A Blue Football Victory!

Blackburn Rovers won the Premier League way back in 1994-95. It was unprecedented and a surprise, no doubt. Nevertheless it happened in an era still devoid of rich owners splurging money to buy talent to win silverware. If Rovers winning the Premier League was huge, Leicester winning it is humongous!

Shearer and Sutton guiding Rovers to PL title!

The entire value of the Leicester's squad is around £54 Million which is nearly how much Kevin De Bruyne cost Manchester City. No offence to De Bruyne. The POTY Riyad Mahrez costed £0.4 Million as against let's say £32 Million for last year's POTY.

Let's not forget United, Chelsea and Liverpool!

With teams like Man City, Man United, Arsenal, Spurs, Liverpool and Chelsea who can spend at will floating in the same ship, Foxes winning the Title is no fluke or stroke of luck! Winning it with two games to spare really gives them bragging rights.

Mahrez, you beauty! Vardy, you're now forgiven for that dive!  

This signifies not just the first Premier League title for Leicester City but enforces a hope for all those helpless teams with talented players who get raided by Pounds every transfer market. This is a victory for a team without a star player. The possibiloty of Ranieri's men creating history was written off time and time again by the pundits.

Let's not worry now about how they'll do playing in multiple competitions and being pit against world giants next season.

Savour this moment. This isss ittt! After all, perspiration triumphs 🤘

Dilly ding, dilly dong! You're Premier League winners man!

Losing to Faroe Islands seems like ages ago now!

8 Football Fans You Know!

1. The Complete Fanatic.

They are really really loyal to their favorite team. Their team's win is a mood maker for them. They'll pray during a penalty shootout, wear their lucky jersey (which is latest!), watch important matches at their lucky places,  put up statuses pre and post the games and they'll argue with the strangest stranger if he raises a finger on his team. 

 2. The Know it all.
 

 

The man is updated about football around the world. Be it a 3rd Division team player's transfer or a Turkish youth player's goal. When he is talking, you're wondering how does he know all of that. He even knows the playing XI of the Indian Football team.

3. The Sore loser.

Everybody makes fun of a sore loser. They are ones who just can't take it! Simply cannot fathom their team losing. They are embarrassed. They blame the opposite team, the referee, their luck, the home advantage and they will go missing to avoid facing anybody who know their team lost.

4. The "Football" fan.

There is this one guy in every football circle who doesn't care who wins or loses! He will applaud the winning team and the losing team for the positives and even point out the negatives elegantly. He doesn't care for the Galacticos or the Catalans, all he is looking for is an exciting El Classico!

5. The Glory Hunter

Who doesn't hate a glory hunter? They are gold-diggers of the sporting world. They chase the trophy where it goes. It is United one season and the next it is City. It is Italy, then it is Spain. If it is Brazil till the semi finals, then there is pure denial. 

6. The Pretender.

"Whaat? The l in Villa is silent!? Courtois is not pronounced like tortoise?!"

This is a guy who doesn't like football, doesn't understand the intricate rules, the league system or even why there is no Argentina in the Euro but he tries hard to gel in. He pretends. He doesn't like being the left out guy. The only Ronaldo he knows is Cristiano! He tries to pronounce the names correctly too! He is generally confused.

7. The Cricket fan.

"Can we watch KKR vs ... ummm.. nevermind.."

This is India specific. These are hardcore cricket fans who end up being attacked after asking IPL questions on a Champions League Finale night. They compare sixes to goals and wicket-keepers to goalkeepers. They have to watch football because they are in conundrum! Their favorite No.7 is Dhoni!

8. The Analyst. 

He is like the off-site manager of his favorite side. He will talk about what the on-site manager should've done tonight. The starting XI for the game, the right substitutions at the right time, the formation, whether it was a red or just a yellow- he is like a Shebby Singh! (Where is that guy anyway?) 
 

Top 5 Foreign Debutantes in EPL in 2013-14

The top 5 foreign signings this season who make the cut here had surprisingly good seasons. Many newbies were just bench warmers or played to flop while others are listed here. It was easier to make the last year's list!

Notable misses for the No.5. spot.

• Mesut Ozil - Had a decent season, couldn't cope with high pressure English football when it mattered the most. 

• Jesus Navas - In terms of goals and assists, he doesn't stand too tall. However, his agility has been influential in City's game.

• Willian - Looked flamboyant in his style of play but never really cemented his place in the side due to healthy competition from Schurrle, Oscar, Salah etc

• Alvaro Negredo - Started the season very brightly, scoring in consecutive 9 home games. Lost his form over the course of the season and lost his place to Dzeko. 

5. Nemanja Matic (Benfica to Chelsea, £21 million)

Came in the second half of the season and immediately established himself in the playing XI. After re-joining Chelsea, he played substitute role in the first games and then started all till the end of the season. The hunk is inch perfect at tackling, long range passing and hardly error prone while defending. In half a season he proved he is the best midfielder at Chelsea ahead of Mikel and Luiz! He possesses all the qualities to compete with the best holding midfielders of the game. 

4. Dejan Lovren (Lyon to Southampton, £8.5 million)

While he is calm on the ball, he has conceded just 24 fouls in 28 appearances this season, which is sincerely phenomenal for a defender. Lovren along with Fonte at the back contributed to the 3rd highest clean sheets in the league (15) behind Arsenal and Chelsea. Lovren slipped in to the physical English game quite smoothly for a debutant. He is a highly valued player in the squad and their former manager Pochettino is already trying to tag him along to Tottenham!

3. Christian Eriksen (Ajax to Tottenham, £11.5 million)

Paulinho, Erik Lamela, Vlad Chiriches, Nacer Chadli and Roberto Soldado, all turned out to be disappointing as the season progressed. Christian Erikssen was the only Spurs signing who impressed. Erikssen boasts off his quick feet and his ability to put in those penalty area penetrating curling crosses and often steps up to take set pieces. In 25 appearances, he managed to score 7 and set up 9 others! At the age of just 22, he has got brighter years ahead and Spurs will need to hold on to him!

 

2. Wilfried Bony (Vitesse to Swansea, £12 million)

Wilfried Bony has already scored more goals in an EPL season (16) than Torres' personal best for Chelsea (8, 2012-13). And he didn't even cost 50 Million! He is a nightmare for any defender marking him. Breaks apart defense with his might and pulls the trigger on the ball without thinking twice and potent on the other end of the crosses with powerful headers. It's no surprise the beast hails from the land of Didier Drogba!  

1. Fernandinho (Shakhtar Donetsk to Manchester City, £30 million)

The little Brazilian was one of the best central midfielders in EPL this season. There were doubts raised with his big money move but he has silenced all his critics with some impeccable performances. His role on the field paved way for Yaya to play forward in a more attacking position. Fernandinho is a unique holding defensive midfielder who can attack with his pace, shooting ability and box-to-box play. 

When Football lights up Vile Parle!

The Vile Parle Premier League Season IV is over. For many of you, especially the players and owners the feeling might not have sunk in.

Last season, I managed to put up a pre-season, play-offs analysis and also a post season write up. Unfortunately, this time I can only sum all this up in one article!

The Chief Guests who graced the tournament this season

From left to right:

Chinmayee Sumeet - Sumeet Raghavan's wife, Dilip Vengsarkar - Former Indian Captain and former Chief Selector, MLA Krishna Hegde Sir, Milind Purnapatre - Former Badminton Player, Virdhawal Khade - Indian Olympic Swimmer, Milind Ingle - Prominent Music Composer, John Coutinho - Current Mumbai FC midfielder, Prathamesh Parab - Actor

 

 

The Finale

I had to be choosy about going for a match day - I could manage just one - and not so surprisingly I decided upon watching the Grand Finale of this particular season. 

The ultimate clash for the shiny trophy was between "Parle FC" - owned by Pratik Tilekar, coached by Shreyas Gokhale and Aniket Madav and "Parle Messiahs" - owned by Bharat Sir and Suraj Shetty and coached by Kedar Sane, Nimesh Patel and Anand Bandal. The finale was a replay between the two sides as the earlier play-off game between them resulted in a 2-0 victory for the Messiahs. With the presence of FC's midfield magician- Mr. "Raynier Fernandez", it was an altogether fair and square looking game with no side looking like the obvious winner.

 

And that last part was particularly a jab at the Grand Finales of Season I (Parle FC 8 – 1 Parle Diaons) and III (Parle Dazzlers 8 – 0 Parle Ashkickers) which turned out to be totally one sided affairs and not thrilling for a neutral onlooker. 

Anyway, the first half of this Finale started off at a low intensity and was pretty much of a tennis game with both the sides playing safe and attacking with long balls. The ball kept flying west to east - east to west with none of the sides breaking the dread lock of scoring but coming close to scoring a few times. 

The second half saw both the sides upping the tempo and the intensity to make a breakthrough. Counter for counter! There was intensity and flow in the game. With the scores tied at NIL each, extra time stage was entered. Were we looking at a nerve wrecking penalty shootout for the first time in a Finale at PPL?

Well, Parle FC's attack started to gel together. With a beautiful link up and a great ball from Andon D'Souza met by Kaldyn Misquitta's head on the other end, the goal drought was broken. The Messiahs geared up to get back into the game but somehow their midfield couldn't link well enough with their target-man Sohail Khatri who was well marked and caged by FC defenders. 

Another remarkable pass from Raynier, Andon latched his head onto it and bagged the tournament for Parle FC (2 - 0) - The first team to have won it twice since PPL's inception!

Post match, what was heart warming was the fact that the Messiahs - although dejected were applauding their counterpart's win. A pure game. 

 

The Prize winners   

• Best player - Raynier Fernandes (Parle FC)

Although he wasn't on the charts of the top scorers or assist providers, he was their go-to man on the field and a crowd favorite with his trickery and skills on and off the field - lured the crowd during the mid-play off incident.

• Top Goal Scorer - Andon D'Souza (Parle FC)

With 10 goals in his belly, he pioneered his side to victory with goals coming in during crucial match moments.

• Best Goalkeeper - Sheldon Raghavan (Parle Rovers)

6 clean sheets in 9 games. That's not pretty, that's fantastic. Hard luck losing in the play offs in the penalty shootout!

• Best Under-16 Player - Neel Shelar (Parle Rovers)

One of the most talented home grown talent of Parle. He is one for the future! Has been solid with his performances.

• Best Under-21 Player - Alister Mendes (Parle Messiahs)

Not every team has an Ozil; Messiahs had theirs with a whopping 9 assists to his name. Finished with his team at the 3rd spot last season and guided them to the Runners up position this season. 

• Most Valuable Player - Carlton Jude (Parle Rovers)

He has been their defensive wall. Although Carlton wasn't among the expert's choice in the early stages of the league, he proved his critics wrong!

• Kenneth Barboza Memorial Most Promising Player awared by Sudha Subramaniam - Charnel Almedia (Parle Diaons)

A player with dazzling feet, has showed great potential and looks promising enough to be the next star of the league.

• Fair Play Award - Parle United

Parle United - No yellow cards or red cards - Finished at the bottom of the league. Parle FC - 3 Yellow cards - Winners. Parle Messiahs - 2 Yellow cards - Runners up. You see what I did there? :P

• Best Presenting Team - Parle Ash Kickers

A jersey unveiling ceremony, a kit for their players, marketing online via facebook, twitter and an anthem too. They sure deserved the award.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Sponsors who make the event execution possible in the first place

• Kirloskar Electric
• Safari Bags
• VK Sports
• Gajalee
• Satkar Group of Hotels
• Playerify
• Ultimate Sports
• PH Finance
• Excel Industries
• Midas Care
• Soccer Connections
• Foreseegame.com
• Etc

The team which executes! Credits to each and every one!

• Siddarth Sabhapathy
• Meghan Pradhan
• Sunit Kanyalkar
• Sagar Giri
• Sabhapathy Iyer
• Prasad Paranjape (Kaka)
• Kishor Kanyalkar
• Akshay Narkar
• Devednya Vyas
• Akshay Kashte
• Pushkaraj Behere
• Kedar Sane
• Nimesh Patel
• Malay Vartak
• Kunal Kerkar
• Nachiket Sant
• Abhijit Ghaisas - Physio
• Om Bag
• Anand Bandal
• Purvesh Limaye
• Abhiraj Rajadhyaksha
• Lucas
• Pranay Kapuria
• Shounak Nayak

Introduction to Indian Football

Yes that's right, I just said introduction because most of us in India are probably new to this topic. 

Just mentally answer these questions;

• Who is the most successful manager of EPL?
• How many times has Brazil won the World Cup?
• The most expensive transfer so far?

If you follow football even half of what I follow, you would know the answers.
Now, the next round of this quiz.
Don't mentally answer it, say it out loud. Make yourself proud.

• Who was the most successful coach for the Indian National team?
• How many times has India played in a World Cup?
• Which club has won the most number of I-Leagues? 

Simple eh?

You see a thousand people wearing a Messi jersey but never a dude posing in Bhaichung Bhutia jersey.You keep track of the number of titles European teams have but you don't know who the last I-League winner was. And we say that Indian football is no fun. 

How can a sport excel without the support of its countrymen? Take for example- cricket; it took off on a bigger scale after 1983. Are we waiting for something like that to happen in football? India won in 1983 with eight nations competing. Well, in football you got 204 nations competing just to qualify for the World Cup.

There are things about Indian football that you should just be knowing as a football fan; inexcusable to be unaware of these facts!


Durand Cup

This tournament, named after its founder Sir Mortimer Durand has been played in India since 1888; making it the third oldest competition in the world. Football leagues were played in India even before Real Madrid or FIFA existed. It was initially started as a competition for the Army- British as well as Indian but later it became an open affair for public teams too. Even today there is army presence in the competition. Army XI last won it in 2005. The Indian Army deserves a lot of credit for keeping this competition alive.

1948  

65 years ago at the London Olympics an independent Indian national football team took on France in the first round of the Olympic football competition. The Indians put on a brave display to win the hearts of the spectators. For 70 minutes the score stood at NIL all. Had the Indians not missed the two penalties, the French would've faced a major heartbreak who ultimately won it 2-1. What highlighted the match other then India's fighting spirit was the fact that most of the Indian players were either barefoot or just wearing socks!


The one-time World Cup qualification

India has qualified for a World Cup; never played in one. The qualification came as a result of the withdrawal of the other Asian countries. And why India withdrew later has a lot of disputed answers. One being that India couldn't afford the trip to Brazil, lack of match practice, team selection issues and the ridiculous one being that we withdrew coz barefoot playing wasn't allowed.   

"We had no idea about the World Cup then. Had we been better informed, we would have taken the initiative ourselves. For us, the Olympics was everything.. There was nothing bigger"

               - Sailen Manna, who could have been the captain of the team

A missed opportunity indeed. (Sportskeeda article)

The golden era - Undisputed Asian champs


India won the 1951 Asian Games which they hosted. In 1952, later, India also won the Colombo Qradrangular Cup held in Sri Lanka. The winning streak continued with India winning the cup again in 1954, 1954 and 1955 which were held in Burma, Calcutta and Dhaka respectively. The Indian national team ended up as runners up at the 1954 Asian Games.

One of the greatest achievements of Indian football was finishing 4th at the 1956 Olympics with the Indian striker Neville D'souza ending up as joint-highest goalscorer who also became the first Asian to score a hattrick in the Olympics and also making India the first Asian team to reach the Olympics semis in the process.

India went on to win the 1962 Asian games and two years later finished second in 1964 Asia Cup. India played in the Merdeka Cup in 1964, 1965 and 1966 where they finshed 2nd, 3rd and again 3rd respectively.


Who is Syed Abdul Rahim?

The man responsible for the ^Golden era of Indian football, pioneer of modern football and the most successful Indian football coach- Syed Abdul Rahim. He is the "Special One" of Indian football. He had the eye to spot talent and make them shine. He was the coach from 1950 till his death in 1963 due to cancer. He would observe day-to-day things, movements of monkeys and drew inputs from them to formulate his game plans. 

“I still remember he was suffering with advanced cancer during the Jakarta Asian Games. But the struggling Rahim Saab never complained and went about his job in a meticulous way. We won the gold. There was tears in his eyes when we won the gold. He died one year later. That was the last big achievement by the Indian football team. It is sad the authorities concerned choose to ignore his unstinting efforts,” 

- One of the forwards who played under him in the 1950s, Balaram.

Unfortunately, he is an unsung, forgotten hero today.

Cricket - A Gentleman's game? Not anymore.

Umpire signalling a free hit - Happy sight for all except the bowler

Cricket can be traced back to the 16th Century. It is said to have been played by the British Aristocrats who suggested the game be played in 'a gentlemanly manner' ,which means no sledging, cheating, body-line bowling , temper tantrums or excessive appealing. If the batsman knew he was out, he should 'walk' even if the umpire decided otherwise. 

Well, let's not get into the Aristocrats' meaning of a 'gentleman's game'! We have all kinds of players who would contradict each and every term in that definition!

For me, a gentleman's game broadly extends to rules not favoring one but fair enough for both; batsmen and bowlers. 

Apparently not. The changes in the game over the past few years have made it a Batsman's game. 

About a decade ago, a score over 300 was considered a safe house for any defending team. Getting there was the wish of every team batting first. The psychological edge of having that score was good enough to build an initial pressure on the opposition. 

The advent of Twenty20 cricket in 2003 paved way for explosive cricket in terms of scoring and beating of bowlers all around the park. Even the "Free hit" is an equally demoralizing rule for a bowler.

Bats are getting heavier, broader and bigger. Specials bats; like the Mongoose are being used to improve the six hitting abilities; but never a ball made which will swing, bounce or spin more. 

To furthermore empower the high scoring games, boundaries are being shortened but never came in a rule to extend their lengths! There has been power play (field restrictions) introduced, bouncers disallowed, flat pitches made but never a day is spared to insult and humiliate bowlers who give away a little extra runs! 

 "T20 cricket cannot be stopped. It is a runaway train prepared to kill everything in its way. I am not joking when I say this. If we don't handle T20 cricket properly, it will crush everything in its way, including the Test and one-day formats"

-Dean Jones

The ICC came up with the "Two new balls" per innings rule.That's just cherry on the top for batsmen as the balls won't make much movement.

“I think it’s tough for bowlers. The ball doesn’t reverse much because it’s quite new. The ball is only 25 overs old at the most. Even spinners don’t get that much turn”

Suresh Raina

The above coming from someone who is nowhere near an expert in bowling but true indeed. 

In the latest series between India-Australia (Sportskeeda article), noticed the ball running away for boundaries and wondering "How the hell is he finding every single gap!" Well that's coz there are just gaps now with the new "Only four fielders outside the 30 yard circle" 

Just how much difference can one less out-fielder make? 

 “I think captains will have a hard job in setting fields and bowlers will have an even tougher job in trying to restrict the batsmen with all the innovative stroke-play that has come into the game.” 

-Kieron Pollard 

"I have this funny feeling that spinners will not have a role to play in the future."

-Mahela Jayawardene

"This rule of having two new balls in an innings and not having more than four fielders outside the 30-metre circle throughout an innings has made life difficult."

-Shahid Afridi 

What more now? 

• A restriction on the run-up of fast bowlers? 

• Bouncers up to waist height only?

• Pace limit to 130 kmph?

• Under-arm bowling?

It's time to re-think the rules ICC. Make some fair rules. Change the Batsmen's game.

If you enjoyed this post, consider leaving a comment and if you didn't then definitely leave a comment! :)

The Juan Mata saga.

It's been inked again and again how Mata being the Blues' Player of the Year for two years running fell out of favor for the Special One and Mata has now become the Desperate One to find playing time ahead of the coming World Cup Finals at the Samba land. 

His move to United only has ups for himself, United, United fans, Chelsea and certainly not for Chelsea fans who have to see their favorite wear the Devil red jersey. That must hurt. 

In a brief note, the move is;

• Big Money for Chelsea

Well, for a change, the spenders will be earning. This is the highest they have earned on a player, surpassing 25 Million move of Arjen Robben to Real Madrid in 07-08 season followed by the recent move of Kevin De Bruyne to Wolfburg for 17 Million.

• A chance to break into the World Cup squad

Mata has never really been amongst the favored ones in the Playing XI of Del Bosque's Spain ahead of the likes of Barca trio; Iniesta, Fabregas and Xavi. The move to United only gives him a chance to be chosen ahead of David Silva. 

• Hopes of season revival

The transfer takes place on the back of losing the Capital One cup's final spot to Sunderland; how much more can Moyes take? Mata's play can turn the tables for United like Ozil did for Arsenal. He can deliver what is asked of him; create chances and score an odd goal every now and then. None of their midfield is clicking and Mata just might make the much needed difference!

• Not the player that Chelsea fans would want to cash in on

Just a few reactions from Chelsea fans on Twitter.

@chelsearumours : I want Bakkali, Draxler and Messi as replacements for #Mata. No, not one, all three.

@a_norin9 : I can only thank you for the memories but I will never think of you the same

@VrunTIPS : I've just read that #Mata to #MUFC article from the Telegraph. Do you know what I think about it

@DeeSansXO : Please dont leave us ... we need you, we love you ... You are a blue and blues never give up

All in all, it's good move for all the parties involved. I'll be happy to see the little Spaniard in action again.

5 Most clever moments in Football

We come across dozens of impossible passes and trickery but some of this is just rare!

• Some brains with the gloves!

 

Starting off with something very simple yet clever. Not the most uncommon.

Someone who has made Pirlo's panenka look silly; an always animated Barca Keeper Pinto playing mind games with the penalty taker here. Does he win it?

•   North pole-South pole!

 


When this kind of a trick works out, doesn't it look really good? The look on Ibra's face - priceless. 

Not one but most of the Inter players trapped offside here by Sienna.

•  Life is unfair.

 
Chelsea vs Man United with C.Ronaldo.

A really clever move by Rooney, well supported by Giggs and an impeccable finish by Ronaldo. But did the referee appreciate the cleverness here?

•  I'm gonna take that!

 

Couldn't trace the German teams involved in this video. Nevertheless, looks like a messed up freekick at first. Then the very next second the entire act comes together. They ought to have practiced that!

•  Whoa, what was that?

 

Theyab Awana, playing for UAE in a friendly-match against Lebanon scored this penalty. Although, it was more cheeky than clever since there was no risk involved considering their team's position. However, their coach did not appreciate it and Theyab was subbed a few minutes later for this move! 

Unfortunately, he died in a car accident in 2011 at the age of 21. 

The moment He finally retires.

It came as quite a surprise to me when he announced his retirement. Although it was imminent, I expected him to call it a day after playing his last game; just like he did for the ODIs.

That would have drawn a lot less media. Not a single day has passed by that not a single newspaper has not printed about Sachin's glorious career, his records, upcoming events in his name, tributes by celebs around the globe, the grand hoopla circling Wankhede and how his retirement is the only thing that matters in that Test series. 

What more came as a surprise was the fact that he mentioned about retiring after his 200th Test game. I've always known a Sachin who doesn't care about any milestones. Never did he mention about playing 500 ODIs or scoring 50 ODI Centuries or even 100 ODI half Centuries. The only milestone he chased was the World Cup.

He has invited a lot of unnecessary presssure onto himself. Pressure to perform, to please the crowd for one last time, give them moments they can't forget and above all the media pressure.

This retirement announcement seemed very un-Sachin-ish to me.

A young Sachin always excelled under pressure; in fact it got the better of him. But with age, he hasn't coped too well under pressure. Take for examples, his nervous 90s streak jinx, low scoring in Grand finales; be it the World Cups (2003 World Cup still upsets me), IPL or any other. Can't seem to forget the monkey he finally got off of his back after his 100 International tons either!
 
Unlike the above, this time he has only this one chance, in fact two innings so two chances, to set his farewell right.

This is just my take on some possibilities that could happen in that in His last appearance in the field: 

Starting with a negative one (and a dim scenario too). How frustrating is that gonna be? If the match is abandoned. Bad weather. November rains. Let's not be so sure that it won't happen. Mumbai's weather off late hasn't been the most predictable one. And what's more unfortunate than the rain Gods interrupting our cricketing God? Sachin doesn't play. Whatsoever be the reason, he might not get injured- how about a little stomach upset? That would just be pitiful. This is like the worst case scenario and I hope it doesn't happen!

If He doesn't get his 200th cap, it should be upsetting and both interesting to see if he extends his last game to another series.

On the positive side, let's first say he scores just decently and stays on the pitch for a fair amount of time. That should be good. We fans will be happy to see him bat. The media will probably ignore his mediocre score. A fair goodbye.

How about an hundred? That should be a heavenly feeling for him and the best possible moment for the billions that will be watching him on the entire planet.

He scores a duck and wait, it seems very sad at first but its not that bad. His comparisons with Don Bradman will resurface! Sure the West Indian who does this crime is gonna be the butt of all jokes, just like Ishant Sharma is right now. He will probably feel guilty too!I just hope He doesn't crumble under all the expectations from us, his family, his team members and the media.


Let's give him a break. Let him breathe. Let him enjoy his last game. Let him play in his typical fashion. I am sure he will bowl too! With an era coming to an end I'm gonna be one of those who won't be following cricket as much as I did.