Author: Shamik Chakrabarty

Jasprit Bumrah received the clearance from the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bangalore to play in the IPL on Saturday. Accordingly, he joined the Mumbai Indians squad. On Sunday morning, the franchise put out a video on social media, confirming the return of their most prized possession. Just hours later, MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene confirmed that the fast bowler would play against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at Wankhede on Monday. Things moved quickly, but is this borderline desperation from MI? The question has to be asked. Bumrah hasn’t played since the Sydney Test in January, doing rehab after facing a…

The response was spectacular. Mohammed Siraj made one jag back from outside off and cut Rohit Sharma in half. The ball went through the gate and castled the Mumbai Indians opener. Forget Rohit’s indifferent form, the delivery probably would have accounted for a batter going through a purple patch even. Siraj was under pressure after conceding back-to-back fours in his previous two deliveries. He was expensive (0/54) in the first match he played for Gujarat Titans this season. A strong comeback was exactly what the fast bowler needed. Ryan Rickelton’s dismissal a couple of overs later brought out the Siuu…

Jasprit Bumrah is back. India heaves a sigh of relief. In a huge boost for Indian cricket, the world’s best fast bowler has received the clearance from the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bangalore to play in this year’s IPL. Mumbai Indians have confirmed via a post on social media that Bumrah has linked up with the side ahead of their game against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Monday. It remains to be seen whether he will straightaway get into the playing XI. A bowler needs to build his load after returning from a long injury lay-off. Bumrah had been doing…

S Badrinath has a dry-wit humour. The one-liner he posted on X (erstwhile Twitter) was perfectly timed. “Rutu rocked, fans shocked at the toss?” wrote the former India, Tamil Nadu and Chennai Super Kings batter. CSK batting coach Michael Hussey’s cryptic comment at the pre-match press conference had triggered the speculation. “He is (MS Dhoni) behind the stumps. Maybe, he can do a good job. I’m not sure. He has got a bit of experience in the role, so maybe he could do it. But I’m not exactly sure, to be honest,” Hussey told reporters on the eve of the…

Kamindu Mendis bowled just one over for Sunrisers Hyderabad against Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens on Thursday. He did something that was never seen before in the IPL. He switched his bowling arm during an over, making his place permanent in the IPL history. The tournament is into its 18th year and nobody did that before him. What Mendis did on his IPL debut was perfectly legal. The Sri Lankan, a Rs 75-lakh buy for SRH, was brought into the attack in the 13th over during KKR’s innings. He bowled left-arm spin to start with and dismissed a dangerous-looking…

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens Venkatesh Iyer stood and walloped, serving up a reminder about his ability with the bat in T20 cricket. After a couple of failures, Kolkata Knight Riders’ most expensive buy — Rs 23.75 crore — was under pressure. Just one blazing knock doesn’t a redemption make. But the team’s vice-captain regained his attacking mojo and cleared the clouds that were gathering on the purple sky. Patience is at a premium in modern-day sport, especially in instant cricket. KKR looked like a leaky boat without any oars on the coast of the Arabian Sea only three days…

This time, last year, the vibe was a little different in the Kolkata Knight Riders camp. By April 3, 2024, they had played three matches, winning all of them. Cricket was at the centre stage not the pitch. Circa 2025, and it’s still very early to press the panic button – only after three matches into the new IPL season. KKR have lost two of their first three matches, but they – any team for that matter – don’t have a divine right to win everything. It’s a long tournament and teams will lose matches during the course of it.…

Over the last few days, the ‘home advantage’ debate accounted for a lot of column-inches. It started with Kolkata Knight Riders captain Ajinkya Rahane asking for a bit more turn on the Eden Gardens pitches, after his side lost to Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the IPL 2025 opener. Then, Chennai Super Kings head coach Stephen Fleming and Lucknow Super Giants mentor Zaheer Khan, too, joined the party, taking forward the discourse. KKR mentor Dwayne Bravo contradicted the popular narrative. KKR and Sunrisers Hyderabad will face-off at Eden on Thursday. Bravo attended the pre-match press conference and the question to him…

Pictures are worth a thousand words. A couple of images at Eden Gardens, as Sunrisers Hyderabad trained on Tuesday, raised the curiosity quotients. After SRH came to the ground, Mohammed Shami went to curator Sujan Mukherjee and the two had a conversation. Some time later, Cricket Association of Bengal president, Snehasish Ganguly walked up to the centre square and had a discussion with Mukherjee that looked to be intense. Kolkata Knight Riders, the home team, didn’t turn up. They were returning from Mumbai. Still very early into IPL 2025, but suddenly the April 3 game against SRH has assumed a…

Kolkata Knight Riders will hope that their batting implosion against Mumbai Indians at Wankhede was a one-off. But if one scrutinises closely, the way their batsmen struggled against extra bounce and movement could be a cause for concern. Have MI provided the pitch template to tame the defending IPL champions? Will other teams take a leaf out of the Wankhede playbook in their home fixtures against KKR? And, though it’s still early in the season, is KKR head coach Chandrakant Pandit searching for support without Gautam Gambhir by his side? Speaking to RevSportz during the MI vs KKR game on…