A number of mouth-watering sporting contests are scheduled for this brand new year as a number of sports icons will face the battle for supremacy. Here is a list of a few of the grand rivalries, featuring some of the most iconic heroes of modern day sports.
All Blacks versus the rest
Japan will become the first-ever Asian nation to host one of the most widely watched sporting events on earth, the Rugby World Cup. It's going to be a big battle for the coveted Web Ellis Trophy as the giants of the rugby union will slog it out on the soil of yokozunas, grand champions of sumo wrestling. The event, starting on September 20, will feature top 20 teams across both the northern and the southern hemisphere. Tournament favorites and two-time reigning champions New Zealand will seek a historic hat-trick of the coveted title as Steve Hansen's All Blacks are pitted against some of the mighty teams like South Africa, Ireland, Australia, England, France and Scotland among others. The final is slated for November 2.
Crunch battle for captain Kohli and 'jinxed' England
Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli gestures towards stands after completing their innings during the second one-day international (ODI) cricket match against West Indies at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam, India, October 24, 2018. /VCG Photo
Cricket World Cup will return to its home as England and Wales will play host to the biggest cricketing spectacle of the year, starting from May 30 to July 14. If a Virat Kohli-led high-flying Indians will gun for their third tournament triumph since 1983 and 2011, the hosts will leave no stone unturned to break their perennial jinx of not winning the coveted ODI trophy. Known for being the "perpetual chokers," the South African will try to end their trophy drought on the English soil while a depleted Pakistan and defending champions Australia may turn the tables in their favor. New Zealand and Sri Lanka will start as underdogs in the 10-team tournament with a slight format change.
Fab Four versus the new generation
(L-R) Marin Cilic, Alexander Zverev, Rodger Federer, Bjorn Bjorg, Rafael Nadal, Dominic Thiem, and Thomas Berdych pose for photos ahead of the Laver Cup in Prague, Czech Republic, September 20, 2017. /VCG File Photo
The world of tennis in 2019 will see a battle between two different generations. The fab four of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray are expected to face a stiff challenge from the new generation of players like Alexander Zverev, Dominic Thiem, Kei Nishikori, Stefanos Tsitsipas, who will come out firing on cylinders against their veteran rivals and will continue the chase for their elusive Grand Slam crown. Although almost all the majors since 2003 have been predominantly won by the big four, three other active Grand Slam winners – Juan Martin del Potro, Stan Wawrinka and Marin Cilic are also in the fray to upset the apple cart of both the aging big four as well as the younger generation.
Charge of the light brigade and the resurgent legends
Lin Dan (L) and his rival Lee Chong Wei face each other at the 2018 All England Badminton Open men's singles 3rd round in Birmingham, UK, March 16, 2018. /VCG Photo
2019 will witness the aging legend Lin Dan of China and his cancer-surviving arch-rival Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia rubbing shoulders with a new generation of champions in the year before the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics. However, the recent surge of a slew of world-class players like the current world no. 1 Kento Momota of Japan, Shi Yuqi of China, Chou Tien-chen from Chinese Taipei will make things tougher for the veteran legends in some of the top-notch events of the year like the All England Badminton Championship, BWF World Championships in Basel, Switzerland and a few other prominent BWF Super Series events.
In the women's section, the battle will be between a few top-class shuttlers like Spain's iconic Carolina Marin, India's PV Sindhu, Tai Tzu-ying of Chinese Taipei, Nozomi Okuhara of Japan and China's Chen Yufei.
Invincible Carlsen versus the challengers
Polish chess grandmaster Jan-Krzysztof Duda (L), Norwegian chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen (C) and American chess grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura (R) pose during an award ceremony for the blitz tournament at the 2018 FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships at the Manege Convention Center in Saint Petersburg, Russia, December 30, 2018. /VCG Photo
In the world of chess, reigning world champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway will seek to extend his invincible streak on the perch while the likes of Fabiano Caruana of the U.S., Maxime Vachier-Lagrave of France, Hikaru Nakamura of the U.S., Shakhriyar Mamedyarov of Azerbaijan, the Chinese duo of Ding Liren and Yu Yangyi and Anish Giri of the Netherlands will vie for breaking the Norwegian wizard's supremacy. The dark horse of the year would be veteran and former world champion Viswanathan Anand of India, who has recently made a remarkable comeback with a blitz title.