Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ

On being told I had been tasked with writing a blog about ahead of , the first thing I did was to pose a question on : "Thoughts on the man and his career, if you please..."

The ellipses were deliberate, the pessimist in me believing my trailing off into silence would soon be punctuated by a cacophony of insults. And sure enough, there came the inevitable cries of "chucker!" from approximately a quarter of the respondents, in reference to .

But it was a message from a certain Darren Jalland that caught my eye, quoting as he did 'big in the 90s' experimental electronic group : "For much of his career, Murali has been like Ebeneezer Goode - 'very much maligned and misunderstood'."

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There is, I will admit, something slightly absurd about journalists ranking the deeds of our finest sportsmen and women: who am I, to whom greatness is a stranger, to judge greatness in others? And how 'great', really, is someone who happens to have been conferred with the talent of ball control? Give me a break.

Yet there was and wrestlers in ancient Greece, suggesting it is inherent in humans to be awed by the athletic prowess of others. No pub bores back in Neolithic times, but there were probably caves full of blokes arguing over who was the greatest tree-climber ever. Even Nelson Mandela, usually taken up with more cerebral matters, admits one of his biggest heroes is .

So, let's have it then: how great is Sachin Tendulkar, who goes into Saturday's World Cup final needing to score one century to have amassed 100 in international cricket and one win away from sending the nation of India into meltdown? To answer that question, first it is necessary to define sporting greatness. Then we must address whether Tendulkar fits each component part of that definition.

Don't worry, this isn't a university thesis. But Tendulkar hagiographies are everywhere, and for a full-on love letter to 'The Little Master', you can read a blog I wrote before the World Cup kicked off in earnest, what seems like a eternity ago.

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Lots of people will be asking the question this week, ahead of : how does the current side compare to the last Red Rose outfit to win a Grand Slam, way back in 2003?

But as much as it is fun to draw parallels between sides of different eras, in this case the exercise is specious. As deadpanned: "There are similarities - they play for England and they're going for a Grand Slam in Dublin. That's about it."

"It's pretty unkind to compare the two sides," Dallaglio, a key part of , told Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Sport. "The England team in 2003 were at the end of the journey, were the number one team in the world and had been for the previous three years.

"They went into the Six Nations as red hot favourites and into the World Cup later that year as favourites, having beaten Australia and New Zealand down under. This England team has made huge progress in the last 12 months, but it is still at the start of the journey."

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before the start of play rather summed up England v Scotland: strange day, strange game.

England fans with any perspective knew Scotland would be no pushovers - Andy Robinson's team are better than recent results suggest. But those who believed was a formality will have had their faith severely tested. Ireland, who host England next week, will fancy their chances.

So, too, the three southern hemisphere sides who sit above England in the world rankings. If the manner of England's previous three wins in this year's Six Nations suggested they might be a factor in the World Cup in the autumn, their scrappy victory on Sunday revealed there is still much work to be done.

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You might think someone who has scored more points in Test matches than anyone else in history and was responsible for can afford to be generous. But even Toby Flood appeared slightly awkward as praise was heaped upon him by the man he replaced as England's first-choice number 10.

"Look at it results-wise and flow-wise in the England team," said Jonny Wilkinson. "The relationship Floody has created between him and the others, the way they work and the way they link, it's something that wasn't quite there when I was playing."

At which point Flood felt the need to step in, perhaps a touch embarrassed to see his former mentor doing himself down in this way. "That relationship evolved because of a change of direction in the team, it certainly wasn't down to any individuals," said Flood.

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Every class has got one: a gifted kid capable of exceptional things - who spends most of his time mucking about. Once in a while, he will give a reminder of his talent, producing a standout piece of work. But usually he just mucks about, infuriating those who show faith in him, letting everyone down. Especially himself.

This is how I view boxing. A sport capable of scaling vertiginous dramatic heights, of producing incomparable displays of bravery and remarkable feats of skill, all too often it is guilty of selling itself short.

And that's the thing about the gifted kid who mucks about, even his most ardent supporters eventually lose faith and he is condemned to fester at the back of the classroom, insignificant and ignored.

The good news for fans of boxing is that it could be about to produce one of those rare standout pieces of work: David Haye v Wladimir Klitschko this summer, arguably the first heavyweight world title fight of any real significance since Haye's fellow Brit .

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One of my brothers speaks five languages; the other one is better looking than me. Both facts have led to feelings of inadequacy down the years. But, I suspect, not as much as if one of my brothers was among the finest boxers this country has ever produced and one of the most popular sportsmen to boot.

For the best part of a decade, Matthew Hatton watched from boxing's foothills as older brother Ricky was making his way to the summit of the sport, eventually landing world titles at two different weights and charming the British public with his determinedly down-to-earth persona along the way.

Matthew, two-and-a-half years Ricky's junior, had his successes, winning British Central Area titles in two weight divisions. But many suspected Matthew had found his level in a Commonwealth welterweight title fight in 2008.

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