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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.

Political Realignment

Updated: Oct 21, 2024

As Maharashtra’s Assembly elections inch ever closer, the political landscape is undergoing rapid shifts. The Rashtriya Samaj Paksha (RSP), led by Mahadev Jankar, has formally exited the Eknath Shinde-led Mahayuti alliance, delivering a significant blow to the coalition. Jankar, an influential Dhangar leader who once vowed to dislodge the formidable Pawar clan from their stronghold in Baramati, is now positioning himself as an independent player, having announced his intent to field candidates in all 288 constituencies.


This development underscores the growing disgruntlement among smaller parties within the NDA, exemplified by Jankar’s grievances over seat allocation and perceived neglect. While he may be a ‘lesser’ ally for the BJP, Jankar’s influence among the Dhangar community in western Maharashtra cannot be underestimated. His bold challenge to NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule during the 2014 Lok Sabha contest in Baramati saw Ms. Sule winning narrowly, but the outcome showcased Jankar’s potential to disrupt entrenched political hierarchies.


Ahead of the Lok Sabha election this year, NCP (SP) patriarch Sharad Pawar had attempted to woo parties like Jankar’s Rashtriya Samaj Paksha (RSP) to discomfiture the Mahayuti. Pawar senior has offered Mr. Jankar the chance to contest the Madha Lok Sabha seat which the latter had cordially turned down. But the offer was indicative of the fact that Jankar, hitherto a sworn political nemesis of Sharad Pawar, was now more than willing to bury the hatchet.


It will be a supreme irony if Jankar, who had once vowed to destroy Baramati, now ends up on Sharad Pawar’s side, aiding the opposition Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) directly or indirectly while denting the BJP and the Mahayuti.


The BJP has long courted the Dhangar community, initially luring its leaders like Jankar with promises of reservation ahead of the 2014 Assembly election. The BJP had even inducted Jankar into the state cabinet and commissioned the Tata Institute of Social Sciences to study the community’s socio-economic conditions. In 2017, then Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis sought to rename Solapur University after Punyashlok Ahilyabai Holkar, the 18th-century Maratha queen revered by the Dhangars.


Despite these placatory gestures, the Dhangar community remains in the Vimukta Jati and Nomadic Tribes (VJNT) category and has now intensified its demands for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status, particularly in light of the Maratha quota agitation, thus putting the Mahayuti in a fix. The BJP has already lost an erstwhile NDA constituent in form of Raju Shetti’s Swambhimani Shetkari Sanghatana (SSS). Shetti, a prominent voice for farmers in the ‘sugar heartland’ in western Maharashtra, has oscillated between alliances and has now opted to fight independently. With the loss of key smaller partners, the upcoming election will be a tough test of the BJP’s ability to address regional identities and local issues independently.

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