It’s the kind of scenario that gets western sports marketing people, entrepreneurs and football opportunists all worked up: a country of a billion people that has shown that it loves sports and speaks English – but has not yet taken to the beautiful game.

That country is India of course and the game that its people have supported fanatically is cricket – and only cricket.

Premier League Soccer (PLS) is an attempt at creating a second love for all of those $port$ fan$.

The possibilities are endless. The question is can Indian cricket culture morph into a broader sports culture to include the world’s most popular game?

Well, the PLS is going to try.

They have created a 5 team, 7-week tournament-style league – not unlike the cricket set-up Indians are accustomed to.

Here are the big names that the five new clubs bid for and won in the auction that PLS recently held to kick-off the fledgling league:

• Barasat bought Hernan Crespo for his base price of $840,000 (Rs 4.18 crore)
• Siliguri bought Italy’s World Cup-winning skipper Fabio Cannavaro for $830,000 (Rs 4.13 crore)
• Howrah bought Robert Pires for $800,000 (Rs 3.98 crore)
• Durgapur bought Nigerian Jay-Jay Okocha for $550,000
• Kolkata bought ex-Liverpool god Robbie Fowler for $530,000

Some pretty big names there from the past. They should be able to handle a 7-week season.

I see that there is no Lionel Messi in that list. Not yet anyway. If the world economy continues to shift east and soccer takes off, you just might see Leo finishing his career “over there”.

This is what Mexican Women’s coach Leonardo Cuellar had to say about Christine Sinclair after Canada beat Mexico 3-1 on Friday:

“I think Canada is a very good side overall, except for Sinclair — she is another world. She was the difference. For me, what she means to her team and the things that she does — her composure, her guidance, the way she smells the play, her savvy . . . no question that’s one of the best players in the world.”

A fine picture to mark a fine victory – Azarenka wins the Australian Open over Maria Sharapova.

In the longest Grand Slam final match in history, world #1 Novak Djokovic beat world #2 Rafael Nadal in a 5th set that finished around 130a in Australia, almost six hours after the match had begun.

Nadal brought everything he had, and got closer to beating Djoko than he had in all of 2011. You’ll see some amazing shots and rallies from both in this video from australianopen.com.

The rest of the tennis world might be asking itself today: if Nadal can play that well and NOT beat Djokovic, what hope does anyone else have right now?

Basketball is a game for big men.

Sinclair strikes again - twice

Christine Sinclair again came up with a great game when it was most needed.

Canada’s world-class striker scored twice and set up another goal as the Canadian women beat Mexico to qualify for this summer’s Olympics.

23,000 fans watched the game at Vancouver’s BC Place stadium…seems that the women’s game is finally arriving as a spectator sport. The brilliant play during last summer’s Women’s World Cup must have helped.

Congrats to Canada.

We spend a lot of time talking about Lionel Messi here – he was after all recently awarded the 2011 FIFA Ballon d’Or by the coaches, captains and journalists of the world – but there are a lot of other great players out there doing a lot of great things.

Yesterday’s Copa del Rey match between Barcelona and Real Madrid demonstrated just how much other talent there is out there.

Now Messi did get the talent show going himself yesterday when he went on one of his trademark field-length runs and slipped the ball between two desperate Madrid defenders for a Pedro finish. The run and the inch-perfect ball were things of genius.

But as good as that Messi play was, the Argentine was upstaged within minutes when Barca full-back Dani Alves was in the right place at the right time on a corner-kick and lined-up a one-time laser with the laces of his right boot that found that small target where the top of the far post meets the crossbar. A dream goal by perhaps the best right-back in football.

Real Madrid looked to be out of the Cup after those two goals but I guess their players didn’t think so, playing a high-pressure game that saw Cristiano Ronaldo blow past what looked like a pensioner in Carles Puyol, glide past a shocked Barca keeper in Pinto and slide the ball into the open net. It was as if Ronaldo and co had suddenly found a new super-human level.

Puyol was made to look old and slow one more time when fresh substitute Karim Benzema dinked the ball over his head and hammered home the tying goal. A real striker’s goal.

Four different players in on four fantastic goals in a Barcelona-Madrid Clasico that was indeed a classic.

American Republicans are all about respecting and celebrating the “presidency” – that is unless a Democrat happens to be in power.

Then all respect goes out the window – as the Boston Bruins’ excellent goaltender (but strange human), Tim Thomas, refused to visit with President Obama this week.

Though I am neutral both politically and sports-wise (my vote and my allegiance are yours to be earned) – and while I bet on the Bruins to win the Cup last season (cha-ching) and this – I can now only wish that the karma Tim Thomas unleashed this week comes back to burn him and his Big Bad Bruins badly.

Wonder what circle of hell Dante assigned to the hypocrites?

I believe it was…yes… > the 8th circle…

Down you go Tim Tom…

I think the league should give him one more game for this stunt.

He’s trying to play mind-games with a league which suspended him three games for > this hit on Pittsburgh’s Zbynek Michalek.

Seems to me that justice was served.

All O-V does now-a-days anyways is crash around the ice trying to hurt people. What a waste of his “talent”.

Maybe O-V should just shut-up for once and just let things unfold.

Take your lumps, go to the game, get picked last and have Phil Kessel take photos.

Who knows – a little humility, a little focus – and maybe then he’ll win a cup or something?

Like the still-not-replaced best hockey player in the world, Sid the Kid Crosby.

I don’t know who looks worse this week, Ovechkin or > Thimble-brained Tim Thomas?

A great rinkside seat for Patrick Chan’s winning weekend skate at the Canadian Championships. Check out the quad he pulls off at the 1 min mark. Seems like after a couple of years of disappointing results at the big competitions, Chan is now hitting his stride as the best male figure skater in the world.

More super skating vids from Hasan Abdessamad here.