Author: Boria Majumdar

Boria Majumdar in Sydney Exactly three minutes left for the day’s play to end. Jasprit Bumrah was trying to rush through his over to make sure Mohammed Siraj got another crack at the Australian openers. Usman Khawaja, very rightly, was trying to delay things and waste precious seconds so that there was no extra over. All of this was within the rules. With the delay, Bumrah was getting a little restless and that’s when he complained to the umpire. The India captain was very much within his rights to speak to the umpire to hasten things up. He was waiting…

Boria Majumdar in Sydney The story from India’s net session the day before the Sydney Test was Rohit Sharma. Is he playing or not playing? Has he been left out, or will it be a last-minute call? Gautam Gambhir keeping the option open at the press conference has added fuel to the fire. Rohit, for the record, did not take any slip catches today, batted only briefly in the nets, played some throwdowns and did not have a long stint. It could well be that he isn’t playing this Test, and India open with KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal. Shubman…

Boria Majumdar in Sydney Australia are on the cusp of winning their first Border-Gavaskar Trophy in a decade, while India know that a win in Sydney would mean that all that happened in Melbourne would soon be forgotten. The stakes are at their highest. Battlelines are drawn, and neither team will back down. India’s weaknesses stand exposed, while Australia too have their own issues with batting. Former India players have rallied behind Rohit Sharma’s team and, in sum, India aren’t just the eleven players on the park and the seven on the bench. The bonding now extends to all the…

Boria Majumdar at Sydney As we step into 2025, it is time to look back at the year we had at Revsportz in 2024 and also the way ahead. We completed 3 years on December 1, 2024. From negotiating a personal ban, which could have impacted the company’s fortunes to breaking new ground with coverage, Revsportz has come a long way. Here in Sydney, we have 9 of us reporting on the Border Gavaskar Trophy, doing English, Hindi and Bengali coverage simultaneously. Our website is now recognised as one of the go-to platforms for quality sports writing. We will soon…

As the dust settles on the Indian defeat in Melbourne, it is time to leave it behind and look ahead at the fifth and final Test of the BGT Series starting in Sydney on January 3, 2025. The turnaround time is short and with the team traveling today, all they will get is two days to recalibrate. First and foremost, the team needs to believe that they can get the job done. They have enough gas left from what we have seen in Melbourne. It does give the team and hordes of fans a lot of hope. Jasprit Bumrah continues…

Boria Majumdar at the MCG Virat Kohli is synonymous with hope. He carries the aspirations of Indian cricket fans, and justifiably so. All through his career, he has taken on challenges and overcome them. That’s where the expectations come from. You don’t expect him to make the same mistakes over and over again, and that’s why fans have tended to get frustrated and upset on this tour. In Australia, Kohli has time and again let his ego take over. It is as if Australia know where to bowl to him. They know he will not be able to resist the…

Boria Majumdar at the MCG You want some players to do well. Mohammed Siraj is one such. He hasn’t been himself this series and, as Sunil Gavaskar said, could well have been rested in Sydney were it not been for today’s effort. With India under the pump having conceded a 105-run first innings lead, Siraj needed to step up in Australia’s second innings. Jasprit Bumrah and Akash Deep had bowled their heart out, and the onus was on Siraj to make sure the pressure wasn’t released. His second over did not give much hope. A freebie on Marnus Labuschagne’s pads…

Boria Majumdar at the MCG Ahead of the Australian second innings, you could see Jasprit Bumrah and Rohit Sharma involved in an intense conversation. Both were pointing towards field placements and it was evident that there were plans for Sam Konstas. Bumrah had not forgotten the first innings and he was ready. No over the top behaviour. Just ready to bowl with venom and pace and execute a real master-class. From the very first over, it was clear that Bumrah meant business. No loosener and not a single freebie on offer. Konstas just couldn’t get bat on ball and the…

Boria Majumdar in Melbourne Rishabh Pant had just played a shot that he’d not want to remember. India were still less than 200 and the sixth wicket had fallen. There was a familiar dejection among the Indian fans in the stands. Yet again, the batting had failed and Australia were poised to take a 200-plus lead. And, in such a scenario, the game was all but done. Walk in Nitish Kumar Reddy. The very first shot he played was one of confidence. Here was an in-form player who meant business. He wasn’t overawed by Pat Cummins or Mitchell Starc steaming…

Boria Majumdar at the MCG Remember Jonny Bairstow? If you don’t, let’s refresh your memories. Over a year ago, during an Ashes series in England, Australia claimed his wicket with a stumping that was deemed “legal” but against the spirit of the game. Let me state this at the outset – I have nothing against teams playing by the rules. In fact, that’s not the issue here. Soon after the incident, the English fans started abusing the Australians. In fact, a former star speaking on conditions of anonymity said this, “Mate, when the players were walking through the Long Room…