SIKE

“Ah…I used integration by parts…maybe….oh no wait. I actually used integration by substitution here I guess and…”, Rogan mumbled.

“Wait wait. Let me stop you there. You are making no sense at all, child. I asked what symptoms have you been experiencing which led you to assume you are suffering from brain fog?”, the doctor interrupted Rogan.

“Too many dates with Mary Jane it seems.”, the doctor continued with a wry smile over his face.

“Uh…sorry, could you repeat what you just asked, doctor?”

WRITTEN BY ILLUSTRATED BY

Krish Sajnani Freya Parekh

IIIT Comps 2nd Year ECE 2nd Year

Ragni Trivedi

Mechanical 2nd Year

The world is abuzz with instances of “cut-throat competition” and “playing dirty”. With the end justifying the means, there is enough place for malice when triumph is at stake. Chasing the high of victory can often lead to ugly situations, yet sports happens to be the arena with the healthiest display of both victory and the lack of it. Despite the notion of the pristine “sportsman’s spirit”, deception remains to be a valuable part of the arsenal of all winners. Some of the historic sports victories were built around the idea of deliberately misleading the opponents and flaunting one’s cleverness.

Ask the Czechs who reached the finals of the European Championship against West Germany. The match ended 2-2 and it all came down to one penalty. Antonio Panenka stepped up to take the decider, unfazed by the pressure. He faked his shot, making the keeper prematurely dive to his left, and slyly chipped it into the box. Some may discredit Panenka for trying such a risky tactic in the most important moment of his career. But this shot remains one of the most iconic goals ever, often replicated by footballing giants like Zidane, Messi, and Pirlo, and has found its place in the books as the “Panenka Kick”. The opportunity for outwitting your opponents stands tall and strong in basketball as well. From the slightest step-over to clear your opponent to sham-gods, off-ball screens, and no-look passes, moments like these make or break the match. Let’s take the 1998 NBA finals, for example. Defending Champions Chicago Bulls had a good 3-2 lead ahead of western conference challengers Utah Jazz. But when Game 6 came around, The Bulls had gone down 85-86. With less than 15 seconds to go, Micheal Jordan stole the ball from Karl Malone in the post and dribbled up the court. Bryon Russell, one of Jazz’s best defenders, guarded Jordan. With 5 seconds to go on the clock, he stopped on a dime, crossed over to his left, and pulled up from 20-feet out, giving the Bulls their sixth win, bringing Russell and the whole Jazz team down with him. This simple yet genius maneuver by Jordan led to one of the most replayed highlights in the game’s history.

In poker, they say don’t play the odds, play the man, and if you manage to do that right, you might make enough money to fund a political campaign. Richard Nixon did. American history would be drastically