Finally, Sarfaraz Khan made his India debut and how. He scored scintillating half-centuries in both the innings against England in the third Test. But this opportunity came Sarfaraz’s way after banging scoring runs and tons in all conditions and situations. This was a reward for his hard work. Amol Karhadkar, Deputy Sports Editor, at The Hindu, shares his story. But does every cricketer get his reward with an India cap? The answer is ‘No’. In this episode of Weekly katta, Amol Gokhale and...

In a first in the Marathi podcast world, Sports Katta and  @LeleSunandan  present the first 'crossover podcast' while previewing the third Test between India and England, to be played at the Niranjan Shah Cricket Stadium in Rajkot. The episode features Sunandan Lele and Amol Karhadkar, Deputy Editor with The Hindu... मराठी पॉडकास्टमध्ये प्रथमच एक क्रॉसओव्हर घडतंय... स्पोर्ट्स कट्टा आणि सुनंदन लेले घेऊन येत आहेत भारत विरुद्ध इंग्लंड तिसऱ्या कसोटीचं सादर करीत आहेत पूर्वावलोकन म्हणजे...

India and England are set to resume their five-match Test series after a break of 10 days and one can sense that something is bubbling under the surface. The big question is, are IPL stars reluctant to play Test cricket? Or is it just a matter of prioritizing white-ball cricket? The debate can and will go on. On the other hand, records beckon in the third Test. Sarfraz Khan can make his Test debut. Ben Stokes is set to play his 100th Test match. Ravichandran Ashwin is on the brink of 500 Test...

The U-19 Cricket World Cup once again highlighted a couple of things. India’s consistent performance to make it to the final for the fifth consecutive time. However, their unbeaten run came to a grinding halt against a familiar foe in the final - Australia. But what are the takeaways of this tournament? Uday Saharan came out with flying colours as a skipper and a batter. Musheer Khan and Sachin Dhas showed why they are so highly regarded. On the flip side, Arshin Kulkarni, who promised so...

Shrikant Jadhav grew up in a small village in Ahmednagar district. A certificate of appreciation at the hands of a chief guest in school on Independence Day was a big deal for him at that time. As his game flourished, he moved to Mumbai to compete in Professional tournaments. The journey hasn't been easy by any stretch of the imagination. Shrikant had to pull out of the first two seasons of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) because of injuries. That's when the reality hit him hard. He decided to...

India’s premier off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is on the cusp of 500 Test wickets with 499 against his name after the second India vs England Test. To mark his imminent landmark achievement, in this episode of Weekly Katta, Aditya Joshi and Amol Karhadkar look at his career, the hurdles he had to cross and where his achievement stands in terms of the rich lineage of Indian spinners. Is he the greatest Indian spinner ever?  भारताचा ऑफस्पिनर रविचंद्रन अश्विन ५०० कसोटी बळींच्या उंबरठ्यावर आहे....

Aditya Ganpule won a gold medal in the 100mtrs sprint in his school days. But he opted to play kho-kho because his brother played the game. Today, he plays for Telugu Yoddhas in the Ultimate Kho-Kho league but the journey wasn’t an easy one. He had to deal with failure multiple times at a young age but he kept going without giving up. Still 21, Aditya shares his journey to the top in this episode of Kattyavarchya Gappa with Amol Gokhale… आदित्य गणपुले शाळेत असताना १०० मीटर धावण्याच्या...

Rohan Bopanna recently became the oldest tennis player to achieve the World No. 1 ranking in men’s doubles. He also clinched his first men’s doubles title at the Australian Open to add the cherry to the top. Bopanna’s achievements become even more special when you realise that he is 43 years old or in his own words, he is on Level 43. Amol Gokhale, Gaurav Rao and Ninad Indapurkar put into perspective what Bopanna’s feat means to Indian tennis in this episode of Weekly Katta…  भारताचा...

India’s kabaddi star Aslam Inamdar has a touching story. He hails from a poor background and lost his father at a young age. His mother had to work as a domestic help to run the house. The situation compelled Aslam to pick up odd jobs at hotels and farmlands to help his family. However, he never gave his Kabaddi practice a miss. His life changed for the better after he moved to Thane-Mumbai to play in professional kabaddi leagues. His stock rose rapidly after a phenomenal show in the Junior...

Pacer Prem Devkar began his cricketing journey at 13, playing tennis ball cricket in the backyard with his brothers. Even though he tasted success in that format he always aspired to play ‘leather ball’ cricket. But, in Dombivali, he did not get as many opportunities as he would’ve liked. However, his life shifted into a fast lane on December 13, 2022, when he met coach Sanjay Gaitonde. In the past year, he has made the most of the opportunities that came his way. His impressive bowling...

The U-19 Cricket World Cup kicks off on January 19 in South Africa. The stalwarts of Indian cricket - Yuvraj Singh, Mohammed Kaif, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli - to name a few, all played in the U-19 World Cup. That put them in the limelight but they had to go through the grind of domestic cricket to earn the India cap. Arshin Kulkarni, Sachin Dhas and Musheer Khan are three Maharashtrians in this year’s U-19 squad and are ones to watch out for. But, is this tournament still relevant? How many...

Indian women’s cricket team recently played two marquee home series against England and Australia. Indian team triumphed in the red-ball format but were outclassed in the limited-overs cricket. How does one look at the team’s performance with the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh later this year in mind? Does out-of-form skipper Harmanpreet Kaur need a break? Juili Ballal and former India international Soniya Dabir analyse on Weekly Katta… भारतीय महिला संघ नुकताच इंग्लंड आणि ऑस्ट्रेलिया विरुद्ध...

Pratik Waikar was good at ‘Langdi’ in his school days. Thus, he would frequent the ‘Kho-Kho’ ground for Langdi practice. That’s how his Kho-Kho journey started and he excelled at it. So much so that Pratik has captained Maharashtra in all-group categories and today leads the Telugu Yoddhas side in ‘Ultimate Kho-Kho’ league. In this episode of Kattyavarchya Gappa with Amol Gokhale, Pratik shares the journey that started in Pune and earned him ‘The Shiv Chhatrapati Award’, the highest sports...

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli returned to the Indian T20 side for the first time since November 2022, for a three-match series against Afghanistan. The former will lead the team in the absence of injured Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav. Does this move mean the duo is back in the scheme of things for the T20 World Cup in June? Is this a step in the right direction? On the other hand, Cheteshwar Pujara did what he does best in the opening round of Ranji Trophy. Score a daddy hundred. How...

देशांतर्गत क्रिकेटमध्ये पाच संघाचं प्रतिनिधित्व केल्यानंतर त्यांनी आजतागायत  चार संघाचं प्रशिक्षकपद भूषविलं आहे. तरी सुलक्षण कुलकर्णी यांची खरी ओळख ही कायम 'खडूस मुंबईकर' अशीच राहिली आहे. 'माझा संस्मरणीय रणजी ट्रॉफी हंगाम' मालिकेत सुलक्षण सांगत आहेत त्यांच्या उमेदीच्या काळातील आठवणी. पाहूया शाळेत असताना ठाण्याजवळ कळव्याहून वानखेडेला सामना  बघण्यासाठी जाणं, शारदाश्रम शाळेच्या संघासाठी खेळून मग रेल्वेजसाठी रणजी पदार्पण, ठाण्यामध्ये घरच्या मैदानावर मुंबईसाठी केलेलं पदार्पण आणि सुनील गावस्कर व...

The two-match Test series between India and South Africa barely lasted five days and ended 1-1. India skipper Rohit Sharma rightly raised the question about pitches that were offered. He now faces potential sanctions from the ICC for criticising match officials. How one should look at this series? Amol Karhadkar, Sports Journalist, The Hindu and Amol Gokhale hold this new year’s Test and the Test series under the microscope in this special episode of Weekly Katta…भारत विरुद्ध दक्षिण आफ्रिकेची...

2023 was a largely successful year for Indian sports, Indian athletes put up their best performance in the Asian Games in Hangzhou. Indian shooters bagged 22 medals including seven gold medals. Anjali Bhagwat is still a premier name in the Indian shooting fraternity but her expertise isn’t limited to shooting only. In this year-ender episode of Kattyavarchya Gappa, Amol Gokhale and Anjali Bhagwat review what 2023 looked like for Indian Sports with one eye on the 2024 Paris Olympics.   २०२३...

The first Weekly Katta of 2024 is all about what lies ahead for the sports lovers in this leap year. Months of June, July and August will see the T20 World Cup, the Euros, the Copa America and the Olympics taking the sports fever to the next level. For Indian Cricket fans, the year is divided in a rather strange way. The T20 bonanza of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the T20 World Cup is sandwiched between marquee Test series against England and Australia. Amol Gokhale and Amol Karhadkar,...

वर्ल्ड कप अंतिम सामन्याची निराशा दक्षिण आफ्रिकेतील कसोटी मालिकेतील विजयाने भारतीय संघ भरून काढेल? रोहित शर्माच्या फौजेसमोर काय आव्हाने आहेत? बलाढ्य विरोधी संघ, दक्षिण आफ्रिकेतील अवघड परिस्थिती, का शामीची अनुपस्थिती? भारताचा संघ काय असेल 'बॉक्सिंग डे' कसोटीत? आणि भारत खरंच सर करू शकेल 'फायनल फ्रंटियर'? आदित्य जोशी व अमोल कऱ्हाडकर, 'द हिंदू' चे क्रीडापत्रकार, चर्चा करत आहेत भारताच्या विजयाच्या शक्यतेची, हार्दिक पंड्याच्या फिटनेसबद्दल व टॉम करनच्या चुकीबद्दलCan India overcome the disappointment...

The younger sibling usually follows in the footsteps of the elder one. However, Shubham Shinde was inspired after seeing his younger brother Aditya on the field. Turning out for Bengal Warriors, Shubham is into his fifth season of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL), while Aditya is playing his debut season with the same franchise. The siblings from Konkan share their Kabaddi journey with Amol Gokhale on Kattyavarchya Gappa… लहान भावंडं सहसा मोठ्या भावंडाचं सहजी अनुकरण करतात. पण शुभम शिंदेने कबड्डी...

७२ खेळाडू. २३०.४५ कोटींची उधळण. सर्वात मोठी बोली. आणि देशांतर्गत खेळाडूंची चांदी. IPL च्या १७ व्या लिलावाचा आढावा घेत आहेत अमोल गोखले व दुबईहून 'द हिंदू' साठी ऑक्शन वृत्तांकानासाठी गेलेला अमोल कऱ्हाडकर... 72 players were sold. Rs 230.45 crore were splurged. The highest bid ever in an IPL Auction was witnessed. And the relatively unknown domestic cricketers joined the Crorepati Club. Amol Gokhale and Amol Karhadkar, who covered the auction in Dubai for The Hindu, recap the 17th player auction...

The stage is set for the IPL auction on December 19. Why this 'mini' auction matters? Which 'uncapped' players should one watch out for? How do IPL teams decide which player they want to 'go for'? Who will be a millionaire after the IPL? Which international stars will spark a bidding war? Troika of Sports Katta - Aditya Joshi, Amol Karhadkar, Sports Journalist, The Hindu, and Amol Gokhale explore various facets of the auction in this IPL auction special… २०२४ IPL साठी प्लेयर ऑक्शन ज्याला...

The first season of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) was a hit. The auction is an integral part of WPL and ahead of the second season, a mini auction will take place in Mumbai on December 9. Ahead of the WPL auction, here are the things you should know, Indian and foreign players to watch out for and how teams are stacked. Amol Gokhale explains on Weekly Katta… वूमेन्स प्रीमियर लीगचा (WPL) पहिला सिझन यशस्वी झाला. दुसऱ्या सिझनच्या आधी अर्थातच खेळाडूंचा लिलाव म्हणजे auction होणार आहे मुंबईत ९...

Team India has already put the World cup final loss behind them. The team management and the selectors are already planning for the 2024 T20 World Cup. The recently-concluded Australia T20 series and the forthcoming T20s in South Africa are a clear indication of it. They are looking at Suryakuamar Yadav as a potential captain for the World Cup, should the need arise. Is it justified? Closer home, in Mumbai, India women will also be preparing for the T20 World Cup  against England and...

One journalist, That's all. Rahul Patil is a Maharastrian born in Solapur, brought up in Goa and based in Wellington. He was the only Kiwi journalist who covered the 2023 Cricket World Cup in India. But that isn't his full-time job. He is a banker with ANZ, New Zealand's largest bank, and is a qualified umpire at club level in Wellington. That's not all. He is the manager of a national team of Cook Islands, a tiny country of 15,000 population in the Pacific Ocean. Rahul Patil shares his...