Fiery Jaiswal, teary Miandad

In his searing examination of human vanity and selfishness in ‘The Fall’, Albert Camus says, “No man is a hypocrite in his pleasure.” I would add anger and grief as the other two human emotions that in their raw expression can be profoundly honest. They strip away the civility and self-consciousness with which we ordinarily present ourselves to the world, revealing something closer to the self beneath the performance.

Two recent images — one fuelled by anger, the other of grief provoked by empathy — have prompted this philosophical introspection into human behaviour. In these moments, the mask of our conditioned existence slips and something more elemental gets revealed. catcross.biz

The first image, a distasteful one, is that of a batsman so outraged by a comment from the bowler that he risks a full-blown fight on the cricket field. He almost replicates Zinedine Zidane’s infamous head butt, though wisdom dawns at the moment of contact and he retreats before completing the act.

BlogIPL 2026 Full Schedule Out March 28 Start Weekend Blockbusters and New Venues RevealedThe Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 schedule has been released, and it promises a thrilling season of cricket. The season kicks off on Saturday, 28 March, with a clash between ...Open →

The second is a poignant moment that reveals a gentler side of our nature. Remember Javed Miandad, the battle-scarred veteran, a formidable foe who, in his days of glory, produced many masterly performances and is remembered as much for his grit as for his impishness, which so often riled his opponents. Watching him break down on Pakistani television while pleading for justice for his former teammate Imran Khan, languishing in jail, must have moved even the most stone-hearted critic of Pakistan’s charismatic former captain and Prime Minister.

In these two contrasting expressions of overboard aggression and human vulnerability lies a world held prisoner by uncontrollable emotions that surface in moments of extreme provocation.

Yashasvi Jaiswal is a batsman of abundant talent, striking flair and fearless intent. But the sports field is not an arena where physical strength can be unleashed to inflict body blows on an opponent. Surely, something nasty must have been said to Jaiswal by the Sri Lankan bowler for him to lose his cool and attempt a head butt. Had he not stopped at the last second to complete his misadventure, cricket would have shamed itself.

In the heat of the moment, people do the strangest things, exposing a side of themselves one would have never associated with them. It is in the aftermath, when calm descends and reflection takes over, that one feels the weight of one’s actions.

One would have thought Jaiswal would feel remorse rather than justify his behaviour by invoking his country, saying that India knows how to “give it back”. It is a reflection of the chest-thumping echo chamber we live in that Jaiswal felt emboldened to defend himself in the name of his country. In doing so, however, all he achieved was to embarrass the proud nation he represents.

While Jaiswal avoided a disastrous ending to his dangerous intentions, Zidane, France and world football’s towering, magisterial figure, executed a violent act of almost venomous force, smashing his head into Italy’s Marco Materazzi in the 2006 World Cup final.

Interestingly, though Zidane profusely apologised for his shocking act that dented his image of a calm, reflective man, he maintained that the slur against his family had left him with little choice. “I would have preferred to be punched than hear my family being abused,” he said later.

What is even more intriguing is that his reaction to the slur was not a spontaneous retaliation. Zidane walked away, apparently controlling himself, but then decided that he had to react in the violent manner he finally did. His subsequent apology for the physical aggression alongside his insistence that he had to do what he did, raised questions of ethics, morality, accountability and consequences that severely test the accepted codes of social conduct.

In those brief seconds when body and mind revolt and become prisoners of an uncontrollable, incendiary emotion, the conditioned self breaks free and acts as it wishes and desires. It is a freedom we would never wish to experience, for it compels us to break free from the chains of civilisational restraint. No amount of remorse can undo the damage caused, not only to the recipient of our ire but to ourselves as well.

While anger ignites the destructive self, sorrow and grief can act as a balm, healing wounds even as overwhelming emotion inflicts immense mental agony and pain on our conscious and sub-conscious self.

In Miandad’s almost whispering, pleading voice, weighed down by tears of helplessness, was a cry for help for a rare sporting idol incarcerated for years for a crime more political than criminal in intent. The universality of his emotion struck a deep emotional chord across national loyalties. The earnestness of his appeal laid bare his raw, emotional upheaval, the pain and trauma caused by what he perceived as an injustice being done to his mentor Imran Khan.

In that moment of grief, Miandad connected with a world where empathy matters more than revenge, reminding us of the richness of human emotion, a richness that the use of force stoked by anger can erode and hollow us from within. In this theatre of the absurd, where morality and ethics are hostage to our ideological moorings, only empathy can rescue us from becoming prisoners of our afflicted emotions.

— The writer is the author of ‘Not Quite Cricket’ and ‘Not Just Cricket’

India will begin their three-match T20I series against Afghanistan at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi, with the reigning T20 world champions looking to put their recent struggles behind them.

The Indian team returns to home conditions after an inconsistent run in T20Is. They swept Zimbabwe 3-0 in July but struggled during their tour of Europe, where Ireland and England both beat them in their respective series.

The top order will be under the spotlight once again. Abhishek Sharma has struggled for runs in recent matches, while Sanju Samson’s place in the side has come under pressure. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s emergence has added another option at the top, while Ishan Kishan has strengthened his case for the No. 3 position with a strong run of form.

Also Read: Rishabh Pant set for ODI return? Team India face selection dilemma as Asian Games clash with West Indies ODI series

Kishan’s 270 in the Duleep Trophy final was the latest highlight in what has been an impressive period since his return to the national setup. His form could make it difficult for the team management to leave him out.

Afghanistan, meanwhile, have enough quality in their bowling attack to test India. Their spin department remains one of their biggest strengths with several of their players having extensive T20 experience around the world.

Captain Shreyas Iyer will be hoping to start his home season off to a winning start as he also prepares to take his side to the Asian Games 2026 at Aichi-Nagoya.

India Predicted 11 vs Afghanistan for 1st T20

Shreyas Iyer (C), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan (WK), Tilak Varma (VC), Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh

BlogRavi Bishnoi Claims Two Wickets in First Over for Rajasthan Royals Against Mumbai Indians in IPL 2026Ravi Bishnoi two‑wicket opening over against Mumbai Indians In the second match of the 2026 Indian Premier League, Ravi Bishnoi dismissed two Mumbai Indians batters in his very ...Open →

Felix Nmecha scored twice and Fabio Silva grabbed another as Borussia Dortmund won 3-0 at home to promoted Paderborn to continue their perfect start in the Bundesliga on Saturday.

Dortmund's win made it three from three in the league this campaign, their best start in 11 seasons dating back to Thomas Tuchel's time in the dugout.

Starting up front alongside strike partner Serhou Guirassy for the first time this season, Silva raced on to a clever ball through from the Guinean to give the hosts the lead after five minutes.

Guirassy had two goals disallowed for offside in the first half alone but were rarely troubled by the toothless visitors, who are yet to score since returning to the top flight this season.

Substitute Nmecha came off the bench to score a brace, wrapping up victory for the hosts with a stunning late bicycle kick.

Dortmund captain Nico Schlotterbeck made a surprise return for his first match since picking up an ankle injury at the World Cup, admitting he had kept his comeback under wraps.

"We just hadn't communicated that much yet because I didn't want to," Schlotterbeck told Sky Germany. "I missed it terribly. It was a serious injury, but I'm glad to be back now."

Dortmund coach Niko Kovac also revealed that winger Konstantinos Karetsas, who was stretchered off the pitch with a cardiovascular issue in Tuesday's Champions League win over Villarreal, was back in training.

"Fortunately, nothing unusual was found. If things keep going well, he could be back against Stuttgart (next Saturday)," Kovac told reporters.

Freiburg first

Elsewhere, Europa League finalists Freiburg thumped a poor Borussia Moenchengladbach 5-0 at home to climb to the top of the Bundesliga standings.

Yannik Engelhardt and Igor Matanovic netted twice each and Maximilian Eggestein added a late fifth as the hosts sent Gladbach, who finished with 10 men, to the foot of the table.

In Saturday's late game, West Ham loanee Niclas Fuellkrug kept his excellent run of form since returning to the Bundesliga going, scoring the equaliser for Werder Bremen in a 1-1 draw at Cologne.

Thijs Dallinga missed a penalty after eight minutes but teammate Linton Maina put Cologne ahead moments later.

Fuellkrug's goal came in the 69th minute and is his third in four games since returning to Germany. The Germany striker only netted three times in 29 matches for West Ham and scored just once in 20 games on loan at AC Milan last season.

A 2-2 home draw with Bayer Leverkusen ended Augsburg's short stint at the top.

Augsburg were top after the last matchday for the first time in their history but were held by Leverkusen despite a double from Michael Gregoritsch.

Eintracht Frankfurt registered their first win of the campaign with a 3-1 victory away at neighbours Mainz, with Can Uzun bagging a brace either side of a Jonathan Burkardt goal.

Frankfurt goalkeeper Noah Atubolu kept his remarkable penalty-saving record alive when he stopped a first-half effort from Germany midfielder Nadiem Amiri.

Atubolu's save was his sixth in a row, extending his own Bundesliga record.

Hoffenheim won 2-1 at home against Stuttgart thanks to a brace from Adam Hlozek.

On Sunday, Bayern Munich travel to promoted Elversberg while RB Leipzig host Hamburg.

Boria Majumdar

Seven days left for the Asian Games and the Indian hockey teams, men and women, are in Japan getting ready for a hugely important assignment. They need to win gold to ensure direct qualification for LA28, and unless that happens, Olympic preparations will get impacted. While the women have momentum, the men are searching for it post a failed World Cup campaign.

To ensure the Games go to plan, the players need to be at their best, both physically and mentally. And that’s where the role of Hockey India officials come in. As administrators, they have a responsibility towards the players and the sport. The priority is to win gold and qualify. To do so, they need to ensure their egos don’t take precedence and things don’t go out of control.

Sadly for Indian hockey, that’s exactly what is happening at the moment. The President sends a suspension notice to the Director General asking him to step down. The notice is sent by an advocate who isn’t someone empanelled by Hockey India. And yet he is acting on behalf of the President. In response, the Secretary General sends a stinging response calling the notice illegal and saying the body will not even take cognisance of it. Both letters are in the public domain within minutes and the sport is in the throes of yet another controversy.

With elections approaching, it is natural things will get complicated. Barbs will be thrown at each other and a lot will happen. But then all of it should happen post the Asian Games. Nothing is more important and both Dilip Tirkey and Bholanath Singh should recognise that. Neither Tirkey nor Bholanath can derail the campaign, and by doing what they did last night, they run the risk of costing India two gold medals.

Will the players not get impacted by these shenanigans? Will they not check what’s going on and get drawn in? Does hockey need yet another controversy with just a week left? As President and Secretary, will Tirkey and Bholanath show some restraint and stop washing dirty linen in public?

I am not interested in the right or wrong here. I am not going to take sides either. I don’t know whether Tirkey is right. Nor do I care. As supporters of Indian hockey, all we should care for is how India fare at the Asian Games. Frankly, who heads Hockey India or who wins the election shouldn’t bother us. Tirkey and Bholanath aren’t relevant after a point. The sport is and for some reason that’s what is being sacrificed at the altar of egos.

The jersey controversy ahead of the World Cup was a national embarrassment. Just when it seemed the sport had moved past it, we have this new battle of egos brewing. From what we hear, executive board members have now jumped into it and Commander Srivastava has majority support. Where does that leave Tirkey? For a legend of Indian hockey, how is it looking? Is it helping the sport and India’s campaign? Clearly there is a need for restraint and that’s what is missing.

Follow Revsportz for latest sports news

The post With Asian Games one week away, Indian hockey once more trapped in a controversy appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.