81 All Out

Our special guest this week is Gaurav Sundararaman, a senior stats analyst at ESPNcricinfo, and he helps us unpack the complexities of Fantasy Cricket - where fans pick teams and compete in increasingly popular Fantasy Leagues. Click here to support 81allout on Kofi Talking Points: The allure of fantasy cricket and how it changes one's perspective ESPN Super Selector and the early days of fantasy cricket The popularity of fantasy leagues in the T20 era Picking a team and the dangers of biased selections Tournament mode v daily mode Rajat Bhatia, Sreenath Aravind and the value of unheralded stars Chris Gayle, David Warner, ABd - the must-haves Rajat Bhatia, Sreenath Aravind, Amit Mishra - the bankable players The moment when Fantasy Cricket creators asked - 'Who is Jasprit Bumrah' Automated substitutions, dynamic pricing and the next steps in fantasy cricket Participants: Gaurav Sundararaman (@gaurav_sundar) (All ESPNcricinfo articles by Gaurav) Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee) Ashoka

In this episode, we chat with author, essayist, and perceptive cricket columnist Mukul Kesavan Click here to support 81allout on Kofi Talking Points: Viswanath - 'this extraordinarily skilled and beautiful Teddy Bear playing cricket' | Watching Imran Khan bowl live for the first time | The "neat perfection" of Sunil Gavaskar | Neville Cardus - and "everything undesirable about cricket writing | The thunderous silence around Wasim Jaffer | The IPL in Delhi during the the pandemic | The significance of Mohammad Siraj Participants: Mukul Kesavan; Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee); Mahesh Sethuraman (@cornerd) Related: Beyond borders; Watching, hoping, praying; The Viswanath problem; No room for bigotry; Jaffer alone; The nation state and modern sport - The India Forum; A fairy tale on the field; India; Cricketing memory and a quest for rare videos; Men in White; Brightly Fades the Don; Cricket Crisis; Pundits from Pakistan; Chinaman; The Match; A Corner of a Foreign Field; Anyone But England; Beyond a

We review the Indian team over the last four years - the period since July 2017 when Ravi Shastri took over as head coach. Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi Talking Points: The significance of being a very good team in a competitive era The bowling depth in this era world-wide - which is superior to previous teams Irfan Pathan in the mid-2000s - and the first glimpse of picking five bowlers India's dominance over West Indies and Sri Lanka in the last decade The confidence to play four fast bowlers even if it meant weakening the batting India's phenomenal home record over the last decade The perception experiment with Atherton, Hussain and Stewart India's home conditions being more varied than conditions away The value of Bharat Arun - India's bowling coach The post-facto Vijay Shankar outrage The diffuse excellence of this Indian team - and the clamour for an ICC Trophy The Dhoni problem in the 2019 World Cup Participants: Karthik Krishnaswamy (@the_kk) Kartikeya Date (@cricketin

Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi Our guest this week is Nishant Arora who, over two decades, has worked in multiple capacities within cricket – as a TV journalist, player agent, and BCCI media manager, and ICC digital producer. Nishant had joined us in March to talk about his time as a junior cricketer and his friendship with Yuvraj Singh and other Indian cricketers. You can listen to that conversation here. Talking Points: The saas-bahu model that the Indian TV media adopted in the mid-2000s The life of a television journalist in an age eager for controversy How coverage of cricket became incidental to a journalist's job The move from journalism to a player agent to a media manager The frosty relationship between the Indian players and the media in the mid-2010s What the BCCI does right - and the scale at which it operates The unsung heroes of Indian cricket - those who nurture the grassroots The increasing number of pathways for channeling talent into potential The spotting of B

Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi We review the fourth Test of the England v India series - which India won by 157 runs. Talking Points Two Oval triumphs - 50 years apart India once again leaving out Ashwin The decision to go with four fast bowlers on this surface Shardul the enigma How the quality of bowling magnifies the intensity of the viewing experience Does Bumrah really set batsmen up? The Ajinkya Rahane question Rohit Sharma's first hundred outside Asia - and what it meant to one fan Participants: Mahesh Sethuraman (@cornerd) Ashoka (@ABVan) Kartikeya Date (@cricketingview) Related: 78 all out: England v India, Headingley Test review - 81allout podcast; India ride on awesome foursome: England v India, Lord's Test review - 81allout podcast; Masterful Jasprit Bumrah is the true architect of India's triumph - Jonathan Liew, Guardian; Tireless Jadeja's control on a lifeless pitch justifies Kohli's faith in team combination - Osman Samiuddin, ESPNcricinfo; India in the fiel

We review the third Test of the England v India series - which England won by an innings and 76 runs. Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi Talking Points India's choice of five bowlers - choosing competitiveness over respectability The first morning - when India were bowled out for 78 James Anderson and the mastery with which he varies his length How badly did India really bat on the first morning? Joe Root's 'classical' style of getting beside the line of the ball What does one mean when one says a batsman has extra time to play his shots Dawid Malan cementing his spot The Ashwin question Is Rishabh Pant better off at No. 6 or 7? Cheteshwar Pujara and the need to factor in expectations What connects Virat Kohli and Ricky Ponting? Participants: Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee) Kartikeya Date (@cricketingview) Ashoka (@ABVan) Mahesh Sethuraman (@cornerd) Related: At Headingley, India were undone by a master of his craft - Ian Chappell - ESPNcricinfo Are Kohli and Pujara in slumps

We review the second Test of the England v India series, with the focus on the dramatic final day.  Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi Talking Points The remarkable turnaround on the final day of the Lord's Test How narratives around player behavior are often a TV creation Enhanced TV coverage offering us a perfect window into fast bowling India's bowlers extracting wickets on a pitch with few demons Jasprit Bumrah to Ollie Robinson - the ball from heaven England's lack of batting depth - and their over-reliance on Joe Root The opening partnership between Rahul and Rohit - a study in assessing the conditions Pujara and Rahane - facts v spin How Pujara has been turned into Test cricket's Batman The Ashwin decision - shouldn't India's greatest spinner be one of the first names on the team-sheet? Participants: Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee) Ashoka (@ABVan) Mahesh Sethuraman (@cornerd) Related: Sledges, brawls and epic contests: inside the Karnataka - Tamil Nadu rivalry - 81all

We preview the upcoming England v India Test series - that has had one of the most lukewarm build-ups in a time of Covid, The Olympics, and The Hundred. It's a time of bio-bubbles, quarantines, injuries, mental health and player rotation. And hopefully some memorable cricket too. Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi Talking Points The new Covid normal in cricket's landscape Separate teams for Tests and short-form cricket - the pros, the cons, and the economics The constant existential threat facing Test cricket How does one put a value to Test cricket? Monetizing stories, memory, and legacies Ben Stokes' absence and implications for mental health in cricket India's recent history in England - with their last win coming in 2007 How 4-1 didn't tell the story of the close series in 2018 India's fast bowling attack maturing over the last three years Bowling in England and New Zealand versus bowling elsewhere India's selection quandary - in the light of the feeble lower order Mayank Agarwal

In this episode, we chat with the veteran cricket writer Suresh Menon on one of India's greatest cricketers - Bishan Bedi Suresh talks about his early impressions of Bedi and the spin quartet, and explores his relationship with Bedi as a fan, a cricket writer, a biographer and a friend. Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi Talking Points: The late 1960s and the inception of the spin quartet Bedi the prodigy - born to bowl spin Bedi under Pataudi and Wadekar - the blossoming of an artist Suresh's 2011 biography - Bishan: portrait of an artist The craft of left-arm spin - Bedi's digital manipulations Why Bedi v Pras might have been more logical than Venkat v Pras 'No Bedi, no Test' The Vaseline affair in 1976 Bedi's knack for speaking his mind (and getting into trouble) Bedi - the father of cricket in North Zone and Delhi His various post-playing avatars - but always calling a spade a spade Participants: Suresh Menon (@surmenon) Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee) Mahesh Sethuraman (@corn

In this special episode, we chat with the veteran cricket writer Vijay Lokapally on India's 1996 tour to England. Vijay relives the incandescent innings and spells he witnessed through the tour - both in the Tests as well as the tour games. He also gives us a detailed recap of Navjot Sidhu quitting the tour and remembers a special interview he did with Sachin Tendulkar. Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi (PSA: Thank you for contributing towards our fund-raising drive for Covid relief in India. We have matched your contributions and donated to Unicef, who are doing great on-the-ground work and helping those in need) Talking Points: India playing a Test series after more than seven months of one-day cricket Vikram Rathour's string of runs in the tour games - and his reputation in domestic cricket The Navjot Sidhu fiasco - and Vijay's role in the series of events Tendulkar's symphony in the Edgbaston wreckage Devon Malcolm's fan-boy moment after Derbyshire's game v the Indians Sourav

We discuss the World Test Championship final between India and New Zealand in Southampton. Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi (PSA: We will be donating all your contributions till the end of June towards Covid relief in India. We plan to match your contributions upto $800) Talking Points: The WTC and the extra layer it has added to gauging a Test side The abundance of fast bowling riches around the world The quality – and variety – of bowling on display Kohli opening up his stance, Williamson batting deep in his crease India's bowlers' choice of lengths and their exceptional control New Zealand's four-man pace attack - left, right, short, full, curve and swerve Rishabh Pant and the complexity of the risk-reward judgement Unsung Williamson, unsunger Ross Taylor, unsungest BJ Watling New Zealand's triumph coming at the perfect transition moment Fans from the Big 3 adopting New Zealand as their favourite team Participants: Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee) Ashoka (@ABVan) Mahesh Sethuram

Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi We celebrate the 100th episode of the 81allout podcast with an illuminating conversation with Gideon Haigh - the gold standard when it comes to cricket writing. We could have spoken to Gideon about anything – cricket or otherwise - but we chose to focus on his brilliant book On Warne - a remarkably original take on a remarkably original cricketer. Gideon talks about Warne's ability to "make the unscripted look scripted" and why he was such a joy to write about. (PSA: We will be donating all your contributions till the end of June towards Covid relief in India. We plan to match your contributions upto $800) Talking Points: Writing a book in 31 days Warne coming along at the 'perfect time' Would a cricketer like Warne have succeeded in the 1970s? The SSC Test in 1993 - when Warne found himself in international cricket The ball of the century - and the perfection of timing The theatre of Warne - and the art of manipulating everyone around him Warne a

Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi (PSA: We will be donating all your contributions till the end of June towards Covid relief in India. We plan to match your contributions upto $800) In the latest episode we chat about India's historic triumphs against West Indies and England 50 years ago. Cricket writer and author Nishad Pai Vaidya and veteran sports journalist Clayton Murzello join us to relive the heady moments through a series of anecdotes. Talking Points: Indian cricket in 1971 and what the sport meant for a young nation The selection drama before the West Indies tour - Rusi Jeejeebhoy in, Daljit Singh out The 'great what if' around Kenia Jayantilal The dominating presence of Vijay Merchant in Indian cricket A largely unknown Sunil Gavaskar on his debut tour - and his glorious returns The inspired choice of Ajit Wadekar as captain The value of Dilip Sardesai across the twin victories Eknath Solkar and the never-say-die spirit - and that catch to dismiss Alan Knott Salim Durani's twi

Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi In the latest episode we chat about Chennai Super Kings and the nature of fandom the team has inspired since the start of the IPL. Three CSK fans share their experiences of being drawn to the team and take us through the highs and lows over the last 13 years. (PSA: We will be donating all your contributions till the end of June towards Covid relief in India. We plan to match your contributions upto $800) Talking Points: The early impressions of CSK - and the importance of Tamil Nadu players for the team to form an identity The city at the center of the marketing, and the organic connection fans made with the franchise The rise of Dhoni in parallel to the rise of CSK The value of whistle podu - an anthem that captures so much Suresh Raina's importance to the CSK batting line-up The allure of the CSK run-chase The Aussie connection - from Watson to Hayden to Hussey to Bollinger The conflict in loyalties when CSK players turn out against India The gut-pun

Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi (We will be donating all your contributions till the end of June towards Covid relief in India. We plan to match your contributions upto $800) Our special guest this week is Jai Galagali, a cricket fan who runs a YouTube channel focused on Indian cricket history. Jai talks about falling in love with the game in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and his quest to seek out clips from the Films Division of India. "How do we remember so much from some phase of our life and so little from many others?" Jai explores this question through the conversation. Talking Points: Discovering the inner child and love for cricket Seeing Chandra, Vishy, Prasanna and so many larger-than-life figures for the first time Watching cricket highlights in the cinema theaters in the 1970s Viswanath and the poetic essence of cricket The history of the Films Division and documenting a young nation's evolving cultural, political and social landscape Zul Vellani - the master of the unive

Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi Our special guest this week is Hassan Cheema, the strategy manager at Islamabad United – the Pakistan Super League champions in 2016 and 2018. Hassan talks about the rapidly evolving T20 format and gives us a peek into what franchises are doing to stay ahead of the curve. Having observed some of the top T20 players first-hand, Hassan brings forth the complexities of the game and the challenges involved in managing a team. Talking Points: How West Indies revolutionized the approach to T20s The overwhelming importance of the toss Measures used to judge a T20 batsman The flexible batting order and how best to use an anchor Unlearning the lessons from red ball cricket Retiring out batsmen and tactical drops What constitutes a good over in T20? Tactics v execution: the tightrope walk How one builds a player's trust and the need to go beyond cricket The unquantifiable value of some fielders The grammar of T20 and what TV can do better Participants: Hass

Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi Our special guest this week is Prem Panicker, a veteran journalist who has been writing on cricket for over 25 years. Prem was one of the founding journalists at Rediff.com and a pioneer with regard to online commentary and internet radio. [kofi] Talking Points: Falling in love with cricket in the late 1960s and '70s The granular detail with which one remembers games from one's childhood Listening to the radio and enacting the action based on the commentary The arrival of television to India and the magic it brought forth Entering the world of journalism The brave new world of the Internet - and the leap of faith it entailed Figuring out the internet while writing on cricket during the 1996 World Cup How Indian cricketers embraced the new reality of online coverage The BCCI's contradictory stance with respect to online portals like Rediff JY Lele and his famous quote that predicted India would lose 3-0 in Australia The match-fixing saga and falling ou

Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi In our latest episode we talk to Amol Muzumdar, a legend for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy and a bona fide domestic great. Muzumdar's illustrious career spanned two decades and he finished with 9,205 runs in the Ranji Trophy - which stands as the second-highest aggregate of all time. Muzumdar scored 30 first-class hundreds and was the backbone of the Mumbai Ranji Trophy side through much of the 1990s and 2000s. He won seven Ranji Trophy championships with Mumbai and captained them to the title in 2006-07, when they rallied after a poor start and upstaged the rest of the competition. Talking points: The importance of playing league cricket in England How helmets transformed batting techniques - and resulted in more players getting hit on the head Today's players preferring power-hitting techniques to an artistic approach The delicate balance with coaching - what to tell a player and when to pass on advice How players can be so vulnerable to advice, and change t

Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi In the latest episode we revisit War Minus the Shooting, Mike Marqusee's book on his journey through the subcontinent at the 1996 World Cup. Talking Points: Marqusee's ability to "get" the subcontinent The "relaxed hedonism" of Aravinda de Silva and Arjuna Ranatunga Marqusee's love for Sri Lanka in the World Cup Kenya beating West Indies in one of the great cricket upsets The Cola wars and how surgically it is tackled in the book Marqusee's ability to understand crowds A prescient look at Imran Khan and his political career Participants: Sharda Ugra; Fidel Fernando (@afidelf); Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee); Mahesh Sethuraman (@cornerd) Related: War Minus the Cliches - Rob Steen's review; Why Cricket? - Mike Marqusee; Mike Marqusee's website with many of his writings; Madras Machinations - Benjamin Golby on Mike Marqusee's novel - The Cricket Monthly; The lion's fairlytale - Andrew Fidel Fernando - The Cricket Monthly; Those little gladiators - Ramachan

We discuss the fourth Test between India and England in Ahmedabad. Talking Points: India's terrific achievement across eight Tests A triumph of depth for the Indian team Axar's 27 wickets and his perfect debut series Why Ashwin's value to the side is double that of their best batsman Mohammad Siraj - the classic Indian fast bowler Rahane, Pujara and the problems of mortality Rohit Sharma's ability to tune his game as per the conditions and situation Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar and the value of time against pace Washington's possible future as a top-order batsman Looking ahead to the World Test Championship fina Click here to support 81allout on Ko-Fi Participants: Kartikeya Date (@cricketingview) Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee) Ashoka (@ABVan) Mahesh Sethuraman (@cornerd) Related: A two-day shootout: India v England, 4th Test review - 81allout podcast A tale of two series - Kartikeya Date The full range of Rohit Sharma - Karthik Krishnaswamy - ESPNcricinfo Munaf Patel: A fast bowler an