With his versatile talents, Hardik Pandya is the kind of unique cricketer the Indian team has always wanted, writes Dhruv Munjal

It would be unfair to expect India to bedazzle crowds with eye-catching football. This team is built around stability, writes Dhruv Munjal

For all their celebrated Grand Slam past, Nadal and Federer have never clashed in a US Open final.

This is clearly a new India, one that displays temerity in plenty, and backs up intent with performance.

But how much has the national team actually improved?

How did how a reluctant, chain-smoking, beer-swigging footballer captain the greatest football nation in the world?

Indian cricket, it seems, pays overwhelming obeisance to a vapid, old adage: The more it changes, the more it remains the same.

Much like Dhoni, Pant is an aggressive ball-belter who keeps wickets. But he will require enormous work on his keeping if he is to reach anywhere close to Dhoni's absurdly high standards, notes Dhruv Munjal.

'There is a clear plan being followed by the Indian government.' With these attacks, we are trying to dispel the myth that the Pakistani army can cause problems.'

'It's not only holy reverence that drives them to such vigilantism -- there is adventure too.' 'Some of the younger gau rakshaks enjoy the thrill of the chase: Stopping vehicles, wielding weapons, badgering passengers and then gloating.'

'The ball barely made it to the hole, giving rise to a heady exhilaration and bemusement that only Woods' adroitness could -- and perhaps still does -- invoke.'

Almost everyone in Gorakhpur has a story about an Adityanath intervention that helped push through a piece of work that would've been otherwise impossible.

The IPL, all of a sudden, may have some catching up to do with the Big Bash.

Dhruv Munjal profiles the architect, who received a gift from Narendra Modi.

How will cricket change with the new rule on big bats?

'These people from Mumbai just understand the language of either silver, or shoes,' Lokendra Singh Kalvi, founder patron of the Shree Rajput Karni Sena, tells Dhruv Munjal.

'He is putting India first, setting examples for others. This is how a prime minister should be.'

The astronomical fee paid for Ben Stokes at the IPL auction is a confirmation of his status as the modern game's finest all-rounder.

Tactical genius, uplifting leader, altruistic individual, a man with unwavering certitude. Dhruv Munjal recounts what made Mahendra Singh Dhoni a great captain.

'A lot will depend on how he performs in the next few months, but he is not a liability.'