'He's got a pretty good record against Indian batsmen (123 wickets in 28 Tests versus India).' 'In India too he has a great record (56 wickets in 11 Tests in India), that is a pretty good record against a country that traditionally plays spin very well.'
'Kapil had faith in his team and the team had faith in its captain.'
As hosts Russia and Saudia Arabia kick off the extravaganza, Harish Kotian and Ashish Narsale assemble a fascinating FIFA World Cup quiz.
Shooters' preps lacked planning, says Olympian Vijay Kumar
'When it comes to strategy or planning for a match, there is nobody better than Dhoni.' 'Whether he is uncapped or capped, every franchise would want to pick Dhoni, no matter what price he is available for.'
Kohli is the man for the big occasion and has been scoring runs consistently across formats, says Harish Kotian.
Who do YOU think should be part of India's playing XI for Thursday's second ODI against England at Lord's?
The captain's missus was mighty impressed with the chocolate eclairs he baked.
'Whichever teams have the best players they get a chance to retain them.
'There is a lot of scope for new players to come in and get their maximum value, given how the auction is structured.'
Justice Sanjiv Khanna 'belongs to that school of legal luminaries who give the highest primacy to facts.'
'I was confident that I would surely get into any of the IPL teams, but I was not picked.'
'The world is yet to watch him, show his prowess as a batter, but given the chance he will do a great job.'
Former sprinter Ashwini Nachappa blasted the Indian Olympic Association for not advancing their elections scheduled on February 9, as a result of which Indian athletes will compete as independent sportspersons at next month's Winter Olympic Games in Sochi.
'Everyone takes their own time to discover themselves, everyone's way of feeling that expression of freedom on the field comes at a different time. The important thing is he is stepping up.' India star Zaheer Khan assesses Ishant Sharma, Bhuvanesh Kumar and Mohammad Shami's bowling in England so far.
'Our consistency under pressure will be tested to the maximum at Paris.'
Harish Kotian's analysis of the Indian squad for the upcoming tour of England.
Dean Jones, who was doing commentary for the ongoing IPL for official broadcasters Star Sports, suffered a massive heart attack in Mumbai.
The Ranji Trophy final between Karnataka and Maharashtra gets underway on Wednesday. While Maharashtra's chances rest heavily on their batting, Karnataka will look to their bowlers to deliver the goods. Harish Kotian looks at the key players in the contest.
Instead of sidelining coach Duncan Fletcher, the BCCI should have sacked him, says Harish Kotian/Rediff.com
India's captain also advised his batsmen not to waste too much time working on their techniques when touring abroad.
Skipper MS Dhoni reckons he needs to improve his performances, especially while touring. Harish Kotian reports
After nearly two decades of commentating on international games Sunil Gavaskar finally got his first chance in India's premier domestic competition - Ranji Trophy cricket. But for all the cricketing fans in the country, the icing on the cake was to see the batting legend doing commentary with his son, during the Ranji Trophy quarter-final between Mumbai and Maharashtra at the Wankhede stadium on Wednesday.
Board of Control for Cricket in India secretary Sanjay Patel on Saturday revealed that India had threatened to form another International Cricket Council if their proposal for the restructuring of the ICC was not accepted by the other full members.
Mumbai cricket looks set to continue its long-standing tradition of throwing up exciting young talent. Brothers Sarfaraz and Musheer Khan are being touted as great potential for the future following their exploits in school and their respective age-group cricket tournaments.
Harish Kotian was present at MC Mary Kom's training camp in Pune, where she launched her bid to return to competitive boxing after a nearly 18 months.
'We used to give these boxers a hammering in the ring and now they are teaching youngsters how to defend. Come on man!' 'People like Akhil Kumar and Jitender Kumar were among the top boxers in the world, but instead of choosing them to train young boxers they are picking people who are yes men.'
As the tournament shifts to India, here's a look at the best performances from the first leg.
Deepak Prakash tells Harish Kotian he is convinced that the Delhi Police was wrong in arresting S Sreesanth on charges of spot-fixing in the IPL.
'There will always be one player who is prepared to corrupt the game because of greed,' Ed Hawkins tells Rediff.com's Harish Kotian.
'There will always be one player who is prepared to corrupt the game because of greed,' Ed Hawkins tells Rediff.com's Harish Kotian.
As the Indian Premier League's seventh edition gets underway, Harish Kotian finds out how the teams measure up this season.
'As an individual I don't have to rate myself. I have already performed in Test cricket,' says India's latest batting sensation Cheteshwar Pujara. Harish Kotian reports.
'The thought of joining politics did not depend on the IPL auction.... The Congress is a national party and you get a lot of freedom when you work for it. There is not much interference in decision-making and that was one of the reasons I considered joining the party.' Mohammad Kaif tells Rediff.com's Harish Kotian in an exclusive interview why he has retired from cricket and joined politics.
India captain M S Dhoni has failed to replicate his one day success in Test matches. Rajneesh Gupta and Harish Kotian present a statistical analysis of Dhoni's record as captain in overseas Tests.
While Delhi Daredevils and Royal Challengers Bangalore exhausted their full auction kitty of Rs 60 crore, Rajasthan Royals, did shrewd business, buying as many as 25 players and still ending up with Rs 5.55 crore remaining at the end of the auction.
The BCCI, which provides close to 80 percent of the ICC's revenues, is adamant that a revamp of world cricket must go through, failing which it will pull out of ICC events.
Former chairman of selectors Kiran More discusses the Test series debacle in England with Harish Kotian and suggests remedial measures to help the team return to winning ways.
At the conclusion of the Test series against England, Harish Kotian assesses the Indian players' showing.
In a freewheeling interview with Rediff.com's Harish Kotian, Olympic medallist Rajyavardhan Rathore reflects on his silver medal at Athens and reveals why he decided to make the foray into politics after a long and successful career in sports and the Indian army.
India's greatest match-winner VVS Laxman talks about the spot-fixing controversy and his role as mentor of Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 6.