Author: Boria Majumdar

Boria Majumdar It was 4.45 am on September 9, 2017. Pullela Gopichand and I had agreed to drive to the airport together to board our respective flights. I was the primary beneficiary, for I knew I would have his undivided attention at that hour, and ask him how the SAI-Gopichand National Badminton Academy in Hyderabad was fast turning into a supply line of champions. The conversation started with Kidambi Srikanth. “He has enormous talent,” Gopi had said. “The day he is at peace with his mind, you will see him win title after title,” the Dronacharya had asserted. His disciple…

It was the evening after India’s shocking defeat in the 2019 World Cup against New Zealand in Manchester, and we were yet to come to terms with what had transpired. India had failed to chase down 240 and the dream of winning the trophy had come to an end. The man most in the line of fire was Rishabh Pant. He had played an irresponsible shot and given it away. Rishabh, understandably, was the subject of Twitter trolls and many called him overrated. He was considered overweight and slammed for his approach to the sport. Sitting in a Manchester restaurant…

By Boria Majumdar He wasn’t a part of the Indian set-up for a while. Nor was he initially in the IPL. For the record, Shardul Thakur went unsold at the auction and was subsequently drafted in by LSG as a replacement for Mohsin Khan. From being the toast of the nation to being out in the wilderness, Shardul has seen it all. In fact, by his own admission, all seemed lost when he was left out of the team that travelled to Australia. He had done well down under and was understandably dejected. For two days, he couldn’t do much.…

The transition has begun. The retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma from red-ball cricket means the selection for the England tour is the most important one in years, and perhaps the most difficult for Ajit Agarkar and his committee. I have three main points of interest leading into the meeting. Firstly, is it the end of the road for Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara, and is it now final that we won’t see them play for India again? With Kohli and Rohit not there, one of them could have had a slim chance of being picked. Will the selectors…

In a major shift in focus and thought process in the last 48 hours, Mohun Bagan Super Giant (MBSG) have now decided to up their game even more and focus on three national team players to consolidate their grip on Indian football. The club had unprecedented success in 2024-25 and are keen not to rest on their laurels. With a clear mandate from the coach Jose Molina and the ownership, read Sanjiv Goenka, the MBSG senior management and CEO are on the job. Each of these national team players is keen on the club’s long-term vision is what I have…

KL Rahul is well and truly an enigma. That he has talent is known the world over. In fact, no one in a proper frame of mind would question that. However, when it comes to key contests, and it has been proved time and again, Rahul just bottles it and is unable to deliver to potential. Does he put too much pressure on himself or is it something else? India don’t have answers to these questions, and this will surely be one of the reasons why he will perhaps be overlooked for captaincy for the England series. Take the 2019…

It was around 2pm UK time and I had just finished a long talk. I was a tad exhausted, having spoken for an hour and-a-half. That’s when Rohan Chowdhury posted in our work group asking if the Robson Robinho deal was done. It was being said on social media and he was checking. It was imperative I checked with my sources. I did and the answer was a clear No. The deal hasn’t moved an inch from where it once was and all that is being said is baseless. Social media has its own ways of saying things and once…

The IPL play-offs have moved out of Kolkata despite all efforts by the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB). And understandably, there is a sense of dejection all round. While some say that that CAB will be compensated with a possible semi-final during the 2026 T20 World Cup, no match can currently replace the stature of an IPL final, which would have come to Kolkata after 10 long years. And that’s where the next chapter of the story begins. The match, or rather no match, is now an election issue. Not since Jagmohan Dalmiya versus Prasun Mukherjee have we seen the…

It can now be confirmed that Mohun Bagan Super Giant has completed all formalities to overturn the FIFA ban that was imposed on them. The club had earlier said that it was an online issue that preempted them from completing the paperwork and they were in touch with FIFA to obtain the correct link. “Yes, all things are done now and we are just waiting to hear a formal overturn of the issue. It isn’t anything major at all and will be done very soon. We have completed all formalities at our end”, confirmed a source close to the developments.…

It is true that Rishabh Pant has had the worst IPL of his career. And that’s true as both player and skipper. Nothing that he has done has gone right. But then, such things happen in sport and Pant isn’t the first or the last to have a very poor season. If you see social media, you will see a section of people – and some of them almost every day – abusing Pant and getting away with it. It is as if this is their only job. The same can be said of a section targeting Ishan Kishan and…