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By:

Bhalchandra Chorghade

11 August 2025 at 1:54:18 pm

Applause for Cricket, Silence for Badminton

Mumbai: When Lakshya Sen walked off the court after the final of the All England Badminton Championships, he carried with him the disappointment of another near miss. The Indian shuttler went down in straight games to Lin Chun-Yi, who created history by becoming the first player from Chinese Taipei to lift the prestigious title. But the story of Lakshya Sen’s defeat is not merely about badminton final. It is also about the contrasting way India celebrates its sporting heroes. Had the same...

Applause for Cricket, Silence for Badminton

Mumbai: When Lakshya Sen walked off the court after the final of the All England Badminton Championships, he carried with him the disappointment of another near miss. The Indian shuttler went down in straight games to Lin Chun-Yi, who created history by becoming the first player from Chinese Taipei to lift the prestigious title. But the story of Lakshya Sen’s defeat is not merely about badminton final. It is also about the contrasting way India celebrates its sporting heroes. Had the same narrative unfolded on a cricket field, the reaction would have been dramatically different. In cricket, even defeat often becomes a story of heroism. A hard-fought loss by the Indian team can dominate television debates, fill newspaper columns and trend across social media for days. A player who narrowly misses a milestone is still hailed for his fighting spirit. The nation rallies around its cricketers not only in victory but also in defeat. The narrative quickly shifts from the result to the effort -- the resilience shown, the fight put up, the promise of future triumph. This emotional investment is one of the reasons cricket enjoys unparalleled popularity in India. It has built a culture where players become household names and their performances, good or bad, become part of the national conversation. Badminton Fights Contrast that with what happens in sports like badminton. Reaching the final of the All England Championships is a monumental achievement. The tournament is widely considered badminton’s equivalent of Wimbledon in prestige and tradition. Only the very best players manage to reach its final stages, and doing it twice speaks volumes about Lakshya Sen’s ability and consistency. Yet the reaction in India remained largely subdued. There were congratulatory posts, some headlines acknowledging the effort and brief discussions among badminton enthusiasts. But the level of national engagement never quite matched the magnitude of the achievement. In a cricketing context, reaching such a stage would have triggered days of celebration and analysis. In badminton, it often becomes just another sports update. Long Wait India’s wait for an All England champion continues. The last Indian to win the title was Pullela Gopichand in 2001. Before him, Prakash Padukone had scripted history in 1980. These victories remain among the most significant milestones in Indian badminton. And yet, unlike cricketing triumphs that are frequently revisited and celebrated, such achievements rarely stay in the mainstream sporting conversation for long. Lakshya Sen’s journey to the final should ideally have been viewed as a continuation of that legacy, a reminder that India still possesses the talent to challenge the world’s best in badminton. Instead, it risks fading quickly from public memory. Visibility Gap The difference ultimately comes down to visibility and cultural investment. Cricket in India is not merely a sport; it is an ecosystem built over decades through media attention, sponsorship, and mass emotional attachment. Individual sports, on the other hand, often rely on momentary bursts of recognition, usually during Olympic years or when a medal is won. But consistent performers like Lakshya Sen rarely receive the sustained spotlight that their achievements deserve. This disparity can also influence the next generation. Young athletes are naturally drawn to sports where success brings recognition, financial stability and national fame. When one sport monopolises the spotlight, others struggle to build similar appeal. Beyond Result Lakshya Sen may have finished runner-up again, but his performance at the All England Championship is a reminder that India continues to produce world-class athletes in disciplines beyond cricket. The real issue is not that cricket receives immense attention -- it deserves the admiration it gets. The concern is that athletes from other sports often do not receive comparable appreciation for achievements that are equally significant in their own arenas. If India aspires to become a truly global sporting nation, its applause must grow broader. Sporting pride cannot remain confined to one field. Because somewhere on a badminton court, an athlete like Lakshya Sen is fighting just as hard for the country’s colours as any cricketer on a packed stadium pitch. The only difference is how loudly the nation chooses to cheer.

Cash Cricket

Updated: Nov 29, 2024

The IPL mega auction, once a mechanism for building teams, has evolved into an unapologetic display of cricket’s commercialization. Recently, the gavel fell in Jeddah with a record-shattering bid for Rishabh Pant, sold to Lucknow Super Giants for Rs. 27 crore, making him the most expensive player in the league’s history. Pant’s price tag eclipsed the earlier record set moments before when Punjab Kings shelled out Rs. 26.75 crore for Shreyas Iyer. The spectacle reeked not of cricketing merit but of a bidding frenzy where franchises flexed their financial muscles in pursuit of stardom.


The sums are staggering. On the first day alone, franchises spent Rs. 467.95 crore to buy 72 players, making millionaires of many in mere minutes. Auctions have always been a highlight of the IPL, but their evolution from modest beginnings to today’s theatrical extravaganza reflects a profound shift in cricket’s priorities.


While the IPL’s defenders tout its global appeal and revenue-generating prowess, the league’s relentless commercialization has cast a long shadow over cricket’s purist format—Test cricket. Test matches now seem like an afterthought to many players brought up in the T20 era. Young cricketers, seduced by the financial windfall of IPL contracts, are increasingly prioritizing the shorter format, often at the expense of mastering the techniques that are the bedrock of Test cricket. Batsmen struggle to build long innings, bowlers are optimized for death overs rather than endurance, and fielding techniques are tailored for acrobatic catches rather than consistent precision.


The rise of cricket mercenaries—players who hop between leagues for the highest bidder—has further eroded the sport’s traditional ethos. Consider the careers of players like Chris Gayle and Kieron Pollard, who excelled as globe-trotting T20 stars but left only fleeting legacies in Tests. Even promising talents from cricketing powerhouses such as India, Australia and England now risk being pigeonholed as T20 specialists.


Historically, cricket’s icons were defined by their exploits in the longest format. Test cricket-built legends, honing skills that translated into true greatness. Today’s players often find themselves at the mercy of IPL schedules, sacrificing preparatory time for bilateral Test series or domestic tournaments. Even fitness regimens are adapted for the high-octane demands of T20 cricket.


Some argue that the IPL has democratized cricket, enabling players from small towns to share dressing rooms with international stars. While this is true, the league’s structure perpetuates a mercenary mindset. The very auction that enriches players also ensures their loyalty is to franchises, not cricket boards or national teams. The IPL’s triumph is cricket’s tragedy. By reducing the sport to a glittering spectacle of cash and celebrity, it has turned cricketers into commodities. While the IPL may have enriched careers, it has impoverished cricket’s soul.

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