In geopolitics, actions often betray words. The past week saw US President Donald Trump execute a sharp climbdown after a spell of reckless remarks against India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Suddenly, Modi is once again a “good friend” and India a “strategic partner.” Yet this new warmth from Washington has less to do with…
MS Shanker From Glory to Greed For three decades, Hyderabad was the envy of Indian cricket. From the swagger of M.L. Jaisimha in the 1970s to the artistry of Mohammad Azharuddin in the 1980s and the resilience of V.V.S. Laxman in the 1990s, the city produced cricketers who defined eras. Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) was…
MS Shanker A Club Secretary’s Candid Take on Greed, Glory, and a Game in Decline Hyderabad cricket still evokes nostalgia for its glorious past — a time when its clubs brimmed with talent, its league rivalled the Ranji Trophy for intensity, and its players commanded respect across India. But somewhere between passion and politics, integrity…
As leaders of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) gather in Beijing on August 31, the mood across Eurasia will be one of consolidation. Once seen as a loose regional bloc, the SCO has matured into a serious geopolitical platform—China, Russia, India, Pakistan, Central Asian states, and now partners like Iran are redefining regional security and…
MS Shanker Hyderabad cricket, for long defined by turmoil in its association and decline on the field, is showing signs of revival. The state team’s strong run in the ongoing Butchi Babu tournament — two convincing wins and a firm grip on a semifinal berth — has sparked rare optimism. For a side that once…
For years, the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) has been projected as a custodian of talent, the nursery that once produced the likes of ML Jaisimha, Mohammad Azharuddin, VVS Laxman, and a string of India internationals. But peel back the façade of cricketing pride, and one finds a cesspool of corruption, manipulation, and brazen looting of…
Club Secretaries Hold the Key MS Shanker In the past few weeks, I have been reaching out to those who matter most in Hyderabad cricket—not just former players, administrators, or politicians, but the men at the grassroots who truly decide the direction of the game: the club secretaries. With 216 affiliated clubs forming the electoral…
The Indian Parliament this week sent out a strong message: playtime is over. By passing a bill to ban the operating, facilitating, and advertising of online games played with money, the Lok Sabha has drawn a hard line against what many parents, educators, and policymakers have long feared—gaming addiction spiraling into a full-blown social crisis….
MS Shanker The Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) appears to be sinking deeper into crisis under its Acting President Sardar Daljit Singh, who has once again courted controversy by convening a Special General Body Meeting (SGM) in defiance of the association’s by-laws and amid a host of unresolved disputes. A letter dated August 14, issued by…
Inside the System: A Veteran Secretary D Kishen Rao Speaks Out In the course of writing this long-running series over the last few months, I’ve interacted with a range of voices—from former state players to disgruntled selectors—trying to piece together how Hyderabad cricket, once a proud nursery of the sport, fell into its current state…
