Money Wins !!

BCCI does it. And Sharad Pawar's statement - This is what BCCI wanted - confirms the monopoly of Indian board in the world of cricket. The racist charges lifted against Bhajji came as no surprise, probably to any Indian. Instead he was reproved and fined for using the abusive terms. Inshort, the level of the charges were reduced. Its good for the future of Cricket, Cricket Australia and Australia. Yes, Ponting was unwise in his decision to complain against an Indian player. He must have thought of the consequences. Every ordinary Indain had a better view of the ramifications if they stamped Bhajji as a racist. Such matters need to be better settled off the field in a more amicable ambience. As some newspaper reported, BCCI - interms of revenue - is in the top 170 in India (if it were a company). How can one expect the most powerful board to sit with hands folded on such issues ? And it didn't !!

Djo all the way

Djo - maintaining his natural game & overcoming the pressure - is the new Champion in the Game. Tsonga although had the first set, somehow lost his rythm and threw away the title. He seemed very defensive in his approach. Compared to his previous encouters with Youzhiny, Nadal he seemed to care much about the title, although he had nothing to lose. He finally is in Top-20. On the other hand Novak held his nerve, utilized his US open final appearance experience and showed extreme maturity in dealing with pressure. He emerged the true. On the whole, that was a fantastic contest, unlike the semi-finals which were one-sided. Two new forces emerged - thats the good news for Tennis fans!!

FedEx Derailed !!!

It was difficult to see R Federer going down in straight sets. But, somehow felt that atleast there was real competition for him. Novak out-classed him in many areas in the SemiFinal. His picking up of the opponents drop shots and placing them in the right areas is outstanding. Novak also used the corners of the cour very well. Roger was, however, did not use the power of first-serve to an extent Novak utlized. Roger's forehand was the worst of all. Even if the third set went Rogers way, the way he played (disappointingly) suggested that he would have been down 3-1. Unlike, in the last final where these two met Djo held his nerve in the tie-breaker to win the set and eventually the match. Probably, the youngsters are beginning to outplay the middle-aged Fed (in Tennis terms). Is this the beginning of a new era in tennis ? Well lets see !