A Common Fan’s Sports Diary

I have always thought very highly of Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi’s feat of playing cricket at the highest level with just one good eye. It remains for me one of the best examples of a human being refusing to bow down to the dictates of fate and overcoming the curse of deformity with unflinching perseverance, dogged determination and sheer indomitable spirit.

And now Vijay Patel is ready to join Tiger Pataudi. For this one –handed guy has prevailed over all odds to play the game of basketball so well, that he’s been called for the selection trials to the Los Angeles Lakers.

If you don’t think that’s good enough just try it out for yourself. You will be soon tearing your hair out with both hands.

Ever read through all the comments on the discussion board of the sports articles on rediff.com

If you have not, you are definitely missing something. This is probably the only place where quite often the comments are more readable than the article itself. They are so interesting (read random and baseless and without a shred of logic) that you could actually skip the body of the article and head straight to the comments.

I had a lot of fun reading this one, and that one and also this other one

Siddhartha Vaidyanathan has spoken beautifully for me and many others – twenty somethings who have spent their entire adolescent and adult lives watching the Fab Five in action.

How different will cricket be for me; without this extraordinary bunch?

Will it wane my interest in the game?

I think hard and another exodus comes to mind

I was a tennisaholic in the glory days of Becker, Edberg, Courier, Sampras, Agassi and Ivanisevic

Now I only watch when Federer plays Nadal

Related Article

A great supporting cast but no leading man

We are not talking about a goalkeeper here

We are talking about Irish Footballer Rory Delap, who has the most amazing throw-in ever seen in the game of football. His throws regularly travel a distance of 35 plus metres and touch speeds of 60 Km/hr. What makes them even more dangerous is their flat trajectory, making it difficult to pick the ball’s flight and thus creating havoc in the opposition defence.

Many a manager has tried and failed to counter the aerial threat of Rory’s throws. As noted by Aston Villa manager Martin O’Neill, these throw-ins are as effective at creating goal scoring opportunities as a corner kick or a free kick. Little wonder that 7 of the 13 goals scored by Delap’s club have come off his throw –ins

Here’s a study of his technique for those of you aspiring to become the next ‘Human Sling’

The following video about his throwing prowess begs the question.

What if Rory Delap had taken to throwing a javelin or a shot put instead of throwing a football?

Are we looking at someone who could have been an Olympic Champion thrower?

The domestic airlines of Nauru - the world’s smallest island nation, Our Airlines, offloaded two passengers to make way for two athletes on their way to the Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune. This was the only way these athletes could have made it to the games on time. Their efforts were rewarded when one of the athletes won a medal.

In India such things happen for politicians all the time

Wonder what they are winning for the country

Would you give him your seat?

Pat Tillman chucked a lucrative career in the National Football League, to answer his country’s call to go fight the war in Afghanistan. He died a hero’s death, risking his own life to save a colleague.

Barbaro, a race horse won one of the biggest prizes in American racing - the Kentucky Derby, in his first appearance. He broke his leg in the next race. After an 8 month rescue effort, he was finally put to sleep to ease the pain. His plight brought thousands together and these people continue to share each other’s grief long after the horse’s death.

Nazareth is a small agro based country town in the US, the kind where everyone knows everyone. People face a difficult future with the land losing fertility and no other means of sustenance available. What keeps them going, however, is the town’s High School girl’s basketball team; which has the best record in the country and is well and truly the only reason for the town’s being.

If you find such stories appealing, and want to read more about them and other similar ones in greater detail, go to the