Author: Bharath Ramaraj

The Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) elections have been deferred to December 30. They were originally scheduled to be held on November 30. An electoral officer of the KSCA said that the “elections cannot be conducted at this stage without removing the doubts among members.” The postponement comes in the backdrop of a case filed in court challenging the eligibility criteria. Venkatesh Prasad, who is set to contest against KN Shanth Kumar, Director of The Printers Pvt. Limited, voiced his displeasure at a press meet. “We were stunned to learn that the elections have been deferred to December 30,” he…

“Survival of the fittest is a phrase that originated from Darwinian evolutionary theory as a way of describing the idea that species adapt and change by natural selection, with the best-suited mutations becoming dominant.” This definition via Google Search can be applied to other disciplines too, and that includes the game of cricket. The connecting point here is the 2016 Test series between India and England. That was the series when India also decided to employ the Decision Review System for home matches. It didn’t just help finger spinners like Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja to get more LBWs,…

On Day 3 of the first Test between India and South Africa at Eden Gardens, the visitors put on a sterling display with both bat and ball to usurp India in their own den. Temba Bavuma and the lower order stitched vital stands to take South Africa to a target that was defendable. Simon Harmer then put on a masterclass in spin bowling and was well supported by Keshav Maharaj, Marco Jansen and Aiden Markram to power South Africa to their first-ever Test win in India since 2010. So, what were the major takeaways from India’s heartbreaking loss? At Revsportz,…

By Bharath Ramraj in Bengaluru Shrivalli Rashmikaa Bhamidipaty, remember the name. The tall 23-year-old Indian tennis player cracks big flat serves and can hit scorching cross-court and down-the-line forehand winners. All those powerful weapons were on full display against the much more experienced Tamara Zidansek in a Billie Jean King Cup play-off tie in Bengaluru. Eventually, Shrivalli lost 3-6, 6-4, 1-6, but she enthralled the audience with her sizzling brand of tennis. That pulsating encounter was followed by K Juvan beating Sahaja Yamalapalli in straight sets to power Slovenia to the main draw as India crashed out in…

Bharath Ramaraj Day 1 of the India-South Africa Test at Eden Gardens began on the right note for the visitors. They didn’t just win the toss but also made a promising start. At one point, they were 57 for no loss. Soon, that became 62 for 2, then 120 for 5. Ultimately, the score read 159 all out. It is a fact that the track is offering variable bounce, the kind of conditions where the batter is never really in. But it isn’t exactly a raging turner, and South Africa should have made a better fist of their…

Bharath Ramaraj in Bengaluru Slovenia have taken one step closer to navigating a way through the Billie Jean King playoffs in Bengaluru after beating the fancied Netherlands 2-1 in the opening round of the three-country tussle. There was a time when Tamara Zidansek’s whip forehand was the talk of the town. That forehand also propelled the Slovenian to a French Open semifinal in 2021, and she was ranked as high as 22 in February 2022. Unfortunately, that year, she was down with Covid-19 and it took a long time for her to recover. When she returned to the tennis…

Somewhere in 2013, Ankita Raina and Rutuja Bhosale lost 1-6, 3-6 in a Billie Jean King Cup (then known as Fed Cup) Asia-Oceania tie to Kazakhstan. Since then, Raina has participated in 49 more Fed Cup ties, which includes spearheading India, alongside Sania Mirza, to their first-ever Billie Jean King Cup playoffs in 2020-21. Just hit the accelerator pedal to take a flight back to 2025, and the 32-year-old Raina is still a key member of the Indian team that will play in the playoffs against Slovenia and the Netherlands, in Bengaluru. In all those 12 years, the unmistakable…

By Bharath Ramaraj Leadership is a subjective quality that cannot be quantified. In cricket, one could argue that wins and losses are the measure of a captain. But the caveat here is that a team’s success also depends on the resources available. So, what is leadership in this context? Perhaps Temba Bavuma’s captaincy can help us understand its subtleties. For Bavuma, leadership isn’t just about executing tactics to outsmart opponents. He is also leading a group of players from diverse backgrounds and ethnicities. Consider how he handled the delicate situation during the 2021 T20 World Cup when Quinton de Kock,…

Bharath Ramaraj The name Venkatesh Prasad transports you back to a bygone era. Even further back than the iconic 1996 World Cup match played between India and Pakistan where a fiery Prasad castled Amair Sohail after he was at the receiving end of a sledge from the left-hand opener. It was a Deodhar Trophy game played between North Zone and South Zone during the 1993-94 season. By all accounts, it was a spicy pitch where North Zone could muster a mere 68 in pursuit of a lowly 83-run target set by South Zone. And it was Prasad who ripped…

In the recently held Pakistan–South Africa second Test in Rawalpindi, the visitors looked set to slump to a series defeat. In response to Pakistan’s first-innings total of 333, South Africa were struggling at 235 for 8. At that point, Senuran Muthusamy shared vital stands with Keshav Maharaj and Kagiso Rabada to not just take the visitors past Pakistan’s total but also steer them to a healthy lead. The lower order didn’t just guide them to a series-levelling victory, it also said something about South Africa’s resilience. A couple of weeks later, South Africa ‘A’ produced a collective batting effort to…