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Good news for footwear enthusiasts in Chennai. The city will host the first Kickers store. Following a 30-year licensing deal with Royer Group of France, Kothari Industrial Corporation Ltd (KICL) is gearing up to set up its maiden Kickers store in Chennai tomorrow. The timing could not have been better for KICL, which has come under a new owner in Rafiq Ahmed and got relisted on the bourses. The opening of the Kickers store in Chennai comes within days of a significant development in the annals of KICL. A Qatar company belonging to the Royal family has just been cleared by the board of KICL to pick up a 10% stake in the Chennai company. Qatar-based F J Global Investment is owned by Falah Jassim J.M.AL-Thani, who is a director of Doha Bank and was also the founder of Qatar Airways. He was also a minister in the Qatar Government. This is a significant boost to KICL under Rafiq Ahmend, who has gone on a mission to revive the KICL and bring the iconic Kothari brand back to yester-year glory. The investment from a company owned by Qatar Royal family is seen positively by industry circles in Tamil Nadu, which is going the extra mile to woo foreign investment into the state. Significantly enough, KICL has also embarked on a consolidation move with the board approving a proposal to buy 30% stake held by Rafiq Ahmed in Phoenix Kothari Footwear Ltd, a joint venture that is setting up a non-leather footwear park in backward Perambalur district of Tamil Nadu. Well, things appear to fall in place for KICL as it seeks to make a strong comeback and regain its past glory.
It was something that the Congress couldn’t stomach easily. Perhaps the party was surprised that the Raj Kapoor family had chosen to interact with PM Modi. A day after the social media and TV channels were awash with PM Modi’s interaction with members of the Kapoor family, a very senior Congress leader ventured to put out a snarky social media post questioning the meeting. For some odd reason he completely chose to ignore the context of the meeting. “We have been asking PM Modi to visit Manipur. But he has instead found time to meet with Kareena Kapoor.” Soon good sense prevailed and he deleted his crude post. Guess he must have realised that his post was outright offensive. The Kapoor family had called on PM Modi on December 10 to invite him to the legendary actor-filmmaker’s Film Festival. The festival is to commemorate Raj Kapoor’s 100th birth anniversary, an iconic figure in Indian cinema who passed away in 1988. Ten Raj Kapoor films are going to be showcased across 40 cities in 135 cinemas .The Kapoor family, including actors Ranbir Kapoor, Riddhima Kapoor Sahni, Neetu Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Alia Bhat and Saif Ali Khan met the PM. “This is a special day for us. We enjoyed the conversation. He spoke to us in a friendly manner. He made all of us feel very comfortable,” said actor Ranbir Kapoor. His cousin actor Kareena Kapoor Khan said that it was her dream to sit next to PM Modi and talk to him. “His energy is so positive and he is truly a global leader.” PM Modi inquired about the third generation of Kapoors — and autographed for Kareena’s children Tim and Jeh. December 14 marks the 100th birth anniversary of Raj Kapoor.
It couldn’t have come at a more inappropriate time than this. The day when the entire national media was riveted on the Parliament debates commemorating 75 years of Constitution of India and newly-elected Wayanad MP Priyanka Vadra Gandhi was making her debut speech in the House. For some odd reason the Telangana Police chose to arrest Telugu star Allu Arjun, protagonist in the Rs 1000-crore plus grosser Pushpa 2: The Rule. He was arrested in connection with the stampede incident at Hyderabad’s Sandhya Theatre, which resulted in the death of a woman. On December 4, a massive crowd gathered at Sandhya Theatre to see Allu Arjun, resulting in a tragic stampede. Revathi, a 39-year-old woman, died due to asphyxiation, and her 8-year-old son was hospitalised. While granting interim bail to Allu Arjun, the Telangana High Court affirmed Arjun’s right to life and liberty, stating that he cannot be deprived of these fundamental rights. While leaders cutting across the political spectrum came out in support of the actor, Telangana BJP leader and Union Minister Bandi Sanjay described the arrest of a National Award-winning actor as having been done to steal the spotlight. “Drama over delivery, diversion over governance — that’s the Telangana Congress government for you!” Arjun’s uncle and Andhra deputy CM Pawan Kalyan rushed to rally support for him. In the meanwhile, it will be interesting to see how Priyanka Vadra herself responds to the ham-handed manner CM Revanth Reddy handled the situation. He had after all managed to divert attention from her debut performance in the Lok Sabha to an avoidable law & order incident in Hyderabad.
To ensure the social welfare schemes reach the intended target group, West Bengal chief West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has rolled out a robust mechanism to ensure the effective implementation of socio-welfare schemes. This initiative aims to hold government officials accountable for supervising these projects and addressing inefficiencies that have marred progress in recent years. The state finance ministry has issued a notification, followed by the establishment of a dedicated help desk at Navanna to oversee information flow from block and sub-division levels. This initiative, aimed at curbing inefficiency and fraud, will require officials to physically visit project sites instead of submitting progress reports from office desks. The app will feature automatic geo-tagging, ensuring accurate location tracking of officials during field visits. During multiple administrative meetings chaired by CM, officials repeatedly failed to provide accurate updates on the status of ongoing schemes. This incomplete information has not only slowed down critical projects but also caused dissatisfaction among citizens. Officials, from BDOs to District Magistrates, must register using their mobile numbers. Reports will require OTP authentication and must include photographs of on-ground work. The app mandates regular updates, such as reporting issues in road construction, cleanliness, drinking water, and electricity services, along with distinguishing between simple and complex problems. The model draws inspiration from private sector practices, where geo-tagging apps track employee performance. The state’s new app is expected to enforce accountability among officials, address bureaucratic delays, and improve public service delivery.
In a move that may have surprised the Opposition BJP, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee appointed Radharamn Das, vice president of ISKCON Kolkata,to a 13-member board of trustees for the upcoming Jagannath Dham project in Digha. The temple, set to be a cultural and religious landmark on the shores of the Bay of Bengal, will be inaugurated on Akshay Tritiya on April 30, 2025. The Jagannath Dham Sanskriti Kendra, spanning 20 acres, is being developed under the supervision of HIDCO, an urban planning body under the state government. With an investment of Rs 250 crore, the project aims to replicate the grandeur of the Puri Jagannath Temple and serve as a significant pilgrimage and tourist attraction. This development comes amid ongoing political friction between Didi and BJP’s Opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari. It may be recalled that Nandigram where the temple is being built was the place where he had defeated Didi in the 2021 Assembly elections. Adhikari who is opposing the project on the ground that using public funds to construct religious structures is unconstitutional. He accused Mamata of attempting to win the Hindu vote bank as her minority appeasement has alienated Hindus. Mamata’s decision to include an ISKCON leader is seen as a strategic move, in light of recent attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh and the arrest of an ISKCON monk. Political analysts believe Didi is sending a message of solidarity to the Hindu community while subtly addressing concerns raised by the BJP over her government’s alleged minority appeasement policies.
Devajit Saikia is the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) representative in the International Cricket Council (ICC) as its Director. Saikia, who is the question that is being asked by those not acquainted with the BCCI’s governance structure, especially after the Justice Lodha Committee’s Reforms in Cricket report was accepted by the Supreme Court in 2016 and its Constitution was rewritten thereafter. The ICC Board is the all-powerful body in its Governance structure, and as a convention, the 12 full members of the ICC nominate its Presidents as Directors. Many stalwarts of the BCCI, like Jagmohan Dalmiya, Sharad Pawar, N Srinivasan and Shashank Manohar were on the ICC Board, and after the 2019 election, post the reforms, former India captain and BCCI President Sourav Ganguly was on the ICC Board. Ganguly was succeeded by the BCCI Secretary Jay Shah with the BCCI President Roger Binny as the alternate director in 2022, the same year when the former Assam Ranji Trophy cricketer and legal practitioner Saikia was elected as Jt. Secretary of the BCCI. People in the know attribute Saikia’s rise on the administration side of the game to his association and rapport with Assam’s BJP chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. Once it was announced that Jay Shah would take charge as Chair (Independent Director) of the ICC from December 1, 2024, quite a handful of names like Arun Singh Dhumal (former BCCI Treasurer and currently chairman, IPL) and Ashish Shelar (BJP President, Mumbai and BCCI Treasurer) emerged as a potential successor to Shah as BCCI Secretary. Saikia, will remain the BCCI Joint Secretary and perform the duties of the Secretary. But his nomination to the ICC Board has surprised many people.
Veteran leader Sharad Pawar has once again monopolised the centre stage following reports that a top leader of his party has held talks with a prominent BJP Union minister in Delhi. The political grapevine is buzzing with different versions since the meeting is believed to have occurred at industrialist Gautam Adani’s Delhi residence. In fact, Pawar started hitting the headlines on Thursday (Dec 12) morning as the news that his nephew Ajit Pawar and a couple of other NCP (Ajit) leaders had reached the patriarch’s residence. Ajit later said that being a family member, he had greeted his uncle on his birthday and nothing unusual should be read in the visit. Ajit was accompanied by Praful Patel and Sunil Tatkare, both very close to Sharad Pawar till the recent split in the NCP. The name of Adani added grist to the gossip since the industrialist had visited Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis just a couple of days ago in Mumbai. The Adani group continues to BE target of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Shiv Sena party chief Uddhav Thackeray. In the past too, Adani has been meeting Pawar off and on. The presence of Fadnavis in Delhi on Thursday proved to be another trigger to speculate that the political scene of Maharashtra was likely to undergo another overhaul. Pawar’s hot and cold relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi has always remained an intrigue. Hence, his followers are unable to predict which way he can turn.
The Raj Kapoor family has finally come out together to celebrate the centenary year — 1924-2024 — of the showman of the film industry. Forty two year old Ranbir Kapoor who has been in the film industry for nearly two decades has taken the lead along with his cousin Kunal Kapoor to celebrate Raj Kapoor through his cinema. But was it too late to celebrate RK? Is the newer generation enthusiastic to watch his films? Ranbir Kapoor said, like his wife Alia, the young generation needs to know about the cinema of Raj Kapoor and one hopes he is successful through his stardom and initiative to keep RK’s legacy alive. But, is the film industry or the government really care about saving our heritage or culture, considering the government is calling the film industry as soft power? The hard truth is: why are our studios and banners not surviving be it Filmalaya Studio, Kamalistan Studio and Raj Kamal Studio which has limited work space. Raj Kapoor’s RK Studio, a famous landmark in Chembur along with his bungalow has been sold to Godrej Properties for constructing residential properties. It may be recalled that RK Studio was working on the rentals till the fire destroyed the entire heritage. Luckily film lovers are lucky his films were in the safe custody of NFAI. It is learnt that Ranbir Kapoor who is already a producer wants to turn director. So will he revive the RK Banner? As a part of the centenary celebration the entire RK clan met the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and conspicuous by his absence was Randhir Kapoor as he was not keeping well. In the end one only hopes that Ranbir Kapoor carries the great showman’s legacy forward.
This maverick and marauding scam tainted politician was once the acolyte of Lok Nayak Jayprakash Narayan. Former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad Yadav has burnt many bridges in his meteoric rise in politics. A stormy petrel, indicted for five scams, served jail term and is now out on a bail. He is once again in the news for his below-the-belt remark against his bete noire, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar who recently announced a Mahila Samvad Yatra to interact directly with women and evaluate the impact of his government’s programme targeted for women. When the media quizzed the RJD supremo Lalu about Nitish Kumar’s Mahila Yatra and his goal of winning all 225 seats in the forthcoming Assembly elections, the unstoppable motor mouth said, “Pahle unko aankh sekhne do” (let them get an eyeful of the women). Lalu is famous for double entendres and pithy talk. This chintzy, low end hit at both Nitish’s party and the women electorate set off a storm. Bihar deputy CM Vijay Kumar Sinha said, “It seems Lalu Prasad has lost his ability to comprehend, doesn’t know what he is saying “. JDU MP from Munger, Rajiv Ranjan Singh said, “Lalu is master of buffoonery”. Public discourse is an amalgam of many such talents. But certainly hitting below the belt and indulging in such loose talk shows the lack of grace and polish.
Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray’s plans to attend the Winter Session of the Maharashtra legislature beginning from December 16 at Nagpur will prove to be a game changer, his followers feel. Thackeray’s continued distance from the state legislative council proceedings over the past year are discussed by his party members in hushed tones since the aggressive direction needed to corner the BJP-led three-party government somehow lacks as far as his Sena is concerned. Council’s leader of the Opposition Ambadas Danve (of the Sena UBT) lacks the image and articulation which are vital for any LoP to humble the ruling side. Now that the new government led by Devendra Fadnavis has decided to appoint former CM Eknath Shinde as leader of the upper house, Danve’s limitations will be felt more vividly. Thackeray’s intermittent presence in the council ever since he resigned as chief minister in 2022 has been noted more due to his statements outside the house. He has hardly made any worthwhile speech on the floor. Therefore, his plans to remain present for the Winter Session have revived the hopes of his followers, who wish to witness his attacks against the BJP and the Sena led by Shinde. It is being recalled that Thackeray did not attend the recent three-day session of the legislature in Mumbai, held after the assembly elections. According to present indications, Thackeray will reach Nagpur well in time for the week-long session, which will be a stormy affair, focussing on settling political scores.
India’s sports capital Bhubaneswar is all ready to welcome 16 countries for the 2021 Men’s FIH Hockey Junior World Cup to be played between November 24 and December 5 at its world class Kalinga Stadium. India is the defending champion, having won the Junior World Cup title in 2016 at Lucknow. It is learnt that in view of Covid-19 precautions there will be no spectators, but the matches will be telecast live. Sports promotion seems to be on the radar of every chief minister in the country. Uttar Pradesh was keen to host FIH Men’s Hockey Junior World Cup for the second time but backed out as the upcoming Assembly elections are a top priority. For Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik who has been betting big on sports this was a god-sent opportunity and he quickly moved to host the event. Till the Indian hockey team won the bronze at Tokyo Olympics not many people knew that it was Patnaik who was supporting the hockey players to the hilt for so many years now. In fact, the Parliamentary Committee has recommended other states to emulate the Odisha model for sports development through public sector and private sector participation. No one understands better than Patnaik. He has done this successfully, roping in participative contributions from PSUs and Private Sector enterprises to support sports.
Virat Kohli and the Indian team have been under the cosh for their dismal performances in the two opening matches of the ICC Men’s World Cup Twenty20 against Pakistan and New Zealand. Both the matches were played on Sundays and at Dubai, and Kohli appeared quite fed up with the long gap between the two matches. The outcome against New Zealand, to which Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s team had lost in South Africa at The Wanderers, Johannesburg in 2007 at Nagpur in 2016, was even more deflating. In Dubai, Kohli’s run down team had no answers to a professional work in the field by a low profile side. Reactions from former players across nations have been assorted, and those regularly active on the social media have been quick to put out their own reasons, but it is former India batting maestro, Sunil Gavaskar who has hit the nail on its head by making an observation that may not go down well with Kohli or the decision makers in the Indian team. And Dhoni is the mentor of the team. Gavaskar has said that Ishan Kishan is a hit-and-miss player and by asking him to open the innings with KL Rahul the team was only suggesting that it doesn’t trust him against left arm seamer Trent Boult. Clearly Kohli’s team is down and out before the match against Afghanistan at Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
Team India is facing the classic do-or-die situation in the T20 World Cup. Failure to beat New Zealand in Dubai on Sunday (October 31) would mean elimination as other results are expected to go by the form book. A couple of changes in the playing XI are bound to be there for the key game. India is grappling with two major problems in its bowling. The woes go beyond how flat the bowling looked against Pakistan because of the heavy dew factor. Bhuvneshwar Kumar was seen to be too ineffective, so too the mystery finger spinner Varun Chakravorty. An interesting thing to look out for would be whether the team would be wise enough to accept its bowling failures and reinforce the attack with Shardul Thakur coming in for Bhuvi and Ravi Ashwin for Varun. It may be time for skipper Virat Kohli to keep aside any prejudices against Ashwin and play him in the hope that his cleverness can help get over the conditions if Team India are forced to defend a total again at night. And then the question of bringing in in-form batsman Ishan Kishan remains but will the team dump Surya Kumar Yadav and play Kishan? Hardik Pandya’s place can’t be assured if he can’t turn his arm over.
The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) will honour Sunil Gavaskar by presenting him a separate viewing box at the Wankhede stadium on Friday (October 29). This is the little master’s golden jubilee year of playing Test cricket, having been capped for the first time in the 1971 series in the West Indies that he made memorable by amassing 774 runs in four Tests. “The MCA has allotted a 10-seater box to Mr Gavaskar,” said the MCA Secretary Sanjay Naik. Gavaskar turned out for India in 125 Tests and became the first batsman in the annals of the game to cross the 10,000-run milestone and finished at 10,122 runs with 34 centuries. He was also part of the Indian team that won the 1983 World Cup, but more significantly he showed tremendous commitment sporting the Bombay cap, playing 77 matches, scoring 5898 runs including a high of 340 in the 1980-81 season against Bengal. Gavaskar’s arrival in 1971 triggered a tremendous interest among the youth to pursue the sport. After bidding adieu, he has touched virtually every aspect of cricket from coaching to administration to expert commentary. Present at the Wankhede would be his brother-in-law, Gundappa Viswanath, another giant of Indian cricket, Dilip Vengsarkar who will be honoured by naming of a stand in his name and also Sachin Tendulkar, a jewel of Mumbai and Indian cricket.
When India plays Pakistan in a World Cup, sparks are expected to fly – but not of the kind that followed Pakistan’s victory over India in the 13th attempt. Pakistan’s Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed hailed the moment as “victory of the Islamic world (awaam-e-Islam ki fateh),” pointing out: “The Pakistani team had the emotional support of all Muslims of the world, Including Muslims of India.” Pakistan’s legends too didn’t hold back: In the company of Sohaib Akhtar and ARY News moderator, Waqar Younis gushed in: “The best thing, what Rizwan did, Mashalla, he offered the Namaz on the ground surrounded by Hindus. That was really something very special for me.” His expert comments also focused on how Shaheen and Babur – also the name of Pakistan’s missiles aimed at India – will be remembered for a long time. (Pakistan’s missiles Ghaznavi, Ghauri, Babur etc are named after some of history’s most barbaric conquerors who invaded the Indian Subcontinent). This sight of a civil society boasting like Islamic Supremacists has sent a wave of revulsion in India. “I really hope that a lot of genuine sports lovers in Pakistan are able to see the dangerous side to this statement and join in my disappointment. It makes it very difficult for sports lovers like us to try and tell people it is just sport, just a cricket match,” said cricket commentator Harsh Bhogle.
“Takes jihadi mindset of another level to say this in a sport,” tweeted an anguished Venkatesh Prasad on Waqar Younis comment (“Hinduon ke beech me khade hoke namaaz padi, that was very very special for me”). A quarter century ago, it took “something special,” out of this world heroics from the Men in Blue to knock out Pakistan, the defending champions, at the Quarter Final of Wills World Cup 1996 in Bengaluru. The high-intensity match is remembered for Prasad sending Aamer Sohail off (after his arrogant taunt) and ripping the heart out of Pakistan’s batting by removing three wickets in 18 balls (including Inzamam-ul-Haq); Man of the Match Navjot Sidhu missing century (93 runs) — and Ajay Jadeja’s brutal clubbing of Waqar Younis (who conceded 22 runs in the 48th over and 18 in the 50th versus 27 in his first eight overs). “Cricket matches between India and Pakistan are “less cricket and more gladiatorial contests,” remarked the then External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh in mid-2001 during the NDA Government, which discontinued cricket bilaterals “given the atmosphere prevailing.” Situation has only worsened in the past 20 years with Pakistan emerging as a home to the world’s largest pool of UN designated terrorists – and India being the No 1 victim of the terror attacks like 26/11, Pulwama and a series of bomb blasts across cities, massacring and maiming thousands of Indians.
In less than 24 hours Indian cricket took the rough with the smooth in Dubai: the UAE emirate became the first venue in the world where the national team bit the dust in an ICC World Cup match against Pakistan, and the very next day the BCCI got two franchisees to bare their heart and soul for the popular Twenty20 tournament which goes by the acronym, IPL. While Virat Kohli’s team was battered and bruised by left-arm seamer Shaheen Afridi’s telling blows and Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan’s daredevil batting, the BCCI leadership under Jay Shah (son of the Union Home Minister Amit Shah) saw thin paper envelopes delivering a heavy Rs 12,715 crore from the two newly minted franchises and making it further cash-rich. Somewhere in the UK, Lalit Modi, the brains behind the IPL arithmetic, must be delighted to see a probably desperate Sanjiv Goenka of the RP-SG Group shelling out Rs 7,090 crore and choosing Lucknow, not far from PM Narendra Modi’s Lok Sabha constituency of Varanasi; and PE player CVC Capital winning Ahmedabad for Rs 5,625 crore. Now the starting valuation for any of the IPL franchises is Rs 7,090 crore, which means, any among the first franchises, can reap a windfall should they wish to place 20 plus stake for sale and wipe out the losses.
The million-dollar question, as a legion of excited Indian fans await coming Sunday’s (October 24) ICC Men’s Twenty20 World Cup match against Pakistan at the Dubai international stadium is: whether off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin will make the playing XI cut. The injury to off-spinner all-rounder Washington Sundar may have paved the way for Ashwin’s recall for white ball internationals after a little over four years, but his place in the playing XI is not guaranteed. India captain Virat Kohli has given sufficient hints of fielding Ashwin in the crucial match against Pakistan that always raises the noise levels in the two countries across the Wagah and among the diaspora in the UK, USA, the antipodes and generally across the world. Going by his past record between 2012 and 2016, Ashwin has played five Twenty20 matches against the archrival, bowled reasonably well and won all five. Of these five, three were in Twenty20 World cup matches in 2012 in Colombo, 2014 in Mirpur and 2016 in Kolkata. The talk of the town here in Dubai is that Kohli has the mystery spinner in Varun Chakravarthy and left arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja to look at, before he mulls over Ashwin who played in the warm-up matches against England and Australia. Recently, Kohli also gave a thumbs up to the sidelined spinner in white ball cricket for five years.
The de facto head honcho of Chennai Super Kings summed it up all by saying “Dhoni is CSK and CSK is Dhoni.” That is how much Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the captain with the magic touch, has captivated the IPL franchise as well as its host city. Dhoni might appear to be well over the hill but T20’s short duration gives him a chance to keep himself in the thick of action as wicket-keeper and a batsman who can finish a game with just his experience and the awesome power of his willow when he connects. Dhoni would love to have an emotional farewell season at CSK as a player and the team is willing to use its first available retention card to keep him out of the general auction pool. It’s only the lack of clarity on player retention for IPL-15 that keeps the guessing games going. In his 12 seasons with CSK in which time he led them into nine finals winning four, Dhoni has become a fixture of the franchise and the host city where his once famous night rides on super bikes kept cops on tenterhooks. Chennai’s favourite son will be seen in canary yellow as a player again and we have the word of vice chairman & MD of India Cements, N Srinivasan, for it.
From the noble cause for which the Sheikh Abdul Rahman promoted Cricketers Benefit Fund Series (CBFS), (founded in the 1980s, to honour and present a handsome purse ranging from $15,000 to $50000 to the present and past icons of the game, mostly from India and Pakistan), cricket has travelled a long way in the last 40 years from Sharjah to the nearby outposts of Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is now recognised as a popular and profitable destination to conduct major competitions like the IPL and an ICC signature event and the people who have taken these two high profile tournaments are the BCCI which has been averse to playing Pakistan in a bilateral series at the neutral venues in the petro-dollar region. The game thrived there in the 1980s and 90s as the expats from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh saw much entertainment value in the thrilling matches played by the arch-rivals of Asia, and also were excited to see the legends in action. The BCCI, which is the host of the ongoing ICC Men’s World Twenty20, has scheduled a few matches in the Sultanate of Oman, but it’s the likes of Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah that deserve a shabhash for making it happen — two big events in two months
Not for nothing is he known as Captain Cool. CSK coach Stephen Fleming said that Dhoni had that look in his eye which said: “I will take this on.” In the match against Delhi Capitals on October 10, Dhoni went out to bat with that intent when 24 were needed off the last two overs even if he wasn’t in the best of nick. That didn’t mean anything though as Dhoni dispatched the ball to the fence whenever it was within his sight and reach. That sight and reach may have dimmed or shortened but it didn’t matter as Dhoni made 18 off six balls and miraculously led his CSK into a ninth final in just 12 seasons — Remember his team was banned for two years. Dhoni never explains what he does at the batting crease. There were several revelations: “I wasn’t thinking too much. If you think too much while batting then you mess your plans up.” Also, Dhoni revealed a Sehwag-like code to batting, “My plan was simple, see the ball, hit the ball.” Dhoni can make that Sehwag plan seem even simpler while captaining too as he backed his bowlers even on a hard day when the ball was flying all around like when Hetmeyer and Pant were batting. But nothing is beyond Dhoni, the magician, not when it comes to the finish.
While the BCCI is dilly-dallying with the idea of founding the Women’s IPL Twenty20 competition, Cricket Australia has not lost the opportunity to draft in eight Indian players for the ever so popular Women’s Big Bash League. The most exciting batter of recent times, India opener Shafali Verma and left arm spinner Radha Yadav will feature in the Sydney Sixers on Thursday, October 14. The Indians — apart from Shafali and Radha, the magnificent stroke player Smriti Mandhana, Harmanpreet Kaur, Jemima Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh, Poonam Yadav and Deepti Sharma — will earn decent Australian dollars, but what’s of importance is the players will get some experience of competitive cricket before the ICC Women’s World Cup in New Zealand in March-April 2022. There have been conflicting views on the need to start the IPL for women; some among the discerning believe India doesn’t have the talent pool to start one but is it not a good thought to start one when women’s cricket has a successful face in Smriti, who was in rollicking form in the pink ball Test against Australia at the Gold Coast. The BCCI should cash in on the opportunity that has presented itself now with a handful of young players showing the desire to embrace the sport.
Come Sunday (October 10), the deadline day for the teams taking part in the ICC Men’s Twenty20 World Cup to effect changes in the squad. The teams that have qualified for the global slang-bang event under the aegis of the ICC went through the process of announcing the 15-member team by September 10. The ICC has allowed the Cricket Boards to carry out changes in the squad till October 10. The immediate question is whether the Indian Cricket Board will ask its selection committee to make changes in the team, either due to injury, lack of form in the IPL or otherwise. In normal circumstances the selection committee sticks to its original choice of players because that’s done in consultation with the captain. There is speculation though that Hardik Pandya, with a vulnerable lower back, has given an opportunity for the selectors to review his selection because he has not sent down a single ball in the ongoing IPL-14 in the UAE and everybody finds this confounding. One month ago the chairman of the selection committee Chetan Sharma said that Hardik will be fit to bowl four overs in every match in the World Cup. By now the BCCI must have obtained the fitness status of the players selected for the multi-nation bash in the UAE. Hardik’s fate will depend on his medical report and also Kohli’s opinion.
There are like-minded people in the cricketing fraternity who believe that the top leadership role for Smriti Mandhana is not far away. This line of thought is for both white-ball, which is leveraged to promote women’s cricket worldwide, and red-ball cricket, which the national team has got the taste twice in the last five months. Smriti, through her stylish strokes, brings large doses of cricketing oomph that is compelling to watch. Not knowing when the next multi-day Test match will be scheduled, because the immediate focus will be on the ICC Women’s World Cup in New Zealand next March, the elegant left-hander showed a terrific mindset to uncork a century (127, 22x 4s and 1×6) that rattled the well grizzled Australian team in the one-off pink ball Test at Gold Coast’s Carrara Oval recently. Smriti at 25 already exemplifies as a fine role model for the even younger talent to follow. The Sangli lass has chosen to play a brand of cricket that the present-day fans and stakeholders lap it up. She has already made a big impact on Shafali Verma who goes after the bowling from the word go. A splendid striker of the ball, Harmanpreet Kaur, the present Twenty20 captain, appears to have lost way. But India’s women cricket will be in good hands in the future, with Smriti showing the way.
Wild speculation from entertainment and media honchos abound about the ballpark sum the third cycle of Indian Premier League (IPL) media rights (Global TV and Digital) would rake in for the five-season span of 2023-2027. One cannot fault them for projecting fancy and freak numbers — from Rs 25,000 crore to Rs 40,000 crore — for such has been the success of the League, founded by BCCI’s Lalit Modi in 2007-08. BCCI officials who did not understand the dynamics of media rights were stumped by the bids made by TV broadcasters for the BCCI media rights. There were companies which faxed their bids in excess of Rs 400 crore, but the wise Marwari from Kolkata, Jagmohan Dalmiya, gave it to Prasar Bharati for Rs 230 crore for the 1999-2004 cycle featuring 135 days of international cricket at home. The new baby, IPL which arrived in 2008, changed the numbers game dramatically. And Star India is quite determined to win the IPL from SONY for the 2019-2022 cycle put in a sum of Rs 16,347 crore. With two additional teams from Season 15, at least half a dozen sports broadcasters are likely to show interest by picking the Invitation to Tender in end October. So far, the tussle has been between SONY and Star Sports, but will a Reliance Group company get into the fray this time.
It may be easy to understand what Ravichandran Ashwin is saying but it is not easy to appreciate him. He thinks differently, speaks his mind and is not afraid to face the consequences. They wouldn’t give him leadership roles in teams he plays in and the few who have tried have backed away quickly because he can say truths in everyone’s face. When the issue cropped up over a run stolen off a deflection from batsman Rishabh Pant’s pad in IPL, Ashwin was bound to take a stand. What he said also makes sense because the laws of cricket support him. But sportsmanship dictates have largely been followed – like warning a non-striker when he is attempting to steal ground by leaving his crease before the ball is bowled and in declining overthrows when the throw hits a batsman and deflects. Ashwin would rather go by the rule book and there is nothing in them that prohibits ‘Mankad’ run outs and overthrows off deflections. In fact, as pointed out, England won the 2019 World Cup because of the ball deflecting off the stumps to the boundary. Ashwin believes it is unfair to point to him as the rebel who ratted on Virat Kohli’s leadership style to BCCI bigwigs. Many have apparently done it as well, but none has the guts to stand up for their views like Ashwin.
Ravi Bishnoi’s first-ball googly bluff that spelt doom for Surya Yadav at Abu Dhabi on Tuesday (Sept 28) has become a hot topic among the cricketing faithful. Still a tyro in the electrifying world of the IPL, Punjab Kings Bishnoi tricked the Mumbai Indians right- hander, who staged a lonely walk back to the dugout, embarrassed. The Jodhpur-born tweaker, Bishnoi has not been a regular in the playing XI this season and hence is behind the likes of Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Rashid Khan, MI’s Rahul Chahar and even Stevens with Royal Challengers Bangalore’s Yuzvendra Chahal with nine wickets. The leggie began phase 2 of the league with a 3/ 24 against Sunrisers and dismissed MI captain Rohit Sharma and Yadav of successive balls. Bishnoi should play the remaining matches now. Commenting on Bernard James Tindal Bosanquet, the England bowler who created the googly with a tennis ball first, Australian commentator AG Moyes said: “He (Bosanquet) perfected it or rather developed it, amid laughs, jeers and even ridicule. He had been a fastish bowler before he sired the illegitimate member of the leg-break family and the child was just as uncontrollable as most delinquents.” The googly in leg-break action did not receive a wholehearted welcome, but over a period of hundred years, leg-spin-googly has become a weapon, as Bishnoi demonstrated it against Yadav.
Without giving a smidgeon of trumpeting his decision to promote Venketesh Iyer from lower order to opener, Chandrakant Pandit said: “Aisa he bhej Diya, upar batting kar ne ke liye,” (just like that, I sent him to open the innings). Pandit was known as a smart cookie, as a player and captain. And as coach of Madhya Pradesh last year Pandit did not want to see talent go waste. After seeing Iyer — the latest IPL sensation with the bat — perish under pressure in the death overs of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Twenty20, he liberated the left-hander by asking him to blast for runs in the first power play of six overs when only two fielders are allowed outside the inner 30 yard ring. Getting the big break in Kolkata Knight Riders’ first outing at Abu Dhabi, Iyer pummelled all comers against RCB and repeated the show against Mumbai Indians. His 41* against RCB came at a strike rate of 151.85 and 53 against MI at a strike rate of 176.67. And KKR cantered to easy wins and position itself in the top four of the points table. So far, he has repelled the likes of Kyle Jamieson, Mohammed Siraj, Trent Boult, Adam Milne and Jasprit Bumrah. And the former India stumper, Pandit is mightily pleased with Iyer’s pyrotechnical display at the top.
Virat Kohli has set himself one goal and that is to become the world’s No. 1 batsman in all formats. He has another long-term aim and that is to crack Sachin Tendulkar’s world record of 100 international centuries, but he has to make another 30 centuries just to catch up with the Master. Towards meeting his goals, he has taken decisions like quitting T20 captaincy. The crown is not sitting squarely on his head and the intense focus on the Indian cricket captain hasn’t helped though it must be said the debate is running at a time of grand success for Team India in Australia and then in England. The loss in the WCT final was the only sore point, which also led to personality clashes within the team. As Test captain since 2015 and ODI skipper since 2017, Kohli averages 56.1 in Tests, 72.7 in ODIs and 48.5 in T20s. But the hundreds have dried up, his last coming in November 2019 since when he has been averaging just 26.8 in Tests and 46.7 in ODIs. He would love to let his bat do the talking again. Since most of the cricket will be on pitches more amenable to his style of batting, Kohli will be among the runs again and the noises around captaincy may just stop.
Bollywood badshah Shah Rukh Khan was not spotted at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, September 20 when his Red Chillies Entertainment-owned Kolkata Knight Riders sprang a big surprise on Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore. According to Venky Mysore, CEO & MD of the two-time title winner (2012 and 2014), SRK who has 26.1 million followers on Instagram, and 42 million on Twitter, was busy shooting somewhere else in the world. Anyway, one of the most popular thespians of the Indian cinema of modern times would have been delighted with the fact of the Eoin Morgan led KKR reflecting the essence of team’s theme song “Korbo, Lorbo, Jeetbo Re (we will act, fight and win!)” as it scored a facile win against RCB in the second match of the League-14 that resumed after five months. The League had come to a standstill after 29 matches were played in India from April 9 to May 2 this year, because a few players and coaches were struck by Covid-19. Virtually not running for the play-offs berth after five losses in the first phase, KKR gathered its wits to outplay RCB, looking to win its first IPL title. After a terrific KKR win against RCB, SRK and the other co-owners Juhi Chawla and Jay Mehta, would have more reasons to cheer their team.
Sunil Gavaskar missed a mere four Tests and 20 ODIs in a memorable career of 16 years. The legendary opener played 125 Tests and 108 ODIs. India’s premier spinner Anil Kumble and seamer Kapil Dev believed that doing the hard yards without a break enabled them to pick up the tricks of the trade and become better. They did not hear the fancy and much bandied about words “workload management” when they carried out their work with zeal. Kumble sent down 40,852 balls in 132 Tests, and 14,376 balls in 269 ODIs, and Kapil Dev sent down 27,740 balls in 131 Test matches and 11,202 balls in 225 ODIs. In all, Kumble bowled 66,941 balls in first class competitions and 20,247 balls in limited over matches while Kapil, 48,851 balls and 14,947 in the two formats. They must have been very tired when they bid adieu. Kapil missed just one Test in his career and Kumble, 27 mainly because of injury. Kumble even played 54 Twenty20 matches. Virat Kohli who has announced that he will step down from Twenty20 captaincy of the Indian team post the ICC Men’s World Twenty20 has touched upon the workload factor in his note. He has said it is important to understand workload. Opinions are divided on the workload rationale. Well, it will take a lot more time to understand when it’s applied to a batsman. Is it not!
It is far from polemic in nature, but the palaver about Virat Kohli to be eased out of white-ball captaincy after the Twenty20 World Cup has got the thinking caps to mull over. The BCCI Treasurer Arun Dhumal has denounced the news as rubbish, and the Secretary Jay Shah has been circumspect telling “The Indian Express” that the issue of captaincy doesn’t arise as long as the team is performing. But is India ready for a separate red and white-ball captain? As of now, Kohli is the undisputed leader in World Twenty20 with a phenomenal average of 52.65. His average as captain (45 matches) is an impressive 48.45. And in three Twenty20 World Cups, he has been out of the world, with a stupendous average of 86.33. He has not led India in ICC World Twenty20. Kohli is a white-ball King. He has led India only in nine ICC World Cup matches and won seven. It’s a matter of conjecture if Rohit Sharma will lead India in the white-ball series at home against New Zealand after the show in the UAE. Kohli needs to lead in five matches each to complete a century in ODIs and a half century in Twenty20. Will he make way for Sharma, who proved his mettle in Australia and England and has led India in 19 Twenty20 matches and 10 ODIs?
Cricket may make a comeback into the Olympics by 2028 in Los Angeles and not in 2024 in Brisbane which, however, has great infrastructure for the game. But long before cricket gets Olympic recognition again after figuring in the Paris Games in 1900, it may be born in the USA in an international avatar as the Second Season of IPL. Plans are afoot to build infra in the West Coast of USA for cricket not only with an eye on the Olympics but also to get into the lucrative IPL market by offering great venues for the game in Los Angeles and the Bay Area around San Francisco. In fact, these venues may be up and running in a couple of years so that the IPL Second Season can take off in the US summer of 2024. Those planning the IPL Second Season in the USA are perfectly aware that there is no dearth of CEOs of billion-dollar IT companies whose czars are all PIOs and so the game won’t be lacking in sponsors. A Second Season of IPL every year might leave little space for traditional Test cricket but the administration is unlikely to be bothered too much about it as the IPL is the game’s biggest money spinner that leaves BCCI with more money than all other cricket boards put together.
The cricketing grapevine is rife with whispers of a conflict between the BCCI Secretary Jay Shah and President Sourav Ganguly. The decibel-level has probably increased by a notch, with Shah calling out, at his debut press conference, the name of Mahendra Singh Dhoni as the mentor of the Indian team for the ICC World Twenty20 to be held in the Persian Gulf soon. Jay, the son of the Union Home Minister, Amit Shah, is virtually the Chief Executive of the BCCI, running its daily affairs. Post the Vinod Rai-led Committee of Administrators’ governance, Shah is said to have restructured the administration at the Cricket Centre at ‘D’ Road, Churchgate, and he is largely credited for taking the IPL to the UAE and keeping the revenue flow of Rs 4,000 crore plus intact, and also relocating the Twenty20 World Cup (the BCCI is the host country) to Oman, and the UAE. Clearly Shah (33) is calling the shots during these unprecedented Covid-19 times. Ganguly, who was part of the illustrious middle order phalanx that had Tendulkar, Dravid and Laxman, and has the bragging rights for a Lord’s century, was recently seen hobnobbing at the MCC Members’ during the Lord’s Test. Not all it seems is hunky-dory in the BCCI; come the AGM in September 2022, and we all will know if Shah will go along with Ganguly!
Selection is a matter of judgement and not about rendering justice. The Team India tour selection committee dominated by skipper Virat Kohli and coach Ravi Shastri took this to extremes with the studied exclusion of Ravichandran Ashwin. The picture of Ashwin sitting alone during India’s victory march was a poignant image from the series. To be in the playing XI regardless of the vicissitudes of form is about chemistry more than competence. In Ashwin’s case, that chemistry was missing during Dhoni’s regime itself when his debut was delayed even as Harbhajan Singh’s career was fading. Despite his rating as the world’s top spinner and a batsman with five Test centuries he was benched for four England Tests after playing in the WTC final and performing well enough, that too in June when English conditions were skewed in favour of seam bowlers. “Horses for courses” is the dictum that Kohli-Shastri enforced and proved their point with even Shardul Thakur, the fourth seamer for the Oval Test, exceeding expectations with ball and bat too. The two men in charge of Team India chose stubbornness over received wisdom and stuck to Ravi Jadeja as batting all-rounder who bowls spin. It was upto the selectors to render justice by picking Ashwin for the T20 World Cup, which perhaps least suits him at this stage of his career.
Two reverse swinging yorkers settled the issue as they crashed into the stumps behind Ollie Pope and Jonny Bairstow. Both yorkers flowed from the bowling arm of India’s smiling assassin who keeps his emotions well in check. As Jasprit Bumrah literally waddles in off a deceptively lazy run-up, the batsmen can be forgiven for mistaking him for a bowler of military medium pace. But a ramrod straight bowling arm can deliver reverse swinging yorkers at 90 mph, scattering stumps and breaking reputations. Reverse swing had been missing for days at The Oval as the sun smiled on late English summer days. But a 70-overs old ball roughed up by Jadeja pithing in the bowlers’ dusty footmarks was weaponised by Bumrah who opened up the England batting for fellow pace bowler Umesh Yadav to mop up. England, after a century opening stand, had been fancying themselves to chase down a fourth innings target. It was a team effort that saw India come from the depths of 127-7 and then a 99-run deficit to win, almost 50 years to the day since a famous victory at The Oval in 1971. Rohit Sharma, at the age of 34, got his first century away from home and Shardul Thakur shone with bat and ball, but it was Bumrah with his thunderbolts who stole the show.
Avani Lekhara has mirrored a braveheart, sending good tidings from the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics shooting events. Just 19, the law student won the gold and bronze medals in Tokyo. When 12, she suffered a spinal cord injury following a car accident in the Pink City of Jaipur, and since has been wheelchair-bound. Her indomitable spirit came to the fore when she pursued the sport of shooting, competed with the world’s best in her disability categories and won laurels. All this happened after she joined Suma Shirur’s Lakshya Shooting Club at Panvel (outskirts of Mumbai) in 2018 and trained to become a champion. A medallist in the Asian and Commonwealth meets, an Arjuna Awardee and currently the High-Performance Coach of the Indian Jr. Rifle Shooting Team, a delighted Suma said: “I have been seeing Avani since she was 16, when she started coming to my Lakshya Shooting Club. What sets her apart is her willingness to prepare minutely and give her best every single time. She’s a perfectionist and never satisfied with anything, but the best. Having gone through so much in life, Avani has shown tremendous inner strength in coming out trumps. For me as coach, her unique ability stands out in verbalising every thought, emotion and even technical finer points. Despite the pressure, Avani’s never-say-die approach gives her the edge over the others.”
Shardul Thakur’s sparkling knock in the fourth Test at South London’s “The Oval” on Thursday caught England’s fast men bowling with their tails up, off guard. India’s first innings was in disarray, vindicating Joe Root’s decision — weighing up the pros of grey overhead conditions —- to insert the visitor in. The home team’s seamers used the darker Dukes ball with finesse to cause the downfall of India’s top guns who defended with angled and closed bats, as well as followed the ball outside the off stump. Much against the run of play, the Palghar boy, Thakur who likes to swing the ball, scattered it, striking big blows in front of the wicket. After a pyrotechnical display that resulted in a fastest Test half century at The Oval, Thakur, who was told many years ago by Sachin Tendulkar to shed weight in order to be more efficient and effective, stated that there is greater security playing with a straight bat against the ball that in English conditions moves in the air and of the surface and that he has been practising in a similar fashion since arriving in England. It was a tough ask on even the most accomplished Indian batsmen to defeat the England seamers’ ploy; except for Virat Kohli who carved a lovely half century. But Thakur threw his wrists at everything leaving England flummoxed.
Virat Kohli has been under greater pressure in his career as captain and batsman than in the ongoing England series. But his tactical errors are coming to haunt him more often. He chose to bat at Headingley where in the last 20 years no Test captain has done so. The high-water table has a way of allowing the new ball to swing like crazy and Team Indian were down and out in the first three overs from the sultan of swing – James Anderson. Kohli may have been blindsided by the Lord’s experience as his team batted first on being inserted. Having picked four seamers, perhaps correctly for Leeds, he may have predetermined the course of batting first. There is time yet for course correction and if Kohli gives up his seamer obsession at least for The Oval, a famous hunting ground for spinners, he might even pick the world’s best contemporary spinner – Ravi Ashwin. In an era of poor technique against the moving or spinning ball, batting collapses are dime a dozen and affect all teams. But England may have tactically put one over Indian batsmen by picking bowlers for their height and hence higher ball release points as they did with Overton in the third Test. India can regroup if the captain and coach can set their thinking straight.
Vasudeo Paranjape — the suave cricketing soul of the good old Bombay and modern Mumbai — got along wonderfully well to the pleasant greetings of “Kasa hai, eppadi irukkai and khem cho” in Matunga. Vasu (also Vasoo)— who took leave of our world on Janmashtami Day — was the pride and joy of Matunga, the area’s social fabric representing a beautiful blend of Marathi, Tamil and Gujarati-speaking people who mingled well at the inviting Udipi Restaurants with a good fill of upma- idli-dosa washed down with assorted peaberry concoctions at a dozen outlets, at the old Gulshan for the superb Burun-Maska and chai, or at the Rama Nayak on Sundays and holidays for hearty meal. When Vasu was around, cricket had to be the powwow, and much of it in a lighter vein. Of the old school, having raised at the famous King George (now Raja Shivaji), Vasu helped the careers of Sunil Gavaskar and Dilip Vengsarkar to blossom, showing them the way at Dadar Union, Matunga’s all-time favourite sporting club built by a disciplinarian Madhav Mantri. According to Vengsarkar, it was mostly fun and laughter even while playing the game the hard way for Dadar Union with Vasu at the helm. Over time, Vasu became a cult figure. With his passing, the world of cricket has lost a treasure house.
Jimmy Anderson has been a magnificent manipulator of the cricket ball and a true-blue shot in the arm for England Test cricket. Not just because he has plied his trade with skill for 18 summers with the home-made Dukes, the Australian Kookaburra and the Indian SG Test, but also for the fact of hoodwinking batsmen without showing a trace of hostility. One of the finest practitioners of the red cherry is poised to reach a unique world record that would be nonpareil in the annals of Test cricket. He is a handful away from accounting for 100 Indian victims at home. In the ongoing Test at the white rose county (Yorkshire) ground at Headingley, Leeds, the red rose county (Lancashire) and England seamer caused the downfall of Rahul, Pujara and Kohli with in-swing and out-swing to take his tally to 96. With the second innings remaining and two more Tests at The Oval, and Old Trafford, the most successful operator of the shining and worn-out ball is all set to complete a terrific record. So far 193 bowlers — 121 fast bowlers and 72 spinners — have found their way into the Elite 100 Test Wickets Club, but Anderson would be an outlier in this crowd. After 15 years, James Michael Anderson, 39 is in pursuit of a century he will be proud of to have founded.
Sport Climbing is a form of rock climbing that relies on permanent anchors fixed to the rock for protection. Meet Franco Linhares – a retired microbiologist, Abhijit Burman – a robotic technician, Aniruddha Biswas – a senior scientist and Anushka Kalbag – an architect, all avid climbers with big dreams to host the Sport Climbing World Cup for the first time in India. It was a difficult proposition without financial resources. Luckily, the Tata Trusts agreed to chip in. It all began with Burman organising several international climbing events in India. He then frequented Europe to convince the International Federation for the Sports (IFSC) to allow India to host the Sport Climbing World Cup. Then in 2016, India got lucky. The 2016 World Cup held in Mumbai was one of the best ever. Burman was offered the 2017 World Cup as well. Parallely, IFSC, was making a pitch for inclusion of the sports in the Tokyo Games, and one of the key criteria was that sports needed to have a global appeal, and Tokyo saw Sport Climbing making its debut. Now the foursome is looking at an Olympics medal for India in 2032, and have launched the Basalt Project, to train Indian climbers. More power to the Gang of Four.
The fault finding chatter about the snail-pace run-scoring of Cheteshwar Pujara has not stopped even after his bulwark-like 206-ball 45 in the second innings of the Lord’s Test that India won following unbelievable team heroics. The thickset looking one-drop in 132 innings so far of his 88 Test matches, has come under flak for his barn door defence at the crease ever since India’s campaign in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy that the Ajinkya Rahane-led team transformed itself from a down-and-out side in Adelaide into a gargantuan at the Gabba. The fact though is that right from the legendary opening batsman Sunil Gavaskar to the captain Kohli, vice-captain Rahane and the batsman in form KL Rahul have backed Pujara to the hilt. For long Pujara has been the fulcrum around whom Kohli has accumulated runs and has given substance to the third wicket stand (2,567 runs in 46 matches/56 innings). Rahane under the cosh has joined forces with Kohli, and amassed 2,933 runs in 38 matches/ 46 innings for the fourth wicket. Pujara and Rahane have made 1135 runs for the fourth wicket for a healthy average of 45.40. The numbers speak a lot, and the negative noise following the 100 run undertaking by the ‘targeted’ Pujara and Rahane at Lord’s, may have temporarily ceased. The Pujara-Kohli-Rahane combine has delivered aplenty for Indian cricket, including some splendid wins.
The son of an auto-rickshaw driver did not get his name on to the honours board at Lord’s but he led his fellow quicks to make that famous victory possible with eight wickets in the Test. Mohammed Siraj’s intensity has undone England’s Test batsmen as much as Jasprit Bumrah’s pace. His steep angles into the right handers, but more importantly away from the left handers have had a consistently unsettling effect as they are not able to pick him. Siraj, a champion bowler in tennis ball street cricket around Hyderabad, started bowling with a hard ball only after he was 20 when in 2015 he joined Charminar Cricket Club. And when the IPL bidding stopped at Rs 2.6 crores from Sunrisers, Siraj’s first instinct was to tell his father to stop driving his 3-wheeler for a living. Siraj will be one of the charged-up skipper Virat Kohli’s main weapons as Team India goes into the Headingley Test convinced that they are the better side and must press on to win the 5-Test series. A fuller length that suits English conditions best, a deadly yorker developed from bowling the tennis ball, stamina and persistence are Siraj’s plus points. As the 5-day format gives him time to work on the batsmen, his only regret is that his dad passed on before his Test debut.
Fast bowlers go after wickets straight away once they get hold of the new ball. There is no better sight and thrill than seeing fast bowlers bounding in of a long run up on a first morning of a match, and as one of England’s greatest express-fast bowlers, Frank “Typhoon” Tyson, believed, challenge the opening batsmen to cut. The ball either races to the point fence, or is nicked to the wicket-keeper or the slip-cordon. The present crop of Indian fast bowlers — Bumrah, Shami, Ishant and Siraj — who have blown away England at Trent Bridge and Lord’s, not only follow the Tyson template, but have also made Joe Root’s batsmen quiver in their boots, peppering them with bouncers and sand shoe crushers (ball pitched at a batsman’s feet). This fearsome foursome, and Shardul Thakur who played the first Test, have caused the downfall of 39 of the 40 England batsmen. Former England opener Michael Carberry, who scored a century for England Lions against Central Zone in a Duleep Trophy match in 2008 summed by an Indian new ball operator’s approach saying he doesn’t believe in “setting-up”, but goes for wickets straight away. At Lord’s, Bumrah & Co, have gone to the extent of, as a handful of tabloids headlined, bullying England. Just for the record, Sharma has taken 51 wickets in England, Shami 32, Bumrah 26 and Siraj 11.
Two men with Test batting averages of 11 and 3.6 helped themselves to an unbroken 89-run partnership to first take the Lord’s Test away from England and then conspired with their fellow fast bowlers to carve out a famous victory. Mohamed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah were the unlikeliest batting heroes on the final day even as England failed tactically by bowling bouncers at the tail, hitting them on the body and helmet, but not getting them out. An ill-tempered Test match saw England play like 15-year-olds, as Michael Vaughan said, in bouncing at the tailed batters, all because Bumrah had bounced James Anderson often in a 10-ball over. The same men who showed such great heart at the crease then bowled England out in under two sessions for only India’s third triumph at Lord’s. India’s pace bowlers have taken 39 of 40 England wickets in two Tests even as their captain Joe Root scored more runs than the rest of his batsmen put together. England were trapped in a scrap with Virat Kohli, a captain who revels in cricket as war. There is nothing wrong with emotion and passion on the field even if he tends to overdo it. Kohli joins Kapil Dev and MS Dhoni as the only Indian captains to win a test at Lord’s.
Parth Jindal is pleased as punch after Tokyo 2020 Olympics returned seven medals, including the first Track and Field gold, thanks to the tall and strapping Neeraj Chopra directing the World Athletics approved Javelin made of steel/aluminum or aluminum alloy to a distance of 87.58 metres, that usually the 100m sprinters on track run in probably under a flat nine seconds. Parth is the Founder of Inspire Institute of Sport and JSW Sports, but most importantly a sports lover keen to create a good space for non-cricket sports persons ambitious of wanting to excel in running, throwing, jumping in addition to team sports. He owns the IPL franchise, Delhi Capitals. The medal winners have been hailed as the new stars on the Indian sports horizon and awarded money which they deserve. If money can act as an incentive to motivate and perform, why not? Parth’s JSW Group has announced Rs 25 million (Rs 2.5 crore) to the medal winners and their coaches. Chopra will receive Rs 1 crore, wrestlers Ravi Dahiya and Bajrang Punia, Rs 20 lakh and Rs 15 lakh, Badminton ace PV Sindhu and boxer Lovlina Borgohain Rs 15 lakh each, Weightlifter Mirabai Chanu, Rs 20 lakh, and each member of the men’s hockey team, Rs 2 lakh. The coaches and support staff have been handsomely rewarded. Hopefully many more corporates would follow suit.
India’s unlikely opening pair of Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul, eternally on Test comeback trails, have forged into a fine combination to be the bedrock of India’s campaign. They have added 257 runs so far in five innings in the English summer, including the WTC final. While Rahul put his name on the coveted honours board at hallowed Lord’s, Rohit is yet to make his first century away from home even as he improves his away average that is at least 50 runs worse than his imposing 79.50 at home. Standing a foot outside his crease is Rohit’s adaptation of the Virat Kohli technical template for English conditions while Rahul stays crease-bound and yet masterful in his ability to drive the ball through the offside and in the classical V. Dark skies with hints of moisture to aid swing and seam of a virtually black Test Dukes ball and pitches that are spicier than ever before and offering variable bounce are the challenge India’s openers are facing up to with elan. India’s batting dominance thus far has also been helped along by the presence of Ravindra Jadeja as the batting all-rounder, which comes at the expense of the controversial omission of Ravichandran Ashwin. Crucially, India have been on top of England after the disappointment of the WCT final.
The pioneering way of fast-tracking the high performance of India’s money-starved sportspersons, through the Target Olympics Podium Scheme (TOPS), has begun to yield dividends. Noticing the sorry plight of India’s talented sportspersons, the Modi government put in place the TOPS in September 2014, and without exception, the project implemented through the Ministry of Sports & Youth Affairs (MSYA), has been acknowledged by the country’s Elite sportspersons. The TOPS in conjunction with the Annual Calendar of Training & Competition brought succour to the National Sports Federations and the Elite sportspersons, and after 125 years of the celebration of Olympic Sports, India won seven medals, with the Panipat-born javelin thrower, Neeraj Chopra winning the first ever track and field gold medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. The Sports Authority of India/ MSYA spent nearly Rs 1.9 crore to meet some of Chopra’s post Rio 2016 Olympics related expenditure. The SAI/ MSYA shelled out Rs 2.06 crore for the Sonipat-based Bajrang Punia who won the Bronze medal. The TOPS provided Rs 83 crore for the men and women hockey teams for 55 international tournaments in India and abroad (29 for men and 26 for women), 393 days of foreign exposure, including 106 for men and 287 for women, for seven foreign coaches and for National camps in Bengaluru. The TOPS is a real boon for India’s top-notch sportspersons.
Every stakeholder in India’s burgeoning hockey community — from the fans, players, the Indian men and women teams, and Hockey India — must doff its hat to the State of Odisha, and its five-time elected Chief Minister, Naveen Patnaik. One of the very few tallest politicians in the country, an outlier if it can be said, Patnaik and his government have committed to spend Rs 150 crore on Indian Hockey from 2018 to 2023, which includes the two national teams. All the more, Patnaik is celebrating the men’s team’s bronze medal win at Tokyo, breaking the 41-year jinx, and the women’s team reaching the semi-finals. Odisha had four players in Tokyo, thanks to a plethora of academies in the State. Odisha staged the World Cup Hockey 2018, and it will do so in 2023 at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar and the Birsa Munda International Stadium in Rourkela. With the Covid-19 affecting normal life, Patnaik may not have been able to stir out of his Naveen Niwas residence often, but over the past fortnight he would have seen India in action in Tokyo. Others like the Sahara Group and a handful of Public Sector Units have supported Indian Hockey, but for demonstrating focused commitment for the development of Indian Hockey, Patnaik stands head and shoulders above the rest.
Not long ago the badminton grapevine was replete with talk of the impending break up between PV Sindhu and her coach Pullela Gopichand, and when it happened a few months before Tokyo 2020, none was surprised. On their part, the celebrated All-England champion and coach, Gopichand, and his illustrious protege-turned-champion, Sindhu, have not thrown the slightest hints of having quarrelled over some sensitive issues or the other. The two have maintained dignity and have not allowed their differences, as professionals, to become grist to the rumour mill. A jewel in India’s badminton scene, Sindhu has become a true champion, winning the Silver Medal at Rio 2016 with Gopichand as coach; the World Championship title at Basel, Switzerland in 2019 with South Korean coach Kim Ji Hyun; and most recently the Bronze Medal at Tokyo with another South Korean court-side coach in Park Tae Sang. Sindhu, at the peak of her career at 26, and daughter of former India volleyball internationals, Ramana and Vijaya, and younger sibling to Divya, who is a practicing doctor, was the 13th highest female athlete in the Forbes World list 2019 with prize money and endorsements earnings of $5.5 million. Already a darling of the badminton world and India’s sports loving public, Sindhu could easily double her big-event medal collection in the next few years, and also see more endorsements chasing her.
The most famous “Wall” of world cricket, Rahul Dravid completed his first assignment as head coach of the Men in Blue in the six-match white ball series against Sri Lanka in Colombo on Thursday night (July 29). Someone who gives precedence to the “process” of development for the young and upcoming, and not unduly bothered by outcomes, the 48-year-old put up a stoical demeanour after a weakened Shikhar Dhawan team (Prithvi Shaw and Suryakumar Yadav were on way to England, and a few more were not available because of COVID-19 related isolation) were groping for answers to the cunning Lankan tweaker Hasaranga, and went down 1-2 in the Twenty20 skirmish. A part of the phalanx of the Indian middle order for more than a decade that had Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguky and VVS Laxman, Dravid was on the spot explaining that every generation takes time to find its feet in international cricket, and that he was not disappointed by the tyro Indian batsmen being outsmarted by the Sri Lankan bowling which he described as of the top drawer stuff. The big question that cropped up was: would Indian cricket see him in a similar role in the future. His answer was: “I have enjoyed this experience, but I have not thought of anything far ahead. There are a lot of challenges in doing full-time roles.”
Tokyo 2020 Olympics began with a bang for India when Manipur’s Mirabai Chanu, all of 4.11 “ in height, and 49 kg in weight, bagged the silver medal in the snatch and clean and jerk competition.. While the diminutive Mirabai has stolen the thunder from the rest of the athletes, even getting a cash reward of Rs 2 crore from Indian Railways, Manika Batra, a bright spark in the first few days of the Olympics, has ruffled the feathers of the table tennis fraternity by rejecting the national coach, Soumyadeep Roy, to guide her at onsite. The tall 26- year-old from Delhi, Manika who began her first lessons at Sandeep Gupta’s academy in Punjabi Bagh, relocated to Pune two years ago in order to be close to her personal coach Sanmay Paranjape. Manika, who was ranked World No 46 in March 2019, dropped to a low of 79 in September. It has been in the 60s since November 2019. She appeared to be petulant at being denied the opportunity to be coached and mentored from the court-side by Paranjape. He was in the stands though. After winning two matches, Manika was outplayed by Austria’s world no. 17, Sofia Polcanova in the third. The authorities believe that rules have to be adhered to, and nominating a personal coach for any competition, and not the national coach, would open the Pandora’ s Box for them.
The land of the rising sun, sumo wrestling, sushi food, and prime minister Yoshihide Suga is all set to unveil the Games of the 32nd Olympiad on July 23, 2021. The pandemic-caused delay of the Summer Games by a calendar year, has acquired a handful of monikers, notably COVID Games and TV-Screen Games, but the most significant is the one described by the International Olympic Committee, that starts the two-week competitions with the opening ceremony pageant, full of pomp and parade. The IOC has put down “Tokyo 2020” as the most gender-balanced games with more than 200 nations given the option to nominate for the first time, a male and female athlete as flag bearers at the opening ceremony. It’s a norm for countries to nominate its most decorated sports persons taking part in the Olympics for the opening day spectacle that’s much critiqued for a variety of reasons. At the second “Love in Tokyo” games (Tokyo was the host in 1964), India’s flag bearers will be its boxing icon, Manipur’s Mary Kom and the male hockey team captain, Punjab’s Manpreet Singh. Mary is a London Olympics bronze medalist and Manpreet is a two time Olympian (2012 London and 2016, Rio). Mary will be the third woman athlete after Shiny Wilson (1992 Barcelona) and Anju Bobby George (2004 Athens) to be bestowed the honour of leading India’s athletes in the march past.
UK’s new cricket competition – The Hundred – kicks off July 21, seeking diversity among its audience. It aims specially at the inclusion of Asian Brits who are not so much into the county game, which is mostly white, in fact 94%. Eight teams based on city lines for tribal loyalties as in the IPL, a draft system and a focus on overseas players as Afghans, Pakistanis, Nepalis and five Indian women cricketers swing into action. England and Wales Cricket Board’s 100-ball competition borrows heavily from IPL thanks to PIO Sanjay Patel who is its MD. English cricket is looking seriously at attracting more South Asians not only as spectators but also players. Take the case of Moeen Ali, who had to move to Worcestershire from Warwickshire to take off on his career. He grew up on tape ball cricket near Edgbaston before becoming a sought after T20 player currently with Chennai Super Kings. The Hundred is hoping to bridge the gap between English cricket and Asian spectators, mostly from the subcontinent. No Indian men are allowed to participate yet by the BCCI but that could change when there is less international cricket during the summer for India. Tactically, it is only a little different from T20 but a bowler can be kept on for ten balls at a time rather than stop with five balls.
Under fire from the international community for allegedly creating the pandemic, bruising the global economy, bringing the fun-filled and joyful lives of the world to a standstill, China will send a record 431 vaccinated athletes (for an overseas multi-event games comprising 298 women, 133 men) for the Summer Olympics celebrations in Tokyo in its 125th year. In all, the dragon country will send a jumbo delegation of 777 athletes and officials. The quadrennial showpiece event founded by the Frenchman Pierre de Coubertin, known as the father of the modern Olympic Games, has acquired the moniker “COVID Games” because of the contagious nature of the virus that has caused millions of deaths, postponed the games by a year, and forced top-notch sportspersons to drop out. Japan (population: 13 crore) has already spent around $16 billion to keep the Olympics going ahead, in spite of a stout local opposition. A little over three hours flight from Beijing to Tokyo, that cost upwards of $ 1730 (Rs 1.3 lakh), China had the financial muscle to fill the 42 venues with cheering crowds, and look to grab much of the 339 glittering gold medals across 33 events. But Tokyo has made the 18-day event a TV-screen games. China’s youngest participant in Tokyo will be 14, and the oldest, 52.
The Summer Olympics are around the corner, after a delay of one year caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, and all the stakeholders are gearing up and praying for a safe and smooth Olympics from July 23. The sponsors have also got down to business. They are vital to the conduct of games, and to individual athletes. In India, Bridgestone India, which has Pusarla Sindhu and Mary Kom as its Brand Ambassadors — the two world-class achievers in badminton and boxing are part of the company’s “Chase Your Dream” campaign — has extended its best wishes to them, to golfer Udayan Mane, and to the Indian contingent. The parent company, Bridgestone Corporation founded by Shojiro Ishibashi, nine decades ago, became the Olympic movement’s Worldwide Partner in 2014, the Paralympics Gold Partner in 2018, and its presence will be felt in Tokyo, and till the 2024 Olympic in Paris. “We believe that harbouring a strong culture of sports and investing in our people will contribute towards creation of better individuals leading to a holistically developed society,” said Parag Satpute, MD, Bridgestone India. Former World Champion and a silver medallist at Rio 2016, Sindhu, and many times gold medal winner at the World Championships, and the bronze medal winner at the London Olympics 2012, Mary Kom, have applauded Bridgestone’s support to the Olympic movement.
It’s going to be the Arab world’s biggest sporting extravaganza ever, the 22nd FIFA World cup. And Qatar, which won the right to host the 32-team competition, 10 years ago, is in a ready, get set, go mode, almost, to showcase the beautiful game of football from November 21 to December 18, next year. Qatar did not lose sight of the relevance of announcing the 500-day countdown to the event, even as the global football fans were riveted on the Copa America and the Euros. On the milestone event, Nasser Al Khater, CEO of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 LLC, said: “500 days means we’re getting very close. It’s been 10 years in the making, and this will be the biggest event that’s ever happened in the Middle East. The compact nature is probably the most positive aspect of this World Cup. Fans won’t have to follow their team from city to city, which means there will be a significant cost saving, and this means they will have time to take in the ambience and enjoy what Qatar has to offer.” Five stadiums have been completed, three will be ready soon and six venues will play host to the FIFA Arab Cup 2021 in November-December. India’s Larsen & Toubro, and its local associate Al Balagh Trading & Contracting have constructed the 40,000-seat Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium.
A deliriously joyful England, if not quite all of the United Kingdom, is preparing for its greatest night out on Sunday after its football team made it to the Euro final. They are talking of a knighthood for manager Gareth Southgate and he could be called “Sir” even if England can’t get past the Italian wall. Harry Kane, who scored the winning goal against Denmark off a penalty kick rebound, and Raheem Sterling, to whose talent Southgate stayed loyal enough to keep him in the starting lineup, are quite the flavour of the season. Even so, it was a questionable penalty award, which stayed despite a second look on VAR after Sterling seemed to go down too readily in the Danish penalty box that made the difference. England is accustomed to celebrating beyond questionable refereeing decision, including most of all the disputed goal in the 1966 World Cup final when no one is till today sure if the ball actually passed into the net beyond the goal line. The penalty against Denmark was spoiled by one spectator in the stands shining a laser pen at the face of Danish goal keeper Kasper Schmeichel. As a home final at Wembley nears voices are rising against football jingoism, unleashed at full throttle after months of tight lockdown rules, as booing of the Italian national anthem is feared.
Relocating the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup to the petro-dollar venues in the UAE and Oman from October 17 to November 14, has come as a blow to the BCCI members who were bullish on hosting money-spinning matches. The host associations receive good money per match; for example the Vidarbha Cricket Association received Rs 14 crore for hosting the ICC World Cup in 2011 and Rs 12 crore for hosting the Women’s World Twenty20 in 2016. The BCCI had shortlisted Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Delhi, Dharamshala, Lucknow, Kolkata Ahmedabad and Mumbai for one of ICC’s signature events in October-November. There were reports that the BCCI would eventually whittle down the venues to three, all in West Zone, but with the threat of the third wave of the COVID-19 looming, the BCCI shifted the event to the offshore venues. The Mumbai Cricket Association which received Rs10 crore for hosting 10 IPL-14 matches, Pune and Ahmedabad would have probably lost considerable money for not getting the opportunity to host the World T20 matches, but the former BCCI Secretary, and long-time Secretary of Saurashra Cricket Association, Niranjan Shah said that the BCCI has been up to date releasing “on account” money till the 2020 fiscal. “We do not know about the bifurcation (IPL and BCCI media rights share),” said Shah. The BCCI has disbursed Rs 50 crore, for two fiscals, to majority of its members.
Woken up at dawn on September 5 by the unusual clatter around his block at the Olympic Village in Munich in 1972, India’s expert runner in the half-mile, metric mile and over 5000 metres was terrified and scared by the goings-on at the block across, where the Israeli contingent was put up. It was on September 6 though that the famous Eddie Sequeira from Sanata Cruz, Mumbai came to know that the Palestinian ‘Black September’ group had invaded the Olympic Village, killed two Israeli delegates, and held nine more as hostages, all of them later killed around midnight at a nearby airport. The carnage sent shock waves across the world. “I was terrified and scared by what I saw on September 5. They were in red track suit, black bags, mask and hood. Myself and Sriram Singh were occupying a room in a ground floor block. And the Israel team was across our Block, about 100 metres away. At 4.21 am or thereabout, there was a lot of noise, and I saw people running away. I awoke Sriram immediately. It was not very dark, but a light morning. We made sure our door latch was on. Later in the morning we were told that the events for the day have been cancelled. The fright was there in my mind, but I managed to clock my personal best in the 5000 m run.”
TRENDS & VIEWS
Editor’s Note: Big Punch In Small Pack
It is the Third Anniversary of Short Post and as a news media startup launched during the Covid-19 pandemic it certainly feels better than good to find ourselves where we are today. Here, I must cite the unstinted support of our seasoned contributors, all senior editors in the country, who brought a great degree of maturity and sagacity to the Short Post newsroom. But for them, our tagline “Authentic Gossip”, an Oxymoron, would not have matured viably. Our user numbers may be small but our stories have created the desired impact among people who matter — decision makers and influencers. We offer a big punch in a small pack and Short Post with its 225-word stories has been punching above its weight category. Having posted close to 3,000 stories in the last 36 months, Short Post, I feel, is an idea whose time has come.
And this is vindicated by our two marquee advertisers – IDFC FIRST Bank and ICICI Lombard. Both believed in our story and have supported us from Day one. A big thank you to both.
If you look at the media landscape – print, TV and digital — it is a mixed bag. There are job losses as some outfits have closed down while a lucky few were bailed out by large corporate houses. Yes, there is a lot of action in the digital space. However, the entry of corporate houses has raised the question of independence of news media outfits. Sadly, there are just a handful of independent media outfits in the country that are highly respected for their neutrality. At Short Post, our credo is not to take sides, prejudge issues or be biased but, informing readers of behind-the-scenes happenings. In essence, Short Post strives to be a neutral editorial platform — neither anti-establishment nor pro-establishment.
As I said last year, disruptions in the media world are moving at a fast and furious pace. Technology is playing a very big role in how content is generated and consumed. But, we are neither alarmed nor perturbed as it is all a part of the evolution process. What gives us comfort is that AI is unable to create original gossipy content. And that is the news arena where we have achieved a distinction.