A Match to Remember

I woke up today all excited and raring to go..its not an outing nor i am expecting something great to happen in my mundane life, but its the 2008 Wimbledon Gentleman's Final. In fact its the finale of sorts between two of the greats of our generation, Roger Federer vs Rafael Nadal. I have always followed the championships and have never missed it and i cant afford to miss this one. Roger trying to prove his critics wrong by setting aside the debacle and humiliation he faced at Roland Garros not many days ago at the hands of the same opponent and win his sixth consecutive Wimbledon championship. Whereas Rafael trying to get rid of the tag that has long been attached to him, of being only a clay court Champ. Whatever happens, one thing is certain and that is one of the records of the great Bjorn Borg will be broken today ie a record sixth consecutive Wimbledon or the first person to win both the French Open and the Wimbledon on the same year which Borg held since 1980.

People often ask me why do i get excited on events like this? What am i supposed to gain from the person who wins?Will this change the way i live? I dont know the answers to these questions. Yes it wont change the way i live, but it does make my day when the person or the team i support wins. Sports like Tennis,Cricket, Soccer are my passions. The day i lose interest in these, the day i die.

So coming back to the game, when i switched on the television, hoping to see some Fed-Ex magic, what i saw stunned me. Federer serving to stay alive in the 4th set tie breaker. I wasnt expecting this in my wildest imagination. Its true that Nadal, is playing the best tennis of his career, but this time the opponent was Federer and in the All Englands club. What a start to my day...but soon typical Federer like, you could see those aces and the cross court backhands coming to his rescue and he forced the match to the decider 5th set . Yes this looks like a mouth watering climax.

The 5th Set had everything in it. A rain delay to start with and then neither player giving an inch to the other to gain an upper hand. I have never seen Federer so agitated, nor have i seen Nadal play so well. This was world class tennis at its very best, something extraordinary, it was an epitome of greatness. The match extended beyond 4 hours baring the rain breaks and moved past 9 pm local time. And finally when it was 7-7, Nadal had the break and he cashed on it the next game to win his first Wimbledon Championship title. It wasnt the perfect start to my day, the champion i had supported over the last few years lost, could not win to be more precise. But i have witnessed one of the greatest wimbledon finals of my life. I have never seen the great rivalries of the past like Bjorn Borg vs John McEnroe or Stefan Edberg vs Boris Becker, but i thank both Rafael and Roger for providing us with such great entertainment.

So the old guard at Wimbledon has changed and we have a new winner in the form of 22 year old Rafael Nadal. A reminisence of Life, isnt it? everything comes to pass, the good and the bad and time stays still for no one.

No Country for Young Men

Its human nature to be nostalgic. Its a common phenomenon among us social animals to praise the past, curse the present and the future is of course the future, who cares!!!!!But for a change this post is not in praise of the days gone by, nor am i trying to redicule the days spent in my beloved home town, but its just an effort to come in terms with the truth that under no practical circumstances I can go back and settle there. But to think of it, if anyone ever gives me an opportunity to go back and earn a decent living there would i take it? I am not sure what others would do, but i am not going back..this might come as a shock to many ardent shillong fans many among them are my friends, but yes i stand by my word and the truth is I dont intend to go back.


And the reason behind my decision is simple, shillong has nothing to offer w.r.t career...in short no future..i have spent the best days of life there among those pine trees,sweet oranges, the never ending drizzle ,those hide & seeks games, the fun and celebrations during the Pujas. But the reality is that those are long gone days never to come back. I would like that life to be carved into my heart & soul forever without the bitter realities of life. I cant imagine myself working there on a 9 to 5 job. Thats not my kind of a job. And whom do i report to ? to some junkie who has made it so far, thankfully due to some special policies and grants provided by our great Indian decision makers. A place where i need to rush back home before its dark or else you will see some worried faces back in there. No, this is ofcourse not my cup of tea and this is surely not where i wanna land up.

I truely believe each place is unique and is different in its own account. May be Shillong wasnt supposed to provide us with all the facilities and comforts in life, but it did prepare us for the future hardships in life and i am grateful for that. I am waiting eagerly for my vacations to commence, so that i can soon take that all too familiar path towards the "Scotland of the East". I need to savour the moment and joy that only the laid back life there can provide, but at the end the truth is, its "Not a Country for Young Men" and i will have to return.