Alok Chakraborty

If you want a true hard-working story of the greatest underdog, where sheer will power and determination are the protagonist, that too not just in a utopian world but in real-life, the rise of Wrexham FC to the League Football, assisted by the ownership of Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney makes up for a perfect Hollywood Script. Why didn’t they make it into a movie yet? Oh wait, they already aired a docuseries Welcome to Wrexham with Broadway Pictures with FX production! Ryan Reynolds with his charm and comedic timing made sure they merge Hollywood Buffs with the Football Crazies. But, what’s the noise all about? Ryan Reynolds, Rob McElhenney in Welcome To Wrexham docuseries on Wrexham FCNot so many moons ago, Wrexham FC was a club that was on the verge of extinction, and reflected the mood of the town that seemed to be going nowhere. Located in scenic yet isolated laps of the Welsh Mountains, no-one batted an eye for this forsaken town and in it the Third Oldest Club in the World. Except, two men, far away, across the Atlantic, with no inkling either to Welsh culture or to Football. Two men, who couldn’t even agree to the term football, and referred to the sport as Soccer, dared to live the American Dream. Or so this time, the theoretical dream of rising up through the tiers of the seemingly impossible English Football Pyramid Why did Ryan Reynolds & Rob McElhenney buy Wrexham FC? Why indeed? When it was announced that Rob and Ryan are going to take over this seemingly downtrodden club, eyebrows were raised all around. Partly because Wrexham’s bitter taste with some of the previous ownerships and partly because the invasion of the American capitalists of the English Game. It was only in 2004, when the club as much as suffered on the field, went through a patch of financial troubles. Back then, a guy called Alex Hamilton was trying to sell their home ground, Racecourse Ground for a personal development project. Under his not so able leadership, the club drowned in debts and incurred point deduction, condemning them to League Two. And by 2007, the club was demoted to non-league football what seemed an eternity. The continuous tussle between bad results and even horrible ownership meant the club toiled among the lowest leagues. Frequent changes in manager also didn’t help the club. Andy Morell, Billy Barr, and Kevin Wilkin, all tried their hands to drag the club out of its misery but failed. In 2020, the world of football and Hollywood, both were rattled when actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney through RR McReynolds Company LLC announced the takeover of the club. Their vision of climbing through the English Football Pyramid, introducing stability in terms of finances, renovating the club infrastructure, and bringing the fans and the people of the town together meant their proposal received a 98.6% backing from the 2,000 members of the Wrexham Supporters Trust. This stellar partnership with Hollywood Stars meant Wrexham FC was the only non-league football club to be featured on FIFA 22. By 2022, Wrexham FC brought in Phil Parkinson, a promotion maestro as the manager, brought Paul Mullins from League Two, and helped Wrexham FC secure a 2nd spot finish in the league. Consequently, they lost the play-offs and couldn’t see themselves through. The also lost the 2022 FA trophy final against Bromley. They also released the docuseries “Welcome to Wrexham” which helped fans across the world develop a soft-corner for this remarkable underdog story. The way these American owners shared the passion for the club and the way the fans of the town involved in the process helped proved many doubters wrong and renewed the trust in the kind of ownership every club want. 2022-2023 Season: Wrexham FC winning the Promotion. By the start of the 2023 season, expectations were already high. Given their close finish to the previous season, Phil Parkinson and the owners were already feeling the heat. Although, the fans were ecstatic about the ownership, winning promotion meant a matter of life and death to everyone involved with Wrexham FC. The purchase of Ollie Palmer towards the end of the last season, meant that the club has now premier players who are playing way below than their usual leagues. By mid-season, it was clear that Notts County and Wrexham FC will battle it out for the top two spots. Throughout the season, these two teams were neck-in-neck and went onto create history in the division with both achieving 100+ points. Separated by a point, the two teams met with only 2 games to go. The winner of the clash would undoubtedly hold a huge advantage with one hand already on the trophy. Wrexham FC meanwhile a few backs with lean on their goalkeeping options went on to purchase the premier league veteran Ben Foster for free. Against the showdown with Notts County, with Wrexham winning the game 3-2, the Magpies won a penalty. A point would mean the title would drag to the last day of the season. But lo behold, Ben Foster went on to save the penalty and give Wrexham the long-awaited promotion. What can we expect from Wrexham FC going forward? It is quite clear that the budget Wrexham FC is running on, it is comparable to the likes of Mid-Table Clubs of Premier League. But also, the club has to renovate and add infrastructure that is far from the premier league standards. Getting promoted to the League Football will mean better dough but there is a long way to go. Successive promotions is not a child’s play, and the competition gets stiffer by the week. However, it is not impossible. Leicester City in 2014 won promotion from the Championship to the Premier League. One season later, they were already lifting the premier league. As they say, anything is possible in Football. And when you have Deadpool by your side, impossible is nothing. Wrexham FC will now play

World Baseball Classic History  Founded in 2006, the World Baseball Classic (WBC), held at irregular intervals, is an international baseball tournament for the players of the national teams who are part of the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC). Since its inception, 5 tournaments have been held so far, with the latest edition hosted by Japan from 8th March to 21st March’23. The event over the years has been one of the most viewed baseball events of all time.   Inspired by the FIFA World Cup format, the World Baseball Classic pits men’s national teams against each other in a single-elimination tournament to claim the prestigious World Baseball Classic Trophy. World Baseball Classics Inc. proposed the idea to the World Baseball Softball Confederation. (WBCI) when the International Olympic Committee decided to drop baseball from the Olympic sport.   The World Baseball Classic (WBC) is typically held in March during pre-season spring training, allowing professional players to prepare for their regular seasons in MLB, NPB, or the KBO League. However, while MLB pitchers are often absent due to conditioning limits set by their teams, the event still manages to feature a star-studded lineup of batters. As a result, the WBC consistently delivers exciting matchups and high-level competition, showcasing some of the best offensive talent from around the world. The Format:   Initially, in 2006, World Baseball Classic consisted of 16 teams. But with its growing popularity among the fans, in 2023, number of teams was increased to 20. Originally, it was decided that the tournament is to be hosted every after four years. But due to several circumstances, including MLB’s suggestion to reorganize the international calendar in 2013 to better manage the players. It was during that phase that WBSC decided to award the title of “World Champion” to the WBC winner given that the Classics facilitate direct qualifications and adhere to anti-doping rules.   The current format of World Baseball Classic is made up of 4 rounds: i. The Qualifying Round ii. A First Round iii. A Second Round iv. A Championship Round  The format is simple and straight forward. 20 teams are divided into 5 pools, each consisting of four teams. Seeded nations with higher rankings determine the pools they will be placed in with Top 12 ranked teams gaining automatic qualification to the first round. The remaining 8 teams play through an extra qualifying round to earn a spot in the tournament.   After all, 20 teams are announced, the first round of the World Baseball Classic tournaments commences in a round-robin format, with every team playing against the other three teams in their pool. The top two from each pool advance to the second round, which is again held in a round-robin format.   From the second round, top two teams from each pool go through to the championship round from where knock-out round kicks in. The semi-final features the top 4 teams in a single-elimination format. The winners of the semis make it to the grand finale. The winner of the final is crowned the World Baseball Classics champion.   Winner List of World Baseball Classics  2006: The inaugural year when World Baseball Classics kicked-off. It was held in March’06 with 16 national teams participating in the tournament. The tournament was held over a period of 19 days across multiple venues comprising USA, Puerto-Rico & Japan. The championship round was held at PETCO Park in San Diego, California. The final was between Japan & Cuba with Japan winning the first-ever World Baseball Classics championship.    2009: The 2009 World Baseball Classic was also held in various locations around the world. The tournament was played over a period of 21 days, from March 5 to March 23, 2009, with games held at several different venues.  The first round of the tournament was held in Tokyo, Mexico City, Toronto, San Juan, and Miami. The second round was held in San Diego and Miami. The championship round was held at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California, with the four remaining teams playing in a single-elimination format to determine the winner of the tournament. Japan once again won the tournament, defeating South Korea 5-3 in the championship game.  2013: The third edition of World Baseball Classic was held in March 2013 with 28 teams participating in the qualifying rounds and 16 teams participating in the main tournament. The final was between Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, the latter won the championship after making an appearance in the 2006 final. The impressive feat of being unbeatable throughout the tournament made the Dominicans a force to be reckoned with in the sport. Major league players like Robinson Cano, Jose Reyes, and Edwin Encarnacion led the strong team.   2017: 2017 World Baseball Classic marked the fourth edition of the tournament. It was hosted around multiple venues including Seoul, Miami, Tokyo, and Jalisco. The final was played between United States and Puerto Rico, making it the third final appearance for the Puerto Ricans. United States went on to win the championship by 8-0 scoreline. United States featured a star-studded lineup of major league players like Marcus Stroman, Andrew McCutchen, and Christian Yelich. The tournament also saw the debut of Israel in the tournament and went on a run to finish 6th in the tournament.   2023: The 2021 World Baseball Classic tournament was halted due to the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic. The tournament took place in 2023, with Shohei Ohtani earning the Most Valuable Player award and Japan claiming the championship. Shota Imanaga was named the Winning Pitcher, and Masataka Yoshida made the All-World Baseball Classic Team. Japan was crowned the champion for the 3rd time in the history of World Baseball Classic and regained their supremacy over the sport.   Iconic Moments in World Baseball Classic  The spectacle and the fun World Baseball Classic has provided over the years is simply awe-inspiring. And while there are countless moments which would make into any highlight reels, the following five are the standout moments in the World Baseball Classic so far: Japan’s victory in

Since its inception, many greats and legends have graced the court of National Basketball Association (NBA). But only some have truly reached the potential and etched their name on the history of the sport. Be it a thrilling last-minute buzzer-beater or a flying slam dunk, there are numerous ways a fan can classify to rank these greats. But we are taking a straight-forward approach. A statistical method to list the top 10 All-time leading scorers in NBA history. If you want to know the GOATs of basketball, you might want to give this article a read. Top 10 All-time goats of sports history But for the purposes of this blog, we will be only looking at the career stats of some of these great NBA players and rank them in order of the points they scored during their playing career. Who makes it to the top? Read to find out. Three-time NBA MVP Moses Malone scored over 27,000 points during his playing career. 10. Moses Malone Known as “The Moses” for leading his team to glory and fame, Moses Malone played a powerful central player who had an excellent rebounding ability, supreme post-up moves and was an invincible scorer. He is known for his incomparable physicality and stamina. Moses Malone featured in over 1,300 regular-season games, and 134 play-off games. He has played for the likes Utah Stars, Spirits of St. Louis, Buffalo Braves, Houston Rockets, Washington Bullets, Atlanta Hawks, Milwaukee Bucks, and San Antonio Spurs. However, his greatest ever appearance was for the Philadelphia 76ers, helping them secure a championship in 1983. In the finals against the Los Angeles Lakers, Moses Malone scored 38 points and grabbed 24 rebounds, single-handedly guiding the 76ers to their first-ever championship victory. Apart from these, Moses Malone has been awarded NBA MVP 3 times, secured NBA All-Star finish for 12 times, and holds 8 All NBA selection. Games Played: 1,329 Points Scored: 27,409 9. Carmelo Anthony Carmelo Anthony Ranked 9th in the All time Leading Scorer in the history of NBA. (Source: Marca) Nicknamed Melo, Carmelo Anthony is a powerful scoring forward with a versatile offensive game and an ability to score from anywhere on the court. Influential both on and off the court, Anthony scored a career-high 62 points in a game against Charlotte Bobcats in 2014. He has also featured 10 times in the NBA All-Star teams and 6 times in All NBA selection. Over his long illustrious career, Anthony has played for Denver Nuggets, New York Knicks, Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, Portland Trail Blazers, and Los Angeles Lakers. Games Played: 1,260 Points Scored: 28,289 8. Shaquille O’Neal NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal amassed over 28596 points over his long career. (Source: The Indian Express) AKA Shaq, he was a dominant center player with exceptional size, strength & athleticism. Known for his ability to overpower his opponents in the post, Shaq remains a legend of NBA. The greatest match he ever played was against the Los Angeles Clippers in 2000 where he scored 61 points and grabbed 23 rebounds in the game. He has played for Orlando Magic, Miami Heat, Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics, and most prominently for Los Angeles Lakers. Over the years, he has won 4 NBA Championship, won 3 times NBA Finals MVP, features in 15 NBA All-Star teams, and 8 times in All-NBA selection. Games Played: 1,207 Points Scored: 28,596 7. Wilt Chamberlain Popularly known as Wilt the Stilt and the Big Dipper, Wilt Chamberlain holds the record of scoring maximum points in a game that still stands today. On 2nd March 1962, Chamberlain scored 100 points against the New York Knicks and went on to become one of the all-time leading scorers in the history of NBA. As a central player, Chamberlain’s playing style involved strength & agility which allowed him to dominate the court. Chamberlain has secured 2 NBA Championship trophies, made it into 4 All-Star Game MVPs, 2 NBA MVP finals, 7 scoring titles, 11 rebounding titles, and 4 regular season MVPs. He has played for Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers, & Los Angeles Lakers. Games Played: 1,045 Points Scored: 31,419 6. Dirk Nowitzki Mostly played as a power forward, Nowitzki is known for his shooting ability and one-legged fadeaway jump shot. His scoring, rebounding and leadership abilities earned him the much-needed fame and glory in the NBA history. A one franchise man, Nowitzki spent his playing career with Dallas Mavericks and led them to their first NBA Championship, scoring 21 points in the game 6 of the NBA finals against the Miami Heat. Nicknamed the Dunking Deutschman, Dirk has won 1 NBA championship, 1 regular season MVP, 15 All-Star Game appearances, 12 All-NBA Team selections and 1 Finals MVP. Games Played: 1,522 Points Scored: 31,560 5. Michael Jordan Known for his competitiveness and all-round defensive and offensive playing style, Michael Jordan is a legend of the sport. A pop-culture icon, Jordan’s dunking style and mid-acrobatics earned him the name, “Air Jordan.” One of the greatest games he ever played was against Utah Jazz despite battling a stomach virus. This performance has become known as the “Flu Game” and is considered one of the greatest individual performances in NBA history. He went on to score 38 points, grabbed 7 rebounds and dished out 5 assists in the game. Michael Jordan has amassed 6 NBA championships during his playing career with 5 regular season MVPs, 6 NBA Finals MVPs, 10 scoring titles, 14 All-Star game appearances, and 11 All-NBA team selections. He played for the Chicago Bulls & Washington Wizards. Games Played: 1,072 Points Scored: 32,292 4. Kobe Bryant Known for his shooting ability, footwork, competitiveness, Kobe played as a shooting guard for Los Angeles Lakers. Also known as the Black Mamba, he was a driving force to bring back Lakers into prominence in early 2000s. On 22nd Jan’06, Kobe scored his career-high 81 points in a single game against Toronto Raptors. Kobe Bryant has won 5 NBA championships, 1 regular season