With 78 days and 16 hours to go i pleasantly found out that the seven time world champion was back. What does this mean? Well it certainly means a lot more interest in what will happen in F1 in 2010. Not just for me but for fans all over the world. But one thing that now is pestering me is WHY?
Over the past 2 decades, Schumacher won everything there is to win in Formula 1. He broke almost every record there is to break. He brought Ferrari out of a slump and strung together a series of world championships that dominated the news. In between all that he tried running Jacques Villeneuve off the road, parked his car at the "La Rascasse" corner, took Damon Hill out on the last lap and served time by campaigning for road safety.
So what more does the king want to achieve. Like he mentioned in an interview, he wants to win at least one more title. Title number 8 will mean a lot to him. After he won 7 titles (5 in a row), nobody doubted his ability. But two years in a row when he lost to Alonso must have hurt. Especially that engine failure in Suzuka that literally handed Alonso the title.
In August after Filipe Massa crashed in Hungary and could not come back for the rest of the season, there was a murmur and then an announcement that Schumacher would be back in Massa's seat. However, he had to drop out due to a neck injury sustained during a previous biking accident. This did not stop him but prompted him to train harder and get back into shape. There was even a talk of a possible comeback towards the end of the season since Luca Badoer (oh! my God. What a Drone) was literally sleeping on the track. Ferrari however found Fisi to replace the drone.(that can be a different story if one feels like it).
Schumacher lives for racing. The one thing in his life that keeps him going is racing. So after he retired he took a nice little break with his family and then came back to the track at Ferrari in a different capacity. Ferrari created that role of an advisor just to keep Schumacher with them and on the track. You could see that at many races, he was actively involved on the pit wall. Racing just does not go away from a man like that. He must have felt there is more to achieve. He was surely looking for an opportunity. Eventually his hunger for more victories, his thirst for more titles and his endless passion for racing brought him back. What probably made his decision easier was the fact that he was joining Ross Brawn. And with Mercedes having a bigger stake in the team now, Schumacher will surely have the confidence and resources for developing another championship winning car.
I just hope it ends just like when Aragorn came back to Minas Tirith and claimed his rightful place.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Friday, December 18, 2009
Reactions to Carnage
"Ullu bana rahe ho kya?"
was the response i got when i told my mate on the bus that India scored 443/1 on the second day of the 3rd test against Sri Lanka. I had a hard time convincing him that it was not 243/1. Only after another person on the bus pulled up the score on his iPhone did he believe me.
When Viru slams the ball, it does not require Jay to say
"Maine kab ka aankhen band kar liya".
With your eyes open you will not be able to see the path the ball has taken. You can make a wild guess as to what the path could have been. The next ball bowled in the same spot will get the same treatment and it will repeat itself over and over and over again. When a team batting first in a test match scores close to 400 in their first innings, they should feel pretty confident of not losing the test. In fact with a decent bowling side, they would fancy putting pressure on the opposition if they can pick up a few early wickets.
People on the bus started to immediately reflect upon Viru's previous innings.
"Melbourne was a treat. If only he did not try to hit that six"
"Multan was madness."
Apparently there was an interview given by Sehwag sometime back and in that he stated a couple of interesting things. He was getting starts, but was not able to convert them to big innings. So he decided to take his time initially and then open up. Unfortunately for the bowlers, taking his time did not mean 10 overs or so. It was just a few extra deliveries. When he got out on 195 trying to hit Katich out of the ground it seems Tendulkar told him that if he ever tried to hit a six again when he was close to a milestone, he would break his head. And who had to pay for that. Pakistan. The mauling in Multan was done in the presence of the master. The irony was that the master was denied a double century in the interest of the match situation.
"Is he the most destructive batsman ever?"
Maybe. There were others too who could take the match away from the opposition in a flash. But did they really drive so much fear. Poor Welegedera must be wondering why he did not have that injury and walk off the field instead of being asked to bowl that one over that brought Sehwag his double century in double quick time. Gilly, Richards, even good ol' Jayasuriya could create carnage, but that would not be carnage in the minds. It was just on the field.
"Why does he not do this in ODIs?"
Well that is a totally different mind game if you ask me. In Tests, the pressure of having to keep up the run rate is missing. You can take all the time in the world to settle down before you go on the rampage. You dont have to worry about powerplays, you dont have to worry about running out of partners because they are trying to accelerate the run rate, or you dont have to worry about a bowler being taken off because he is becoming too expensive.
So just sit back, relax and enjoy reading about his innings in peace, because you will not watch his innings in peace anyway. It is like watching a Michael Bay film or more appropriately a Roland Emmerich film.
was the response i got when i told my mate on the bus that India scored 443/1 on the second day of the 3rd test against Sri Lanka. I had a hard time convincing him that it was not 243/1. Only after another person on the bus pulled up the score on his iPhone did he believe me.
When Viru slams the ball, it does not require Jay to say
"Maine kab ka aankhen band kar liya".
With your eyes open you will not be able to see the path the ball has taken. You can make a wild guess as to what the path could have been. The next ball bowled in the same spot will get the same treatment and it will repeat itself over and over and over again. When a team batting first in a test match scores close to 400 in their first innings, they should feel pretty confident of not losing the test. In fact with a decent bowling side, they would fancy putting pressure on the opposition if they can pick up a few early wickets.
People on the bus started to immediately reflect upon Viru's previous innings.
"Melbourne was a treat. If only he did not try to hit that six"
"Multan was madness."
Apparently there was an interview given by Sehwag sometime back and in that he stated a couple of interesting things. He was getting starts, but was not able to convert them to big innings. So he decided to take his time initially and then open up. Unfortunately for the bowlers, taking his time did not mean 10 overs or so. It was just a few extra deliveries. When he got out on 195 trying to hit Katich out of the ground it seems Tendulkar told him that if he ever tried to hit a six again when he was close to a milestone, he would break his head. And who had to pay for that. Pakistan. The mauling in Multan was done in the presence of the master. The irony was that the master was denied a double century in the interest of the match situation.
"Is he the most destructive batsman ever?"
Maybe. There were others too who could take the match away from the opposition in a flash. But did they really drive so much fear. Poor Welegedera must be wondering why he did not have that injury and walk off the field instead of being asked to bowl that one over that brought Sehwag his double century in double quick time. Gilly, Richards, even good ol' Jayasuriya could create carnage, but that would not be carnage in the minds. It was just on the field.
"Why does he not do this in ODIs?"
Well that is a totally different mind game if you ask me. In Tests, the pressure of having to keep up the run rate is missing. You can take all the time in the world to settle down before you go on the rampage. You dont have to worry about powerplays, you dont have to worry about running out of partners because they are trying to accelerate the run rate, or you dont have to worry about a bowler being taken off because he is becoming too expensive.
So just sit back, relax and enjoy reading about his innings in peace, because you will not watch his innings in peace anyway. It is like watching a Michael Bay film or more appropriately a Roland Emmerich film.
New Season - New Madness
With the start of the Formula1 season just 80 something days away, I am all excited. But there are still a lot of variables that need to fall in place. New teams have joined the old ones on the grid. Old teams have decided to call it a day. New drivers are being recruited. Old drivers are looking for a drive. A driver has left F1 for rallying. But one of the biggest mysteries is still to be solved.
"Will the seven time champion drive for Mercedes?"
When Michael Schumacher was slated to replace Massa after the latter's horrific crash, I was so excited. But somewhere my heart was telling me that it was not going to happen. As expected the Schumster pulled out citing a neck injury that did not heal. Was I disappointed? you bet it was. I was hoping to be able to see him drive the Prancing Pony just once more if that was all.
2009 was a season no one would forget. It started with a bang for the Brawn team and ended in championship glory. Now we have to see if they can keep up their form in their new 'avatar'. Mercedes does not want to be labelled a German team and so they probably dont want to hire another German driver. But the Schumster is not just 'another' driver. So with all the speculation around who Nico's team mate is going to be, Mercedes is basking in the publicity it is getting. And Michael is not denying it either which is complicating things. How I wish they would put this to rest soon. If indeed the Master decided to come back and drive for Mercedes, that would be a treat for fans.
"How will the new teams fare?"
2010 will also witness 3 new teams on the grid. Virgin, Lotus and USF1. Lotus has already announced their lineup, but Virgin and USF1 have not. These teams will have to really work hard to come anywhere near even the likes of Force India who were a revelation last season. All of them seem to be running Cosworth engines from what I heard last. So I dont think there is too much to pick between them. However, with Lotus having an experienced driver in Trulli, one does hope to see the Trulli train in F1 once more. How long it will be is another matter ;-)
"What about rallying?"
After a couple of seasons in the Prancing Pony, the ice man goneth. He disappointed to say the least. 2009 did not see him in the best of form nor in the best of cars. But his attitude towards the team is probably what cost him his place at Ferrari. Alonso at Ferrari was something we had to see inevitably and I am glad to see it sooner rather than later. Mind you, I was not jumping about in joy simply because I know how much of a cry baby he can be. But with Massa apparently recovering fully, I am sure this partnership will be worth watching. How much of rallying we would want to see is another matter.
"Two Champions - One Team"
What do you say about that? Button has joined Hamilton at McLaren. This gives McLaren two Champions and two egos to deal with. Will it be as bad as the Alonso-Hamilton rivalry? I dont know. It depends on what kind of contract and deal Button and Hamilton have made with their team. But that will not stop them from giving us an excellent battle througout the season. McLaren will surely produce a fast car.
Overall there are still a couple of madcap months in front of us and with the refuelling ban, I am pretty sure there will be more surprises this year than even 2009.
"Will the seven time champion drive for Mercedes?"
When Michael Schumacher was slated to replace Massa after the latter's horrific crash, I was so excited. But somewhere my heart was telling me that it was not going to happen. As expected the Schumster pulled out citing a neck injury that did not heal. Was I disappointed? you bet it was. I was hoping to be able to see him drive the Prancing Pony just once more if that was all.
2009 was a season no one would forget. It started with a bang for the Brawn team and ended in championship glory. Now we have to see if they can keep up their form in their new 'avatar'. Mercedes does not want to be labelled a German team and so they probably dont want to hire another German driver. But the Schumster is not just 'another' driver. So with all the speculation around who Nico's team mate is going to be, Mercedes is basking in the publicity it is getting. And Michael is not denying it either which is complicating things. How I wish they would put this to rest soon. If indeed the Master decided to come back and drive for Mercedes, that would be a treat for fans.
"How will the new teams fare?"
2010 will also witness 3 new teams on the grid. Virgin, Lotus and USF1. Lotus has already announced their lineup, but Virgin and USF1 have not. These teams will have to really work hard to come anywhere near even the likes of Force India who were a revelation last season. All of them seem to be running Cosworth engines from what I heard last. So I dont think there is too much to pick between them. However, with Lotus having an experienced driver in Trulli, one does hope to see the Trulli train in F1 once more. How long it will be is another matter ;-)
"What about rallying?"
After a couple of seasons in the Prancing Pony, the ice man goneth. He disappointed to say the least. 2009 did not see him in the best of form nor in the best of cars. But his attitude towards the team is probably what cost him his place at Ferrari. Alonso at Ferrari was something we had to see inevitably and I am glad to see it sooner rather than later. Mind you, I was not jumping about in joy simply because I know how much of a cry baby he can be. But with Massa apparently recovering fully, I am sure this partnership will be worth watching. How much of rallying we would want to see is another matter.
"Two Champions - One Team"
What do you say about that? Button has joined Hamilton at McLaren. This gives McLaren two Champions and two egos to deal with. Will it be as bad as the Alonso-Hamilton rivalry? I dont know. It depends on what kind of contract and deal Button and Hamilton have made with their team. But that will not stop them from giving us an excellent battle througout the season. McLaren will surely produce a fast car.
Overall there are still a couple of madcap months in front of us and with the refuelling ban, I am pretty sure there will be more surprises this year than even 2009.
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