Author: Boria Majumdar

Few know better than Brad Hogg what it takes to win a World Cup. An integral part of Australian teams that won the tournament in 2003 and 2007, his role was especially crucial in 2003 when he had to take on the spin mantle after Shane Warne’s drugs ban. With extensive experience of playing in India and tremendous knowledge of Indian conditions, Hogg, who took 156 ODI wickets with his left-arm wrist-spin, is better equipped than most to predict how the 2023 World Cup will pan out. In this fascinating conversation with Boria Majumdar in the new World Cup series…

Salient points “Don’t sledge Virat Kohli. Any bowler who sledges him will have to pay the price. If you don’t sledge and just let him be, he could get bored and make a mistake,” says Ntini. “Anrich Nortje is bowling a tad too short. If he bowls slightly up and whoever is coaching him should tell him that, he can run through any batting line-up in the world.” “My four semi-finalists are South Africa, India, Australia and Pakistan,” says Ntini. EXCLUSIVE Makhaya Ntini is always good to talk to. He speaks his mind and doesn’t believe in being politically correct.…

On Dhyan Chand’s birthday this is a special tribute to the legend who united India in a manner that few have ever been able to do. His name and aura had spread far beyond the Indian shores and despite having come from the humblest of backgrounds, he was an Indian dream come true uniting people in their aspirations and pursuits. Through hard work and discipline, he made Indian sport a toast of the world and in doing so accorded every Indian a sense of self respect and pride. His multiple Olympic gold medals was speaking out one language- that we…

It is not easy being Neeraj Chopra. To do the things he does. To win consecutive medals on the world stage, and yet feel the same hunger when he gets ready for the next competition. And now, he has won India’s first-ever World Championship gold. In cricket, India has Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. In badminton, PV Sindhu, twice Olympic medallist, has support from the men’s squad, who have quietly come into their own in recent years. But in athletics, it is just Neeraj at the top. To be the polestar can’t be easy, and yet he has conducted himself…

He was one of the best fast bowlers of his time. Over 6’ 7” and running in to deliver thunderbolts from a height of over 9 feet, Sir Curtly Ambrose was one of the most difficult bowlers to encounter for any batter. Now a commentator and coach, Ambrose spoke to Boria Majumdar about the upcoming World Cup, and how much the return of Jasprit Bumrah could help the Indian team. Excerpts: Boria: Jasprit Bumrah is fit. He looked really good in Ireland. As a fast bowler yourself, could you tell me how you see him and how should he approach…

EXCLUSIVE He is one of the foremost voices in the world game. And the good thing about Athar Ali Khan is that he is always composed and chooses his words well. In this conversation with Boria Majumdar for the World Cup Series of Backstage With Boria, Athar claimed that Bangladesh were best placed to make the semi-finals this time round, with the conditions favouring Shakib and his team. He reckoned that this would be the big breakthrough that Bangladesh cricket has been looking for. Excerpts from the conversation: Boria: Experience of playing in Indian conditions, a very good 50-over record…

It was around 1am India time that I was finally able to speak to Pullela Gopichand. Gopi is someone who can take both victory and defeat in his stride and stay calm. Emotions don’t really get the better of him. Not last night. “He needs to recover physically,” he told me. “That’s my only concern. Two back-to-back marathons when he wasn’t 100 percent physically. But with Prannoy, it is also mental. The mental state he is in, he can just go and play anyone at even 60-70 percent. That’s what I am banking on.” The words were coming out in…

He will be key to the Australian middle order, and also have the responsibility of picking up key wickets with the ball. With a fantastic IPL behind him, where he scored 480 runs at a strike rate of over 170 for the Lucknow Super Giants, Marcus Stoinis is a confident man and looking ahead to yet another successful World Cup campaign with the Australian team. While not wanting to say that they are favourites, Stoinis agreed that Australia are a very good side and that Pat Cummins is a real role model as a leader. Excerpts from this conversation…

EXCLUSIVE At the outset I need to thank my friend Maria Emelianova for facilitating this interview. We had discussed about trying to speak to Praggnanandhaa after the final but with the result not going his way, Pragg had left the venue soon after and we did not want to trouble him. It was at the prize distribution ceremony that he was back and in a buoyant mood. By then the significance of what he had achieved must have sunk in. So when Maria messaged, it was quite late into the night in India. In fact, it was around 1am. She…

In some extremely disappointing news, UWW, the world body for wrestling, has suspended the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) for not conducting elections. While we have yet to see the letter, sources confirmed that the UWW had originally given the WFI a 45-day deadline to conduct elections, which had not been complied with. In fact, it has now been over three months since the deadline was set. This draws attention to two things. First, global sport has a certain structure to it, which states that National Federations need to draw recognition from world governing bodies of that particular sport. Sadly…