Looking ahead

The year 2010 promises to be an action packed year.

New Delhi will be hosting one of the biggest sporting events the country has ever seen; an African country will play host to the football World Cup for the first time; Michael Schumacher makes his comeback to Formula One and much more. The year 2010 for sports fans should be an exciting year. Here are some of the sporting spectacles you should watch out for.

FOOTBALL WORLD CUP
In June, South Africa will see some of the best footballers on the planet compete for the biggest prize in international football. Yes, the football World Cup is expected to be a sporting extravaganza. With stars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, Lionel Messi and Kaka, all coming together, the FIFA World Cup is one of the biggest sporting events of the year. While Italy will look to defend their crown, teams such as Spain, Brazil and England will be looking to lift the trophy, and assert their supremacy in world football. There will be a plethora of stars and there would be some who will rise to the occasion and become stars. The World Cup is always a special occasion but being held in Africa for the first time, makes it even more memorable.

COMMONWEALTH GAMES
The deadlines for all the stadiums might not be met. The city still looks completely unprepared to host an event of such magnitude, and doomsayers have already written off the 2010 Commonwealth Games as a disaster. Yet, all of this doesn’t take away from the fact that some of the finest athletes from all over the world will be strutting their stuff in New Delhi. It is also a great opportunity for fans to see some of India’s finest sporting talent competing with the best of the rest. Saina Nehwal, Abhinav Bindra, Sania Mirza will be among the many representing India at the games. October ‘10 will be a test of India’s credentials, both as a sporting nation, and host nation to an event of this size. While the government remains upbeat about the city’s preparations, the fans — especially those in Delhi — still remain sceptical. Usain Bolt hasn’t confirmed his participation yet but keep your fingers crossed and hope that many more star names do turn up in Delhi.

ASHES 2010
While T20 and the IPL might have taken the sheen off other forms of cricket, but there is something about the oldest cricketing rivalry — the Ashes. November 2010 will see the Ashes rivalry heating up in Australia. England will be looking to prove that they have it in them to win the Ashes away from home. In the last two of the three series, Australia have lost the Ashes in England, but boast an excellent record while playing at home. England, however, are a formidable team now, and have it in them to beat Australia away from home as well. This could be Ricky Ponting’s last Ashes and he will want to go out on a high.

TENNIS ACTION
The year 2009 saw Roger Federer assert his dominance yet again in men’s tennis. But he was far from his best and his main opponent, Rafael Nadal, missed half the year due to injury. A fit Nadal will be the ultimate test for Federer and he knows that. So while winning the French Open has seen him winning all the four majors, in 2010, Federer will see the likes of Juan Martin Del Potro and Andy Murray challenging his supremacy. Nadal will be keen to show that he has put his injury woes behind him and claim the number one ranking from Federer. The men’s tennis field looks quite open for the first time in many years and 2010 could be an exciting year on the grand slam circuit.

FORMULA ONE
Michael Schumacher coming back to the sport is a good enough reason to watch out for Formula One. Of course there are others as well like Fernando Alonso joining Ferrari, seeing how Jenson Button will do at Mclaren and how Lewis Hamilton reacts after a disappointing third season. But still, we know its Schumacher who will be the centre of attraction.