Category: Play On
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How the Sports Bill Was Bent to Please the BCCI
The Sports Governance Bill 2025’s original draft brought all sports bodies under RTI, including BCCI. A last-minute change limits RTI to those taking government funds, exempting BCCI. Critics say this undermines transparency, defies court recommendations, and shields cricket’s powerful private body from public scrutiny despite its national role
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Chen Shih-hsin’s Dangal: Wrestling with Life, Legacy and Olympic Gold
“hen I watched Dangal with Chinese subtitles a few years ago, I noticed an uncanny resemblance between the wrestlers’ father and my own,” says Chen Shih-hsin, Taiwan’s first-ever Olympic gold medallist. Chen clinched gold in the women’s flyweight division (49-kilogram category) in Taekwondo at the 2004 Athens Olympics, ending a 72-year-long gold medal drought for…
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Tears & Triumph: India’s T20 World Cup Win Marked by Emotional Farewells
New York: In sports, glory comes to those who work hard and never relent. Team India epitomizes this spirit, having pursued the T20 World Cup with unwavering determination for 17 long years. Their courageous journey culminated in the West Indies, where they were finally crowned T20 Champions of the World after a pulsating thriller with…
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From Despair to Domination: India Stages Epic Recovery to Conquer England
ndia concluded the series against England with a resounding 4-1 scoreline – a historic first in 112 years of Test cricket history after losing the opening match. The joy and jubilation now are in marked contrast to the disappointment after India’s defeat in the first Test of the series. While Rohit and Co battled a…
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Identity Crisis on the Marathon Track: Running in the Shadow of Milind Soman
aving interacted with VIPs and celebs during more than three decades in journalism, I am not prone to being starstruck or overawed by their flamboyance. But a recent incident brought home to me that it’s no fun sharing your name – even part of it – with a celebrity. I speak of Milind Soman, model…
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Grit Over Glitter: Sarfaraz Khan’s Story is More Than Just Runs
ndian saint Paramhansa Yogananda had once said- “persistence guarantees that results are inevitable.” The saying stands particularly true for the newest entrant in the Indian Test team, Sarfaraz Khan. He debuted against England in the third Test of the ongoing series with a fine knock of 62 on the first day. That he took just…
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From Domination to Despair: India Faces Crucial Test After Hyderabad Humiliation
t’s often said that confidence is an important trait to possess but overconfidence needs to be shunned! This is extremely relevant in the context of the Indian cricket team whose members were dismissive of the visiting English team’s ‘Bazzball’ tactics. Before the series, many Indian players had claimed that on India’s turning tracks, the aggressive…
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Aussies defeats BCCI at Ahmedabad
Team India ‘lost’ the world cup. Winning or losing are part of the game but what happens when the game becomes part of the political propaganda and the audiences are not sports lovers or cinema lovers but fans who hate others. A Bania paper in Uttar Pradesh gave a headline for the final game as…
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Afghanistan’s World Cup Journey, Falling Short of Semis, Winning Hearts
With Team India winning eight matches on the trot, fans have vociferously supported the Men in Blue at the One Day International (ODI) World Cup. However, there is one more team (whose jersey is also blue) that has brought joy to cricket lovers not just in India but all across the cricketing world. Afghanistan cricket…
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From suicidal tendencies to India’s highest wicket taker in World Cups
Adversity and tough times test people’s character, either making or breaking them. Indian spearhead Mohammed Shami is a perfect example that when life gets difficult, you have to work harder and come out stronger. He has been the backbone of India’s fast bowling for the last decade and has hit red-hot form in the ongoing…