The last of my sports heroes, charismatic golfer Seve Ballesteros, has announced his retirement. That makes me ruminate over my fascination with sports stars over the years, starting with cricketers Vijay Hazare and Denis Compton.

Hazare was the first Indian to score a century in each innings of a Test and that too against the mighty Australians in Australia! In 1952, when most Indian batsmen were scampering for safety against Trueman and Bedser, Hazare along with Vinoo Mankad faced them with equanimity. Later, Hazare captained India in its first Test victory against England.

The flamboyant Denis Compton ‘played cricket for fun and made it look like fun’. Dashing and unorthodox, he would invent his own strokes. Pictures of his dancing down the wicket are unforgettable. He was also a soccer international and once ran Vijay Merchant out with a well-aimed kick!

Swedish tennis stars Bjorn Borg and Mats Wilander caught my fancy in the seventies and eighties. Borg’s amazing run of five successive Wimbledon titles and his duels with John McEnroe are legendary. His bag of 11 majors was fantastic but, surprisingly, he could never win the US Open! It was easier to understand why Wilander, with three majors in 1988, could not add the Wimbledon title, as he was vulnerable on grass. But I loved him anyway.

Michael Schumacher made Formula One racing an exciting and glamorous spectacle. He retired last year and the thrill has gone out of the circuit.

Back to Steve, who burst upon the golfing scene in 1976 as a teenager. He won the British Open at 21 and the Masters at 23. He brought youthful energy, exuberance and emotion into what was a staid game. His iron play, recoveries and improvised shots were pure magic. His passion and commitment led to Europe snatching the Ryder Cup in 1985 at a time when it had become routine US property.

... contd.