Author: Atreyo Mukhopadhyay

It’s been a time of bad press for the All India Football Federation (AIFF). Just before the national team takes on Kuwait and Qatar in crucial World Cup qualifying fixtures, Shaji Prabhakaran, its secretary-general, was sacked. ‘Breach of trust’ was cited as the reason in the termination letter signed by Kalyan Chaubey, the AIFF president, along with vice-president NA Haris and treasurer Kipa Ajay. Prabhakaran is a decorated and vastly experienced man in football administration. He has worked for FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation, besides heading the football body in Delhi. He is held in high esteem in many…

The Afghanistan fairy tale in the World Cup came to a harsh end. South Africa denied them the slim chance of qualifying for the semi-finals with a five-wicket win in Ahmedabad. The underdogs fought hard as they had during this campaign and unearthed a new hero in Azmatullah Omarzai, but their cumulative effort was not enough. They did not bat as well as they would have expected to and stopped well short of a total that could have challenged this powerful South African batting line-up. There was no dearth of passion or energy, but you need more than that. It…

It was a sad day on a cricket field when this incident took centre stage. Angelo Mathews of Sri Lanka was timed out, going by the letter of the law. Not many in the right frame of mind seemed to accept it, but it was right according to the rulebook. This cannot be overruled. Whether the law is just is up to interpretation, but going by the order of the day, it was valid. What was not, however, was what followed. Mathews calling Bangladesh a disgraceful country. Shakib Al Hasan saying everything is fair in war. Those were totally uncalled-for…

In cricket or in any other walk of life, there has to be room for common sense. We may look at something and come to a conclusion. But is that always right? Cricket faced this question during the World Cup match between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in smoggy Delhi. The reply was smoggier. Cricket lost. Angelo Mathews was timed out in the first-ever instance of this mode of dismissal in the 146-year history of international cricket. It was the most bizarre incidents that this game has witnessed. One of the most, if we must be politically correct. It reminds…

He is the best batter in the history of 50-over men’s cricket when it comes to the second innings. He plotted and executed some monumental chases. He stood there till the end, ran crazily throughout and made sure that the result was achieved. Virat Kohli played probably his best and most significant first-innings knock at Eden Gardens against South Africa in this World Cup match. A world-record-equalling 49th century on his 35th birthday in the grandest of matches of the competition yet, at possibly the most charming of cricket venues, where he made his first international century! The stars could…

This match had to be won by Australia. They were in trouble at four or five wickets down. That’s when they picked themselves up. They recovered and made a match of it before winning it. England tried hard. They were in it for longer than expected. But it was actually match over after Australia made 286 from 117-4. England did not stand a chance on this pitch in Ahmedabad where the ball gripped, slipped and asked other questions. It was close going by numbers and the scoreboard. England, the defending champions, fought hard as the eventual score would show. Chasing…

Virat Kohli is undoubtedly the best batter the world has seen when it comes to the second innings in a 50-over game. He does not just chase down big totals, he bosses the chase. And he has been doing it since he was quite young. What stands out is this sense of responsibility, the awareness that he has to get the job done, come what may. He will do it. His average batting second in winning causes is an insane 90.40 in 102 games. Here are five instances, not including the ongoing World Cup and comprising only three-figure knocks when…

This is a rerun of the 2019 semi-final, where England ran roughshod over Australia. That was in Birmingham. Australia made 223 and that total was eclipsed with plenty to spare. Now, it is not a semi-final. The stage is Ahmedabad and things look very, very different. A resurgent Australia look ready to trample over an under-siege England. A look at the points table — England 10th out of 10, and Australia up to third – tells a story. Yes, Australia might be under strength because they will miss some of their main players due to different reasons. So might England.…

There are teams that win cricket matches. And there are teams that decimate the opposition. India put up a display of the second variety against Sri Lanka at Wankhede Stadium on Thursday to seal their place in the semi-finals of the World Cup. It was difficult to believe at times that they were playing against the side they had met in a World Cup final at the same venue in 2011. Those two teams were evenly matched. This 302-run win where Sri Lanka sank to 55 all out was a no-contest. Had this been a bout of boxing, the referee…

Indian cricket fans will remember him for a lot of reasons. He smashed three hundreds against MS Dhoni’s team in a three-match ODI series in South Africa in 2013. He has been a standout performer in the Indian Premier League (IPL). And he is hitting hundreds for fun in a World Cup in India. Quinton de Kock would not be the first choice in an all-time fantasy ODI XI. There are illustrious peers and predecessors. Forget Dhoni, he is not mentioned in the same breath as Adam Gilchrist and Kumar Sangakkara when it comes to wicketkeeper-batters in this format. Utility,…