FAIRFURREN CESC FABREGAS!

And so you sailed away

Into a grey sky morning

Now I'm here to stay

Love can be so boring

Nothing's quite the same now

I just say your name now

But it's not so bad

You're only the best I ever had

You don't want me back

You're just the best I ever had

-Vertical Horizon

First things first, I harbour no ill feelings towards Fabregas. He is not deserting Arsenal, he is just going back home. Barcelona is where he grew up, where he learnt to play football, where he belongs. And eight (ultimately fruitless) campaigns is more than one can ask from someone destined to become one of the greatest playmakers in history. Anyone else would have left the first time Barca came calling. But credit to Fabregas, he was patient. He tried really hard for the Arsenal cause. Despite never having the teammates he deserved, he trudged on. There is no denying that ever single time he put on an Arsenal shirt, he played his heart out. He played through pain and injury. He played an entire match with a broken foot just to help Arsenal draw level with (of all teams) Barcleona. And that is the true mark of the man!

But it's sad nevertheless to watch a player with that kind of dedication and quality leave. All those defence splitting passes, all those spellbinding goals, all those heartlifting performances. And to think he hasn't even touched his prime.

Towards the end of the 1999 flick Fight club, Edward Norton’s character, in a moment of clarity tells Marla Singer: "You met me at a very strange time in my life!" In a slightly different context, that's exactly how I feel about Fabregas. He happened at a very strange time in Arsenal's history. Though he will always be regarded as an Arsenal legend, his stint lacked the one single yardstick that defines a great player: silverware. 

He joined in 2003 but was never really an Invincible. The 2005 FA Cup is the only medal that he won in eight seasons in London. Had he played in any other era at Arsenal, when trophies weren't so hard to come by, when there was genuine quality within the ranks, we would have seen the true potential of the man.

Football folklore abounds with stories of what might have been. This is one more chapter I guess. It is heartwrenching to see him leave. He was my favourite player since Thierry Henry. Hopefully Jack Wilshere will take over his mantle at Arsenal.

Fairfurren Cesc Fabregas. Thank you for eight years of magic. I hope you touch the skies. And I hope you return someday to grace the Ashburton turf. 

And even if you don't, you will always belong!

WHAT SHANKLY SAID!

There's nothing like taking on the English Champions in England and beating the pulp out of them. Both on and off the field. It doesn't matter if you take a few grazes yourself. Something to remember it by!

Champions League final: 28th May, 2011, Wembley, England. Manchester United 1 Barcelona 3.

Football is not a matter of life and death. It's much more important than that!

Sachin Tendulkar. God. World Champion. 'nuffsaid.

Silence!

Not just another match!

Words fail me.

I badly want to write something. I know I had decided before I commenced with the blog that I would only write when I felt like but it's India versus Pakistan for Christ's sake. It warrants an entry!

Ever since the quarterfinal draw was made and the possibility of such a clash was revealed, I have been waiting for this tie. As far as cricket is concerned, it really doesn't get bigger. Even the Ashes, for all its grandeur, pales in comparison. India vs Pakistan is the cricketer's equivalent of the El Clasico!

Before India took on Pakistan in the 2003 World Cup, Ganguly insisted it was just another match. Sachin reiterated his captain's line. Shoaib Akhtar also said it. Waqar Younis repeated it as well. A national daily observed that when so many players feel the need to say that, it only means one thing. That it is not just another match. Because when India clash with Pakistan, it is never just another match.

If anything, that was a group match. Eight years later, the odds are even bigger. While India vs Pakistan is big in itself, throw in the setting of a semifinal and it goes out of the roof.

MS Dhoni realizes that. After beating Australia to secure qualification into the semis, he spoke about the next match. Indians won't care as much if we lose a World Cup final but we CANNOT lose to Pakistan. His very words!

India have never lost to Pakistan in World Cups. NEVER. I hope we keep that record intact.

And I hope Sachin shows Akhtar again ki baap baap hota hai!

Tait and Tendulkar

Shaun Tait huffs and puffs. The going is not too good for him. He has just been belted for a boundary. Ricky Ponting runs up to him. A pat on the arm in support. And tells him to go for Plan B. The ace up his sleeve. The bouncer.

It won’t fetch him the wicket he craves. But atleast it will ruffle the batsman slightly. It will work him up. He will lose his coordination. It will force him into a mistake. Accordingly Tait storms back into position for his run up. Sprints to the crease and slams the ball on the deck. Hard. Forcing the batsman to duck.

Hit that one, he yells. Mission accomplished? Yeah right! Sachin Tendulkar turns and takes a step away to the side of the crease. He is more concerned about the flies hovering around his visor. They are the bigger threat to India's impending victory.

The Aussies might have mastered the art of sledging. But Tendulkar has mastered the art of countering it. Two dot balls later, Brett Lee runs to fetch another Tait delivery duly dispatched to the boundary.

Of running and walking

At the cost of reiterating an oft-repeated phrase, it's like flicking a switch.

He lifts his willow to the heavens, sending the crowd into a frenzy. 40,000 people of different castes, creed and colours erupt as one.

And then when the same 40,000 wait with baited breath and rapt attention fearing the worst, he turns around, tucks his bat under his arm and walks away as silence engulfs the stadium. It actually is like he flicks a switch.

It isn't just the runs he takes that add to his greatness. It is also the walks he makes.

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar: My Lord and My God.