Author: Boria Majumdar

A 33rd five-wicket haul. Yet again, a terrific spell. Getting the breakthroughs at the start of the innings. Going past 700 international wickets. One could keep going on and on. Yes, it is against West Indies, who aren’t any better than the Duleep Trophy finalists in India at the moment and no match for the Australians. Yes the conditions were different compared to The Oval in early June. But what Ravi Ashwin proved yet again is what he brings to the table – quality and aura. “Ashwin has a mental edge against some of the Australians,” said Gideon Haigh before…

It could have been a Test series with very limited context. But India’s loss in the World Test Championship (WTC) final has meant that this series is largely about Rohit Sharma. He has to score, and score big. He has to do it as leader, for nothing else will suffice. After the WTC final defeat, Rohit has been in the line for fire for a while. His lack of runs with the bat has been questioned and unless he scores big against the West Indies, the murmurs will only grow louder. And it is interesting that India is playing in…

As India and West Indies gear up for another Test series and are set to play the 100th Test of this rivalry in Trinidad, here is a look back at the heroics of Dilip Sardesai in 1971, who in many ways set the tone for the series, which was subsequently dominated by Gavaskar. “It was the tea break on day one of the first Test, and Dilip Sardesai was batting extremely well to drag us out of trouble,” recalled Gundappa Viswanath. “After losing the first five wickets for just 75, it was the partnership between Sardesai and [Eknath] Solkar that…

India will soon be playing their 100th Test match against West Indies. While it is no longer a rivalry that cricket fans look forward to with bated breath, it is certainly one that has seen some spectacular performances from some of the greatest that have played the sport. And the very first series between the two teams, played in 1948-49 in India, set the tone. It was a series dominated by Sir Everton Weekes, who will forever be remembered for being one of the hardest hitters of the cricket ball and perhaps the most talented of the 3Ws. I had…

Soon after winning the Canada Open Super Series 500, Lakshya Sen spoke about the spectacular finish, from being 16-20 down to winning it 22-20 in the second game. We had spoken on Sunday evening, India time, and the plan was to catch up after the final. Neither of us mentioned the wished-for result or even alluded to it. It isn’t right to speak about such things ahead of a big final. But Lakshya had sounded quietly confident. He seemed in a good space and had played some terrific matches coming into the final. There was reason to believe he would…

Igor Stimac is in the news. Even after steering India to three trophies in the past few weeks, the best phase for Indian football in a long time, the high-profile coach isn’t happy. While he feels a sense of vindication, in that the hard work the team has put in as a collective has paid off, he also thinks that unless plans are put in place and done so immediately, India will not be able to make the most of the gains emerging from the SAFF win. And despite the country hailing his work as coach, he is ready to…

Trailblazers – Episode 2 A weekly series celebrating Paralympic Champions on RevSportz, presented by Tata Steel. Krishna Nagar had just won India’s fifth gold medal in badminton at the Tokyo Paralympics taking the total tally to an impressive 19. Overall, 54 athletes winning 19 medals, including five golds, was a telling statement. More so when we think that the cumulative medals tally between 1968, when India first participated at the Paralympics, and 2016, when four medals were won, was 12. Tokyo was a 425 percent increase on the Rio number. Understandably, Deepa Malik, President of the Paralympic Committee of India,…

As Sourav Ganguly turns 51, it was interesting to hear what another Indian sporting legend, Pullela Gopichand, had to say about the icon. And may I say, Gopi’s tribute to Sourav was startling. Boria: What does Sourav mean to you? Gopichand: Sourav is an icon who is hailed all across India, and worldwide. As captain, he transformed Indian cricket, which inspired many like us. So I must say, for me too, he is someone who I have learnt a lot from and will continue to look up to. Boria: Interestingly, you won the All England in 2001 and Sourav won…

The brief given to me was simple. For Sourav’s birthday, tell us 12 stories that we don’t know about the man we all love. Now that’s where it becomes complicated. Sourav Ganguly is an eternal Bengali love affair. Everything about him is known. There are more than 30 books on him. Close to a million interviews online and on television. His life is a public book. So, how do we get 12 stories that remain untold? But that’s where it turns interesting as well. You dig deep into your three decade-long association and then figure out that there are many…

When Misbah-ul-Haq hit a towering straight six off Joginder Sharma from the second ball of the final over in that epic World T20 final in 2007, the equation for Pakistan read: 6 needed off 4 balls. This prompted Ravi Shastri to say on commentary: ‘Pakistan is just a hit away from becoming world champions.’ Ramiz Raja, who was calling the game with Shastri, was all praise for Misbah, and the excitement in his voice was palpable. Shastri, who had already asked if MS Dhoni should have opted for Harbhajan Singh over Joginder, was voicing exactly what each of us felt…