Ajanta Mendis- while Kartik has had a lot of success in the 20-20 format in England, Mendis still remains a mystery to the cricket world at large and should be able to do well against a lot of teams. Overall, the team looks weak when compared to the likes of Superkings and the Dardevils.

A lot will depend on the youngsters and how they contribute to the team. Of course, the battle might be lost by the first week with the kind of reactions to the new captaincy theory. 

After previewing the four semifinalists, it is now the turn of possibly the most popular team in the Indian Premier Leaugue - the Mumbai Indians.

Team: Mumbai Indians

Captain: Sachin Tendulkar

Coach/Mentor: Shaun Pollock

Trump Card: Zaheer Khan

X-Factor: Lasitha Malinga

Whats changed from last season: More additions than losses and some really positive ones too - JP Duminy, Mohammed Ashraful and Kyle Mills made their way in during the auction but the best purchase was made off season via the signing of Zaheer Khan. Shikhar Dhawan also makes his way into the team.

In 2008, the Indian Premier League’s most expensive team came absolutely undone during the auction through some uninspired signings. This coupled with talisman’s Sachin Tendulkar’s absence resulted in a number of poor performances. Incredibly, the team picked itself up after the infamous slapgate incident involving captain Harbhajan Singh. The inspiration didn’t come from expensive signings but from local players like Abishek Nayar. It was strange to watch the Mumbai Indians not make the semifinals considering they always seem to dominate Indian domestic cricket. This season, some shrewd signings and no fitness problems should ensure that Mumbai start better and make their way into the semifinals.

The Batting:

Sachin Tendulkar will of course be the talisman - any doubts that he might find the going tough in the IPL were put to rest last month during that incredible 160 against the Kiwis. He is fit and his presence in the Mumbai Indians’ squad will also probably mean that they will be the neutral Indian fan’s favourite. I think this format of the game will quite suit the new Tendulkar of the old. Opening with him will be Old Lankan war horse - Jayasurya; the two proving that 20-20 is not necessarily a young man’s game. At 3 should be Shikar Dhawan, signed from Delhi (for Ashish Nehra!) and following will be JP Duminy. Duminy looks a class signing but its always a risk signing a young player for a million bucks on the back of one brilliant season (read Kolkotta and Ishant Sharma). Mohammed Ashraful is one of those players who looks spectacular when he comes off but is frustratingly inconsistent. Dwayne Bravo, Ryan Mclaren and Graham Napier will all perform the roles of the all rounders. Abishek Nayar, Ajinkya Rane, Pinal Shah will all provide the local flavour with Nayar hoping to build on his performances from last season.

The Bowling:

As mentioned earlier, the big signing is that of Zaheer Khan (an exchange with Bangalore for Robin Uthappa), Zaheer is arguably in the running for the best fast bowler in the World right now. Clearly, he is enjoying the responsiblity and the Mumbai Indians will be looking to him to lead the charge. He will get good support from Kyle Mills and Lasitha Malinga. Malinga should be the real X-factor here, and if he gets into rhythm quickly, a number of Indian batsman might struggle to pick him.

Also, a certain starter will be the new kid on the block Dhawal Kulkarni - the highest wicket taker in the recently concluded domestic season. He was on that plane to New Zealand but didn’t get a match on the tour. If Dilhara Fernando plays and bowls well, it will be a pure bonus as he gets tonked around in every form of the game. Harbhajan Singh will be looking to make amends for his stupidity in last season and his recent performances in New Zealand augur well for Mumbai. Overall, the Mumbai Indians have an excellent bowling line up and if Zaheer and Harbhajan come good, it’s going to be tough going for the opposition.

The squad:

The Indians: Sachin Tendulkar, Shikhar Dhawan, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Dhawal Kulkarni, Yogesh Takawale (wk), Chetanya Nanda. Abhishek Nayar, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohan Raje, Jaydev Shah, Pinal Shah, Rahil Shaikh, Saurabh Tiwary

The Foreigners: Dwayne Bravo, Jean-Paul Duminy, Dilhara Fernando, Sanath Jayasuriya, Ryan McLaren, Lasith Malinga, Kyle Mills, Mohammad Ashraful, Graham Napier, Luke Ronchi (wk)

Picture Courtesy: NDTV