The Kapil Dev of Delhi that India denied

November 17, 2012
KapilNew Delhi, November 17: His achievements for Delhi are comparable with Steven Gerrard's for Liverpool and Ryan Giggs' for Manchester United. He plays with the same heart and passion as a Leander Paes for India in the Davis Cup. He has worked day in and day out, burnt midnight oil, given it all he has and taken Delhi to the pinnacle through his sheer commitment, hardwork, dedication and determination.


The unassuming and grounded old war-horse - Rajat Bhatia is a man of few words who lets his performances on the field do the talking. An extraordinary all-rounder, his feats speak for themselves. In 74 first-class matches, he has scored 4242 runs at an average of 48.20 with 11 centuries. A member of the MRF Pace Foundation when he was young, his efforts with the ball have been equally impressive. He has picked up 88 wickets conceding just 28.39 runs per dismissal.

He was the unsung hero of Delhi's Ranji triumph in 2007. He scored a whopping 512 runs in 7 matches and also picked up 26 wickets at an astonishing 12.65 per wicket. Despite turning the match on its head with a brilliant, fighting and counter-attacking 139 in the 1st innings in the Final, which was actually the performance of the match, much of the credit went to the skipper Gautam Gambhir for his 2nd innings ton and to Pradeep Sangwan for his 9 wickets.

Bhatia spoke to Cricbuzz about how he felt about the same. "I have never looked for rewards and accolades. I just go there and give my 100% every time I turn out on the cricket field. If my contributions are recognized, I am grateful and if they are not, I take it as a part of life and move on. No point holding any grudges."

He started his career at Tamil Nadu as he had completed his education from there and had joined the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai under the guidance of TA Sekhar. He found it a bit difficult to get admission into a Delhi College as they were not willing to grant him leaves to practise his cricket. Moreover, coming from a humble and modest background, he wanted to establish himself financially and the clubs in Chennai were offering him a good deal.

Perhaps, Bhatia was India's answer to the elusive all-rounder that the national team so desperately seeked after the retirement of Kapil Dev. He may not have had the talent the great Indian all-rounder was gifted with but certainly deserved a chance to prove his worth. Many tipped him to break into the senior Indian team at various points in the middle of 2000s but the selectors ignored this all-rounder of great potential and turned their backs on him - a true and deserving cricketer lost in the politics of the Indian Board. When asked about when he thought was the opportune time for him to make that cut to international cricket, Bhatia said, " I feel the opportune time for me was in 2001 when India toured Zimbabwe. But I was ignored. Despite performing consistently well in domestic cricket, I wasn't even selected for the Challenger Trophy and never received a call from the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore. My state Board did not back me." The disappointment was quite evident in his voice.

"The most the Indian Board has done for me is to send me to an India-A tour of Israel when I was left out from the national team's tour to Australia." Then almost changing the tone, he remarked humourously, "At least they did send me for that promotional tour to Israel. I must thank them for that. I got to see Jerusalem as a tourist and absolutely loved it - so much history and culture".


On what kept the motivation going even after the frustration of not being selected for the national team, Rajat said, "Of course there was frustration and a tinge of sadness. But there was no time and no point in regretting. I had to move forward. I love the game and that is what kept me going day in and day out. I wanted to set an example to other youngsters who if faced with a similar situation, should not give up but just continue to work hard and spread the positive energy. There is a lot of pleasure in playing domestic cricket."


Bhatia also spoke about the dwindling fortunes of Delhi after the Golden Era between 1976-1991. "Collectively, I think we did not get a bunch of good players together during this period. There were a few good cricketers but 2-3 players can't win you a game alone"


On players that have motivated him the first name he mentioned was that of Yuvraj Singh. "He was my room-mate when we played for India Under-19. I have seen many talented cricketers, but Yuvi is perhaps the most gifted. I always knew that he would come back with a bang from the illness as he has always been a fighter. When he won the World Cup in 2011, I told him that he was born to win us the Cup. Now he is desperate to prove himself and leave a mark in Tests as well. I wish him all the best"


"Of course, Sachin has been a great source of inspiration for all of us. We literally worship him. Another cricketer for whom I have a lot of admiration and have shared the dressing room with in the IPL for Kolkatta Knight Riders is, Jacques Kallis. His physical fitness amazes me. His dedication and love for the game is unparalleled. He has taken so much burden on his shoulders and come out with aplomb"

Amongst domestic players, he said he could relate to Amol Muzumdar and Mithun Manhas amongst others, who have done remarkably well for their respective states but have been unlucky having not made the cut to the senior level.

He added that his brother who played club cricket was a big source of inspiration for him.

Bhatia is from the old-school of thought and he firmly belives that Test cricket is the purest form of cricket and what one learns from playing the domestic seasons for their state sides can't be compared to the IPL or T20 cricket. He says, "A good Test player can be a good T20 player but the contrary is not always true."


He added that the experiences of the IPL and the CLT20 had been memorable and he had learnt a lot from sharing the KKR dressing room with the likes of Jacques Kallis, Brett Lee and Sunil Narine.

On what his future plans are, Bhatia replied, "I just want to enjoy my cricket and not think about anything else. I do not set any goals for myself anymore. I don't want to end with any regrets."


He also had a message for the youngsters who are passionate about cricket and want to pursue it as a career. "The first message I would like to give to all budding cricketers is to have passion for the game and then strive hard to work towards your goal. There is no substitute for hardwork. Be a good student of the game. Try and play for the same team and don't frequently change states for minor interests. Be disciplined and keep reasonable goals for yourself."

He may not have the flamboyance of Virat Kohli, the sheer gift and ruthlessness of Virender Sehwag or the aggression of Gautam Gambhir, but one thing was sure - that with a lot of hardwork, passion and determination , even the less talented mortals can dare to dream and in Rajat's case, even the so called 'ordinary' can achieve the 'extraordinary'.

May be the fortunes of Delhi would be revived, when one of her most faithful and loyal servants, Rajat Bhatia makes a comeback, for the team would be desperate for someone of his experience and guile to take them to the top again.



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News Network
January 31,2020

New Delhi, Jan 31: Indian women's team captain Rani Rampal on Thursday became the first-ever hockey player to win the prestigious 'World Games Athlete of the Year' award.

The World Games announced the winner on Thursday after 20 days of polling by sports fans world-wide.

"Indian hockey superstar Rani is The World Games Athlete of the Year 2019! Huge congratulations!," the World Games said in a statement.

"With an impressive number of votes, 199,477, Rani is the clear winner of the Athlete of the Year race, where sports fans all over the world have voted for their favourite during 20 days of polling in January. All in all, over 705,610 votes were cast during the poll," it added.

Last year, India won the FIH Series Finals, and Rani was named Player of the Tournament. Under Rani's leadership, the Indian women's team qualified for just the third Olympic Games in its history.

"I dedicate this award to the entire hockey fraternity, my team and my country. This success has only become possible with the love and support from hockey lovers, fans, my team, coaches, Hockey India, my government, friends from Bollywood, fellow sportspersons and my countrymen who have continuously voted for me," said Rani, who was recently named among the Padma Shri awardees.

"Special thanks to FIH for nominating me for this prestigious award. Thank you to The World Games Federation for this recognition," she added.

Rani further said after a successful 2019, she is now looking forward to achieving greater heights with the national team in 2020, which also happens to be an Olympic year.

"It is my privilege and honour to win this award. It is always nice when your country recognises your effort. It is even better when the international sports community recognises it. Thank you so much to everyone who voted for me," she said.

"2019 was a great year for our team because we qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. As a team we want to make 2020 a great year!"

Rani, who has been a member of the national team since she was a 15-years-old, currently has more than 240 caps for India.

"Rani is an inspirational athlete, and a role model for many in India. It was amazing to see the support the Indians, even as high up as Mr Rijiju, the Minister of State, Youth Affairs and Sports, gave to her in this vote together with the Hockey fans all around the world. This is what sport is about: uniting people from different backgrounds and different countries," said International World Games Association President Jose Perurena.

The International Hockey Federation also congratulated Rani on being named for the award.

"Congratulations @imranirampal for becoming the first ever Hockey athlete to win the prestigious @TheWorldGames Athlete of the Year award!" the FIH, who nominated Rani for the award, said in its twitter handle.

"On behalf of FIH and the global hockey community, I would like to extend our warmest congratulations to Rani for having been voted The World Games Athlete of the Year 2019. This is an acknowledgement of her outstanding performances - together with her team-mates - and her dedication to hockey and her leadership," FIH CEO Thierry Weil said.

"This prestigious Award is also a great recognition for hockey globally. Furthermore, we are working hard for and looking forward to having Hockey 5s as a demonstration sport at The World Games 2021."

Congratulating Rani, Hockey India President Mohd Mushtaque Ahmad said, "This is a very proud moment for all of us. She is the first Indian athlete to win this award and through her achievements Rani has been able to draw a lot of attention towards women's hockey. Many people are aware of the team's recent accomplishments and I am confident this team is capable of winning larger goals and I wish Rani and the team best of luck this Olympic Year."

There were initially 25 nominees, male and female nominated by their respective sports federations, which was later reduced to 10 in the final round of public voting.

The FIH has recommended Rani's name for her outstanding performances and her ability to lead by example.

Karate star Stanislav Horuna of Ukraine was second behind Rani with over 92,000 votes and Canadian powerlifting world champion Rhaea Stinn was third.

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Agencies
August 9,2020

Manchester, Aug 9: Chris Woakes and Jos Buttler played knocks of 84 and 75 respectively as England gained an improbable three-wicket win over Pakistan in the first Test of the three-match series here at the Emirates Old Trafford.

England chased down a total of 277 on the fourth day of the first Test.

Chasing 277, England openers Rory Burns and Dom Sibley put on 22 runs for the first wicket, but Mohammad Abbas finally provided the breakthrough to Pakistan as he had Burns (10) adjudged leg-before wicket in the 12th over.

Skipper Joe Root came to the crease next, and he along with Sibley ensured that the side does not lose any more wickets before the lunch break, and England went into the lunch break at 55/1.

Sibley and Root eventually put up a 64-run stand, but their partnership was finally brought to an end by Yasir Shah as he dismissed Sibley (36) in the 36th over. Soon after, skipper Root (42) was also sent back to the pavilion by Naseem Shah, reducing England to 96/3 in the 39th over.

All eyes were on all-rounder Ben Stokes (9), but Pakistan's Yasir Shah sent him back to the pavilion in the 42nd over, and England was left in a spot of bother. Shaheen Shah Afridi, then also got among the wicket-taking charts as he scalped the wicket of Ollie Pope (7), reducing England to 117/5 in the 45th over.

Chris Woakes and Jos Buttler then got together at the crease, and the duo played in an aggressive manner to retrieve the innings for England. The hosts went into the tea break at 167/5, still, 110 runs away from the target with five wickets in hand.

Buttler and Woakes continued their march to frustrate the Pakistan bowling attack and the duo brought the target within the grasp of England. Both batsmen put up a stand of 139 runs, however, with just 21 runs away from the target, England lost the key wicket of Buttler (75) as Yasir Shah had him trapped in front of the wicket.

With England just needing four more runs for the win, Yasir Shah dismissed Stuart Broad (4), but in the end, Woakes and Dom Bess ensured England's win by three wickets.

For Pakistan, Yasir Shah was the pick of the bowlers as he scalped four wickets.

Earlier, resuming day four at 137/8, Yasir Shah (33) along with Mohammad Abbas (3*) and Naseem Shah (4) added 32 more runs to the overnight score to give England a target of 277 to win the first Test.

Stuart Broad was the pick of England bowlers as he scalped three wickets.

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News Network
June 9,2020

Jun 9: Former West Indies skipper Darren Sammy has released a video, alleging racism within the SunRisers Hyderabad camp. Last week, Sammy had lost his cool after learning the meaning of the word "Kalu", which he alleged was directed at him during his Indian Premier League (IPL) stint with the SunRisers Hyderabad. The T20 World Cup-winning Windies skipper had said that he along with Sri Lanka player Thisara Perera were sometimes called that word when they played for SunRisers Hyderabad. However, Sammy did not specify as to who directed these slurs at him, but now the player has released a video, saying he will message all those who called him that word.

"I have played all over the world and I have been loved by many people, I have embraced all dressing rooms where I have played, so I was listening to Hasan Minhaj as to how some of the people in his culture describe black people," Sammy said in a video posted on his Instagram account.

"This does not apply to all people, so after I found out a meaning of a certain word, I had said I was angry on finding out the meaning and it was degrading, instantly I remembered when I played for SunRisers Hyderabad, I was being called exactly the same word which is degrading to us black people," he added.

Sammy said that at the time when he was being called with the word, he didn''t know the meaning, and his team-mates used to laugh every time after calling him by that name.

"I will be messaging those people, you guys know who you are, I must admit at that time when I was being called as that word I thought the word meant strong stallion or whatever it is, I did not know what it meant, every time I was called with that word, there was laughter at that moment, I thought teammates are laughing so it must be something funny," Sammy said.

"Now, I realise it was degrading, I will be texting you guys and I will ask you as to when you called me with that name, did you all mean it in any bad way or form? I have had great memories in all my dressing rooms, so all those who used to you call me with that word, think about it, let's have a conversation, if it was in a bad way then I would be really disappointed," he added.

The former Windies skipper has been a vocal supporter of the protests that are currently going on in the United States over the death of an African-American man named George Floyd.

Sammy had also made an appeal to the ICC and other cricket boards to support the fight against social injustice and racism.

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