Ronaldo

Ronaldo

Ronaldo Luiz Nazário de Lima (b. September 22, 1976), simply known as Ronaldo, is a Brazilian footballer who is widely considered to be one of the best strikers of all time.

Ronaldo celebratingIn 1993, aged 16, Ronaldo had already scored 59 goals in 57 matches for Brazil's under 17 squad. By 1994 he had joined the squad of the national team, but didn't get to play a single minute on the pitch of the 1994 FIFA World Cup in the USA.

In 1996–1997, Ronaldo played arguably his best season, scoring numerous spectacular goals for FC Barcelona. One of them, a solo goal against Compostela, is considered one of the most amazing goals in football. Ronaldo celebrating

Chosen the World's best player in 1996 and 1997, he had a disappointing performance during the 1998 World Cup, scoring only 4 goals, and losing the final to host team France after suffering a mysterious fit in the night before. The fit's circumstances still remain unclear and a source of speculation.

He then moved to a club he considered more promising and more respected: Inter Milan. Fans all over the world jumped the bandwagon and supported the world's most glamorous footballer, receiving praise from the Italians all over. Ronaldo's fame grew as he was contantly in the action for the Italian juggernauts.

In April 1999, Ronaldo married Milene Domingues. The marriage lasted 4 years and ended in a divorce.

A year later, he severely injured his right knee and was out of the game for several months. During his first comeback in 2000, he managed to play a few minutes during a league game against Lazio before injuring his knee for a second time.

After 2 operations and 20 months of rehabilitation, Ronaldo managed a comeback during the 2002 FIFA World Cup. He claimed the Golden Boot by scoring 8 goals during the tournament (and tied with Pelé for a Brazilian record 12 total World Cup goals), leading Brazil to win an unprecedented fifth World Championship. In 2002, he was awarded the title of the World's best soccer player for the third time, and transferred from Inter Milan to Real Madrid after frequent disputes with current Inter Milan coach Hector Cuper.

On June 2, 2004, Ronaldo scored an unusual hat-trick for Brazil against archrivals Argentina in a CONMEBOL qualifier for the 2006 World Cup. He scored all of Brazil's goals in a 3-1 win via penalty kicks.

As of 2004, Ronaldo is still playing football, and is still considered one of the world's best strikers.

Teams and clubs

Brazil national football team

March 1994 -

Debut against Argentina

Social Ramos Club 1990/91

Sao Cristovao 1991-1993

Cruzeiro Belo Horizonte 1993/94

PSV Eindhoven 1994-1996

FC Barcelona 1996/97

Inter Milan 1997-2002

Real Madrid 2002-

Honors and awards

FIFA World Player of the Year: 1996, 1997, 2002

European Footballer of the Year: 1997, 2002

FIFA World Cup

2002 Golden Boot - 8 goals

2002 - Winner

1994 - Winner

UEFA Cup: 1998

Cup Winners' Cup: 1997

Dutch Cup: 1996

La Liga - Primera División champions: 2003

David Akers

David Roy Akers (born September 12, 1974, in
Lexington, Kentucky) is an American football
placekicker who currently plays for the
Philadelphia Eagles.  

He is considered one of the premium kickers in the
National Football League.  He attended college at
the University of Louisville, but was not selected
by any team in the NFL Draft.  Between 1997 and
1998 he spent time trying to make the team with
the Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers and the
Washington Redskins.  He was signed by the
Redskins in 1998 and played in one game for them,
making two extra point|extra points but missing
two field goal attempts.  He was later released by
Washington, and was claimed from waivers by the
Philadelphia Eagles in 1999. He was then allocated
to NFL Europe, where he played one season for the
Berlin Thunder.  He impressed scouts with his
power and accuracy, and earned the permanent
kicker spot for the Eagles in 2000.

He made the longest field goal in Philadelphia on
September 11th, 2003: a 57 yarder against the New
England Patriots. He owns the team record for most
points scored in one season (133, in 2002). He has
also earned three Pro Bowl selections (2001, 2002,
2004), and he scored the second most points ever
in a playoff game in NFL history (15, in 2001
against the Chicago Bears).

He practices martial arts like Jiu-Jitsu and
Shaolin Kempo, and it helps him to focus when he
attempts a kick.

Chidi Ahanotu

Chidi Ahanotu (born October 11, 1970 in Modesto,
California) is an American football defensive end
for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL.  He was
originally selected with the fifth pick of the
sixth round of the 1993 NFL Draft by Tampa Bay out
of University of California, Berkeley|California. 
He has also played for St. Louis Rams, Buffalo
Bills, San Francisco 49ers, and Miami Dolphins
before returning to the Bucs

Herb Adderly

Herbert A. Adderly (born June 8, 1939,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is a former American
football cornerback who played for the Green Bay
Packers and the Dallas Cowboys.

He played college football at Michigan State
University and was an All-Big Ten offensive star.

Adderley was drafted by the Packers in the first
round in 1961, and was projected to be a halfback
or flanker, but soon saw that his playing
opportunities would be limited on offense behind
veteran Packer stars Paul Hornung and Jim Taylor.
He was first moved to cornerback to replace an
injured teammate. In 1962 the move became
permanent and he went on to be an all-NFL
selection 5 times in the 1960s.

He was a star for the Packers through 1969, then
played three seasons (1970-1972) with the Dallas
Cowboys.

He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in
1980.

Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi

Full Name: Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi
Born: January 5, 1941, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
Major teams: India, Delhi, Hyderabad, Oxford University, Sussex
Batting style: Right-hand bat
Bowling style: Right-arm medium

Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, fondly called Tiger has been an Indian Cricket player and the Captain of the Indian Cricket team. He has to his credit the honor of having been the 9th and last Nawab of Pataudi, a small Princely State which presently is a part of the Haryana state of India.

Early Life
He was born on the 5th of January 1941 in Bhopal to the 8th Nawab of Patuadi, Iftikhar Ali Khan. Having studied at Dehradun, Hertfordshire and Oxford, he became the 9th Nawab of Patuaudi after his father died in the year 1952.

Test Cricket Debut
Mansur made is Test Cricket debut in the year 1961 with a Test match played against England at Delhi. He scored 13 runs in the match. Very soon after beginning his Test Cricket career, he lost the vision in his right eye due to a car accident.

Captaincy
In the year 1962, he was named the Captain of the Indian Cricket team. Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, also known as Nawab Pataudi Jr., is considered to be one of the most successful Captains that the Indian Cricket team has ever got in its history. He led the Indian team in 40 Test matches, out of which 12 had been won by the team. Although the winning percentage was not very high, he is best known for instilling the winning confidence into the members of hitherto low-down Indian team, and boosting their morale that led them to further victories.

Mansur is credited as the first Indian Cricket captain that got the team its much needed first Test victory at an overseas ground. This victory was achieved in a Test match played against New Zealand in the year 1968. He is also known for recognizing the fact that Spin Bowling was the forte of the Indian Cricket team, hence he utilized more of spinners against other strong teams to get the Indian team the maximum benefit in the Cricket ground. Apart from being a good Captain, Nawab Patudi Jr. is also known very well for being a good fielder too. Although his Batting Average was only 34 runs, he must have yielded way too far better results had he not been visually impaired with one eye.

Overall Performance
In his Test Cricket career, Mansur Ali Khan played 46 Test matches in which he scored a total of 2793 runs with 6 centuries and 16 half-centuries. His Batting Average was 34.91 runs and Highest Score was 203 runs not-out. He played his last Test match against West Indies at Mumbai in the year 1975, and scored 18 runs in the match.

He also served as an ICC Match Referee for a period of 3 years between 1993 and 1996. For his extra-ordinary performance as a Cricket player for India, Mansur Ali Khan had been conferred upon the Arjuna Award in the year 1964, and was named the Wisden Cricketer of the Year in the year 1968.

Sunil Gavaskar

Full Name: Sunil Manohar Gavaskar

Born: July 10, 1949, Mumbai, Maharashtra

Major teams: India, Mumbai, Somerset

Batting style: Right-hand bat

Bowling style: Right-arm medium

Achievements:

• First player to score more than 10,000 runs in Tests
• One of the only two players to score centuries in each innings, three times
• Highest number of runs in a debut series by an Indian (774 against West Indies)
• Wisden Cricketer of the Year 1980
• Awarded Padma Bhushan

Sunil Manohar Gavaskar, popularly known as Sunil Gavaskar has been an Indian Cricket player and considered to be one of the all time best opening batsmen in the history of Test Cricket. Sunil is known for having set many batting records that lied unbroken for long years after some other batsman. He was the biggest Test scorer with the biggest number of centuries to his credit during his times. His record of scoring 34 Test centuries took 20 years to be broken when Sachin Tendulkar outclassed it in the year 2005. 

Gavaskar was especially quite good against the fast bowlers, and maintained a decent average of 65.45 runs against the super-fast West Indian bowlers. He also served as the Captain of the Indian Cricket team, although the team couldn’t fare much better under his leadership. In fact, during his Captaincy, the Indian Cricket team one played 31 Test matches without a single victory. 

Early Life 

Sunil Gavaskar was born on the 10th of July 1949 at Mumbai, and started playing Cricket right since his school days. In the year 1966 he was declared the Best Schoolboy Cricket of the year in India. He had scored 246*, 222 and 85 runs in School Cricket. He made his debut in Ranji Trophy in the year 1968/69 with a match against Karnataka although he scored a duck in the match and was out for a 0 score. But in the next match against Rajasthan he scored 114 runs and hit 3 consecutive centuries in the tournament. 

Test Debut 

The Test Cricket debut of Sunil Gavaskar was made in a Test match against West Indies played at Port of Spain on 6th of March 1971. He scored 132 runs in this match, getting India its first over Test victory over West Indies. In the 5th Test match between India and West Indies, he scored 124 and 220 runs in both the innings, helping India to score its first Test Series victory over West Indies, which was not repeated for a period of 35 years to come till the year 2006. 

One Day International (ODI) Debut 

Gavaskar made his One Day International (ODI) Cricket debut in an ODI match against England played at the Leeds ground on 13th of July 1974, where he scored 28 runs off 35 balls. 

Captaincy 

Sunil Gavaskar also stayed the Captain of the Indian Cricket team for some time, but his record as the Captain has not been much impressive, as a bigger number of matches he led the team into turned out to be drawn. He led the team to 47 Test matches, out of which 9 were won, 8 were lost and 30 were drawn. Under his Captaincy, the Indian Cricket team played 37 ODI matches, out of which 14 were won, 21 were lost and 2 went without any result. 

Sunil Gavaskar’s last Test match was against Pakistan played at Bangalore on 13th of March 1987, and he scored 117 runs in the match. His last ODI match was against England played at Mumbai on 5th of November 1987, and he scored just 4 runs in the match. 

Overall Performance 

In his overall Test Cricket career, Sunil Gavaskar played 125 Test matches and scored 10122 runs including 34 centuries and 45 half-centuries, with an average of 51.12 runs and a highest score of 236 Not Out. Regarding his ODI Cricket career, he played 108 matches. He scored 3092 in them including 1 century and 27 half-centuries, with an average score of 35.13 runs and a highest score of 103 runs. 

Other Achievements 

Sunil Gavaskar has been conferred upon Padma Bhushan, and had been appointed the honorary Sheriff of Mumbai in the year 1994. Having written 4 books upon Cricket, he has also been named the advisor of the Indian Cricket team, and the Chairman of the ICC Cricket Committee. In his honor, a Test Cricket Series between India and Australia has been named jointly after him and the Australian Cricketer Allan Border, as Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Anil Kumble

Full Name: Anil Kumble
Born: October 17, 1970, Bangalore, Karnataka
Major teams: India, Karnataka, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Surrey
Batting style: Right-hand bat
Bowling style: Legbreak

Achievements: Highest wicket-taker for India in ODIs and Tests; best bowling figure by an Indian in a ODI (6-12 against West Indies); one of only two bowlers ever to have taken all 10 wickets in a Test innings; only the second player (after Shane Warne) to score 2000 runs and take over 500 Test wickets; Wisden Cricketer of the Year 1996

Anil Kumble has been an Indian Cricket player and Captain of the Indian Test Cricket team. A right handed batsman, Kumble specialized in Right Arm Leg Spin (Legbreak Googly) bowling. He has taken the third biggest number of wickets in the history of Test Cricket, having taken more than 300 wickets in Test matches.

Early Life
Anil was born on 17th of October 1970 at Bangalore, Karnataka. Fondly known as Jumbo, as a kid he joined a Cricket Club named Young Cricketers. He was a very brilliant student and finished his Bachelor in Mechanical Engineering from Rashtreeya Vidyalaya College of Engineering, Bangalore in the year 1991-92.

He started playing First Class Cricket for Karnataka team with a match against Hyderabad in the year 1989, and managed to grab 4 wickets in the match.

Debut in Cricket
Anil made his debut in the One Day International (ODI) Cricket with the Australasia Cup tournament at Sharjah in the year 1989-90, in a match against Sri Lanka. He took 1 wicket in this match, and gave 42 runs.

His Test Cricket career began with a Test Series against England played at Manchester in August 1990. Anil took 3 wickets and gave 105 runs in 43 overs out of which 7 were maiden ones.

The 10-wickets Charisma
Anil Kumble has to his credit the fame of having taken all the 10 wickets in a single Test innings. He achieved this rare feat in February 1999 in a Test match played against Pakistan in Delhi. Apart from Jim Laker, he has been the only bowler in the world to have done so till date.

Days of Captaincy
He also represented the Test Cricket team of India in the year 2007 when the reigning Captain Rahul Dravid resigned from the post. He led India to Test Series against Pakistan and Australia, in which the National team won by 1-0 and lost by 1-2 respectively.

Vital Statistics
Throughout his Test Cricket career, Anil Kumble played 132 Test matches in which he managed to grab 619 wickets at the loss of 18355 runs, with an average of 29.65 runs. During his Test career he scored 2506 runs with an average of 17.77 runs. His highest score in Test Cricket was 110 not out.

As far as One Day International (ODI) Cricket is concerned, Anil played 271 ODI matches throughout his career in which he took 337 wickets giving away 10412 runs with an average of 30.80 runs. He scored 938 runs with an average of 10.53 runs in the ODI matches he played, his highest score being 26.

The Last Moments
Anil Kumble played his last ODI match against Bermuda at Port of Spain on 19th of March, 2007. In this match, he took 3 wickets and gave away 38 runs. His last Test Cricket match was against Australia during the Border Gavaskar Trophy, played in October 2008 at Delhi. In this match, Anil took 3 wickets, and gave away 126 runs combining both the innings.

Anil retired from his Cricket career gracefully on the 2nd of November 2008. He was conferred with the Padma Shri award by the Government of India in the year 2005.