In Ahmedabad, where the Sabarmati Ashram honours the memory of Mahatma Gandhi, the prime architect of India’s freedom movement against the British Empire, cricket will once again showcase its throbbing Indian heart. A quintessential English sport is now distinctly desi while the BCCI wields unbridled clout inside cricket’s governing body, the ICC, and Indian stars are feted as global icons within the limited cricketing universe.
Booster shot
When Jos Buttler and Tom Latham (stepping in for the injured Kane Williamson), who will be helming defending champion England and 2019 edition runner-up New Zealand respectively, step out for the toss in the World Cup opener at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium on Thursday, ODIs hopefully will get a booster shot.