Even after the most heartbreaking of defeats, Kane Williamson’s New Zealand and Roger Federer came across as winners. In a rare sporting moment, the second runners-up were celebrated more than the men who lifted the trophy. It made us realise that sport can exist without a loser.

In times of war, people stockpile essentials in case they can’t get out of their homes. I have been stockpiling books for as long as I can remember. If I am asked why I need to buy more books when I have 30 unread ones in my bookshelf, I am speechless.

A year ago, if anyone had told Ambati Rayudu that come the World Cup, he would be sitting at home, disgruntled, hurt, and announcing his retirement, he would have laughed. There are countless players like Rayudu whose sporting dreams remain just dreams, but each unfulfilled dream is different from the other.

Halfway through cricket’s showpiece event, the grim reality is becoming clearer: the tournament, despite its magnitude, is as damp and predictable as the rains that are constantly lashing it. There are no last-over finishes, no upsets, just the top four teams cruising ahead.

India playing Pakistan isn’t about giving peace a chance but about giving its own World Cup campaign a chance. Even the BCCI’s Committee of Administrators chief Vinod Rai has said, “We would be shooting ourselves in the foot if we don’t play Pakistan in the World Cup.”

In a Tamil Brahmin household, mornings aren’t complete without the holy trinity of filter coffee, The Hindu, and MS Subbulakshmi’s “Suprabhatam”.

With Karunanidhi gone, it’s the end of an era in Tamil Nadu politics. The state’s civic life now faces a huge void and is likely to see the emergence of a new political order. Will we see the rise of a leader from within the two big TN parties – DMK and AIADMK? Or will the next chieftains come from newer fronts?

Bullet riders and road trips are like Indian politicians and black money – all talk and no action. After using it to ride to and fro from their office all week, their grand weekend voyages amount to a grocery shopping trip to the marketplace.

Karnataka is synonymous with a phrase: “Swalpa adjust maadi”. Adjust a little, please. The people of the state, particularly the capital Bangalore, bring this attitude to everything: To the rapid transformation of the city, to the current churn in the formation of the state government.

Despite newfound riches measured in foosball tables, flat organisational structures, and flexi-hours, millennials have realised that most new-age jobs don’t offer meaning. And the prospect of spending another 30 years doing the same thing is daunting. How then, do we plan for retirement?

From March 11 to March 15, 2001, the greatest Test match ever to be played took place at Eden Gardens, where India beat Australia. The victory heralded a new beginning for Indian cricket, built on the back of self-belief, determination, and honour that had gone missing after the match-fixing scandal.

You remember sport for the moments, not the statistics, and ten years ago, the inaugural T20 World Cup is the moment cricket changed forever.

Juicy, luscious mangoes appear and announce the best season of your childhood – the summer.

Resolutions are short-lived. They are born out of great determination, but die an early death mostly at the hands of a gooey chocolate lava cake.

Why should we expect any truthing from Dhoni, The Untold Story? When have our sports biopics ever revealed any untold stories?

Water is not at the heart of the unrest in Bengaluru, neither is the cultural face-off between Kannadigas and Tamilians. At the heart of the issue is local identity.

If India hosts the 2024 Olympics, “Passing the Parcel” should be made an official game. Then we can justify having an ambassador like Salman Khan, and truly be a nation of winners.

Though 2011 will forever be MS Dhoni’s crowning glory as captain, that edition of the World Cup was all about Sachin Tendulkar. Eight years on, as India begin their 2019 World Cup campaign against South Africa, it seems as if MSD has been shedding all the baggage and getting ready for his final act in cricket.