Author: Shamik Chakrabarty

Last year, in a hard-hitting column, Sunil Gavaskar had called out the Indian players who skipped international matches under the pretext of workload management. He called the term “workload” as an excuse that the players were using to be available for the entire duration of the IPL. “The new word is workload and for a generation that has beach bodies and a pampered mindset, it’s the perfect excuse not to play for their country,” the legendary former India captain wrote in his Mid-Day column. Gavaskar would be pleased to know that Gautam Gambhir, the new India coach, has taken the…

Many moons ago, when Gautam Gambhir was an active international player, this correspondent had an interaction with him. He was dropped from the Indian team and demoted to Grade B in the list of the BCCI’s centrally-contracted players. Gambhir put things in perspective. He spoke about how the demotion was not the end of the world and that he was still in the BCCI’s scheme of things. That was Gambhir, always looking at the positives. In a star-studded Indian dressing room, he was a commoner. In personality-obsessed Indian cricket, he was someone who thought about the collective. Leave aside the…

Never mind Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli hanging up their T20I boots. The two greats still have a lot of cricket left in them in the other two formats. And as new India coach Gautam Gambhir said on Monday, both Rohit and Kohli are expected to play at least until the 2027 World Cup. “Rohit and Virat have a lot of cricket left in them,” he said, in his first press conference as India coach. “Perhaps even until the 2027 World Cup.” As Gambhir, the former India opener, took over the reins from Rahul Dravid, there has been speculation over…

Less than a month ago, Hardik Pandya was on top of the world. He had a stellar T20 World Cup, made a telling contribution in India’s victory in the final and, in the process, became the first Indian to occupy the No. 1 spot for T20I all-rounders. It would be preposterous to say that his world has come crashing down just because he wasn’t chosen as Rohit Sharma’s successor in the Indian T20I team. But losing out on the captaincy to Suryakumar Yadav was obviously a disappointment. Pandya was Rohit’s deputy at the T20 World Cup, and as the latter…

On Thursday, as the national selection committee announced the squads for the white-ball series in Sri Lanka, India got a new T20I captain in Suryakumar Yadav. There was no communication from the BCCI as to why Hardik Pandya, who was the vice-captain at the T20 World Cup, wasn’t considered as Rohit Sharma’s successor in the shortest format. On the face of it, Pandya’s injury record went against him, as the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee and Gautam Gambhir, the new head coach, wanted someone long term, with an eye on the 2026 T20 World Cup that would be played in India…

Suryakumar Yadav has been appointed India’s new T20I captain. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have made themselves available for the ODI series in Sri Lanka. And Shreyas Iyer has been brought back to the national fold. The Indian squad selection for the upcoming limited-over series in Sri Lanka had three major highlights. This tour would mark Gautam Gambhir’s beginning as India coach. Jasprit Bumrah has been rested for both formats. Hardik Pandya was India’s vice-captain at the T20 World Cup. As Rohit announced his T20I retirement after the tournament, it was initially thought that Pandya would be chosen as his…

Gareth Southgate has stepped down as England manager. After an eight-year reign as England boss and managing 102 games, the 53-year-old has decided to call it quits. His decision comes in the wake of England’s 2-1 defeat to Spain in the European Championship final on Sunday. It is learnt that four candidates are on the FA shortlist to replace Southgate – Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe, former Brighton & Hove Albion and Chelsea manager Graham Potter, former Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino and ex-Chelsea and Bayern Munich boss Thomas Tuchel. Pochettino is popular with players and staff, but…

Holding the 2025 Champions Trophy in a hybrid model is “a possibility”, an ICC insider has informed. Pakistan are the host of the tournament, which is scheduled to be played in February-March next year. But India’s reported reluctance to travel across the border might force a change. “We haven’t had the conversation yet (regarding the Champions Trophy). But it’s (hybrid model) a possibility if you look back at history,” an ICC functionary told RevSportz on condition of anonymity. The Champions Trophy is expected to be a topic of discussion at the ICC Annual Conference in Colombo from July 18 to…

Joe Ganley, a Manchester United in-house reporter, wrote an excellent piece on Kobbie Mainoo on the club’s website. Therein, he mentioned the 19-year-old’s meteoric rise. “Just 1,799 people watched Kobbie Mainoo’s first competitive 90 minutes of 2023-24 in the flesh,” wrote Ganley. He was playing for United U-21s against Salford City at the latter’s Peninsula Stadium. The teams were vying for the Bristol Street Motors Trophy. On Sunday, Mainoo will play the Euro 2024 final at Olympiastadion Berlin, in front of 74,000 spectators. England manager Gareth Southgate has given the keys to his midfield to the teenager from Stockport and…

The game was meandering along, like a Test match usually does in the second session of the first day. It was a languid December afternoon in Kolkata and Sachin Tendulkar was batting on 76. The start was a tad nervy, but Tendulkar played himself in. James Anderson was bowling his third spell and running in from the Club House end at Eden Gardens. The first ball after the drinks break pitched on a length and shaped away, negating the fact that the shiny side was outside. Tendulkar was deceived. He came half-forward but could only manage a healthy edge behind…