Author: Ashok Namboodiri

Ashok Namboodiri Every time Indian cricket seems to have moved on from Prithvi Shaw, he finds a way to remind us that talent like his doesn’t disappear; it merely lies dormant, waiting for one audacious innings to announce its return. On his birthday today, it’s hard not to marvel at the sheer resilience of a cricketer who refuses to be forgotten. Shaw began the 2025 Ranji Trophy season with a whimper…a duck against Kerala. For most players, that would’ve been a shaky start. But Shaw being Shaw, the story changed within days. He followed the failure with a defiant…

There’s something deeply unsettling about a nation of 1.4 billion not finding a single bidder for its premier football league. It’s not just a commercial failure …it’s a reality check. Indian football, once poised to be the next big frontier after cricket, now stares at a future clouded by neglect, inconsistency, and a loss of confidence from both fans and financiers. Lets try and decode what has gone wrong. The agreement between AIFF and FSDL was set to expire in December, and the Supreme Court has ordered a pause until the AIFF constitution is sorted out. If you are a…

In the complex theatre of global cricket governance where influence is often inherited and continuity mistaken for progress, Jay Shah stands out as a reformer with intent. At just 35 he became the youngest ICC Chair in history, yet his career trajectory is built not on privilege but on a pattern of tangible achievements. His rise from the Gujarat Cricket Association to the BCCI, the Asian Cricket Council, and now the ICC represents a rare blend of operational acumen, strategic vision, and generational freshness. Under Shah’s stewardship, the Board of Control for Cricket in India redefined the economics of sport.…

When Rishabh Pant was named in India’s Test squad for the upcoming two-match series against South Africa, there was more to celebrate than just a selection. It marked the full-circle moment of one of the most stirring comeback stories in modern cricket – a reminder that life’s greatest innings often begin after its hardest knocks. Pant’s return isn’t just a sporting milestone; it’s a parable in courage, perseverance, and authenticity. From the moment Pant burst onto the scene, he was touted as India’s next great entertainer – a mix of Virender Sehwag’s fearlessness and Adam Gilchrist’s aggression. But behind the…

When India’s women lifted the ICC Women’s ODI World Cup at the DY Patil Stadium, it felt like the 1983 moment all over again. Suddenly, women’s cricket wasn’t niche; it was prime time. Sponsors were calling, brands were realigning campaigns, and broadcasters reported record TRPs for a women’s event. The natural next question and one that’s dividing opinion in cricket boardrooms is this: should the Women’s Premier League (WPL) expand now and adopt a full home-and-away format, or pause and consolidate? Momentum is a rare ally in sport. The Indian team’s triumph has created a surge of national pride and…

Ashok Namboodiri When India Women lifted the ICC World Cup at DY Patil Stadium, it wasn’t just a sporting milestone, it was a brand moment. The kind of inflection point that marketers, broadcasters, and investors wait decades for. For years, women’s cricket in India was a promise waiting for a platform. Now it has a product, a proposition, and most importantly, a reason to believe. This victory turns women’s cricket from a sub-brand to a standalone franchise. In 1983, India discovered the power of cricket as a cultural asset. In 2025, India has discovered it as a diversified business…

In The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams imagined a supercomputer named Deep Thought that spent 7.5 million years pondering the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything. When the answer finally arrived, it was stunningly simple: 42. For decades, people tried decoding that number. Mathematicians saw symmetry, philosophers saw satire, programmers saw binary poetry (42 in ASCII translates to the asterisk, the symbol for “anything”). And tonight, in Navi Mumbai, the universe finally gave its own interpretation – 42 years after 1983, India’s women lifted their first ODI World Cup. If Deep Thought was…

Tonight, as the floodlights blaze over DY Patil Stadium, the most important person in the broadcast compound will not hold a bat or a microphone, but a vision. The producer of the ICC Women’s World Cup final between India and South Africa isn’t just transmitting a cricket match; they’re authoring a memory. Because this isn’t merely a final. It’s a story waiting to be told right. Every great broadcast begins with a frame, and a feeling. The producer must decide: What is this match really about? Two nations. Two journeys. Both chasing a maiden crown. India, twice runners-up, are playing…

India (PC: BCCI Women)When Star Sports launched its campaign for the ICC Women’s ODI World Cup “Jersey Wahi, Jazba Wahi”, it was more than a slogan. It was a statement of intent. The same jersey that once symbolised the heroics of Kapil, Sachin, Dhoni and Virat now sits proudly on Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, and Jemimah Rodrigues. The message is clear: the passion, the pride, and the purpose are identical – only the protagonists have changed. If the semi-final win against Australia was women’s cricket’s coming-of-age, the finals represent its destiny. This could well be the 1983 moment – a…

In sport, the most difficult call isn’t the one you appeal for, it’s the one you make on yourself. For India’s long-serving women’s captain Harmanpreet Kaur, that moment may be approaching. Few athletes in Indian cricket have carried the weight of transformation like she has – from the days when women’s cricket barely made the headlines to the era of packed stadiums and prime-time broadcasts. It is, of course, deeply ironic to even be discussing the idea of Harmanpreet “calling time” when she has just orchestrated one of Indian cricket’s greatest triumphs, leading India into the ICC Women’s World Cup…