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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.

PM Modi raised with Yunus India's concerns over safety of minorities in Bangladesh

  • PTI
  • Apr 4, 2025
  • 2 min read

Bangkok: Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his meeting with Bangladesh's Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus on Friday underlined India's concerns over the safety of minorities, including Hindus, and conveyed the expectation that the Bangladeshi government would ensure their security, including by thoroughly investigating cases of atrocities against them.


The two leaders met on the sidelines of the Summit meeting of the leaders of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral and Technical Cooperation (BIMSTEC) grouping. It was their first meeting since the ouster of prime minister Sheikh Hasina in August last year.


Briefing reporters on Modi's meeting with Yunus, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said Modi underlined India's concerns related to the safety and security of minorities in Bangladesh including Hindus.


PM Modi expressed his expectation that the government of Bangladesh would ensure their security, including by thoroughly investigating all cases of atrocities against the minorities, Misri said at the media briefing.


During the meeting, PM Modi also urged that any rhetoric that vitiates the environment is best avoided, the foreign secretary said.


Prime Minister Modi reiterated India's support for a democratic, stable, peaceful, progressive and inclusive Bangladesh.


"He underlined that India believed in a people-centric approach to the relationship and highlighted the cooperation between the two countries over a long period of time that has delivered tangible benefits to the people of both countries. In this spirit, he underlined to Professor Yunus India's desire to forge a positive and constructive relationship with Bangladesh based on a spirit of pragmatism," Misri said on the meeting.


During the meeting, the PM also talked about the border and the strict enforcement of the law and curbing illegal border crossings, especially at night for maintaining border security and stability.


Asked if Yunus raised the issue of the extradition of Hasina, Misri did not give a direct reply. He said it is not proper to talk about this issue at the moment and the ministry in the past has already said that it has received a request from Bangladesh.

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