African quest for stars

The year 2015 may be devoid of the major global sporting competitions but there are still a plethora of exciting events to keep the armchair viewer or avid spectator salivating in anticipation.

Aside from regular competition the main events commence with the African Cup of Nations, given prominence due to the exodus of stars from the major domestic football leagues of England, Spain and Germany.

The Asian Cup also commences later this week and although it receives less global prominence and star names, it will still bring crowds on to the streets of Manama if Bahrain can defy the odds and the Aussie big guns and return victorious.

To gauge the impact in Africa there will be an anticipated 30 players leaving the Premier League alone with some clubs losing their key men although some are still negotiating with the respective national football associations about later release dates despite clubs being bound by FIFA’s 14-day rule.

The tournament kicks off on January 17 in Equatorial Guinea having switched from Morocco who withdrew as a result of the Ebola crisis. Manchester City will lose Yaya Toure to the Ivory Coast while high-flying West Ham hope that top-scorer, Diafra Sakho, remains injury free for Senegal who are particularly well-represented in the Premier League this season.

Football will also return to prominence in the summer with the Women’s World Cup which kicks-off in Canada on June 6. Japan will be defending their title although Germany remain strong and England are improving and won all qualification games thanks to the increased strength of their domestic league. Canada, on home turf, could cause some upsets while the US cannot be ruled out in familiar surroundings. I use the term ‘turf’ liberally as the World Cup has drawn strong criticism thanks to the decision to play the entire competition on artificial 3G grass.

However, 2015 could be a defining year for football. With FIFA coming under increasing levels of criticism, nominations for a new president have to be submitted by the end of January. Requiring the backing of five national associations can anyone challenge Sepp Blatter?

Those in love with cricket will have earmarked Valentine’s Day as the start of the World Cup, shared between hosts Australia and New Zealand for the first time since 1992.

South Africa enters the competition as one of the favourites in conditions with hard, fast wickets that will suit their style and recently defeated Australia in Zimbabwe in this format. However they will have to overcome their reputations as ‘chokers’ which may prove more problematic than any opposition. Faf du Plessis, elevated up the order, has been a revelation and much will depend on his continued form.

The Baggy Greens will be motivated in front of home crowds to perform and win the title in memory of Phil Hughes whose tragic demise sent shockwaves throughout the cricketing world. Sean Abbott, whose bouncer struck Hughes beneath his helmet, may receive a sentimental call-up having bounced-back in domestic cricket. There can be no better way of returning to prominence than by gaining the wicket of your nation’s T20 captain with Aaron Finch predicting a long international career for Abbott.

The Asian nations are not expected to do as well unless the tired wickets later in the tournament respond to spin although this can be difficult to predict with so many of the host cities now using drop-in pitches to accommodate shared ground usage.

India and Pakistan thrillingly meet in the fourth match of the tournament although the latter will be missing Saeed Ajmal having been suspended for a suspect bowling action while Sohag Gazi and Propser Utseya are also undergoing legitimacy tests.

Sri Lanka has a strong record in this tournament and is soaring again under the leadership of Angelo Matthews.

The English, now led by an Irishman, enter the tournament with success based on hope rather than recent performances.

With minimal movement expected from the Kookaburra balls this tournament could be a batsman’s paradise, which could also favour the forgotten hosts of New Zealand who possess a strong middle-order. Despite Australia being the favourites, this could be one of the most open competitions in history.

Late in the summer all eyes will turn to England where the Ashes rivalry being renewed where the hosts will be attempting to overturn a 5-0 drubbing at the hands of a Mitchell Johnson inspired Australia and complete a fourth-successive home win.

Behind the scenes the ECB has to decide this year whether to extend its £280m (BD161m) deal with Sky until 2022. With participation and viewing levels dropping the English governing body must choose between further enriching its coffers or the long-term development of the game.

Another sport to be gripped by World Cup fervour is that of rugby union with the oval ball returning home and hopes high for a home win, although there is the not-so-small matter of the Six Nations preceding it.

The fixture-list for the latter in February has turned over some intriguing matches with Wales opening against England while they also entertain Ireland in two matches that are likely to determine the destination of the trophy.

The group stages of the Rugby World Cup often provide some one-sided affairs yet the peculiarities of the draw have pitted both hosts, England and Wales, in the same group alongside perennial powerhouse, Australia. England open the tournament against Fiji on September 18. With only two countries able to qualify from each group – with one of these likely to have to then face South Africa and New Zealand – the later stages could see some of the less-likely nations going further than expected. Southern hemisphere dominance may not be reflected, particularly as the competition is spread across 13 venues in 11 cities over the 44 days of action.

South Africa has had mixed results with the highlight being their victory over New Zealand, a result that ended the All Blacks’ record-breaking run of consecutive victories.

With the pace and impact of the modern game, injuries are playing an increasingly dominant effect meaning that the strength and familiarity of the entire squad will be put to test, not to mention the ability to protect a team’s key assets.

Ireland has been probably the most consistent of the Home Nations although will need to keep Jonathan Sexton and Paul O’Connell fit who are the leaders of this well-balanced unit. Their favourable draw should see Joe Schmidt’s improving team progress deep into the tournament.

New Zealand has had a strong run and start as strong favourites and will be boosted by the return of heavyweight Sonny Bill Williams although they don’t always reproduce their best form in the north. If they are successful then they will become the first side to repeat as World Champions since the tournament started in 1987.

England’s coach, Stuart Lancaster, is hoping to ignite the passion of the whole nation to support his side and aims to mirror the fervour achieved for Euro ’96 to achieve the romantic notion of a home win, although perhaps the passion at the Millennium Stadium in Wales for their decisive match against England in 2013 would be a better barometer given the one-sided result.

There is one new exciting event to watch as the inaugural European Games will be commencing in Baku on June 12. The 50 National Olympic Committees of Europe have combined to create an equivalent to the Asian Games. Twenty sports, ranging from athletics and beach football to swimming and wrestling, will combine to create 253 events for an anticipated 6,000 athletes. The European Games will run every four years with the next host still to be decided.

Lewis Hamilton in his superior Mercedes will be hoping to join Sir Jackie Stewart as a three-time World Champion while four-time winner Sebastian Vettel will enjoy his first season in a Ferrari. There is added spice as Fernando Alonso returns to renew his acrimonious relationship at McLaren who will romantically be reigniting their own affiliation with Honda as an engine supplier with their pre-season performance results eagerly awaited. Torro Rosso are employing two of the most exciting prospects in Max Verstappen and Daniil Kvyat.

In golf, Rory McIlroy will be aiming to complete his career-slam in April when he competes at the Masters in Augusta, the only one of the majors to be played at the same course every year. McIlroy probably wishes it wasn’t as he has played more bad rounds there than good ones, most notably his final round 80 in 2011 when he held the lead after 54 holes.

Later in the year he defends his British Open crown, which this year will be held at the stunning and iconic course of St Andrews.

A player to keep an eye out for is 18-year old Charley Hull who, last year, became the youngest lady to win the European Order of Merit title. In 2013 she became the youngest player to compete in the Solheim Cup and will no doubt be returning to help Europe defend the trophy.

There are two final events to watch out for. The first is a personal hope that Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather set aside their differences and posturing to arrange the boxing match-up that all fans have so eagerly been awaiting. Both camps are making the right noises although Amir Khan is waiting in the wings should either boxer seek an alternative.

The second is already in the diary with the most successful and arguably talented motor racing driver in history returning to the sport. Comebacks are notoriously difficult to predict and are rarely successful although Sebastien Loeb is taking his one-off return seriously. The winner of nine consecutive World Rally titles will partner his longtime co-driver, Daniel Elena, and has been racing warm-up events to improve his reactions ahead of the Monte Carlo rally later this month.

Happy watching!