JANUARY:

The sporting year kicked off with the second Test between Australia and India at the SCG. Australia won by 122 runs, handing them their 16th consecutive victory! India bounced back in the third Test at the WACA, as the visitors recorded an unlikely 72-run victory. India was in the ascendancy for much of the fourth and final Test as well, but couldn't record the series-leveling victory as the match petered out to a tame draw. It was a disappointing way for the series to end after it began as one of the most dramatic and bitterly contested in history...

Meanwhile, it was a disappointing start to 2008 for rally enthusiasts when the 30th Dakar rally was cancelled after the death of four French tourists during Christmas the year before. The 2008 Africa Cup of Nations kicked off on the 20th in Ghana, with the hosts one of the favourites for the tournament. The first tennis Grand Slam of the year, the Australian Open, produced some surprises, however, with Serbian Novak Djokovic beating unheralded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the final. The women's event saw Djokovic's fellow Serb Ana Ivanovic succumb to Russian starlet Maria Sharapova in the final.

FERBUARY:

Egypt claimed their sixth Afrcon title after recording a 1-0 victory over Cameroon in the final at the beginning of February, while the Proteas battled during the first Test on their tour of Bangladesh — the visitors eventually winning a tightly-fought contest by five wickets.

The second Test saw openers Graeme Smith and Neil McKenzie record an opening stand of 415 runs — the Proteas winning a lop-sided encounter by a massive innings and 205 runs.

The Lions secured a dramatic 23-22 victory over the Cheetahs in their first fixture of the popular Vodacom Super 14, before a 55-10 mauling two weeks later against the touring Blues team.

Briton Lewis Hamilton started the 2008 Formula One season in fine fashion, recording a victory in the season opener at Albert Park in Australia. Ferrari's World Champion Kimi Raikkonen recorded his first victory of the season the following week at Sepang in Malaysia. Wladimir Klitschko defeated WBO heavyweight champion Sultan Ibragimov in a long-awaited unification fight at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

MARCH:

The Sharks continued their good start to the Super 14 with a 22-17 victory over the high-flying Blues team, while the Stormers produced their best performance to date, beating the Chiefs 35-26 in Dunedin.

South Africa played a three-match ODI series in Bangladesh, but the tourists were never in trouble against the Tigers, winning the series 3-0 by large margins in the three limited-overs affairs.

In England, meanwhile, Oxford University beat Cambridge University to win their famous boat race for the third time in five years.

APRIL:

On the golfing front, South Africa at last had another Major winner when Trevor Immelman won the coveted US Masters, finishing just ahead of Tiger Woods — the world number one finishing in second place.

Ferrari started to dominate the F1 season with back-to-back victories for the Italian team. Felipe Massa claimed victory in Bahrain before team-mate Kimi Raikkonen stormed to victory in Spain.

The Sharks were again proving to be South Africa's best side in the Super 14, handing the Highlanders a 19-17 defeat in a tightly contested affair. The Stormers continued their revival, first beating the Cheetahs 34-22 in Cape Town, before recording two more victories in the Mother City — the Hurricanes 20-12 and the Highlanders 26-16, succumbing to the form team of the tournament at this stage. The 2008 tournament was fast turning into a nightmare for the defending champions the Bulls, however, as they suffered another embarrassing loss at Lotus Versfeld — the Hurricanes caning them 50-22 this time around.

  • Continue to page two for May to August!


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