The explanation that it was the festival season that was keeping people away does not wash, as one has in the past seen stadiums teeming with people even when matches were held on Diwali day.
Pradeep Magazine writes.
Even when the scandal broke out in 2000, the initial reaction was one of denial, writes
Pradeep Magazine.
Nothing can be more distressing for a sports fan than to find out that the player he idolizes for his achievements on the field is a "compromised" individual off it.
Pradeep Magazine writes.
Indian cricket at the present juncture is at that fluid stage where, guided by a long-term vision, a few wise, judicious selections can bolster a team in transition.
Pradeep Magazine writes.
Can one enter the soul of another person, understand him and the motives behind his actions well enough to piece together the story of his life? That was the predicament I faced once I was deep into decoding Mansur Ali Khan, alias Tiger Pataudi, writes
Pradeep Magazine.
Pataudi was the architect of India’s rise as a modern cricket outfit
The Indian players are luckier than their counterparts from other nations in that they get reasonably good jobs once they represent their country and unlike them, don't have to take pay cuts to do so.
Pradeep Magazine writes.
The body is bruised, the mind jaded by playing more cricket than anyone else has in this India team and it is a marvel that Dhoni has still not broken down.
Pradeep Magazine writes.
The BCCI, mired as it is in many allegations of financial misdemeanour, especially in the IPL, should have welcomed this move, instead of taking refuge behind the argument that being a private body, it is not subject to any government regulation.
Pradeep Magazine writes.
The image that flashes in the mind when one thinks of Sourav Ganguly is that of a bare-chested young man with shirt in hand being twirled around more in celebration than anger at the sanitised Lord’s balcony, an act which the Brits would consider blasphemous. Pradeep Magazine writes.
India's imminent fall from the top, judging by their swift capitulation in the first two Tests, has and will spawn many interpretations.
Pradeep Magazine writes.
Money a temptation to hide injuries?
The eternal question — does destiny influence our actions or do our actions determine our destiny — springs to mind whenever I think of MS Dhoni and his spectacular career as captain of the Indian team.
Pradeep Magazine writes.
I dare say that Chandrasekhar's stirring spell of 6 for 38 in the Oval Test of 1971, that gave India its first ever victory over England, is the most exhilarating memory I have of cricket.
Pradeep Magazine writes.
It is often said that if sportspersons play a prominent role in administration, there will be greater accountability and transparency in the running of sports federations in the country. Pradeep Magazine writes.
Like the state of the country and the mood of its people, which swings wildly from ecstasy to despair, the story of Indian sport is no different, writes
Pradeep Magazine.