Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
26 July 2010, 07:41 PM IST
The best story for me about the 26/7 Mumbai floods whose fifth anniversary we observed in Mumbai on July 26, 2010 was that of an Air India fast bowler and TV serial actor from UP, Bhupinder Singh, who saved the lives of nearly 30 people. He used get nightmares...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
22 July 2010, 07:51 PM IST
As Muttiah Muralitharan walked into Test history after the Galle Test with the magic bag of 800 wickets, one's thoughts turned to a cricket novel whose central character has a stark resemblance to Murali.
Not long ago, Murali got his famous freak wrist...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
22 July 2010, 12:36 PM IST
A great sporting debate is on: which is the greatest show on earth — Olympic Games or World Cup Soccer? I would say the Olympic Games are the greatest spectacle on earth because of the sheer variety of feats of human skills that are portrayed over the...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
20 July 2010, 12:00 AM IST
One read with trepidation the news of former India hockey captain Pargat Singh throwing his hat in the ring for presidentship of Hockey India. Pargat was part of the saga of two curses that may be marring India's future in the sport every now and again. Would...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
19 July 2010, 05:56 PM IST
South African Louis Oosthuizen's win in the British Open golf and the absence of any Indian at this mega event brought memories of a South African of Indian origin who had reached the pinnacle of golf but never got his due owing to...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
16 July 2010, 03:09 PM IST
As another young lady, Mrs Sakshi Dhoni, joins the list of cricketer wives (and not girlfriends club ), one is tempted to go down memory lane about cricketer wives who were also referered to as 'cricket widows' because of the duration of the lonely period they...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
14 July 2010, 12:23 AM IST
Who is India's best table tennis player of all time? The question is prompted by our modern great, Achanta Sharath Kamal, winning the Egyptian Open on the heels of the US Open.
Is it Sharath because he all but beat the three-times world champion Chinese...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
05 July 2010, 08:22 PM IST
Bishen Singh Bedi, the wizard of the Golden Quartet, harping on the subject of chucking was befitting the occasion: the second Dilip Sardesai memorial lecture at that home of cricket, the Cricket Club of India, on July 3. Sardesai, who died two years ago, was...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
03 July 2010, 01:32 PM IST
There was no chance for me to celebrate International Sports Journalists Day on July 2 as there was work, work and work. And the usual tight-rope walking, balancing act you call it. Why because of my penchant over the last 40 years to provide a...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
26 June 2010, 04:54 PM IST
Father's day dawned cruelly for the children of a Test cricketer of the past. On that day sons Sushil, Sandeep, Pradeep and daughter Sujata had to bid farewell to GR Sunderam, fast bowler of the 1950s who passed away in the wee hours. Also orphaned were...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
14 June 2010, 06:28 PM IST
A great sporting debate is on: which is the greatest show on earth -- Olympic Games or World Cup Soccer? I would say the Olympic Games are the greatest spectacle on earth because of the sheer variety of feats of human skills that are portrayed over the...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
30 May 2010, 05:53 PM IST
As India play China in the Asian series rugby 15s tournament in Delhi on June 2 a myriad thoughts about the fledgling sport pass through the mind.
About how an Irishman Leybourne Callaghan did his best to promote the sport in Mumbai in the 70s. He...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
23 May 2010, 03:23 PM IST
So what were one's neutral thoughts of Saturday night's Champions League final that Inter Milan won for the first time since 1945 beating oft-winners Bayern Munich? Well victory went to the side that made things happen. Whether it was producing...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
20 May 2010, 11:57 PM IST
Cricket too cumbersome to get into multi-games? Not so. The ICC should try this event. It's a Cricket Challenge competition which throws up the best batter, bowler and fielder.
This is how it is played. Get all the batsmen into a draw of whatever number:...
Posted By
Pradeep Vijaykar
17 May 2010, 09:42 PM IST
England's bridesmaid story at World Cups had to end some day. It did at an opportune time at Bridgetown, home to some of the world's greatest cricketers, when they beat the old enemy Australia by seven wickets to win the T20 World Cup 2010.
...
Pradeep Vijayakar is an assistant editor at The Times of India. He has played cricket (alongside Sunil Gavaskar and Ashok Mankad at college), table tennis and squash, and loves to swim. He is a qualified squash and cricket coach. A 40-year veteran of journalism, he has covered five cricket World Cups since 1979, world-level billiards, snooker, squash and other events like bridge, kabaddi and martial arts. He has done commentary for Doordarshan and All India Radio, written several cricket tour books and wrote India's first cricket play 'Shapoorjee Sokajee' in 2008. He has taught at UPG and KC College insitutues of journalism and was course director for communcation and writing at the Times School of Media Studies, Mumbai. He has worked for Hi Young People's Newspaer, Free Press Journal, Sportsweek and, since 1974, The Times of India.
This blog is meant to provide vicarious pleasure to sports lovers. As a sports writer and broadcaster, Pradeep Vijaykar has been sharing with sports lovers the pleasure he derives from watching and following more than 25 sports.
The views expressed in Sportvicarious are the author´s own.
