top of page

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.

Satyajeet Tambe on way to BJP

Mumbai: Though, in a public interview he has denied any chances of joining the BJP and said that he is happy as an independent MLC, sources have said that former state youth Congress chief Satyajeet Tambe is likely to join the BJP sometime soon.


Tambe faced expulsion from the Congress two years back when he rebelled against the party to file his nomination from the Nashik graduates’ constituency of the state legislative council. It was said that he would join the BJP someday when he won the election. The speculation got air after he showered praises on Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for his efficiency and leadership all the while criticizing the Congress leadership in Delhi as well as the state for the sorry state of affairs in the party.


Tambe, while replying to queries during a public interview organized by Sakal Media Group, complimented CM Fadnavis for his style of working and said he reminds former union minister and senior Congress leader Vilasrao Deshmukh.


“What any party worker wants from a leader that he should be a large hearted one and that he should be accessible. Fadnavis has both these qualities. If you go to him with any work he would do that immediately without even thinking of profit and loss. He is popular among all parties as a leader who gets you work done even on an SMS,” Tambe said adding that these qualities in him remind me of Vilasrao Deshmukh, who also used to be always ready with a helping hand.


Praising Fadnavis

While praising Fadnavis for his accessibility on one hand, Tambe criticized Rahul Gandhi for his inaccessibility. Stating that though the party is in trouble, the leaders are not accessible even to the state leadership. He challenged the state leadership of the Congress party to get an appointment with Rahul Gandhi and meet him at a short notice of one hour. Tambe narrate his own experience to blame the coterie of leaders around Gandhi for the current sorry state of affairs within the party.


“I tried meeting him while he was on the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Punjab, but I couldn’t get any response. Later when the contact was established, I was summoned to Delhi. But, I was not allowed to meet him. After this happened a couple of times, I stopped the efforts. My father, who is a hard core Congress worker too wrote three letters. He too didn’t get any response,” Tambe said and added, “This shows that lack of accessibility is the biggest drawback of the Congress.”


Tambe also said that the Congress party doesn’t seem to have any future left in Indian politics. “They lack a clear political policy. It appears as if nobody in the party is seriously thinking about it and hence at times their stand appears to be anti-India stand,” he said.


On this backdrop, when he was asked whether he would be joining the BJP, he said, "I'm not very keen on that. There are leaders like Fadnavis, there are others who guide me in things like these. Whenever they would tell me, I shall do that. But as of now I'm an independent and I'm happy as an independent."

Comments

bottom of page