Author: Boria Majumdar

A RevSportz Exclusive The draw had finished and Pullela Gopichand had just completed a training session. That was when we managed to speak to each other. “I will take this draw if I was Prannoy,” said Gopi. “Even for Lakshya [Sen], I will say it is much better to play Jonathan Christie at the start of the competition than later on.” Even before I could ask him about PV Sindhu, he started talking. “Look, for Sindhu, this is the first time that two players from the same NOC is permitted to be in the same half. As a result, she…

A few days ago, one of our viewers sent me an itinerary and said India would play Pakistan in Lahore on March 1, 2025. He also said that talk of the fixture was viral in Pakistan. My first response was to go back to a tweet I had put out in November 2023. I had said India would not travel to Pakistan unless there was a radical rethink at the Government of India level, and would ask the ICC to host the Champions Trophy on the same hybrid model as the 2023 Asia Cup. I told him the same, and…

Why did France or, more specifically, Paris decide to bid for the Olympic Games? Is it simply a mega sports extravaganza or is it much more? Are these games also an experiment at urban revitalisation and social regeneration? Is France winning a few more medals the only goal or is there more to the event? Have the goals of urban revitalisation been fulfilled? Finally, what does the experience of the Olympics tell us regarding the organisation of mega sports events in a post-Covid world? A caveat is needed here. To comment on the possible legacy of Paris 2024 as the…

HS Prannoy has been one of the best stories in Indian badminton for a while now. Despite being plagued by a condition similar to acid reflux, he has fought his way to the top. The bad news is that, as of last week, he was laid low by a bout of Chikungunya. And the good news is that he was back to training from yesterday, July 10. “Yes, he has had a full training session today and will start to be in shape for Paris,” said Pullela Gopichand from Hyderabad. “Dealing with Chikungunya isn’t easy and it is a tribute…

I have had the privilege of speaking to Sunil Gavaskar all through my career. And I can say he has always been generous with his time. But on his 75th birthday, it is fitting to celebrate him with this interview on his career and more. It is the perfect tribute to Sunny bhai on his birthday. Q: Will do it in two parts, Sunny bhai – you as a commentator and, of course, as one of the greatest cricketers ever. Celebrating you in totality. As someone who defined Test cricket for us, do you think this team has it in…

On May 14, 2024, on my show 5@5, one of my viewers asked if Gautam Gambhir can make a good India coach. It was an interesting suggestion and got me thinking. That’s when I first got to know that Gautam was being looked at as a possible successor to Rahul Dravid. The IPL was still on and Gautam was doing duty for the Kolkata Knight Riders. Everyone was tight-lipped but the grapevine had it that the BCCI was keen on Gautam. And he, on his part, would never say no to an India job. It was a marriage waiting to…

After Sunil Gavaskar left the scene, it was Sachin Tendulkar who filled that void in more ways than one. By the time Tendulkar made an entire nation emotional, Virat Kohli was ready to take the baton from him. Now, as the shades of grey in Kohli’s beard grows exponentially, he will certainly want Shubman Gill to be ready by the time he decides to call it a day. In T20I cricket, Kohli has already stepped aside, and Gill has suggested in Zimbabwe that he wants to continue opening for India. Knowing him, one can rest assured that he is ready…

On his birthday, the one question to ask is why Sourav Ganguly is so revered in Bengal. How is it that years after retirement, he is still the most sought-after icon? What’s his USP? Every Bengali I know still loves to remember him as twenty-something taking Lord’s by storm on a damp early English summer morning in June 1996. Yes, it was some 28 years ago on June 20, 1996, but for us in Kolkata, it is still as fresh a memory as India’s recent T20 World Cup win. Pushed up the order to No. 3 in an attempt to…

In a video message that has now gone viral, BCCI Secretary Jay Shah said that he was hopeful India would win the Champions Trophy and the World Test Championship final under the captaincy of Rohit Sharma. Coming on the back of the T20 World Cup win, this could be a historic treble for India. And may we say, it is very possible. Not just because India are a good side, but also because the talent pool is enormous. That’s what gives us hope that, with the trophy jinx broken, the next few years could be All India. A look at…

In the first part, Ravichandran Ashwin opened up about his challenges, equation with the great Sachin Tendulkar, Mankading and a lot more to RevSportz’s Editor-in-Chief, Boria Majumdar. But, in this special episode of the Backstage with Boria, the off-spinner shares his journey of breaking into Team India, glimpses of his love story with wife Prithi and also confirms the arrival of the sequel of his book, ‘I HAVE THE STREETS; A KUTTY CRICKET STORY’. Boria: Coming to the World Cup but this is not the end, I miss the greatest Indian match-winner, the sequel is coming, part 2 will come,…