Ending on a high

In his brilliant book, What Sport Tells Us About Life, English cricketer turned author Ed Smith, discusses at length what keeps players going well past their prime. Is it a sense of belonging or is it money? Or is it a never-ending love for the sport which gave them everything? In a more recent article in ESPNCricinfo, he asks: “what motivates them? How can great athletes, who once dominated their sports, appear to settle for a more subordinate role? Or do they still feel that glories lie around the corner? Can matinee idols become supporting actors? Can gods become men?”

How many great champions have actually ended their careers as they have started: as champions? And how many after biting the bullet initially have proved that the love for the art form is too enticing to hold back and staged prolonged and less than successful comebacks? Pete Sampras, Michael Phelps and some more fall into the first category, while Michael Jordan, Michael Schumacher and many more into the second.

Here is a sneak peek into some from the first group.

Bjorn Borg, Steffi Graf & Pete Sampras:

He turned pro when he was all of 16 years and retired a decade later at the height of his prowess. After five Wimbledon crowns on the trot (1976-80), ‘Ice Borg’ lost two Grand Slam finals to John McEnroe in 1981 (Wimbledon and U.S. Open). In 1982 he played in only one tournament and left the game on January 22, 1983.

“I know I could play another five years,” Borg told the New York Times. “So to make this step, I wanted to be 101 percent sure before I decided. To retire at 26, that's very, very young. Just telling the simple truth that I don’t enjoy it, I’m not motivated and I need to try other things. To take that step is difficult for a lot of people.”

Like Borg, German Steffi Graf too retired early after winning her sixth French title and her 22nd major in 1999 aged 30. Again, similar to Borg, a case of struggling to remain motivated while still near the top.

‘Pistol Pete’, as he was fondly called, had gone eight majors without a title when he entered the 2002 U.S. Open. Seven matches later he proudly held his fifth United States crown after defeating his arch-rival Andre Agassi. That was to be his last competitive match as he called it quits a year later.

Mark Spitz & Michael Phelps:

The 1972 Munich Olympics is a watershed event in swimming history. A 22-year-old American Jew, Mark Spitz, won all his seven events, a record that would stay for 36 long years before another American Michael Phelps would shatter it in 2008 by winning eight. Immediately after, Spitz retired shocking one and all.

Phelps, after the monumental high of winning every race he entered in 2008, added four more golds in 2012 to become the most decorated Olympian of all-time — 22 medals, 18 of them gold. As he had announced months before London 2012, he gave up his Speedo once the Games ended.

“Being able to be the most decorated was something we really wanted,” he told Los Angeles Times. “To be the best and to do something nobody else has ever done was something that was there. There will be no more staring at that black line for four hours every day. I’m looking forward to moving on to the next chapter of my life.”

Rocky Marciano:

He was rejected from the Chicago Cubs’ farm system in baseball as they felt his right arm lacked power. But Rocky Marciano was destined for greatness elsewhere — inside the boxing ring. A 49-0 record as a pro, to this day he remains the only heavyweight boxing champion to ever retire undefeated. He called it a day when he was 31.

“I didn’t get hurt physically while fighting,” he said. “My physical condition has nothing to do with my retirement. My lonesome family convinced me that I should quit while I’m still in good shape.”

Jim Brown:

Not many will leave a sport that pays a whopping $60,000 a season, that too in the 1960s. But Jim Brown decided to after nine seasons in National Football League with the Cleveland Browns, aged 30. In his final season he rushed for 1,544 yards on 289 carries, scored 21 Touch Downs, and was named Most Valuable Player. In fact he led the NFL in rushing yards in eight of his nine seasons and quit as its all-time leading rusher.

Eric Cantona:

He was bought by Manchester United for a paltry sum of just over a million pounds, but he went on to become one of the giants of the English league. He never represented France, his home country, in the World Cup, but still his iconic status remains unquestioned.

He won four league titles in five years, including two domestic doubles, before retiring at the peak of his professional career in 1997 aged 30.

http://www.sportstaronnet.com/stories/20131026502401700.htm

'Next year will see peace & harmony in the side'

It has been less than a month since Anand Amritraj was appointed the captain of the Indian Davis Cup team. In a welcome relief, congratulatory messages have poured in from the very same players who were the forefront of a face-off with the All India Tennis Association (AITA). In this exclusive chat with The Hindu, the former India player spoke on his new role, expectations and targets.

Excerpts:

Were you expecting the appointment?

After S.P. Misra, the previous captain, left, I knew I was in line for it. I knew that the boys, Somdev [Devvarman], Rohan [Bopanna] and the others wanted me. It was just a question of everybody coming to terms with it and the AITA agreeing. But I wasn’t sure till it happened.

Last year we didn’t have a great Olympics and there were the player protests. The Indian Tennis Players Association (ITPA) was then formed. How do you see things unfolding from now on?

It’s going to be smooth sailing. The players have got pretty much what they wanted. The AITA is I think happy with the decision. This coming year will see peace and harmony in the side and I don’t see any reason why it shouldn’t be.

What will your role be? Along with the non-playing captain duties, will you also be looking at selection and player development?

I am hoping for a say in the selection. We should field the best team we can. There should be no other criteria other than ranking and form. Whoever plays well and whoever is in form is going to be picked.

Regarding player development, I really enjoy doing it, whether I am in Chennai or at the Southern California Tennis Association.

Are you looking at pool of players from where you can select?

Somdev has been great. It’s amazing how far he has got in so little time – from 600 odd to the top 100 in nine months. After him, we have Yuki [Bhambri], Sanam [Singh], Dhivij [Saran], Saketh [Myneni] among others. But they haven’t had a big breakthrough year. We need people for the second singles. You can’t rely on Somdev to win every time. It’s too much pressure. Rohan [Bopanna] has had an amazing year in doubles. But we have always had great doubles players. That’s not my main concern. Singles is.

Traditionally India’ strength has been grass. But with the younger crop more tuned to the hard courts, do you see that trend continuing?

It’s going to stay that way. When I played, our best surface [grass] was the opponent’s worst. It was an easy decision, but not now. Somdev’s best will also be his opponent’s best surface. So it’s a fine line. But Somdev is good on hard courts and we have to go along with what’s best for our best player. 

You are based in the United States and come to India four times a year. So how frequent will your interactions be with the players and will you travel more?

Not really. A lot of tournaments happen in the US and England. I am always at the Wimbledon and the US Open. I am also planning to go a lot of Challenger events where these players are going to be at. I’ll have a lot more chances to see them there than sitting here.

Your brief is till the end of 2014. What is your target?

The goal is to get into the World Group. Players need to stay healthy and be able to play through the year. I think it’s definitely doable. We need the second singles guy to make the jump. The sooner that happens the sooner we will get in.

Edited version:

http://www.thehindu.com/sport/tennis/next-year-will-see-peace-harmony-in-the-side-anand-amritraj/article5234555.ece

Unyielding fielding

Gravity defying acts on the cricketing field are no longer a novelty. It’s more a norm. But it was not so two decades ago. It all changed when a youngster with blond hair in his early twenties made an entry. Now after a fulfilling playing career, the South African Jonty Rhodes is busy teaching the Mumbai Indians in the IPL and the South African national team, the skills which he employed to swoop on the ball from backward point. He doubles up as an ambassador for Surfing in India too and the still immaculately shaped 44-year-old spoke to Sportstar on the sidelines of an event in Chennai.

Excerpts:

How has the art of fielding changed over the years?

Nowadays with T20 cricket, the IPL and better bats, the batsman take on the fielders. So defending your boundary has become very important. Keiron Pollard fields in the ring for the first six or seven overs and later on he is near the boundary. In my days the best fielders used to field at positions like the backward point. Now you see them at mid-on, long on, long off or wherever the ball goes. If you can’t catch it, at least you can stop it and get the ball back in.

So the emphasis is more on all-round fielding?

Yes. You have got to field everywhere. For long Andrew Symonds was perhaps the best-all round fielder. He was excellent in the ring. He had very strong arms, so he was good at the boundary as well. People like me and Herschelle Gibbs were good in the ring, but not as good at the boundary. But nowadays you see most fielders do both. From David Warner to Suresh Raina to AB de Villiers when he is not keeping.

What do you tell your boys when they go out on to the field?

Save one run. If each guy saves me one run, it gives me ten runs. Margins in most 20 over games come down to three or four [runs].

In the recent Champions Trophy, India was perhaps the best fielding side. What do you think has changed from before?

The limited overs set-up has had an effect. You used to have four or five really slow guys but now there are none. Nowadays with shots like ‘Dilscoop’ and the reverse sweeps, you really can’t hide fielders. So I think it’s the IPL. I remember doing some work with the late Bob Woolmer while was coaching Pakistan. The senior players said, ‘Jonty is wasting his time here. In the subcontinent there is no culture of fielding.’ That was in 2004-05 and may be it was so. But now, young players are getting coached by international coaches and play with international players. It’s not just the international guys doing great things on the field, but young Indians too. The whole intensity and ethos have been absorbed by them. It’s also that if you haven’t scored any runs with the bat, you still have a job to do. So the IPL has gone a long way in improving the skills.

Who do you think are the best fielders in India? Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina?

Yeah…. and [Ravindra] Jadeja too. But those two guys really stand up. I like Raina’s enthusiasm. He reminds me of myself a little bit. He will dive for a ball even if he knows he can’t get it. Many guys later think ‘may be I should have gone for it’, but with Raina, there is no confusion. He will either stop it or the ball will storm past. I used to do the same thing. My team used criticise me. But sometimes you would catch one and the photo would be on the newspapers [laughs].

Rohit Sharma captained the Mumbai Indians (MI) side recently and won the IPL too. Has that given him more confidence as a batsman? He opened for India in the Champions Trophy and did reasonably well.
 
When I watch him at the nets I think ‘for someone so talented how on earth hasn’t he played much for India?’ There have been instances where after someone takes over the captaincy, the form suffers. But with Rohit, it hasn’t happened. He is a fairly quiet man. He is not a Kohli and has a different body language. But he is an intense guy when he bats and leads from the front. It might not be in your face but he leads by scoring runs and winning games for the team.

Sachin Tendulkar won’t be around for MI next year. How big a loss is that?

It’s hard to believe. He has been there for 20 years now and has been synonymous with cricket in India. But I think it will be ok. We won the trophy last time while he was injured for the last couple of games. Two years ago we won the Champions League without him. So there is definitely life after Sachin. But the way he has inspired younger guys to be hungry for runs is great. Someone like Kohli, who probably has more 100s and 50s than any other player in his age group right now. With Sachin setting such high standards, the younger guys want to do better. He might retire but his legacy will live on for a long time.

India will be touring South Africa later this year. How do you see the series?

It will be fiery. But it seems the BCCI and the South African board are not the best of friends at this stage. It’s frustrating because cricket lovers would want to see the two best sides play more than two tests. But it will be a good Test series. India for quite a while was not a good touring side. Now there are lot of characters in M.S. Dhoni, Kohli who can help take on South Africa. Zaheer is getting back to shape as well. He may not be as fast as he once was but he is a great swing bowler.

What about South Africa? Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis might be at the end of their careers. How do you see them in the lead up to the 2015 World Cup?
 
We always keep thinking how we are going to survive without some but ultimately we do. Like how Mark Boucher replaced Dave Richardson, who was our first wicketkeeper-batsman. But with Kallis it will be very difficult. You replace him with a batsman, you lose a bowler and vice-versa. But we have been fortunate enough to have had all-rounders of calibre like Shaun Pollock, Lance Klusener and now Kallis. Hopefully someone will come along.

It will be interesting to see the effect on the South African Test team because it has been a settled unit for close to three years now and that has helped them get to No. 1 in the rankings.

An edited version of the interview can be found here:
http://www.sportstaronnet.com/stories/20131019502701700.htm