Mumbai LitFest 2026: Shashi Tharoor and panelists debate India’s dominance in world cricket

A riveting onehour cricket talk session essentially meant to discuss cricket books inevitably veered to matters beyond book covers and everything in between them at the NCPA on SaturdayDr Shashi Tharoor author Rahul Bhattacharya and journalist Ayaz Memon were under the Jamshed Bhabha Theatre spotlight at Godrej Literature Live The Mumbai LitFest 2026Tharoor more than just a Congress politician has a cricketing bent of mind and has authored Shadows Across the Playing Field a book on IndiaPakistan cricket cowritten with Pakistani diplomat Shaharyar Khan in 2009popcorn numberOct 24 descDay session was held classDefaultThe issue about India and Pakistan not figuring in bilateral Test series since 2007 and in oneday cricket since 2013 came up for discussion with the panel offering perspectives on the wider implications of what cricket is missingIndiarsquos roleEach one also had an interesting take on the power the BCCI wields in world cricket Memon the moderator of the discussion stressed on cricket needing a ldquoconscience keeperrdquo and wondered whether ldquoIndia is prepared to be the vanguard to take up the rolerdquoTharoor remarked ldquoWe are more dominated by accountants people counting money than being conscience keepersrdquo Tharoor remembered the late politician Arun Jaitley who once was very much part of cricket administration as head of Delhi cricket telling him since Tharoor spent a good number of years holding various positions at the United Nations ldquoI want you to understand that Indiarsquos role in international cricket is analogous to the USrsquos role in the Security CouncilrdquoAnd after Memon recalled MAK Pataudi saying in December 2010 that the BCCI instead of being the voice of cricket was the invoice of cricket Bhattacharya pointed out how skewed things were in the cricket power distribution ldquoThis centralisation is not fairrdquo he said adding that Indiarsquos domination of world cricket is just as distasteful as England and Australiarsquos clout in past erasTharoor put lsquocricket playingrsquo domination in perspective by reminding his audience that India havenrsquot yet got their hands on the World Test Championship trophy With T20 teams across the world being acquired by Indian owners Bhattacharya said it is now ldquoone giant IPLrdquoBook talkAnd yes the trio did speak about books to do justice to the subject of the evening lsquoLines at Length Cricket books and why we love themrsquo West Indian author CLR James was spoken of Ditto English writer Neville Cardus who in the opinion of some book lovers could go over the top during descriptions beyond what took place within the 22 yardsTharoor revealed that he had read a bit of Cardus and Australian cricketerturnedjournalist Jack Fingleton but when it came to specific books he pointed to a novel with a cricket connection by AG Macdonell Ramachandra Guharsquos A Corner of a Foreign Field and Bhattacharyarsquos Pundits from Pakistan written by his fellow panellist on his 2004 tour to PakistanBhattacharya brought up departed writers Peter Roebuckrsquos It Never Rains a diary of the 1983 English season and Mike Marquseersquos Anyone But England a critical book on the then state of affairs of English cricket and War Minus the Shooting a fascinating book on the 1996 World Cup held in the subcontinent as his favourites He made a special mention of Christian Ryan the brilliant Australian writerMemon spoke of Pataudirsquos Tigerrsquos Tale Sunny Days by Sunil Gavaskar and Englishman Scyld Berryrsquos Cricket Wallah an account of Englandrsquos 198182 tour of India Berryrsquos book also attracted praise from Tharoor and Bhattacharya If the participants could have their way they would have gone on discussing cricket literature But then stumps must be called even in the most engrossing of last sessions