Author: Boria Majumdar

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…

EXCLUSIVE The idea was to do the interview differently. I had already recorded a number of shows specifically looking at the World Cup, and hence wanted to speak to Gautam about the 2011 experience. How did he handle pressure? Scoring the 97 against Sri Lanka in the final, when India had lost Sachin and Sehwag – how difficult was it for him? Does he ever feel that the 97 has not been celebrated enough in the annals of our cricket? How did Gautam prepare himself for the big games, and did he ever feel insecure? What did he do after…

A photo essay A photograph speaks a 1000 words. In Maria Emelianova’s case, it has spoken more than a million words and is still counting in Baku. One of the best in the business, the picture by Emelianova of Praggnanandhaa and his mother has gone viral not simply in the chess world but also in the world at large. The photograph stands for everything that is good about India. Humility, simplicity and poise. With an experience of more than a decade, her journey was almost destined to happen. And once she started taking pictures, first with a borrowed camera, it…

Any history of Netherlands cricket would have to document the 30-run over off Jason Holder – an over that Logan van Beek will never ever forget. Two crucial points that helped propel the Netherlands into the World Cup on Indian soil, while pushing West Indies, two-times champions, off the biggest stage. In this episode of Backstage With Boria, van Beek speaks about that over, what it meant for the team and their readiness for the final campaign in October. Excerpts from the conversation: Boria: 30 runs off Jason Holder. He has all the experience in the world.. and then those…

He led England to an extraordinary World Cup win in July 2019. While he will not be there to defend his title in October 2023, Eoin Morgan reckons that England are second favourites, after India, going into the World Cup, and have the team to defend the title. Saying that the 2019 final was the greatest game of his life and career, Morgan adds that he has always been a fan of Rohit Sharma, the captain and leader. Excerpts from the conversation. Boria: Another World Cup is upon us, and yet that evening at Lord’s still seems so real. How…

Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, the young man who is currently the talk of the country, doesn’t speak much. By his own admission, “I am a fun person only if I am with someone I know well.” In my case, I have to say that wasn’t really the case, and most of his answers to start with weren’t really ones you would have hoped for at the beginning of an interview. He wouldn’t elaborate, and I was left wanting to hear more! But with time, he started to open up. And when I asked about the influence of Vishwanathan Anand and the Westbridge…

EXCLUSIVE He is currently one of the most respected voices in world cricket. In fact, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that he is one of the best commentators in the world at the moment. When Ian Bishop sets up an India-Pakistan contest for you, it is a very special conversation. Here is Bishop, candid and no holds barred, on India versus Pakistan, Virat Kohli the batter, Rohit Sharma the leader, what ails India in ICC tournaments, and much more. Excerpts from the conversation: Boria: You have watched a lot of India-Pakistan contests and commentated on a lot of them…