Wimbledon 2014: The new generation emerge

By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88

Wimbledon 2014 (logo pictured below) will always be remembered as the time when the new generation of tennis superstars came of age. The heavyweights of the game had a tough time at the All-England club, overshadowed by the power, determination and no fear attitude of new kids on the block.

Wimbledon 2014 provided a mix of fresh talent and expected forces winning

It brought us controversial moments, sensations on Centre Court, a groan of disappointment as our champion had a bad day and the return of a Swiss ace that refuses to go away. However, if you looked at the record books, you’d think the SW19 edition this year had a retro feel as the men’s and women’s singles champions were the same as they were in 2011.

Czech Petra Kvitova returned to the scene of her greatest triumph to overpower Eugenie Bouchard in the women’s final, whilst Serbia’s Novak Djokovic put aside his pain of losing his last three Grand Slam finals to win the men’s showpiece in an epic five-set encounter with Roger Federer.

Andy’s agony

British tennis was in its best place last year when Andy Murray ended 77 years of heartache to beat Djokovic and become men’s champion. It hasn’t been an easy year for the Scot since and this Wimbledon was going to bring highs and lows.

Back surgery last September and a parting of the ways with his coach Ivan Lendl earlier this year have made life more difficult for Murray. An encouraging run to the French Open semi-finals on his least favourite surface (clay), had people talking his chances up of repeating his glory from 2013. The realism was though that with a new coach in Amelie Mauresmo, a former female champion in 2006; it was going to take Murray time to gel with his new partner.

The first four rounds were a breeze. Murray played some great tennis and made no hassle with his opponents, not dropping a set and barely losing his serve. That all change though in the quarter-finals against the tall Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov.

Dimitrov, best known to us as being the other half of Maria Sharapova’s life, was in the form of his career. He had won the AEGON Championship at Queens before coming to south-west London and dealt brilliantly with the pressure of having a home crowd against him. Couple this with a bad day for the champion and Murray’s defence of the title was over.

The straight sets demolition was a shock and questions were raised about Murray’s mind, shot selection and condition of his fitness. His ranking has dropped to no.10, the lowest it has been in six years but the reality is that this was always going to be a testing year after such major surgery. At 27, Murray still has time to win more Grand Slams. The sparkle from winning Olympic gold, the US Open and Wimbledon in such quick succession has most definitely fizzled out. However, he will bounce back from this challenging period in his career.

Serena’s shambles

In the women’s game, the overwhelming favourite going into the tournament was Serena Williams. Despite disappointing early exits from the first two Grand Slams of the year, this is Serena’s favourite surface…well it was until the last fortnight.

First, she crashed out before the start of the second week in the singles, beaten by Alize Cornet on the middle Saturday of the championships. Four days later and in bizarre circumstances, she came onto court with Sister Venus for the doubles quarter-finals, looking disorientated and dizzy. A mystery virus meant she couldn’t even control her racquet. After a game with four double faults, she sensibly withdrew but it was a sorry and shambolic way for her SW19 challenge to end.

Her exit made Sharapova the bookies favourite, but she didn’t get much further. The French Open champion was beaten in one of the matches of the tournament, ousted by German no.9 seed Angelique Kerber in the round of 16. Kerber had earlier ended British interest in the ladies draw, having beaten Heather Watson on Centre Court in the second round.

The female game was rocked to the core by the tragic death of former British no.1 Elena Baltacha in May from liver cancer. On day two of the championships, a highly-charged Centre Court paid its tribute to ‘Bally’ with nine-year-old Elle Robus-Miller – a young player from the Elena Baltacha Academy of Tennis in Ipswich walking out hand-in-hand with the 2013 champion Marion Bartoli to emotional applause.

Bartoli herself struggled to fight back the tears. She retired from competitive tennis only six weeks after her Wimbledon glory last summer. The Frenchman was back this time working for the BBC, and took her seat in the Royal Box to see one of her best friends and the runner-up from 2013, Sabine Lisicki win her first round match. The German’s wave towards Bartoli after completing a straight sets victory showed her respect and gratitude in taking the honour of opening up Centre Court action on day two, normally reserved for the defending champion.

Lisicki would reach the quarter-finals this time, before being blown away on the same court by Simone Halep. The Romanian has soared up the WTA rankings and was one of the many newcomers who made their mark at Wimbledon 2014.

The new generation

Halep was seeded no.3 here and despite admitting that grass was her least favourite surface, she showed no mercy to Lisicki in the last eight and made the semis, being beaten by another newcomer in Bouchard.

The Canadian is definitely one of the most attractive females on the WTA tour and the British media definitely loved her. Only two years ago, she was winning the girls singles here. Now, she charged into her maiden Grand Slam final. The Czech, Lucie Safarova shouldn’t be forgotten either. She made her first Grand Slam semi-final, before being beaten by Fed Cup partner and compatriot Kvitova.

After winning Wimbledon in 2011, Kvitova didn’t seem to handle the pressure of it well and had almost faded into obscurity. Now 24, she seems ready to be able to cope with becoming a Grand Slam winner again. Apart from a bruising encounter with Venus Williams in round three, she charged into the final with consummate ease, barely breaking sweat with some accomplished performances.

The sensation in the men’s draw was Nick Kyrgios. Only given a wildcard entry into the tournament and ranked outside the top 100, the teenager caused a stir by knocking out no.13 seed Richard Gasquet in round two and then an even bigger sensation two rounds later. He faced Rafael Nadal, who was coming off the back of a stunning ninth title at Roland Garros.

Nadal looked uneasy once again on the grass. He dropped the first set in his three opening games but managed to recover. The Spaniard did it again against Kyrgios, only he couldn’t recover this time. Kyrgios showed great maturity for such a young age and his power was unstoppable. Rafa had no idea and checked out in four sets. If he stays fit and keeps focused, Kyrgios is a champion of the future.

He bowed out in the next round to another young Canadian in Milos Raonic. Raonic has so far unfulfilled his genuine promise but that all changed in the past fortnight. The eighth seed moved through into a first semi-final, although he was no match for Federer. It is fair to say the future of tennis is looking bright.

The double repeated   

On paper, Bouchard vs Kvitova looked like being a close women’s singles final. It sadly didn’t live upto the hype and promise. Kvitova was the slight favourite with many due to her previous experience of a Wimbledon final but she produced a simply stunning performance that Bouchard couldn’t live with.

Unlike Lisicki last year, Bouchard’s game didn’t crumble under pressure of the big occasion. She simply had no answer to Kvitova’s brilliant serve and her strong return shots that were making rallies very short and therefore, the match far too quick for many people’s liking. To Bouchard’s credit, she kept going but there was only going to be one winner. Kvitova (pictured below) won 6-4, 6-0 – becoming champion for a second time in under an hour. Petra has the ability to capitalise on this momentum and win many more titles. She just has to believe in herself more, something that didn’t seem visible three years ago.

Petra Kvitova produced a breathtaking performance to win the title for the second time in four years

If the crowd felt short-changed on Saturday, no-one will be asking for a refund after Sunday’s match. Djokovic and Federer met in a Grand Slam final that will go down as one of the best. It went the full distance, as the balance of power shifted back and forth. Federer won the first set on a tie-break, Djokovic the next two 6-4, 7-6 and he seemed to have it wrapped up with an early break of the Swiss’ serve in set four. He even had a championship point, but this was saved by Federer on the Hawk Eye technology. He then reeled off five games in a row to win the set 7-5 and leave his opponent stunned.

The fifth set was a tight and close affair. Both players had opportunities to break serve, but couldn’t take them. Finally at 4-5 in the decider, the Serb had two chances. This time, championship point wasn’t squandered. A return into the net and Djokovic was champion at SW19 again. Federer’s drought without a Grand Slam now has stretched to two years, but while he was denied an eighth title this time – he has the capability and the concentration to still win more in the future. For now though, it was Djokovic’s time and over the course of the fortnight, he was the best player and deserved to take this great prize again.

And just like that, it was all over. Two weeks of absorbing tennis had come to an end; the tournament where the new generation had shone but the established were still able to take the top prizes.

Categories: 2014, Andy Murray, Centre Court, Novak Djokovic, Petra Kvitova, Roger Federer, Serena Williams, Singles, Tennis, Wimbledon

Sport 2013 - Another unforgettable year

By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88

It was always going to be tough to topple the memorable sporting year of 2012 but 2013 certainly was a brilliant cameo to last year’s events. The Brits finally had a Wimbledon winner, continue to reign on two wheels in Paris and a distance god made his success into world domination. There was also the retirement of football’s greatest manager, a won and lost Ashes series, Lions roar to glory Down Under and an invincible German take Formula One by storm. It is fair to say that there were many highlights over the past calendar year.

There is only one place where this review can start and that is to lookback on a remarkable year of tennis. In the women’s game, Serena Williams almost swept the board. The American won the French and US Open, the WTA Championships in Istanbul and regained her number one world ranking. Her Wimbledon defence ended though in the last 16, beaten by Sabine Lisicki of Germany. Lisicki made it to the final but crumbled on the main stage, allowing Frenchman Marion Bartoli – often the bridesmaid to finally become the bride. A straight sets victory for Bartoli saw her claim the only Grand Slam title of her career. A sudden retirement followed in August due to injury but no-one can take away the rose bowl dish won at SW19. Victoria Azarenka won the Australian Open and it was good year for Laura Robson as she made the second week at Wimbledon. Fellow Brit Heather Watson struggled with illness for the majority of the year whilst retirement beckoned for Anne Keothavong and Elena Baltacha. With Roger Federer enduring his worst season in 11 years – failing to reach any of the semi-finals at the Grand Slam events and claiming only one ATP win all season, the main honours were divided between three men. Serbian Novak Djokovic started the year in brilliant fashion, beating Andy Murray in four sets to win again in Melbourne. Despite a shock first round elimination in south west London, Rafael Nadal returned from career threatening injury to win the US Open and triumph for an eighth time at Roland Garros. That leads us to the unforgettable day on Sunday, 7 July 2013.

Andy Murray ended the long British drought of 77 years at Wimbledon

Injury meant Murray missed the French Open and his draw looked tough too, until all of his potential opponents were wiped out on ‘Holby City Wednesday’ on the opening week. Buoyant from his victory at Queens Club, Murray (pictured) made it to the final despite a huge scare in the quarter-finals against Fernando Verdasco. He would play Djokovic after his own five-hour epic with Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina. The final which should have been a tense affair turned into a classy performance from the Brit. Murray won all the crucial points and it was Djokovic who made the mistakes when put under pressure. In searing heat and at 5.25pm on Centre Court, Djokovic found the net and that was that. The longest drought in British sport was over – we had a Wimbledon Men’s Singles Champion and that was Andy Murray after 77 years of hurt. It was an emphatic performance and guaranteed him BBC Sports Personality of the Year in December.

Rugby Union had a powerful 12 months of competitive action. Leicester Tigers defeated Northampton Saints in a bad tempered Aviva Premiership final whilst Toulon were crowned Heineken Cup winners, inspired by Jonny Wilkinson in the final. On the international scene, New Zealand went through an entire calendar year undefeated which included autumn international victories at Twickenham and Dublin. In the RBS Six Nations, there was a final weekend showdown for the championship as Wales met England. An English victory would secure their first Grand Slam in a decade. However it was the Welsh who prevailed with a record win over their opponents 30-3. Leigh Halfpenny was top points scorer in the championship with 74 points. France meanwhile ended up with the wooden spoon. Then it was onto the summer’s big contest in Australia as the British and Irish Lions aimed to win their first overseas series since 1997. It was 1-1 after two very close games with the Lions snatching the first test 23-21 in Brisbane but losing the second 16-15 in Melbourne. It went down to the finale in Sydney and the Lions played the Aussies off the park, routing them 41-16 to win the series 2-1. It was their first series win in Australia in 24 years. Halfpenny was the star again, scoring 49 points over the three tests.

Sailing is not the most popular sport but it produced an incredible story and one of sport’s greatest comebacks in September. The year started sadly when Team GB medallist in Beijing and London, Andrew Simpson died in May when the yacht he was on training for the Americas Cup capsized. The final between Emirates Team New Zealand and Team Oracle USA was a tale of two halves. New Zealand stormed into an 8-1 lead and looked like they were going to be convincing winners. They hadn’t counted on the greatest Olympic sailor in history on the other side. Sir Ben Ainslie led a monumental fightback to turn the momentum USA’s way. In San Francisco for the final race, the comeback was complete. The US won 9-8 to win sport’s oldest trophy. Ainslie was hailed as the master again and talks are underway for a Team GB entry into the race in future years to come.

Chris Froome continued Britain's success in the Tour de France

The cycling year didn’t start well when one of sport’s believed to be heroes confessed all. Lance Armstrong admitted to doping on a regular basis when he stormed to his seven Tour de France wins from 1999 to 2005. The sporting world was rocked and cycling left to fight more bad headlines of drug use in competition. Armstrong has rightfully been stripped of his titles and now goes down as one of the biggest cheats in sporting history. None of that bothered Chris Froome (pictured) though on the 100^th anniversary of the Tour de France. After bronze at last year’s Olympic time trial and finishing runner-up on the 2012 tour to Sir Bradley Wiggins, Froome went one better in 2013. He dismantled the competition to claim the yellow jersey on the eighth stage and won the prestigious race for Team Sky. After waiting a lifetime, Britain now has two tour winners in two years, as Froome was flanked home by his team-mates on the Champ Elysees. Wiggins missed the tour due to injury but completed a successful year for our country with victory in September’s Tour of Britain. On the track, there were nine medals for Great Britain at the World Track Cycling Championship in Minsk in February. Becky James was the star with four medals in her first championships – two of them were gold. Laura Trott was beaten in the Omnium by Sarah Hammer of the United States but retained her Team Pursuit title and was the inaugural winner of Ride London this summer too.

Another sport to suffer the old story of drug scandals was athletics. American sprinter Tyson Gay, Jamaica’s Asafa Powell and Kelly-Ann Baptiste from Trinidad & Tobago were among the big names to fail tests. All face two-year bans. It was a successful year for British sprinting with James Dasaolu breaking the magical 10-second barrier at the British Championships in Birmingham, whilst both he and Adam Gemili made major sprinting finals later in the year. The Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games in the Olympic Stadium were a huge success before the best in the business headed off to Moscow for the IAAF World Athletics Championships in August. From a British perspective, the year belonged to Mo Farah. He repeated his Olympic double at long distance in the Russian capital. He won both the 5000m and 10,000m in tight finishes, something he couldn’t quite achieve in Daegu two years ago. In the women’s 400m, Christine Ohuruogu produced another great finish to steal the gold medal from chief rival Amelie Montsho to win her second world championship gold. In the process, she grabbed Kathy Cooke’s long-standing national record. There was also a brilliant bronze medal in the women’s 110m hurdles for Tiffany Porter. Usain Bolt wasn’t quite at his fearsome best but he still won three gold medals, matched by Jamaican team-mate Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. The Russians were delighted when home favourite Yelena Isinbayeva won a dramatic pole vault final, helping Russia top the medals table and there were other outstanding world performances from the likes of Valerie Adams (New Zealand) and Teddy Tamgho (France). Sadly, the drug abuse from some of the world’s most recognised track stars tainted the track and field year.

Cricket’s oldest rivalry was renewed not once but twice as England and Australia clashed in the Ashes. The summer belonged to England as they retained the urn 3-0 in a series which was overshadowed by failings in technology such as Hotspot. England won the first test by a dramatic 14 runs in Trent Bridge before crushing the Aussies by a staggering 347 runs at Lord’s. The Ashes were retained after rain brought an end to an Australian fightback in Manchester before victory at Chester-Le-Street rubbed salt into the wounds of the tourists. Only the darkness at The Oval prevented an even heavier beating for Australia. Ian Bell was the man of the series with three centuries scored and 562 runs achieved as he finally came of age. Unfortunately for England, their winter tour Down Under has been nothing but a complete shambles. The Ashes have been already been lost to Australia and with two to play, England stare down the barrel of a 5-0 annihilation like in 2007. Jonathan Trott left the tour after one test due to stress and Graeme Swann announced his retirement with immediate effect recently. English cricket is currently in crisis. On the domestic front, the main honours went to Durham (County Championship) and Northamptonshire (Twenty20 Cup), whilst one of the best batsmen to play the game, Sachin Tendulkar of India retired.

Jockey AP McCoy celebrates his magical 4000th winner at Towcester

Horse racing brought another remarkable story in November. At Towcester, Mountain Dunes took AP McCoy (pictured) to another historic landmark as he achieved his 4000^th winner. He is the first jump jockey to achieve this and is now champion jockey 18 times. He now has 4029 winners (as of last week) and all this was achieved after being injured for the first month of this year. The favourite Bob’s Worth won the Cheltenham Gold Cup in March as trainer Nicky Henderson and jockey Barry Geraghty combined to leave the Paul Nicholls/Ruby Walsh combination trailing in their wake. Ruler of the World won the Epsom Derby and outsider Auras Encore took the honours in the Grand National, as all 40 horses that started made it back safely at Aintree this time around.

There was British success on two wheels as Tom Sykes became World Superbike champion and Tai Woffenden became Britain’s first world Speedway Grand Prix champion in 13 years. In MotoGP, there was a new rookie sensation who took the paddock by storm. Spaniard Marc Marquez became the first newcomer since Kenny Roberts Jr in 1978 to win the championship at his first attempt. A run of four successive victories in mid-season was the turning point and he finished third in a tense season finale in Valencia to hold off a determined challenge from Jorge Lorenzo. ‘The Doctor’ returned to the top step of the rostrum as Valentino Rossi won the Dutch TT at Assen – his first win in almost three years. Britain’s Cal Crutchlow scored two pole positions and three podiums in another impressive year, earning himself a works ride for next season with Ducati.

On four wheels, Allan McNish became the endurance sportscar champion and won at Le Mans again before bowing out into retirement. Fellow Scot Dario Franchitti was forced to give up IndyCar racing after sustaining career-ending injuries in a terrible crash at an event in Houston. Scott Dixon won the championship, while Brazilian Tony Kanaan was the winner of the Indy 500. Andrew Jordan won the British Touring Car Championship, holding off late challenges from Jason Plato and Gordon Shedden to win his maiden title. In Formula One, only one man dominated the season. Sebastian Vettel broke records for fun as he claimed his fourth consecutive world championship. The unstoppable German won 13 races to equal Michael Schumacher’s mark from 2004 and matched Alberto Ascari’s long-standing achievement of nine consecutive victories, the first to do it in a season. He is unbeaten since July. Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber retired and moves into sportscars next season with Porsche while six Pirelli tyre blowouts turned the British Grand Prix at Silverstone into a joke. It was sparse success for British drivers. Lewis Hamilton disappointed many in his first campaign with Mercedes but did win the Hungarian Grand Prix again. Jenson Button and McLaren didn’t even score a single podium in 2013 and Paul di Resta’s lack of consistency means his career in the sport is also over.

There were happier British experiences in the world of golf. At the US Open, there was major success at long last for Justin Rose. On Father’s Day, he held off a late surge from Phil Mickelson to become the first English major winner since Nick Faldo back in 1996. Tiger Woods might have missed out on the main prizes but did regain his number one status. Mickelson made up for his US Open disappointment with a brilliant final day to win The Open Championship. Jason Dufner edged out Jim Furyk to take the honours in the USPGA Championship whilst Adam Scott landed the prestigious green jacket at the US Masters in Augusta. It was a troubled year for Rory McIlroy who lost form and slipped to number six in the world rankings. Elsewhere, Europe’s Ladies team won their first ever Solheim Cup in the States, thrashing the home side 18-10.

In football, the greatest football manager of his generation retired. Sir Alex Ferguson left on a high and went out on top as Manchester United cruised to a 13^th Premier League title. There were new winners in a dramatic year. Liverpool Ladies became WSL champions; Swansea City defeated Bradford City to claim their first major silverware in the League Cup final and Ben Watson’s injury time header won the FA Cup for Wigan Athletic against Manchester City. Rafa

There was another European success for Chelsea - this time in the Europa League

Benitez guided Chelsea to more European success as they beat Benfica in Amsterdam to win the UEFA Europa League (team pictured). A few days earlier, Frank Lampard had become the club’s all-time record goalscorer. Benitez moved to Napoli and he was replaced by the ‘Happy One’ as Jose Mourinho returned. The all-German UEFA Champions League final went to Bayern Munich at Wembley. Arjen Robben scored the late winner to defeat Borussia Dortmund, part of a German treble. Spain won the European Under-21 championship, Germany the Women’s Euros as both England teams woefully exited at the group stages. The senior male side though did qualify for the World Cup finals and Gareth Bale became the most expensive player in the history of football, joining Real Madrid for £85.3m.

In other sport, Ellie Simmonds won three gold medals as Team GB claimed 29 gold medals in World Paralympic Championships in athletics and swimming. There were over 70 medals in total and Hannah Cockroft was a leading star. She followed up her two London gold medals last summer with double gold in the wheelchair racing T34 category at both 100m and 200m. She also won both races at the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games. Phil ‘the Power’ Taylor won a 16^th PDC World Darts title at the start of the year but has already been knocked out this time around, so will have to wait for number 17. There were big crowds at the Rugby League World Cup held in the autumn. Hosts England lost in the semi-finals to holders New Zealand but it was Australia who took the cup back with them to Oz after seeing off the Kiwis in the final. Wigan Warriors rekindled their glory days of the 1990s with victory in both the Challenge Cup final and Super League. Oxford won the University Boat Race and 36,000 competitors took part in the London Marathon, just six days after the two bombs that killed three in the closing stages of the Boston Marathon. Carl Froch retained his IBF and WBA Super Middleweight belts which included a controversial win over George Groves in November and stars of London 2012, Nicola Adams, Andrew Selby and David Florence all won world championships in 2013.

As ever, sport has not disappointed in 2013 and in fact, it was another cracking year. 2014 should be even better with the World Cup finals in Brazil, the Commonwealth Games coming to Glasgow, Zurich hosting the European Athletics Championships, another Ryder Cup in this country and the regular editions of Wimbledon, the Six Nations, a new-look Formula One and England summer cricket tests against Sri Lanka and India. Let’s face it – we are experiencing a golden generation of sport so embrace it while we are in the heart of these great contests and unexpected triumphs.

Categories: 2013, Andy Murray, AP McCoy, Chelsea, Chris Froome, Ellie Simmonds, Sport, Tour de France, UEFA Europa League, Wimbledon

Great British sporting moments

By Simon Wright

At 5.24pm on Sunday evening, the longest drought in British sport was finally consigned to the history books.

After 77 years of hurt, pain and close calls, Britain has a men’s singles champion at Wimbledon.  Andy Murray battled through hot temperatures on a scorching day at SW19 and the persistence of his opponent, the world number one Novak Djokovic to beat the Serbian in straight sets 6-4, 7-5, 6-4.

The reaction of Murray afterwards was one of finally achieving his dream, and he has turned it around in the last 12 months.  He had a lot of people, me included who struggled to accept him as a great tennis player.  Last year’s agonising four-set final defeat on Centre Court to Swiss master Roger Federer was the turning point.

Murray’s emotional speech after the match showed the pain he felt at losing the biggest match of his career, but since then, the man from a small town in Scotland called Dunblane has turned his career around.

He dismantled Federer just under a month later on the same court to win Olympic Gold for Team GB, before seeing off Djokovic in a five-set marathon to claim his first Grand Slam at the US Open last September. 

Despite missing the French Open through injury in May, Murray has reached the Australian Open final, won three ATP titles including the AEGON Championships at Queen’s Club, and now the biggest prize in tennis.

It is a feat that I never thought I would ever see – and over 17 million viewers tuned onto the BBC on Sunday to see history being made in London.

Sporting fans are going through a golden generation of British success.  Last year was simply unbelievable.  We had Bradley Wiggins becoming the first Brit to ever win the Tour de France, cycling’s ultimate race.  Manchester City won their first league title in over 40 years with a finish we will never see again in the Premier League, there was Chelsea finally becoming Champions of Europe in Munich and of course, the unforgettable fortnight of London 2012 – an event that truly brought sport and the nation together as we witnessed some remarkable feats.

Along with Murray, I've picked out five sporting feats that are among my favourites of all-time.

There are some that have just missed out, including Virginia Wade winning Wimbledon in 1977, Sir Steve Redgrave’s fifth Olympic Gold medal in Sydney in 2000, Liverpool’s breathtaking comeback to win the Champions League in Istanbul in 2005, and the famous Bolero dance in 1984 by Jayne Torvill & Christopher Dean that won gold in Sarajevo.

England win the FIFA World Cup, 1966

This memory is way too early for me, but it is something that we will probably never see again – well unless we live in fantasy land.  That is England being football world champions.

It happened on home soil in 1966 and to make it better, West Germany were the opponents in the final.

Bobby Moore lifts the Jules Rimet trophy, England's finest football moment

Sir Geoff Hurst was the hero on the day, as he became the first player in World Cup final history to score a hat-trick.  England did lead 2-1, but were taken to extra-time before a linesman from the country of Azerbaijan declared that Hurst’s second goal did cross the line.

With the Germans pushing forward to score, gaps opened up in the defence and Hurst broke clear to complete his hat-trick, with the famous words from commentator Kenneth Wolstenholme; “And here comes Hurst, there’s some fans on the pitch, they think it’s all over.”

Alf Ramsay’s men won the game 4-2, and it was left for iconic captain Bobby Moore (pictured) to collect the Jules Rimet trophy to declare England as world champions. 

Since then, there were close calls in Italia 90 and Euro 96 for major prizes, before those darn penalties got in the way, and no-one will forget Germany 1-5 England in September 2001, but the drought of no success is set to continue for some time to come.

Rugby World Cup Glory Down Under, 2003

Getting up on a Saturday morning was never more anticipated than on Saturday, 22 November 2003.  Telstra Stadium in Sydney was the venue for the Rugby World Cup final between holders and hosts Australia and Sir Clive Woodward’s England.

England went to the finals as favourites and ranked as the number one side according to the IRB rankings.  However, they hadn’t found their best form in the tournament yet, lucky to beat Samoa in the pool stages and being outplayed but somehow winning the quarter-final with Wales.  Australia meanwhile had stunned the All Blacks to reach the final against the odds.

It was Australia who started the quickest, as Loite Tuqiri went over for the opening try inside five minutes.  Penalty goals on a blustery evening dominated a tense and nail-biting encounter, but Jason Robinson’s late try towards the end of the first half, coupled with three penalties from Jonny Wilkinson had England going in 14-5 at the interval.

Mistakes allowed the Aussies back into the game and with one minute left of normal time, Elton Flatley converted his third penalty in a row to level the scores at 14-14 and take the game into extra time.

Not much had changed after the extra 20 minutes, with sudden death approaching and the game on a knife-edge at 17-17, when Wilkinson, who had missed three earlier drop goal attempts, got his fourth attempt spot on.  With 25 seconds to go, England were back infront and held on to claim a 20-17 win and be crowned 2003 Rugby World Cup winners.

It was a momentous day, a superb feat and made English rugby the prime sport for a while in this country.  Another final has followed since, although more inconsistent form has been the story of the past decade.  However, rugby union never felt so good than it did on that November morning a decade ago.

England regain the Ashes, 2005

After 17 years of constant defeats from Australia’s legendary cricket side, England finally had a chance with a decent team of taking on the Australians in the 2005 Ashes series.  It turned out to be a momentous seven weeks for the game of cricket, as it became the most talked about sport during this period.

Australia waltzed to a convincing victory in the first test at Lord’s, with legendary bowler Glenn McGrath doing the damage, taking five wickets in his opening spell.  England fought back at Edgbaston where McGrath was ruled out through injury.  Despite the best efforts of Shane Warne, Brett Lee and Michael Kasprowicz, England won the second test by just two runs in Birmingham in one of the most thrilling games of cricket that was ever seen.

The captains took their turn to control proceedings at Old Trafford a few days later.  Michael Vaughan became the first player in the series to hit a century, before Ricky Ponting defied England’s strong bowling attack of Andrew Flintoff, Steve Harmison, Matthew Hoggard and Ashley Giles on the final day to ensure the series remained at 1-1.

At Trent Bridge, England dominated, but almost threw the match away with some sloppy shots, and tremendous bowling from Warne and Lee.  Chasing 127 to win, it was the eighth wicket partnership from Giles and Hoggard that got the home side home by three wickets to take a 2-1 series lead.

So it came to The Oval, where England only needed to avoid defeat to regain the Ashes.  Australia had to win and showed early intent, reducing England to a below-par 373, before Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer started eroding the advantage significantly.  Flintoff, who had an unbelievable series, tore through the Australian middle order on the Sunday morning to leave England six runs ahead.

Michael Vaughan lifts the urn aloft after England's 2005 triumph

Then, on 57-3 on the final day, Kevin Pietersen survived two dropped catches and a couple of run out calls to hit a maiden test century, and take the game away from Australia.  The match was drawn and England could celebrate.  There were scenes (pictured) that hadn’t been seen since the dramatic home series of 1981, but were repeated four years later with victory in the 2009 series.

England start as overwhelming favourites to win the Ashes again this summer.  The first test starts tomorrow at Trent Bridge in Nottinghamshire.

Lewis Hamilton wins the Formula One title on the last corner, 2008

The 2008 FIA Formula One World Championship was one full of action, intrigue, stunning drives and some glaring mistakes.  It came down to a final race showdown in Brazil, with Britain’s Lewis Hamilton holding a seven-point lead over the local lad Felipe Massa.

Hamilton only needed a fifth place finish in Sao Paulo to become the youngest ever champion in the sport’s history and was untroubled for much of the day, looking secure in fourth place behind Massa, Fernando Alonso’s Renault and the second Ferrari of reigning world champion Kimi Raikkonen.

Then the rainclouds arrived and with five laps to go, all the top runners had to pit for intermediate tyres.  Toyota made a brave gamble and kept Timo Glock out on dry tyres, and Hamilton was now in a vulnerable position as the German slipped past whilst he was being serviced.

With three laps to go Hamilton allowed the lapped Robert Kubica to pass him, but slid wide and the Toro Rosso of Sebastian Vettel dived past into fifth place, meaning Hamilton was now out of the world championship position he needed to be in.

Massa did everything he needed to do, cruising across the line to take his sixth win of the season, and for 30 seconds or so, the Brazilian had done it.  However, the rain intensified and Glock on his dry tyres was a sitting target.  Into the final corner, both Vettel and Hamilton passed the limping Toyota, with the McLaren powering up the hill to become the 2008 Formula One World Champion.

Ferrari didn’t notice this and started celebrating, but they had got it wrong.  It was Hamilton’s ex-girlfriend Nicole Scherzinger and the McLaren mechanics who had got their calculations right.  Hamilton was champion and in the most unbelievable manner possible.  He made history on the final corner of a truly remarkable season, all of this on ITV’s final afternoon of broadcasting the sport after 12 years.

Super Saturday, 2012

There are so many memories from last summer’s Olympics and we all have our own personal favourites.  Among mine was Sir Chris Hoy’s sixth gold medal in cycling, Jade Jones winning the Taekwondo and Katie Taylor taking Ireland’s first gold for 16 years in women’s boxing.

However, none of that can topple the amazing events on Super Saturday.  Not even a predictable Team GB penalty shootout defeat in football could turn the night into a sour one.

The team had already won three gold medals in the day, two more in rowing and one in the Velodrome, but it was the events in the Olympic Stadium that were simply awe-inspiring.

First, Jessica Ennis completed her domination of the women’s heptathlon event.  Ennis took victory in the final event, the 800m to stamp her authority on the two-day competition.  The Sheffield athlete broke her own British heptathlon record for points, and finished over 300 points clear of her nearest rival.  After the injury pain of missing out on Beijing in 2008, Ennis had shown to the world that she was the best all-round athlete.

Moments later, Greg Rutherford from Bletchley in Milton Keynes leapt 8.31m to extend his lead in the men’s long jump final.  No-one else got close and after his own injury nightmares of previous years, Rutherford had pulled off an unexpected but no less deserved gold medal.  He became the first Brit to win the long jump competition since Lyn Jarvis in Oslo in 1964.

Then, it was the turn of Mo Farah to take the limelight.  Against a top field of Ethiopian and Kenyan athletes, Farah showed them up with a brilliant tactical run, before kicking twice on the final lap to pull clear of the field and win the men’s 10,000m.  The stadium went crazy and Team GB had just won three gold medals in the space of half an hour.  It was undoubtedly the best night in British athletics history, and quite possibly, the greatest moment in British sporting history.

Those five moments, together now with Andy Murray’s glory at Wimbledon are my personal favourites.  I’m sure we will see many more great British sporting moments in the coming years, but for now, let’s enjoy and bask in recent glories and accept that at the moment, Great British sport is in a happy and very successful place.

Categories: Andy Murray, Ashes, Australia, Britain, England, Jessica Ennis, Jonny Wilkinson, Lewis Hamilton, Rugby World Cup, Scotland, Sir Geoff Hurst, Sport, Team GB, Wimbledon, World Cup

A Summer of Sport...What a special summer

As leaves start to fall off the green trees, summer is drifting towards an official conclusion and no, I’m not talking about the rubbish British weather.

In the world of sport, it has been a special summer and one that will never be forgotten.  The Olympic parade through London brought the curtain down on the greatest Olympic and Paralympic Games of all-time. 

It has been a memorable time and I thought I would share my memories of a fantastic summer.

It all started with the conclusion of the football season and what a finale it was!

Manchester City won the title in dramatic circumstances

I will never forget the reaction in one of the pubs in MK when Sergio Aguero smashed home the stoppage time winner against QPR, to ensure that Manchester City beat Manchester United to the Premier League title.

I don’t think I will ever see a more dramatic finale to any season ever again.  The whole season had been interesting, full of twists and turns and for once, United were silenced! 

The greatest night in Chelsea’s history

As a Liverpool fan, it was exciting being a neutral to all the final day drama and the season was completed by Chelsea’s enthralling victory on penalties in the Champions League final in Munich.

It was another story of beating the odds against all expectations and it was nice to see an English club conquer European football.

As for Euro 2012, England failed on penalties again…no surprise and not really bothered about their demise this time around.

On the international football scene, I am a native Spaniard.  I love the way they play the Beautiful Game and watching them crush Italy in the final was a joy to watch.  They were deserving and breathtaking champions of Europe again.

As the Euros ended, another challenge began at SW19.  There was huge shock when the mighty Rafael Nadal was knocked out by an unknown Czech player in the second round.

Nadal’s early departure opened the door for a Scot, who before this tournament had a reputation for choking on the main stage and being quite moody and temperamental.

A new side to Andy Murray

Andy Murray shows an emotional side to his character

Wimbledon 2012 saw a new side to Andy Murray.  While Roger Federer cemented his place as the greatest tennis player of his generation, Murray won many hearts with his tearful speech after his four set defeat in the final.

It was the making of Murray and more on him later.

In other sport, the cricketers had a summer to forget.  They lost convincingly to South Africa and conceded their place as the no.1 test side in the rankings.

It also spelt the end for Andrew Strauss, who made a dignified and respectful exit from the game.

Cricket made the headlines for the issues surrounding Kevin Pietersen and his inability to handle today’s modern phone technology.

Pietersen has been asking for trouble for a long time and finally, people ran out of symphony for this mercurial talent.

It was a shameful episode and I hope he never returns to the England side.  Sometimes, you must find a way to draw the line and end it all…

Danger in Formula One

In Formula One, the FIA have had to do that after a number of careless accidents this season, involving the winner of the Spanish Grand Prix Pastor Maldonado and French ace Romain Grosjean.

Romain Grosjean's dangerous driving at Spa earnt him a ban

Grosjean’s driving off the start of the Belgian race at Spa recently was one of the most stupid and dangerous pieces of driving I’ve seen in years.  On a public road, he would have faced either a jail term or a revoke of his license.

Fernando Alonso was lucky to escape unharmed, as was Britain’s Lewis Hamilton and the ban for Grosjean from the race in Italy this weekend was fully deserved.

As for the championship, Alonso has been flawless all season and deserves to win the title but Hamilton, despite inappropriate use of Twitter and stalled contract negotiations has a great chance to continue the British wave of success, with just seven races to go.

Don’t count reigning champion Sebastian Vettel out but this season, he might have to relinquish the crown he has held deservedly for the past two campaigns.

The greatest show on earth begins…

This leads us onto the greatest stage of them all and in our own backyard, the Olympics in London.

There were many sceptics about the Olympics leading into the build-up but I hope they shut up now as it was a resounding success.

Team GB’s greatest team provided many stunning memories which we will never forget. 

There was gold at last for rower Katherine Grainger.  Laura Trott became the new queen of cycling, while Sir Chris Hoy bowed out in the greatest fashion possible, by becoming the most successful British Olympian of all-time.

Murray looked a man possessed in the tennis tournament, dismantling Federer in a repeat of the Wimbledon final and completing his phenomenal summer.

There are also special mentions to Welsh kicking sensation Jade Jones, the Brownlee brothers in triathlon, Team GB’s women’s football team, diver Tom Daley and Bradley Wiggins, who followed up his stunning Tour de France success with another Olympic gold medal.

Let’s not forget the foreign stars too in this spectacular showpiece.  Michael Phelps became the greatest Olympian of all-time, Usain Bolt became a legend with another three gold medals and a relay world record and David Rudisha’s brilliant world record in the men’s 800m.

Super Saturday

However, if one moment sticks out this summer above all, it came on Super Saturday.

Saturday 4^th August 2012 will go down as the greatest night in British sporting history, with three gold medals for Team GB in the space of an hour.

Jessica Ennis is the best all-around athlete

First, Jessica Ennis proved she was the best all-round athlete to blitz the field and take the precious gold from the women’s heptathlon.

Moments later, a local MK lad from Bletchley, Greg Rutherford jumped to glory in stunning fashion in the men’s long jump.  Woo!  Golden post-boxes in my hometown!

Then, Mo Farah conquered the dangerous Kenyans and Ethiopians to record gold in the 10,000m.  To prove it wasn’t a fluke, he followed it up with victory in the 5,000m a week later.

I bet it was a sensational experience for those lucky to be in the Olympic Stadium that night and for me, a unique sporting feat to watch on TV.

The inspirational story of Alex Zanardi

Although I didn’t watch much of the Paralympics, there were still some super stories.  While Ellie Simmonds, David Weir and Sarah Storey took the limelight for Team GB, it is the inspirational story of an Italian that will stick with me.

Alex Zanardi is an inspirational figure I look upto

11 years ago, Italian racing driver Alex Zanardi lost his legs in a horrific accident at a Champ Car race in Germany.  The popular driver had spun on the pitlane exit and was collected broadside by another driver.

His life hung in the balance but he battled through against the odds and remarkably, went back to racing in a hand-controlled BMW in World Touring Cars for a few seasons.

A few years ago, Zanardi decided to give up motorsport and concentrate on a hobby of his, hand cycling.

His mission was to qualify for the Italian team at the London Paralympics.  He did this and then at Brands Hatch last week, achieved double gold in the men’s H4 time trial and the men’s H4 road race.

His story is one of courage, bravery and inspiration.  I look up to Alex Zanardi and am inspired by his recovery and his refusal to never give up. 

He is a remarkable individual and deserves all the success he achieved at the Paralympics.

Still more to come

So, that is it.  Well, almost.  Murray has a US Open final against Novak Djokovic in a few hours time, Europe’s Ryder Cup team travel to America with an in-form Rory McIlroy in their squad and Lewis Hamilton could still achieve Formula One title glory.

It has been an unforgettable summer for British sport and it could well be the greatest sporting year seen ever too.

The motto for London 2012 was ‘Inspire a Generation.’  I hope it has and I know it has left a legacy on me for sure.

Congratulations to Team GB on their unparallel success – you are all amazing competitors who have made us very proud to be British.  

Categories: Andrew Strauss, Andy Murray, Britain, Chelsea, Olympics, Paralympics, Rafael Nadal, Sergio Aguero, South Africa, Wimbledon