While 2013 saw the sun set on one of the most successful cricket careers, it also threw up two new Indian stars in the galaxy, says Bikash Mohapatra.
As dramatic as his career was, Sachin Tendulkar's farewell happened to be a prolonged affair. Rediff.com's Bikash Mohapatra summarises The Master Blaster's gradual retirement from the sport in four acts.
Bikash Mohapatra ellaborates on a 'hat-trick' which Kieron Pollard would like to forget in a hurry.
Spanish giants Real Madrid is guilty of prematurely selling its star acquisitions. Bikash Mohapatra points out that the same players have immediately gone on to make significant impressions elsewhere.
While Martina Navratilova, Bjorn Bjorg, Steffi Graf, Pete Sampras and Roger Federer thrived at Wimbledon, the grass surface of the hallowed courts, says Bikash Mohapatra, also proved the graveyard of many other tennis greats.
Gareth Bale becomes the latest 'galactico' signing by the world's richest club and marks the latest instance when Real Madrid broke its own transfer record. We take a look at the last few instances when Madrid bettered itself in the summer transfer market.
In power, Mamata Banerjee has tried to bury the ghost of the past, but it might still be work-in-progress. Big-ticket and eye-grabbing (in terms of investment size) projects are still few and far between, reports Ishita Ayan Dutt.
Having covered many a Test match from the media box, Bikash Mohapatra watched Day 2 of the second Test between India and the West Indies from the Wankhede stands. At the end of it, he says never again!
Bikash Mohapatra picks six individual performances that proved decisive in India beating Australia 4-0 in the just-concluded Test series.
Novak Djokovic's 6-3, 6-4 demolition of the top-ranked Spaniard in the ATP World Tour Finals made him only the seventh player to win the year-end championship at least three times. We take a look at the players who preceded the Serb to the feat.
Umpire Nigel Llong inadvertently had a role to play in two key moments of the legend's last Test appearance at the Eden Gardens. The second, says Bikash Mohapatra, will ensure he won't be a popular figure in India for some time to come.
Rohit Sharma's 127 is not just a debut Test hundred. It is a tribute to fortitude, perseverance and self-belief.
Former India all-rounder Laxmi Ratan Shukla tells Bikash Mohapatra there will not be any pressure on the batting legend in his farewell Tests as he handled it so well in all these years.
Former top diplomat Karl Inderfurth explains to rediff.com's Bikash Mohapatra that India not being mentioned much during the US presidential campaign is actually a good thing
The possibility of Republican candidate Mitt Romney winning more states, and the popular vote, and yet losing the election looms large. Rediff.com's Bikash Mohapatra reports from Ohio, one of the battleground states in America's presidential election
Bikash Mohapatra takes a look the transfer market, wherein some clubs have made quality purchases without actually breaking the bank.
Brazil (Selecao) might be the most loved -- and most successful -- football team across the globe, but the Germans (Die Mannshaft), says Bikash Mohapatra, are easily the most consistent in the history of football.
In an exclusive interview to Bikash Mohapatra, NBA legend Ron Harper goes back in time to talk about his career, Michael Jordan and why he wants to be like his illustrious coach.
Rafael Nadal's win over Novak Djokovic in the US Open final not only earned the Spaniard a 13th major but also helped take the rivalry between the two to an altogether new level. The match was the 37th encounter between the Spaniard and the Serb, a new world record. Here's a look at the other major rivalries over the years in men's tennis.
Siddharth Trivedi, a significant member of Rajasthan Royals, spells out the difference in Shane Warne, who led the team to success in the inaugural IPL season, and current skipper Rahul Dravid.
Quite a few of the major acquisitions in the European transfer market have started on a positive note, paying their new clubs back for the millions doled out for their signatures. We take a look at a few players who have already begun to prove themselves as value for money signings.
Michael Clarke's team, says Bikash Mohapatra, may have lost the Ashes 0-3, but did enough to ensure England will have a lot to worry about in three months' time.
Ahead of the latest edition of the US Open, which starts in a few days, we take a look at a few innovations the tournament has introduced over the years, and also what makes it 'different'.
Having started out on the grass courts of Newport Casino (Rhode Island) in 1881, the Grand Slam is now played on the hard courts of Flushing Meadows (New York). However, it was also played on the clay courts in Forest Hills between 1975-77, making it the lone major to be played on three surfaces.
"Our poor first innings scores have let us down," Michael Clarke said after the Hyderabad defeat. Bikash Mohapatra feels the Aussie batsmen need to set the agenda, the way Alistair Cook and his team did against the Indians last winter.
The last time Cheteshwar Pujara batted at the Rajiv Gandhi stadium in Uppal, Hyderabad, he scored 159, his maiden hundred. Seven months later, he returned to the venue and outdid the effort with a double ton. Bikash Mohapatra reports.
Rediff.com looks at a few innings that redefined Test batting this year, and, in the process, upheld the tradition of the five-day format.
Alastair Cook's England lost a chance to complete a clean sweep over Australia and create history. Bikash Mohapatra it's one they may never get again.
Sure, Australia were outplayed in the Chennai Test, but not all was lost for the visitors, says Bikash Mohapatra.
For once the Indian win was not crafted by just a couple of players. Barring a couple of failures, virtually the entire team contributed to the Chennai triumph. Bikash Mohapatra identifies the three heroes who led the Indian charge to victory.
Our sports bodies, says Bikash Mohapatra, must get their act correct first, instead of restraining players from venting their displeasure in public.
With his match-winning knock in the second Test against India Kevin Pietersen, says Bikash Mohapatra, reaffirmed that his off-field shenanigans cannot undermine the flair and flamboyance that define his batting.
By not fielding the fringe players in the squad in the first three ODIs, Bikash Mohapatra says, the whole point of accommodating a trip to Zimbabwe in Team India's already hectic schedule was defeated.
Rediff.com lists the batsmen who have unfortunately been dismissed without facing a ball during this IPL. A look at the tournament's diamond ducks.
Two-time NBA champion Chris Bosh talks to Bikash Mohapatra about Miami Heat's success story, LeBron James and why he puts the team above personal gratification.
While the two major political parties have different policies for the migrant population, there is no concrete national policy as such, reports Bikash Mohapatra
With the first of six successive games, away from their comfort zone, conceded to Mumbai Indians, the results of the next five will be crucial in determining how comfortably the team from Bangalore is placed when it welcomes Punjab at the Chinnaswamy on May 14, says Bikash Mohapatra.
James Anderson's bowling, says Bikash Mohapatra, was the difference between England and Australia in the just-concluded first Test in Nottingham.
Rediff.com takes a look at a few high profile transfers in Europe in the winter even as window closed on Thursday.
In winning the Premier League in his first season with Manchester United, after eight frustrating years with Arsenal, Robin van Persie joined an elite club of players for whom leaving the clubs where they spent a bulk of their careers proved a remarkable switch. Rediff.com takes a look at a few other such examples.
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