Author: Boria Majumdar

Sanju Samson has immense potential. Each of us knows it. The kind of shots he played on Tuesday night on his way to 50 were proof of the kind of ability he has. And yet, it hasn’t been a stand-out international career so far. Is it just because he hasn’t been given enough opportunities while some others have? Is this conspiracy theory the answer? While it is all about India, such divisive and toxic opinions don’t really hold ground, however much his fans would want that to be the case. The truth is that Samson hasn’t done justice to his…

With the Indian football team for the 2023 Asian Games finally announced and – as mentioned by RevSportz – including the three seniors, Sunil Chhetri, Gurpreet Sandhu and Sandesh Jhingan, it is pertinent to look back at Indian football’s finest hour, the gold-medal winning effort in the 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta. However, this campaign was anything but pleasant, a story not much known in sports circles. The Asian Games was organised, and continues to be organised, under the larger umbrella of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). They are Asia’s mini-Olympics and, as in the story of the Olympics itself,…

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW Now that the dust has settled on India’s Asian Games participation and we also know the draw for the World Cup 2026 qualifiers, the focus needs to shift to preparation. A failed Asian Games and a poor World Cup qualifying campaign could mean that all the momentum that we now have in Indian football is lost. Frankly, the next eight months are perhaps the most important eight months in the modern history of the game in India. Good results would mean the public support for the game is sustained, and India could well be on the fast track…

I have now heard Rahul Dravid’s press conference a few times and also read some of the social media posts on it. Let’s face a few facts first. India is surely not the best placed team at the moment. They don’t look great and the injuries haven’t helped either. India is perhaps the only team that is missing four first XI players to injury. Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, Shryeas Iyer and KL Rahul are literally half the side who are injured. Second, India have not been great in 50-over cricket in the recent past. A home series loss against Australia,…

EXCLUSIVE Sir Curtly Ambrose on Jasprit Bumrah’s return to international cricket. “Bumrah should take things gradually and not go a little slow at the start. Once he has a few matches under his belt, he can do what he did earlier. India needs him at his best in the world cup so he has a bit of time.” If you are an Indian cricket fan, the best news of the last few days, revealed by BCCI Secretary Jay Shah, is that Jasprit Bumrah is fit. In fact, media reports have now confirmed that Bumrah has started to bowl to the…

“You have now beaten the English on the sporting field. When will you help bring down the flag fluttering there?” asked a Brahmin clad all in white of Reverend Krishnamohan Chatterjee, one of the stars of the victory, pointing to the Union Jack fluttering over Fort William, the headquarters of the British garrison in Calcutta. The 29th of July 1911, 112 years ago. The IFA Shield Final. The Calcutta maidan. Mohun Bagan vs East Yorkshire Regiment. Mohun Bagan lost the toss and was placed towards Eden Garden and East York towards Fort William. The atmosphere was electric. For days, there…

What is the latest on the participation of Sunil Chhetri, Sandesh Jhingan and Gurpreet Sandhu in the Asian Games? Will the three players be part of the team? Will they be in Hangzhou? Why weren’t their names sent in the original list of 22 players? Was it done thereafter, and what’s the exact status now? Kalyan Chaubey, the AIFF President, clears the air in this conversation with Boria Majumdar. Boria: Mr. Chaubey, could you please tell us what is the latest on the participation of the three senior players – Sunil, Sandesh, and Gurpreet – in the Asian Games? Chaubey:…

EXCLUSIVE Bangladesh skipper Nigar Sultana Joty on the India series. “I felt Harmanpreet would say well played to my girls at the prize giving. It would have meant the world to them, who consider her their hero. Instead, what happened was disrespectful and hurtful, and it was best I walked away from there with my team.” The India-Bangladesh women’s series has been the subject of much deliberation recently. While the talk has mostly centered on Harmanpreet Kaur and her conduct, and perhaps rightly so, there hasn’t been much talk about the Bangladesh side of the story. The BCCI by not…

It was yet another important day for Indian football as the draws for the World Cup Qualifiers and the Asian Games were announced. And the man synonymous with the sport in India spoke to me soon after the draws were done. Here is Sunil Chhetri on India’s Asian Games participation, the World Cup draw and more. Boria: Now that the Asian Games participation is confirmed, how pleased are you? Chhetri: I am very pleased. It is a great opportunity for all of us, and you need to play with the better teams to improve. We are playing China, which is…

IGOR STIMAC EXCLUSIVE It was 6pm in India, and Anurag Thakur, the Sports Minister, had just tweeted the news that all of India’s football players and fans were waiting for. That both the Indian men’s and women’s football teams would be traveling to China for the Hangzhou Asian Games. As soon as the news came in, I got a message from Igor Stimac, the India men’s team coach, which said, “We have done it.” And just as I called him back, Stimac was all excited. “It is a huge moment for every Indian football fan,” he said. “It is a…