THE YEAR 2009 was a seminal one as much for what happened off the playing field as on it, which is saying a lot since it was a momentous year for on-field achievements as well. Virtually every sport had its share of highs and lows, with the highs typically on the colloquial ‘court’, and the off-field adventures privy to the literal ‘courts’, with legalese unfortunately a vital part of the year in general.
Boxing, Tennis, Cricket, and now Golf all have seen turbulent times in the last 12 months, and one hopes this isn’t the year when controversy trumped credibility. Indian sports saw their fair share of success and side-notes as well, with the notable off-field forays into the Wada ‘whereabouts’ clause, and Vijender’s move to Percept.
This has been a peak and trough year for cricket to say the least. The troughs are of course notable: India’s early exit from the World Cup T20, the need to move the IPL out of India, and the somewhat tepid reception to the Champions League. This was also the year when cricket’s overall profitability somewhat dipped, and the ICL for all intents and purposes suffered from a lock-out and took a sabbatical.
The peaks however, were significant, topping out with India at the top of the Test rankings, Sachin’s twentieth year with no signs of any slow-down, and the IPL completing a second extremely successful season despite the move to SA. Simply put, despite the competition from other sports, cricket remained a more viable and attractive proposition than any other, emulating the Yukon in its allure to gold-rushers.
The biggest story to deal with cricket however, was neither a peak nor a trough kind of situation, but rather a regrettable necessity stemming from the unique celebrity positioning that India’s cricketers have. The Wada ‘whereabouts’ clause, and the BCCI’s backing of the Indian players’ reservations surrounding compliance with this clause sparked a raging debate, and one which is still unresolved. The timing (protesting after all had already been signed and sealed) was unfortunate, but it garnered support from numerous other sporting bodies and athletes, and showed that cricket now has the muscle and wherewithal to hold its own, and also to muster attention from other global sports and associations.
Boxing had an up year, which is putting it mildly, with Vijender showcasing the potential for boxing in India. With his reaching the top in the rankings, and the announcement of India as a host for the World Series of Boxing, and the plans to formulate and air ‘The Contender’, a reality television show hosted by Vijender, Boxing remained in everyone’s line of sight. Factor in the IOS controversy and the subsequent win for Percept and Vijender, a decision that would likely cause ripples across sports in India, and one could say that 2009 was the year when a sport that was down for the count rallied in stunning fashion to contend once more with other sports. Globally, Pacquiao’s dominant year, and Mayweather’s return to boxing’s elite has set 2010 up to be the year of boxing’s renaissance, phoenix-like in its resurgence.
What eventually became a roller-coaster year in tennis started out with an Australian Open finals where Federer had seemingly passed on the torch to a red-hot fire-eating Rafael Nadal, crying as much out of helplessness as from disappointment. That he finished the year at the top was as much a display of his fortitude and sheer brilliance as it was of a tapering off of talent on Rafa’s part due to injuries and burn out. This was in many ways Federer’s year, as he notched Grand Slams number 14 and 15, and also overcame his Waterloo, namely Roland Garros. But, it was tempered by the realization that the depth in Men’s tennis was now too much for one to expect consistent dominating seasons from the greatest of all time. His victories will be fewer and further between, which is probably a good indicator for the success of men’s tennis in the post-Federer era. Nadal’s future is far more uncertain.
It was an outstanding year for Indian tennis as well, with Davis Cup success, and the evergreen Leander leading the way for rising stars Somdev and Yuki to take India back to the years when it was a perennial contender. Unfortunately, as has been the rule this year, Open, Agassi’s book, sparked a debate that is yet to subside, and has asterisked much of what he accomplished, and also added skepticism to the awe that most fans had for the achievements of the tennis demi-gods that they idolized. Hopefully the long term repercussions will be minimal, and from a legal standpoint the statute of limitations have run, so Agassi is unlikely to be taken to court even for perjury, one would hope.
In Golf, the Tiger Woods ‘scandal’ has reached cataclysmic proportions, and factoring in a Major-less year, this year would be best forgotten by him: if the media lets him forget it, that is. What could have been just a bad year where Yang came from behind to somewhat dent the impenetrable armor that Tiger seemingly donned at Majors, is now a disastrous one for the extremely private Woods. 2010 would be a year where he would need to exorcise his personal and professional demons, and look towards Kobe Bryant for inspiration on how winning is the best way to overcome intense media scrutiny and criticism. This episode also throws light on how difficult celebrity sportspersons’ lives really are, with private matters thrown into the public domain. It makes one realize how much Indian cricketers, especially Tendulkar have had to deal with, on a daily basis.
Other notable topics in Indian sport included the rise of Saina, the growing interest in the NBA and Soccer overall, and of course the skepticism surrounding the CWG 2010. These are all topics for 2010, and one can only hope the positives outweigh the negatives in the new decade of sports. The overriding story is that Sport is rapidly growing in India, and also becoming organized. 2009 was a year when many sat up and noticed the vast potential that Sport possesses. The game has started, and the players are lining up. A growth industry has been born, and there are no prodigals in this tale: only potential and sustainable, unfettered growth at that. Opportunities are rife, what now remains to be seen is how one best leverages these. And still plays the game.
