Bikash Mohapatra lends an ear as experts make an assessment of India's bowling woes.
Ricky Ponting's decision to retire in the middle of the 2012 Test series against South Africa, who were led by Graeme Smith, proved costly for Australia. For someone who not only took away the former Aussie captain's record, but also condemned him to retirement in defeat, Bikash Mohapatra says, it is a shame that Smith did not learn from the Australian's error in judgment while calling it a day.
Going by current form and placement, Bikash Mohapatra says it won't come as a surprise if the Swiss maestro fails to qualify for the season-ending ATP World Tour finals.
Graeme Smith was one of the best captains, ever. He led South Africa to a record 53 victories in his 108 Tests in charge. Under his able leadership South Africa rose to become the top-ranked team in Test cricket. He is the only captain to win away series against Australia and England. Failure to win the World Cup, however, says Bikash Mohapatra, will be the biggest regret in an otherwise illustrious career.
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.
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.
The No. 2-ranked Test nation in the world was expected to have it easy against the Black Caps, ranked No. 8. Instead, they will return empty-handed from the trip. Here's a look at how the 11 Indian players -- there was no change in the team for the second Test -- fared in the just-concluded series.
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.
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.
While the two major political parties have different policies for the migrant population, there is no concrete national policy as such, reports Bikash Mohapatra
Bikash Mohapatra takes a look at the five best winter transfers in 2014.
'To make Kevin Pietersen the scapegoat is an easy way out for the ECB. It is about not accepting collective failure and brushing the reality under the carpet. It also is about taking your best player for granted. It is not that the ECB bosses do not recognise Pietersen's rare talent,' says Bikash Mohapatra. 'It is just that they cannot accept that such genius is accompanied by a temperament that needs to be dealt with delicately.'
Rediff.com's Bikash Mohapatra reports from Ohio, one of the battleground states in America's presidential election
Barack Obama is the "only right person" for America, said former president Bill Clinton as he endorsed his defence policy and touted his job record. Bikash Mohapatra reports from St Petersburg
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.
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.
Niranjan Shah, manager when India last toured New Zealand, tells Bikash Mohapatra M S Dhon's team has enough experience to emerge triumphant in both the Tests and ODIs again.
"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.
Despite talk about doing well overseas, the reality is it will take more time, and a concentrated effort -- and that includes making sporting wickets at home -- for Team India to perform consistently overseas, let alone win, says Bikash Mohapatra.
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.
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.
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.
Bikash Mohapatra takes a look the transfer market, wherein some clubs have made quality purchases without actually breaking the bank.
Rediff.com takes a look at a few high profile transfers in Europe in the winter even as window closed on Thursday.
Mumbai's Ranji Trophy triumph, says Bikash Mohapatra, was about consistent individual performances, particularly that of wicketkeeper-batsman Aditya Tare, who impressed in his first full season.
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!
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.
Though it retained its home advantage in recent years, the Indian cricket team, says Bikash Mohapatra, is no longer the indomitable force it used to be.
Replacing a coach like Gary Kirsten, who was a massive success with Team India, was never going to be easy for Duncan Fletcher. Rediff.com's Bikash Mohapatra points out that Fletcher doesn't have a report card that makes for great reading but he still enjoys the backing of captain MS Dhoni.
England's recent performances in the subcontinent were far from impressive. In fact, they were even beaten at home against the formidable Proteas. Those woeful results made them the under dogs for their tour to India. But they have turned the tables and their fortune, and how! Ironing out technical glitches and batting with patience has been the key to England's superiority in this series, writes Rediff.com's Bikash Mohapatra.
As India celebrates its first ever clean sweep over Australia, Bikash Mohapatra takes a look at how the players performed in the series.
As player and captain, Ricky Ponting, says Bikash Mohapatra, was someone who refused to go by the book, didn't shy away from controversy and, yet, more often than not, got the desired results.
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.
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.
Two-and-a-half years after making his ODI debut, Virender Sehwag played his first Test. Eleven years and 99 Tests later, the 32-year-old has done incredibly well for himself, says 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.
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