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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.

Internal Strife, Tribal Discontent in North Maharashtra

Updated: Oct 22, 2024

North Maharashtra

With barely a month to go for the Maharashtra Assembly election, the Mahayuti coalition, particularly the BJP, is grappling with a confluence of challenges that threaten its electoral prospects in north Maharashtra.


The perennial rivalry between veteran politician Eknath Khadse on the one hand, and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and his confidante, Girish Mahajan on the other, is emblematic of these problems.


Following Khadse’s departure from the BJP in 2020 to join Sharad Pawar’s NCP (SP), he has publicly declared that his return to the BJP is now a “closed option” due to what he describes as systematic humiliation at the hands of state party leaders.


Despite campaigning for his daughter-in-law Raksha Khadse during the Lok Sabha election, Khadse’s homecoming has been thwarted by internal opposition from Fadnavis and state minister Girish Mahajan.


The rivalry between Khadse and Mahajan epitomizes the personal stakes involved in the coming struggle. Both hail from Jalgaon, and their competition for dominance in the region has long been a source of ongoing strife. With daughter Rohini, who head the women’s wing in the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP), actively seeking a ticket for the Muktainagar assembly seat, the familial stakes further complicate the narrative even as Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule’s recent comments attempt to position Khadse as a BJP loyalist.


The BJP’s performance in the Lok Sabha elections earlier this year serves as a sobering reminder of their challenges in north Maharashtra. The MVA secured six of the eight seats in a region that had previously backed the BJP and the undivided Shiv Sena for over a decade. The Mahayuti coalition had managed to hold onto only two seats in Jalgaon district.


The discontent among tribal voters poses another significant hurdle as this demographic has leaned toward the opposition MVA during the recent Lok Sabha election, driven by grievances linked to the Shinde government’s plans to grant tribal status to the Dhangar community - a move perceived as jeopardizing their reservation entitlements.


In a bid to mitigate discontent, the Mahayuti has drastically adjusted its stance on agricultural policies, particularly concerning onion farmers whose discontentment was a major cause in the ruling coalition’s poor show in this region during the Lok Sabha polls. Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar’s public apology to farmers during a rally in Nashik in August reflects an awareness of the critical importance of rural support in the forthcoming elections.


The ruling Shiv Sena under CM Shinde has its own set of challenges here. A cohort of prominent Shiv Sena leaders - Gulabrao Patil, Dada Bhuse and Suhas Kande – who had joined Shinde in his 2022 revolt, will now have to prove their loyalty to their Chief minister and their mettle in securing the region’s critical votes for the Mahayuti.


Gulabrao Patil, the guardian minister for Jalgaon, has projected optimism, asserting that the Mahayuti alliance will make significant gains, claiming it can secure at least 35 seats in the region.


As the Mahayuti warily navigate north Maharashtra’s complex electoral waters, the interplay of community dynamics, policy adjustments and past grievances will prove whether Patil can make good of his boast.

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