Even as the IPL is nearing its business end, BCCI has sounded the bugle, inviting applications for the potential successor of Indian team head coach Rahul Dravid. This move comes as Rahul Dravid's tenure ends after the T20 World Cup in 2024. According to sources, India may hire a foreign head coach after nearly a decade. Notable triumphs under prior foreign coaches, such as John Wright and Gary Kirsten, make this option appealing. Wright led India to the 2003 ODI World Cup finals, and...

Kolkata became the first team to qualify for the IPL 2024 playoffs. After being a mid-table struggler in the last few seasons, KKR has been the team to beat this season. And it’s no coincidence that Gautam Gambhir returned to the side as their mentor. Under Gambhir, KKR played like champions and won two titles -- in 2012 and 2014. However, a few pundits, including the legendary Sunil Gavaskar, have questioned if giving all the credit to Gautam Gambhir is fair. Ian Bishop, former West Indies...

A Virat Kohli-inspired RCB is somehow alive in the playoffs race. From looking destined for an early exit to winning four matches on a trot, RCB has scripted quite a turnaround in IPL 2024. Much of RCB's turnaround has to be credited to Kohli. Shutting down all his critics, he has let his bat do the talking and made a statement with his match-winning contributions to RCB in their last three games. RCB's fourth straight win meant PBKS became the second team to get knocked out of the IPL 2024...

Sunil Gavaskar shredded Virat Kohli's arguments into pieces. In one of the most straightforward pieces of television commentary, the legendary India batter lashed out at Virat Kohli, who had questioned his critics and the credibility of people who spoke about his strike rate. Kohli has often stressed the importance of not listening to outside noise, but it seems the superstar batter lets criticism affect him. In a strongly worded post-match interview midway through the IPL 2024 season, he...

India has named a 15-man squad with four reserve players under Rohit Sharma's leadership for the T20 World Cup 2024. While the top order is heavily stacked with experienced veterans like Rohit, Virat Kohli, and Suryakumar, the squad is completed by four spinners, three pacers, and two wicketkeepers. There was a joy for Sanju Samson and Yuzvendra Chahal, but despair for Rinku Singh, one of India's brightest T20 finds, who was dropped to reserves when the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee...

We are living in Virat Kohli's world. The RCB star first hit out the GT bowlers for a match-winning unbeaten 70 and then tore into critics of his strike rate and his often-questioned ability to play against spinners in the middle overs. Kohli's remarks have been met with contrasting reactions. While a few lauded Kohli for giving it back, others have questioned the need to go after critics after having had issues while facing spin in the past. Well, what truly matters is that Virat Kohli is...

The public seems to think Virat Kohli’s place in the T20 World Cup is a given. However, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru superstar shot himself in the foot when he came up with a snoozefest in Hyderabad in RCB’s win over SunRisers on April 25, days ahead of the T20 World Cup selection meeting. Yes, Virat Kohli deserves another shot at the T20 World Cup, but will his inclusion do more harm than good to Team India? Can he bat at No. 3, considering his struggles against spin, especially after...

We are halfway through the IPL 2024 season. While the playoffs race is heating up, the focus is also on the T20 World Cup squad selection, which is set to be done before May 1. Yes, many young names have performed wonderfully well, but will the selectors make bold calls and reward them? Should an aggressive and in-form batter like Abhishek Sharma, who has been one of the pillars of SRH’s batting brutality, be picked for the T20 World Cup, starting June 1? Then, there is Riyan Parag, who has...

The Impact Player rule has helped unearth gems like Ashutosh Sharma, who is making waves in the IPL 2024 season. The 25-year-old from Madhya Pradesh and Shashank Singh have been the usual suspects for PBKS in an otherwise floundering batting line-up. But, several cricketers have raised concerns about the Impact Player rule. Yes, record-breaking scores of 270 and 280 add much flair to the viewing experience. But it's removing the balance between bat and ball as teams get an extra specialist...

What's it with Rajasthan Royals and their strong starts? Their fans start getting nervous when they win a couple of matches on the trot. We have seen the Royals slipping from comfortable positions in the past. Are they a victim of their own genius? Yes, they returned to winning ways by beating Punjab in Mullanpur. But why send Tanush Kotian to open the innings? Kotian, an off-spinner who bats at No. 8 and No. 9 for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy, did not bowl at all. Who is responsible for making...

After the RCB women's side won the WPL 2024, there was hope and expectation that the men's side would do better and finally win the season this time. However, RCB being RCB have started the tournament on a horrific note with five losses and one win in the first six matches of IPL 2024. In fact, MI handed the Bengaluru side a thumping seven-wicket hammering at Wankhede and now RCB are languishing in the 9th position. RCB were so bad that after the loss, captain Faf du Plessis conceded that his...

Virat Kohli hit another T20 hundred, his 8th IPL century but RCB lost yet again. Kohli anchored RCB's innings with a brilliant 113 off 72 balls, while the rest of the team could only muster 59 off 48 balls. Despite receiving 11 extra runs from RR, RCB's total never posed a threat as RR comfortably chased it down with 5 deliveries and 6 wickets to spare. Despite losing Yashasvi Jaiswal early, RR's Jos Buttler and Sanju Samson capitalized on the favorable batting conditions, with Buttler...

It’s 2024. RCB won the Women’s Premier League title and it was expected to inspire the men in the IPL. Two weeks into the IPL 2024 season, RCB look like they would end up with the wooden spoon, again! Virat Kohli is waging a lone battle, trying to shoulder the burden of scoring runs in an otherwise faltering batting line-up. Let’s not talk too much in detail about RCB’s bowling attack. It’s dysfunctional. Did they lose it at the auction table? What should RCB do to find success in the...

Vintage MS Dhoni is back? Did the Super King underestimate himself? After not getting an opportunity to bat at home in Chennai's first two IPL 2024 matches, Dhoni lit up Visakhapatnam with a sensational knock of 36 from just 17 balls. Chennai lost to Delhi, but CSK fans celebrated the final six from Dhoni as the decibel levels hit the roof in Vizag. Just a reminder, the Sledging Room podcast will have two episodes per week during the duration of the IPL. Dhoni's 3 sixes were enough...

The IPL 2024 season could not have asked for a better start as the first-round matches lived up to the hype. While Ruturaj Gaikwad has found success and love as new CSK captain, Hardik Pandya's stint as MI captain has had an interesting start. In a never-seen-before moment in franchise cricket, Hardik Pandya was booed by fans at the Narendra Modi Stadium. Yes, the feeling of Ahmedabad fans was understandable. The boos were completely okay as the emotion of the fans was a reminder of the...

Ee Sala Cup Namdhu! The long wait has ended. Royal Challengers Bengaluru fans can finally rejoice as Smriti Mandhana and her team have won a trophy for RCB as their Women's Premier League campaign ended on a triumphant note. More than RCB's victory, the packed crowds at the Women's Premier League matches are another message to the naysayers of women's cricket. And we are just days away from the start of the biggest T20 carnival of the year, the Indian Premier League. Can RCB complete a...

It's that time of the year when fan wars become a norm. Yes, it's time for another season of the Indian Premier League. Before previewing and analysing the strengths and weaknesses of the ten teams, let's give you a brief on the major talking points in the lead-up to IPL 2024. Oh, and all Bazball sympathisers, it's time to concede defeat. India hammered England 4-1 to kill the hype around England's much-talked-about approach to Test cricket. Also, it's time to credit the BCCI for trying...

We are officially in the IPL month. And SunRisers Hyderabad have sounded the bugle with a change in captaincy.  Australia's World Cup-winning skipper Pat Cummins takes over SRH from Aiden Markram, who did not have the greatest of seasons last year with the team. With the change in captaincy, SRH hope to get over their terrible memories from the last season where they finished with the wooden spoon. What made SRH make this captaincy move? Cummins' IPL pay cheque of Rs 20.50 crore or his...

It's time to concede defeat. Yes, those who backed England to strike again in the Test series were proved wrong. The final nail in England's coffin was hit by a young brigade led by Rohit Sharma, which found new heroes in the absence of their established mainstays. Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Dhruv Jurel, Sarfaraz Khan, Akash Deep and Kuldeep Yadav have also stepped up and delivered big for the team, under the able guidance of Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid. India have found new heroes...

Well, is it time to write Bazball's obituary? It seems so as Ben Stokes's led touring side was hammered by 434 runs, their biggest margin of defeat since World War II, in Rajkot. It was a proper statement from Rohit Sharma and his men as England failed to walk the talk. Despite the defeat, Ben Stokes was bullish that England will not change their approach. He labeled criticism, some of them constructive, as 'outside noise'. Head coach Brendon McCullum echoed the thoughts of Stokes, saying...

Yes, the cricket world is waiting for the India vs England series to resume. After two intense Tests in Hyderabad and Vizag, there was a lull before the storm as the teams enjoyed a week’s break. But, plenty happened. Even as the buzz has been around the Rajkot Test, a BCCI diktat to players dominated the narrative on social media. Reports have suggested that BCCI was not happy with players skipping Ranji Trophy duties to prepare for IPL 2024. Why should the players prioritise Ranji...

Yes, Jasprit Bumrah bowled one of the greatest spells of reverse swing bowling by an Indian fast bowler in Vizag. But, what about R Ashwin? 9 wickets in 2 Tests while Tom Hartley, who made his debut in Hyderabad, has 5 more than the Indian off-spinner. Is it just a lean patch for R Ashwin or is that he needs rank-turners to pick up heaps of wickets? Well, we are not saying this. On several occasions, former spinners have attributed Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja's incredible numbers to the...

Okay, let’s start with an apology. An apology to England, their captain Ben Stokes, their head coach ‘Baz’ McCullum and their much-talked-about approach, Bazball. Bazball won’t work in Pakistan, they said. Bazball won’t work against Australia in the Ashes, they said.  Bazball has no chance against India in India, they said.  Stokes’s all-conquering England side have proved naysayers wrong, and have done so in some style with the flair and fearlessness that McCullum was known for in his...

Barring the circus in Pakistan cricket, nothing has offfered more entertainment to world cricket like the Bazball in the last two years. The term was coined by an English journalist and it is derived from England men's Test team head coach Brendon McCullum's nickname 'Baz'. Does the legendary batter approve of it? Well, no! Brendon McCullum hates generalising England's new approach and the coinage of the term 'Bazball'. He believes there is more to their approach than just scoring at close...