MyVoice: Views of our readers 28th December 2020

TRS riding on bumpy road

The loss of Dubbaka Assembly segment to the BJP came as a wakeup call to the ruling TRS. But the stiff challenge posed by the BJP in the GHMC elections and the enormous success it has got, rang alarm bells in the TRS cadre and the KCR-KTR duo never expected such a severe jolt.

The think-tank of the TRS who were sailing on a wave of Telangana sentiment till recently and decimated both the TDP and the Congress in Telangana after it came to power, never expected this to happen and the rise of the BJP juggernaut took all of them by surprise.

To achieve one-upmanship, the TRS encouraged considerable defections from both the TDP and the Congress and they never thought the BJP would be a force to reckon with at any time. As of now, the BJP is riding on the wave of success in Telangana and they got huge support from the Central leadership headed by bigwigs Modi and Amit Shaw.

The anti-incumbency factor against the ruling TRS government and the never approachable factor of KCR to many including their own leaders caused considerable damage to the pink party and indirectly helped the saffron party in the recent elections.

Now the BJP headed by Bandi Sanjay at State level is attacking the TRS aggressively on its own. Now it is interesting to see how the TRS manages the things in the coming bye-election to win Nagarjuna Sagar Assembly seat against the BJP, which wants to maintain its winning momentum and against Congress which has a strong hold in Nagarjuna Sagar Assembly constituency.

There is a speculation in certain sections of the press that KTR is going to take the mantle of Chief Ministership of Telangana and KCR is going to shift to national politics to unite like-minded parties against the BJP. The situation is definitely dicey for the TRS as of now and it is very interesting how they will fare in the coming years.

V Nagendra Kumar, Alkapuri, Hyderabad

Kohli's absence big loss for India

The absence of Indian skipper Virat Kohli for the remaining three Test matches is going to be a 'big loss' for the visitors. Kohli would not be available for the rest of the series as he will be heading back home after being granted paternity leave by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

There must have been pressure on the Indian skipper to stay with the team, but BCCI appreciated Kohli for making the choice of being at home for the birth of his first child. Smith has a great record at the Boxing Day Tests. He has smashed over 900 runs with four centuries and three half-centuries. The 31-year-old said he always dreamt of batting in the Boxing Day Test. Now when he is living his dream, he said walking out to bat in the Boxing Day Test gives him 'shivers down the spine'.

Kohli's departure leaves a gaping hole on India side which could make at least three changes for Melbourne's Boxing Day Test. Paceman Mohammed Shami was sent for scans on his left arm amid fears of a broken bone when struck by a Pat Cummins delivery. Shami retired hurt amid India's horrendous batting crash no batsman reached double figures, just the second time in Test history that has happened in a completed innings.

Opening batsman Prithvi Shaw faces the axe after being bowled out twice in near-identical fashion – first for a duck and next on four in Adelaide. Spare pacemen Navdeep Saini and Mohammed Siraj will be the one to replace Shami while batsmen KL Rahul and Shubman Gill are in the frame for top-six slots. When you lose an experienced player like this (Kohli) there is without any doubt a void.

But let's understand, this is not about individuals. It is about our team and the best part about Indian cricket right now is there is bench strength. So Virat had to go back for personal reasons and some youngster is going to get a chance to play in his spot and that's an opportunity for someone else.

Jaivanth, Bhadrachalam