The sight will be etched in my mind's eye for years to come. As the Captain of the chartered flight, ferrying us from Chandigarh to Lahore for the 1996 World Cup final, drew our attention to the border thousands of feet below, scores of pairs of eyes peered out of the windows of the airbus A-320 to catch a glimpse of the rows of bright lights that ( Read more... )

Tuesday was the time when we experienced the sweet taste of India’s series victory over England, tempered by the bitter awareness that it could have been better. Indeed, another series win for India calls for more celebration. But the fact that India did not make a hard enough attempt to secure a 2-0 verdict will rankle a fair bit.

Yes, one if ( Read more... )

Battles of attrition on a sports field, especially a cricket ground, have always been fascinating but what has unfolded over three days in the Mohali Test featuring India and England makes it hard for the words joy or gripping to be associated with the quality of contest on show. May be we have been spoilt by the stunning Test match in Chennai last ( Read more... )

We have grown up being told that every dark cloud has a silver lining but Gautam Gambhir and Rahul Dravid served us a reminder on Saturday that every silver lining has a dark cloud. They added a record 314 runs for the second wicket in the Mohali Test but at a crawl. The pair occupied the crease for 108 overs and had a dismal strike rate of just 2. ( Read more... )

There was a time when he stood out as a champion performer in all conditions, earning the respect of his team-mates and opponents alike. He made deliveries look less lethal than they actually were with his keen concentration and excellent judgment.

That time contrasted sharply with a recent drought when he stuck out like a sore thumb, unable to find ( Read more... )

Can we have more of that, please? What a great Test match we have been fortunate to watch unfold before our eyes. It is not just because India scripted an inprobable come-from-behind victory over England on Monday that one is making such a wish but because the Test threw up many fascinating dimensions that added up to serve a spicy treat to the ( Read more... )

As they walked back for a cuppa at the tea break on the Sunday in the Chennai Test against England, India’s vice-captain Sehwag ran up to Zaheer Khan, ruffled his hair in an acknowledgement of the left-arm paceman’s work in the quarter hour to the interval when he first trapped Paul Collingwood lbw and then castled Graeme Swann and Steve Harmison.

( Read more... )

Few, barring his wife and himself, would have taken him seriously when Kevin Pietersen claimed he had ‘unfinished business’ in India. His team came here after a tough week in the West Indies and was unable to pick itself up from the floor and ended up with a 5-0 drubbing in the one-day series before the terror attack in Mumbai interrupted the tour.

( Read more... )

Some questions have popped up in my mail box over the past couple of days when England sent mixed signals about resuming its tour of India, cut short by terrorists who held Mumbai - and all of India, I dare say - to ransom for a good part of three days.

Would England have been justified in not wanting to play in India? Should India be playing ( Read more... )

We always look to sport to divert our minds from the negatives that society heaps on us. We forget soaring prices, sinking Sensex, global meltdown, senseless violence, corruption and other evils when we watch keen sporting contests and bask in the reflected glory of the eternal pursuit of excellence that unfolds before our eyes.

Yet, sometimes, ( Read more... )