Author: Shamik Chakrabarty

Why doesn’t Sunil Narine overdo his celebrations after taking wickets? When he was young, Narine got a piece of advice from his father: “Be humble, for this game is a great leveller. If in the next match the same batsman blows you away to smithereens, how would you feel?” It struck a chord with the spinner. Even when he plays his last match in competitive cricket, Narine is unlikely to change his routine, for the batter might come back as a commentator bearing the grudge. Narine’s father Shahid was a big influence in his life and career. An unabashed…

It’s time to blare out the song again, that was once a fan favourite at Old Trafford: “Harry Maguire! HaaaarryMaguire! He f***** off Leicester, for Manchester, his head’s f****** massiiiiiiive!” That ‘slabhead’ had given Manchester United the ticket to the Europa League semi-final via an extra-time winner against Lyon. At Estadio San Memes, Maguire channelled his inner Ronaldinho to set up United’s opening goal against Athletic Bilbao on Thursday. “Harrydinho,” said the fans. Who would have thought that United would return from the Basque country with a three-goal advantage? The Europa League has been the club’s redemption arc. This is…

Shamik Chakrabarty Has the fare-thee-well time eventually arrived for MS Dhoni? Chennai Super Kings fans say “never say never” to their Thala. But nothing lasts forever. At the toss, before CSK’s game against Punjab Kings on Wednesday, presenter for the host broadcaster, Danny Morrison, asked Dhoni if he would return next year. The CSK captain smiled and said: “I don’t know (if) I’m coming for the next game (laughs).” It left everyone guessing. A four-wicket defeat put paid to CSK’s playoff chances, and Dhoni, at the post-match presentation, once again talked about the future, with a special mention to Dewald…

Why isn’t Venkatesh Iyer opening for Kolkata Knight Riders(KKR)? The bigger question – is Iyer being underutilised by the team management this season? The 30-year-old has scored 135 runs from six innings. His strike rate is decent – 139.17. But save for a half-century, he has very little to show for his efforts. Inexplicably, he wasn’t given a single over in the nine games that the defending champions have played so far. An all-rounder has the advantage of turning to his bowling when he is not doing well with the bat. A few wickets help boost a player’s confidence,and that…

Back in July last year, after Gautam Gambhir was appointed as India coach and took Abhishek Nayar and Ryan ten Doeschate with him to the Indian team set-up, this correspondent had sent a WhatsApp message to Venky Mysore, congratulating him and Kolkata Knight Riders for mother-henning another international coach. The response from the KKR CEO and managing director was light-hearted: “Haha! Would be nice if they left our coaches alone for sometime!” KKR, a very successful franchise in terms of winning titles and nurturing talents, have shaped several coaching careers – from Trevor Bayliss to Brendon McCallum and Gambhir. It…

In a virtual win-or-bust match, Kolkata Knight Riders are set to ring in changes. Will Rovman Powell play? For a batting line-up that has “lost confidence”, according to team mentor Dwayne Bravo, a spark is needed. Who will provide that? If sweating out at the nets serves as an indicator, the former West Indies T20 captain might finally get a game. The defending champions need to address a Russell-sized problem. The Jamaican has scored 55 runs from six innings at a strike rate of 119.56. He is working his socks off to get back to form, turning up early for…

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens Belatedly, he came out of the dressing room and joined the practise session of the Punjab Kings. Some Bengal junior women’s team cricketers had assembled at the club house upper tier at Eden Gardens, and one of them shouted, “Shreyas bhaiya”. Shreyas Iyer turned and raised his bat. He gave a wave to the Kolkata Knight Riders media manager before moving into the team huddle. At the other end, KKR were practising. On paper, the home team has a bigger star cast than their rivals on Saturday. KKR are an IPL elite with three titles…

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens Barun Guha left Calcutta for England in 1965. Isa, his daughter, who would go on to represent the England women’s cricket team, was born in High Wycombe in 1985. Now 81 years old, Barun is back to his roots after a long time. On Thursday, as Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings trained at Eden Gardens, he was in attendance, along with his daughter. Isa is not commentating in this year’s IPL. The father and daughter are vacationing. “I’m having a lot of Bengali food – ghoogni, luchi and mangsho,” said Isa. “I’m a proud…

The irony in Kolkata Knight Riders’ 39-run defeat in their IPL match against Gujarat Titans (GT) on Monday was that the home team got a pitch that complemented their strengths. The Eden Gardens surface for the game was a bit dry and the ball wasn’t quite coming on to the bat. The strip set the perfect stage for a battle of the spinners. GT won that hands down. KKR picked an extra tweaker in Moeen Ali, who gave away 27 runs in his three overs without a wicket. The team’s famed spin duo of Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy conceded…

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens Moeen Ali floated one outside off and Shubman Gill charged down the track, played across the line and sent the delivery 10 rows back over the deep mid-wicket fence. Power was followed by the lightness of touch; a late cut for a four. Then, the Gujarat Titans captain used his wrists like a ball bearing. A sweep from outside off sent another Moeen delivery to the long-on boundary. It was sublime batting from a class act. At the other end, there was Sai Sudharsan, not quite as elegant as his skipper and still a level…