Author: RevSportz Comment

Why do we watch sport? Is it just for the larger-than-life figures like MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli? Or is it also for the beautiful, unexpected surprises that it can throw up? Viv Richards might have growled ‘One swallow doesn’t a summer make’ after Narendra Hirwani’s mindblowing 16-wicket debut in Chennai, but the fact remains that the Madhya Pradesh leg-spinner remains in our imagination because of that remarkable feat. Nearly 40 years on, it was the turn of another unknown to nearly upstage the titans at Chepauk. Before 11pm on Sunday night, the universal response to Vignesh Puthur’s name would…

RevSportz Comment It’s been a few years now since we saw the cricket ball being ‘made’ as it used to be, with mid-on or mid-off applying some saliva and then rubbing it vigorously on the trouser front to get as much shine on one side as possible. Once the world came to grips with the Covid-19 pandemic, the shining continued, but with sweat. The spit and polish had become a thing of the past, a decades-old tradition abandoned because of legitimate health concerns. Now, we’ll see it again in the IPL, with the rules being amended to allow it. It’s…

You can still glimpse it occasionally in India’s major cities, across parts of Southeast Asia, in South Africa, Australia and, of course, northeast England. The classic black-and-white barcode shirt with Newcastle Brown Ale as the sponsor and with the three Adidas stripes. Alan Shearer wore it, as did entertainers like David Ginola and Faustino Asprilla. Briefly, in the 1990s, it was the choice of shirt for the ‘neutral’ who wanted to see English football’s established order shaken up. And it so nearly was in the spring of 1996, before Newcastle United let slip a 12-point lead against Sir Alex Ferguson’s…

Two penalty shootouts were at the heart of the drama in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League. At the end of the eight games, however, it was pretty much business as usual, with Aston Villa – who crushed Belgium’s Bruges 6-1 on aggregate – the only surprise entrants into the quarterfinals. Real Madrid, 15 times champions, and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), still chasing their first Big Cup, remain on course for a mouthwatering semi-final clash after those penalty shootout wins. Real saw off Atletico Madrid, their cross-town rivals, 4-2 on penalty kicks despite losing 1-0 on the night to…

RevSportz Comment On air after victory over New Zealand in the Champions Trophy final, Sunil Gavaskar tried to put his occasional criticism of India’s cricketers into context. He compared himself to the family elder who occasionally needed to admonish the young tyros. And why not? If anyone has earned that status, it’s Gavaskar. It couldn’t be more appropriate that this is being written on March 10, 40 years to the day from India’s triumph in the World Championship of Cricket final against Pakistan at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. For most Indians, it was their first exposure to white-ball cricket. The…

RevSportz Comment “Ian left him [Greg Chappell] a legacy of a very good cricket team with a wonderful team spirit and a burning ambition to stay on top. He did more than that, however, for his players. Ian Chappell is and was very definitely a players’ man. He has had more brushes with officialdom than any other players since Keith Miller and Sidney Barnes just after the end of the war, and most of these brushes have been because of his unwillingness to compromise. Nothing is a shade of grey to Chappell and, although his candid speech and honesty can…

As is so often the case with ICC tournaments, the narrative arc for this Champions Trophy was focussed on Pakistan, the hosts, playing eternal rivals India, albeit at a neutral venue in Dubai. Now, the centre piece of the tournament becomes a battle for survival for Pakistan, badly beaten by New Zealand in the opening match. If Bangladesh upset India on Thursday, then Sunday’s marquee match-up effectively becomes a winner-takes-all scrap. Two contrasting hundreds, a blazing half-century and some immaculate new-ball bowling were central to this emphatic 60-run New Zealand victory. They judged the conditions to a nicety, accelerated like…

In a gripping contest, the Indian Women’s Hockey Team edged past England 3-2 in their opening match of the FIH Women’s Pro League at the Kalinga Stadium on Saturday. Vice Captain Navneet Kaur sealed the win with a late strike. Vaishnavi Vitthal Phallke (6’), Deepika (25’), and Navneet (59’) scored for India, while Darcy Bourne (12’) and Fiona Crackles (58’) netted for England. India’s improved penalty corner execution was evident, contributing two goals in a department that has often been a challenge. The match began at a high tempo, with both teams finding the net in the first quarter. India…

The cheapest ticket for last weekend’s Super Bowl in New Orleans was priced at around $3,000 (Rupees 2,60,000). On average, fans of the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs paid over $8,000 to gain entrance. For the money paid for those cheapest tickets, a family of four could have bought season tickets to watch Borussia Dortmund, UEFA Champions League winners in 1997, at one of the most iconic stadiums in Europe. That season ticket, in the most expensive category, would allow them to watch over 20 matches this season. In a nutshell, this explains why so many football fans in…

RevSportz Comment Though there were eight ties played across two nights, involving some of the grandees of European football like AC Milan, Bayern Munich and Benfica, all eyes were on the Etihad in Manchester where Pep Guardiola’s suddenly mortal Manchester City took on Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid. Such matches rarely live up to the hype, but this burgeoning rivalry – this was the fifth time their paths had crossed in six seasons – seems an exception. Guardiola, of course, has history with Real, having been both player and coach for Barcelona. Ancelotti, meanwhile, has won the trophy thrice with Real,…