Author: Boria Majumdar

There was a tweet yesterday morning from the NRAI X handle which showed the great Abhinav Bindra addressing India’s best shooters, including almost all those who have earned the quota for Paris. Bindra was seen speaking on a live link to the shooters about his own experiences, and imparting lessons which should hold them in good stead in Paris. Under normal circumstances, there is nothing much to read in the tweet. Abhinav is the greatest shooter India has produced, and it was natural that he was roped in to speak to the shooters. He is anyway mentoring a number of…

Two matches, and 100 runs conceded in just 8 overs. Having been sold to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for 24.75 crores, you have to question if Mitchell Starc is feeling the pressure of the price tag. Any human being would in his position. It is only natural that such an astronomical figure would weigh on his mind. However much he says he doesn’t feel the pressure, the truth is any human being would. As he concedes more runs, he could well succumb to the pressure of the price tag as many have in the past. Sam Curran and Ishan Kishan…

As a player, Vimal Kumar’s career was overshadowed by the brilliance of Prakash Padukone and Syed Modi. He still won two national titles before moving into coaching. Chief coach at the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy, Vimal was a richly deserving recipient of the Dronacharya Award in 2019. In this candid chat with Boria Majumdar, editor-in-chief of RevSportz, he spoke of the upswing in fortunes of both Lakshya Sen and PV Sindhu, as Indian badminton looks ahead to another medal-filled Olympic Games in Paris. Boria: Vimal, what have you done? Clearly there is a difference in the way Lakshya played in…

Two parallel leagues are on at the moment in the country. One is the Indian Premier League (IPL), being played on the 22 yards and which is now nearing the end of its first week. The second is also titled the Indian Premier League, but that one is being played in the Fantasy sporting realm by approximately 130 million Indian cricket fans every single day. In just over half a decade, the number of fans playing fantasy cricket has increased from 5 million to approximately 130 million, and if data available is to be believed, the number is expected to…

Prakash Padukone hardly ever speaks to the media. He prefers to work backstage and is happy staying away from the limelight. Having said that, his students like PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen have time and again thanked him for the difference he has made to their games and their Olympic preparations leading into Paris. How has it been for Padukone to work with them? How did it all happen with Sindhu, and what are the areas of concern? What are the plans leading into the world’s greatest sports spectacle? Padukone opened up in this candid conversation which lasted close to…

I have always watched cricket, and loved doing so because it is a contest. A contest between bat and ball. Two very different sets of skills in combat. Bowlers are as much stakeholders of the game as batters, and that’s what makes the sport what it is. If you render bowlers of the quality of Pat Cummins, Jasprit Bumrah, Gerald Coetzee and Bhuvneshwar Kumar into punching bags, it could be anything else but cricket. What we witnessed last night wasn’t sport. It was a bastardisation of the game we love. Batters hitting sixes and fours at will, while the bowlers…

The Gujarat Titans innings was 7.2 overs old and Vijay Shankar had just hit a superb six off Tushar Deshpande in the previous over to make his intent clear. He would go after the bowlers and take his chances. Daryl Mitchell was bowling his gentle medium pace, and Vijay had reasons to believe he could get some momentum going. Till that moment, MS Dhoni had done nothing much in the game. One expected him to come out and bat the last few balls, but Chennai Super Kings (CSK) sent Ravindra Jadeja instead. The Whistle Podu army was disappointed, and each…

One of the most disturbing visuals that surfaced in the aftermath of the Mumbai Indians -Gujarat Titans game was a Hardik Pandya fan being beaten up by some Rohit Sharma supporters. His crime? How could he be a Pandya fan, when his hero is currently Rohit’s captain at the Mumbai Indians? Frankly, it has taken me hours to digest what transpired. It is much like the theatre of the absurd. That such a thing can happen in reality speaks volumes about the immaturity of Indian fans and the growing toxicity that is now a part of our fandom. Anyone who…

Lalit Modi is always interesting to talk to. Especially when it comes to the IPL. He always comes up with ideas which make for interesting debate and offer food for thought. This conversation was no different. From saying that the BCCI was doing a fantastic job with the IPL by going to cities which weren’t part of the eco-system before, to saying that he is sceptical of the impact cricket could have at LA 28 because it remains an expat sport in the US, it was a conversation with plenty to chew on. Excerpts: Boria: It is IPL time again…

Right through his career, much has been said about KL Rahul being given a long rope. And the trolls have had an absolute feast going after him for days on end. The injury in the 2023 IPL did not help and some even rejoiced saying good riddance, for he wouldn’t be available for the World Test Championship (WTC) final. In fact, had it been Rahul instead of KS Bharat, the final could have been a different story. Thereafter, he had a really good World Cup and his hundred at Centurion in South Africa was one of the best we will…