Author: Agnijit Sen

“He had a quiet way about him, a walk and a talk that just wasn’t normal around here. He strolled, like a man in a park without a care or a worry in the world, like he had on an invisible coat that would shield him from this place.” – said Morgan Freeman’s booming voice in the film ‘The Shawshank Redemption.’ Just replace the word ‘Andy’ with ‘Rohit Sharma’ in the paragraph mentioned above. For a long time now, I have felt a strange connection with the Indian captain. I don’t know what. I can’t summarise it in words. Virat…

‘Matches are not won by highlights, but what happened in between these highlights,’ said Harsha Bhogle, one of my all-time favourite cricket broadcasters. The more I watch cricket, I feel this is the bottom line of all the matches. I love the small moments, the sub-plots, the minute phases of the game which ultimately lead to the grand climax. The first ODI between India and England at Nagpur was no exception. India managed to keep England to 248, thanks to a good, all-round show from the bowlers. The floodlights lit up and in walked the openers, Yashasvi Jaiswal and captain…

Do you remember Salman Khan as ‘Aman’ in Karan Johar’s iconic film ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai?’ Salman was the quintessential charming lover boy. He makes a grand entry with song and dance and is all set to marry Anjali (Kajol). Anjali likes him too and things go according to plan until Rahul (Shah Rukh Khan) makes a re entry in Anjali’s life. Anjali is confused and torn. Tears are shed and hearts are broken before the inevitable happens. Anjali goes back to her first love and all Aman can do is let go and offer a smile standing in the…

They say ‘when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.’ But what if life gives you a white ball and asks you to bowl at one of the most destructive batting line ups in the world when it comes to the shortest format of the game? 2024 has been a roller coaster year for Indian fast bowler Harshit Rana. With Gautam Gambhir taking over the reins of Kolkata Knight Riders as mentor in 2024, Harshit came into his own. KKR faced Sunrisers Hyderabad in the third match of IPL 2024. It was a cliffhanger, with SRH needing 13 runs off the…

Everytime I walk into Eden Gardens, I feel enthralled. Is it because of the fact that my city has such a historic & iconic cricket stadium? Is it because whenever I start walking around the stadium, the Gavaskars, Imrans, Sachins, Souravs & Rohits start talking to me? Emotions kept aside, I think one of the main reasons for my excitement is because of the matches Eden Gardens has gifted us over the years. I know, when I speak of The Eden, the first things that come to mind must be that famous follow-on featuring VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid or…

Agnijit Sen in Australia I distinctly remember my childhood winter mornings. Being a true Bengali, I have grown up witnessing winter celebrated in Kolkata. Post the Durga Pujo, there’s a sudden nip in the air. You start taking out your sweaters and blankets from the cupboard. The fan regulator comes down gently, day by day. The days start getting shorter, nights longer. Ofcourse, there’s the festivities too. Theatre festivals, film festivals, picnics, circus, zoo – everything start rolling in one by one. The huge Park Street carnival on Christmas eve, New Year’s Eve, the smell of the Christmas cakes add…

Agnijit Sen in Sydney I had the opportunity to interview former Indian wicket-keeper-batsman Deep Dasgupta once. I asked him about the toughest bowler he faced. Without batting an eyelid, Deep Dasgupta said, “Shaun Pollock. He would run in and bowl the same line and length throughout the day.” Sometimes, this is exactly what you need from a Test match bowler. Boland is a perfectly cut out Test match bowler. He loves to bowl long spells, loves running in and boy, does he love Virat Kohli or what? Once in World Test Championship Final 2023, once in the day-night Adelaide Test,…

Agnijit Sen in Sydney ‘Shubman Gill will be the next Indian superstar!’- We all said in unison when Gill played that knock on the last day of the Gabba Test in 2021. The way he hooked Mitchell Starc, and took on the likes of Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, he was hailed by many as the next big thing in Indian cricket. After that knock, it has been a smooth ride for Gill. A regular in India’s red-ball side, he has shown his class across formats. IPL orange-cap holder, Gujarat Titans captain, hogging the limelight in TV commercials, and a…

Agnijit Sen in Sydney I love cricket stadiums. The pulsating crowd, the electrifying atmosphere, make or break for players and above all, the SMELL. Yes, the smell. The smell of history, the smell of tradition, the smell of heritage, as you enter the iconic cricketing venues around the world. Be it Eden Gardens, Lord’s or the Sydney Cricket Ground. The New Year Test starts tomorrow. As I stepped in to the SCG for the first time, my heart skipped a beat. SCG felt like home. And the iconic SCG has indeed been a proud home to a number of exceptional…

Agnijit Sen from Melbourne Of late, a lot of cricketers have made it to the Indian team from Bengal. Mohammed Shami leads the pack, but there are Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep and Abhimanyu Easwaran (he is in the squad). As for Akash, a boy from Sasaram, he was initially dissuaded by his father to play cricket. Much like popular Hindi film narrative, this boy packed his bags, came to Durgapur, was backed by his uncle and got enrolled in a cricket academy. There was no looking back from here on. A tally of 126 wickets at an average of 23.61…