Greatest Sporting Moments

Heres my list of the greatest sporting moments that I have been witness to (there may be many moments which I was unfortunate not to have witnessed it).

10) India vs Pakistan Jan 1999,Chennai,First Test Match

The first Indo-pak test series in 10 years. After watching a masterclass by Sachin tendulakar go in waste as India lost, the entire Chepauk crowd rises and applauds as the Pakistan team takes a victory lap. Sport once again proved how it can bring people nearer.

9) Michael Schumacher becomes World Champion, Susuka, Japan, 2000

After 19 years Ferrari produces a world champion, Michael Schumacher and for 5 years dominated the sport like none.

8) Pete Sampras U S Open Champion,Flushing Meadows, New York 2002

In his final U S Open (in fact his final professional match) Pete Sampras becomes the U S Open Champion in front of an emotional New York crowd to bid good bye to tennis.

7) Abhinav Bindra becomes India's first individual gold medalist in Olympics, Beijing, 2008

After years of wilderness in Olympics sports (barring the hockey successes) India finally gets an individual gold medal.

6) Sachin's two gems: The Sandstorm and The Happy Birthday, Sharjah, April 1998

Two glorious knocks, one to propel India into the finals (fighting a sandstorm) and the other to win the tournament (on his birtthday) were much more than a masterclass against the best team in the world. They defined Indian cricket of the 90s. It was a one man team whose fortunes along with a billion hopes solely depended on a 5 feet 5 inches tall superman.

5) Very very special Laxman, Second Test, Eden gardens, 2001

1-0 down, following on, 4 wickets down against a rampant Australian team on the look out for a world record for most number of consecutive wins. You can't imagine a recovery. But Laxamn in company of Rahul Dravid achieved a feat that in history of test cricket will be unsurpassed.

4) Sachin Tendulkar,Diana Memorial Match, Lords,July, 1998

There will always be questions asked on who is the greatest batsman after Sir Don. But at Lords on July 18 1998 playing for ROW XI against bowlers of quality like Donald, McGrath, McMillan and Kumble, Sachin scored a match winning century some answers were given. So what was so great about a Sachin century in an "unofficial" match? Well it was the occasion, the atmosphere, the moment. Great players are generally defined depending upon how they rise at great moments. At Lords,the birthplace of cricket, on a "solemn" occasion, amidst the best of players of his times, in front of an emotional crowd, the scene was set for something spectacular and spectacular it was!

3) Michael Phelps,Beijing, Olympics, 2008

Ask a sportsman what is his greatest fantasy? 99 out of 100 will say its a olympic medal. They literally put their heart and soul just to win a medal. And heres a guy who has won 14 golds and 2 bronzes over two Olympics including a record 8 in a single Olympics beating the record of another legend, Snitz.

2) Zinedine Zidane against Brazil,Paris 12-7-1998 and Frankfurt 1-7-2006

There are few sportsmen who are as popular as Zizou was in France. And he deserved it!
In final of the 1998 world cup, Zidane scored 2 super goals to impress a shocking 3-0 victory over favourites Brazil and bring France its first ever World Cup. His popularity can be guaged from the fact that the entire Paris had hoardings that read"Zidane For President". In a country notorious for racism, Zidane transcended all to emerge a national hero.

But to me his single handed demolition of Brazil in the QF of 2006 WC was an even better performance. At 34, coming out retirement to take France into the WC and then inspiring them to the finals, Zidane was magnificent against Brazil. His dribbling and magic with the ball left the Brazilian players dumbstruck. He was literally toying with the football making the rest 21 players on the field look mediocre as well as blessed to witness greatness from so close!

1) ASHES 2005, England claim the Ashes in 18 long years.

The Ashes of 2005. Forget what it meant to the English cricket and English sport in general. Forget it literally shattered Aussie domination on the sport. Forget that for the first time in a decade, cricket took the front page headlines away from football in UK. Forget every other thing associated with that series. Even on the basis of sheer quality of cricket it was unbelievable. Extraordinary would be an understatement. The drama, the excitement, the batting, the bowling, the fielding, who the hell says test cricket is boring? Every moment of that series was amazing. I am going to make an entire new entry in this blog to describe that series. Just wait for it!!!

1) Wimbledon Final, Nadal beats Federer, July 6, 2008

This particular moment will require 2 separate entries to full describe it. Heres an outline. The greatest player ever, 5 time Wimbledon champ losing against a player who by his own admission is not at all comfortable on grass. The greatest Wimbledon final ever. The longest lasting final ever. The last point played in virtual darkness. That was not sport. That was like watching two heavenly descendants playing on the earth and we mortals simply witnessing it. I was glued to the TV sets for the entire 8 hours the match lasted including the rain breaks. And believe me I was on the edge of my sit for the entire 8 hours. I could only imagine the tension in the arena, and especially tension on that 2 great men. And despite that numbing tension, the two produced arguably the greatest 8 hours of tennis that the world has ever seen or will ever see.