Author: WebDesk

Six takeaways from the opening game of the IPL 2023   Gaikwad begins as he’d like to carry on Years from now, if someone looks up the numbers for the 2022 IPL season, they’ll conclude that Ruturaj Gaikwad had a decent year, scoring 368 runs. It may not have compared to his Orange-cap-winning exploits in 2021, but it was still the most runs by anyone in Chennai yellow. It’s only when you do a deep dive that you’ll see that Gaikwad made just 35 runs in his first five knocks of the season. His batting clicked into place…

The IPL’s Magnificent Seven The Indian Premier League is now an integral part of Indian life, not just its sporting fabric. The summer months mean the caravan setting off and traversing every part of the country. The cast, on and off the field, may have changed since 2008, but its impact on the country is unchanged. In the months of April and May, evenings tend to revolve around the spectacle that now involves ten teams. Office chit-chat and watering-hole conversations centre on fantasy XIs, celeb-spotting and highlights reels. We’ve come a long way since 2008. Here, Revsportz looks back…

By Bharath Ramaraj Overview Under the leadership of KL Rahul, Lucknow Super Giants fired in fits and starts before fizzling out at the Eliminator stage in last year’s Indian Premier League. Since then, the franchise has tried to rectify some of the flaws in the engine room by making smart picks in the mini-auction. Can some of the crucial pieces of jigsaw that they have added in the mini-auction work for them? Will Rahul find the right gears through the innings? Can Mark Wood turn out to be the battering ram of the side? Can their battery of all-rounders help…

Overview It’s hard to put into words what Gujarat Titans achieved in 2022 without resorting to hyperbole. An expansion team with a captain who had little experience of leading on the big stage, and a head coach whose resume was equally limited. But Hardik Pandya, assisted by Ashish Nehra, and a squad carefully assembled through pre-auction picks and auction purchases didn’t just win the title, they romped to it. The Titans won 8 of their first 9 matches, pulling off some incredible run chases, and were then too good for Rajasthan Royals (twice) in the play-offs. That core group,…

By Bharath Ramaraj Overview The engrossing contest between Reece Topley and Virat Kohli at Royal Challengers Bangalore’s first practice session finished with the duo having a brief discussion. It was perhaps about Topley’s ability to extract bounce and the left-arm angle. Glenn Maxwell too was seen practicing in the other net at the same time. As the two stalwarts trained, cameras were zoomed on them. Every single time Kohli cracked a lofted shot, the noise was deafening with chants of ‘Virat, Virat’ reverberating around the stadium. Even when one of RCB’s superstars from the years gone by, AB de…

Overview: After back-to-back title wins in 2019 and 2020, Mumbai have finished fifth and 10th. And for the first time since he caught the eye in 2013, Mumbai will have to navigate a campaign without Jasprit Bumrah’s lethal yorkers and short balls. They have the captaincy nous of Rohit Sharma to fall back on, but is there enough talent in the Indian contingent to sustain a title tilt? Strengths and weaknesses: The plan was to unleash him on batsmen in tandem with Bumrah, but a fit-again Jofra Archer could well hold the key to Mumbai’s tournament. He and Cameron…

By Atreyo Mukhopadhyay Overview: This is a team facing problems. Even at full strength, they did not appear to be the best of the lot on paper. After that, injuries have set them back. Already out for at least half the campaign is Shreyas Iyer, captain and middle-order mainstay. Lockie Ferguson, the New Zealand fast bowler who was consistently among the quickest last season, is unlikely for the first few games due to a hamstring problem. These are blows because both are indispensable in the team’s scheme of things. This means new captain Nitish Rana will have lots on…

By Debasis Sen Overview Delhi Capitals continue to hunt for a maiden IPL title. The franchise has suffered a huge setback as Rishabh Pant will miss the IPL 2023 season because of the horrific road accident he suffered last December. David Warner has been entrusted with the responsibility of leading the side this season. Batting seems to be Delhi Capitals’ strength, with the likes of Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Prithvi Shaw, Rovman Powell and Sarfaraz Khan in the ranks. But when it comes to all-rounders and Indian fast bowlers, there is definitely a lack of experience. Ishant Sharma, who…

 Abhinav Bindra is one of the best India has ever seen. India’s first individual Olympic gold medal winning shooter features in the latest episode of Backstage with Boria Season 4. The champion shooter in this candid interaction with Boria Majumdar opens up on athlete’s mindset dealing with failures, mental health, dream projects and how it can make a difference to sport in India. #AbhinavBindra #BackstagewithBoria #BWBSeason4

— Boria Majumdar, Rohan Chowdhury Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil. India’s best bet for an Olympics medal in shooting in Paris 2024. Having won a quota already, Rudra Patil is arguably one of the most consistent shooters in the world at the moment. He won gold in the Cairo world cup and two bronze medals in Bhopal. In fact, it was after a while that he did not win gold in a major competition. How does Rudra see his efforts in Bhopal and his competition with the Chinese shooters? Will the bronze push him to work harder and get better? How confident…