In India, cricket isn't merely a sport. It's an emotion or a fervor, and for countless individuals, it's akin to a faith. Kids playing in narrow alleys, adults glued to TV screens during matches, and the roar in stadiums - cricket is everywhere.

How It All Began

Cricket in India started as an "accident." The British brought it, and India embraced it. The first mention of cricket goes back to 1721, during the British East India Trading Company's time. Imagine English sailors playing cricket and locals watching curiously. That's how the love story began. As the British influence grew, so did the game's popularity. Local rulers and elites began forming teams, and soon, makeshift pitches were seen in every corner of the country. The sport became a bridge between two cultures, with Indians adapting and adding their own flavor to it. By the 19th century, cricket had firmly rooted itself in the Indian psyche, setting the stage for a future where India would become a dominant force in the world of cricket.

The Clubs and Early Days

The Calcutta Cricket Club, formed in 1792, was among the first cricket institutions in India. It was a hub for British expatriates who missed their home sport. Then came the Parsi community's Oriental Cricket Club in 1848. While its existence was brief, the club set the stage for others to emerge. The Parsis, having strong trade connections with the British, quickly warmed up to cricket.

By the end of the 19th century, the game had taken off in India, with local competitions becoming a frequent affair. The sport wasn't just limited to the elites; it was being played in streets, open grounds, and anywhere space permitted. Players like Ranji were making waves, not just in India but also on foreign shores, showcasing the talent India had to offer.

Ranji: The Game Changer

Ranji wasn't just a cricketer; he was an icon. Born in a small village in Nawanagar, he had an early introduction to cricket. But it was in England where he truly honed his skills. He played cricket in England and introduced a unique style that was distinct from the rigid and orthodox style of English cricketers. His leg glance and back-foot play were not just techniques; they were art forms.

The British, used to a more conventional approach, were mesmerized by his flair and elegance. Ranji's success in England was a beacon of hope and inspiration for budding cricketers in India. He showed that an Indian could excel on the world stage, breaking barriers and setting new standards. His legacy is not just in the records he set but in the path he paved for future generations of Indian cricketers.

Also Read: Most Runs in ICC Men's ODI World Cup

India's Test Journey

The BCCI was established in 1928, and by 1932, India had its debut test match against England. Though the beginning had its challenges, the team's determination never wavered. It took two decades for India to taste victory, but when it happened, it was sweet.

The Era of Dominance

Fast forward to the 90s, and you have Sachin Tendulkar making records. The "Little Master" became the face of Indian cricket. His success, along with other team members, put India on the global map. Winning at home became a norm, and teams like Australia found it hard to break India's fortress.

Cricket Today

Today, cricket is everywhere in India. From street matches to grand IPL events, the game has grown massively. It's not just about winning; it's about the spirit, the unity, and the moments that bring a billion people together.

Cricket in India is a journey. A journey of ups and downs, of passion and dreams. It's a game that brings smiles, tears, and above all, an unmatched sense of belonging.

The No.10 jersey in football is always an iconic one. Be it for any club, country or any team playing in a local tournament, usually the best player of the team or the attacker wears the No.10 jersey for the team. 

FC Barcelona, one of the best and historical clubs in the World, had some of the greatest players ever to wear the No. 10 jersey for them. Today, in this article, we will discuss 10 legendary Barcelona players who have worn the jersey no. 10. 

To give you the context of the article, let me remind you that, after a great 2024-25 season, Lamine Yamal is set to wear the No.10 jersey for FC Barcelona in the next season, only if Ansu Fati leaves the club. 

Read Also | Football jersey numbers: Significance of jersey numbers in football

1. Lionel Messi (2008-2021)

If you talk about any stats or legendary things about FC Barcelona, there is a chance that you will have to mention the little man from Argentina, Lionel Messi. Most goals, most trophies, most assists, most Ballon d'Ors, and many more records for the club - Messi has everything to his name.

Messi had 672 goals and 303 assists in 778 appearances for FC Barcelona and left the club with the most number of titles. The 8-time Ballon d'Or winner wore the No.10 jersey for the first time in 2008 when Ronaldinho left the Catalan club to join AC Milan. 

Since then, Messi has worn the iconic jersey for 14 years, before leaving the club as the greatest Barcelona player. 

Read Also | 11 players who have won the most trophies in football history

2. Diego Maradona (1982–1984)

An Argentine legend followed by another one. One of the greatest footballers ever, Diego Maradona, who is known for his time at Italian Club Napoli, spent two seasons at FC Barcelona as well. 

Although Maradona's stint at Barcelona was full of controversies and injuries, he scored 38 goals in 58 matches and won the Copa del Rey and Spanish Super Cup for FC Barcelona. 

3. Ronaldinho (2003–2008)

With his Samba magic and flair, Ronaldinho is regarded as one of the greatest Barcelona players ever. The Brazilian legend was there when Messi made his debut and gave him all the support to fill his shoes later. Before Messi, it was Ronaldinho, who used to wear the No. 10 jersey for FC Barcelona. 

Ronaldinho scored 94 goals and provided 71 assists in 207 matches for FC Barcelona. 

Alongside winning two La Liga titles, he also won the 2006 UEFA Champions League for the Spanish club.

Read Also | Top 10 Greatest EL Clasico Matches of All Time

4. Gary Lineker (1986–1989)

Gary Lineker is one of the greatest English players ever to play for FC Barcelona. From 1986 to 1989, Lineker played for FC Barcelona in 138 matches, wearing the famous No. 10 jersey. 

Lineker scored 51 goals for the Catalan club and helped them win the Copa del Rey in 1988 and the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1989.

5. Rivaldo (1997–2002)

Rivaldo, the Brazilian legend and captain, joined FC Barcelona in the 1997 season and played 235 games for the Catalan, the most he played for any club in his career. The attacking midfielder scored 130 goals for Barcelona and won four titles, including two La Liga titles. 

Not only that, during his stint at Barcelona, he won the FIFA Best Player Award and Ballon d'Or award in 1999. 

Read Also | Football Facts: Players With Champions League, World Cup and Ballon d'Or

6. César Rodríguez (1939–1955)

Since there was no consistency in jersey numbers during the 1930s and 1940s era, it is quite unclear how many games he played wearing the No. 10 jersey for FC Barcelona. But Cesar, who wore the No. 10 jersey occasionally for FC Barcelona, played 344 games for the club.

In those games, he scored 226 goals and won 11 trophies for the club, including 5 La Liga titles. With 28 goals, he also finished the 1948-49 season as the top scorer of La Liga.

7. Juan Román Riquelme (2002–2005)

Another Argentine legend is on the list of legendary players to wear the No. 10 jersey for FC Barcelona. Riquelme, the legendary Argentine attacking midfielder, though he only played 42 games for FC Barcelona, made his mark before leaving for Villarreal and Boca Juniors. 

8. Michael Laudrup (1989–1994)

Laudrup, the Danish playmaker, was an integral part of Johan Cruyff’s dream team. The stylish midfielder played 226 games for FC Barcelona and scored 54 goals for the club. Along with his goals, Laudrup assisted 26 times as well. 

Laudrup won 9 trophies for FC Barcelona, including 1 UEFA Champions League, 4 La Liga titles, 1 UEFA Supercup and 2 Spanish Super Cups. Post becoming FC Barcelona.

After his successful 1992 and 1993 seasons, Laudrup joined Real Madrid the next season. 

9. Luis Suárez Miramontes (1955–1961)

One of the greatest Spanish midfielders, Luis Suárez Miramontes, is also one of the greatest FC Barcelona players. Luis Suárez Miramontes, in 176 games for FC Barcelona, scored 80 goals and assisted 21 times. 

Suarez won two La Liga titles and two Spanish Cup titles for FC Barcelona before moving to Inter Milan, where he flourished as a striker and went on to win two Champions League titles as well. 

But before leaving for Inter Milan, he won the 1960 Ballon d'Or while playing for FC Barcelona.

10. Hugo Sotil (1973–1976)

Hugo Sotil, the Peruvian striker, was one of the key players for FC Barcelona during the Johan Cruyff era. In 70 games, he scored 18 goals and helped FC Barcelona win the 1973–74 La Liga title.

Hugo was one of the key members of Barcelona's resurgence in the 1970s. 

Royal Challengers Bangalore reached the final by defeating Punjab Kings in the first qualifier of IPL 2025. Punjab Kings lost the qualifier but their chances of winning the title are not over. 

Also Read: RCB in IPL final: Seasons when RCB qualified for IPL finals

First playoffs system implemented in 2011

The playoffs system was implemented for the first time in 2011, in which Qualifier 1, Eliminator, Qualifier 2 and Final match are played. If the team winning Qualifier 1 reaches the final, then the losing team gets another chance.

The team that wins the Eliminator plays against the team that loses Qualifier 1 and the team that wins this match plays the Final.

Do you know how many times the teams that lost the qualifiers have won the title? Let us take you through the history of the playoffs of the cash rich league.

How many times has the team that lost Qualifier 1 reached the final?

IPL 2024 runner-up team Sunrisers Hyderabad also made it to the finals by winning Qualifier-1 and then Qualifier-2. So far it has happened 11 times that the team that lost Qualifier-1 has reached the final. That is, it has won Qualifier-2. See which teams have reached the finals after losing Qualifier-1 in which season.

• 2011: RCB
• 2013: MI
• 2014: PBKS
• 2015: CSK
• 2017: MI
• 2018: SRH
• 2019: MI
• 2020: DC
• 2022: RR
• 2023: GT
• 2024: SRH

Also Read: Gujarat Titans vs Mumbai Indians IPL 2025 Eliminator Preview, Head-to-head, Possible XIs and Fantasy Team Prediction

Which team won the IPL title after losing Qualifier 1?

Before Punjab Kings in IPL 2025, Mumbai Indians is the only team that has won the IPL trophy even after losing Qualifier 1. Out of 11 seasons, it has happened only twice that the team that lost the qualifier has won the title, while the remaining 9 times such teams have lost in the final.

• 2017: MI won the trophy by defeating RPS in the final.
• 2013: MI won the trophy by defeating CSK in the final

Punjab Kings can become the second IPL team to win the title after losing Qualifier 1. On the other hand, Bangalore has reached the IPL 2025 finals earlier also after winning Qualifier 1 but had to face defeat. The good news is that out of 14 times, the teams that won Qualifier 1 have won the title 11 times.

The Indian contingent, over 60 athletes participating at the Asian Athletics Championships 2025 in Gumi, Republic of Korea, from May 27 to 31. So far, Indian athletes have won 14 medals, five gold, six silver and three bronze, at the Asian Athletics Championships 2025.

400m runner Rupal Chaudhary and 1500m runner Pooja bagged silver medals, while Yoonus Shah added a bronze in the men’s 1500m event. Rupal clocked 52.68 seconds to finish second in the women’s 400m final. India’s Vithya Ramraj came in fifth with a time of 53.00 seconds. Pooja timed 4:10.83sec in the women’s 1500m to come in second, ahead of Lili Das, who finished fourth in 4:13.81sec.

In the men’s section, Yoonus Shah bagged the bronze with a time of 3:43.03, behind Japan’s Kazuto Lizawa, who clocked a PB of 3:42.56 and South Korean Jaeung Lee, who timed 3:42.79.

Also Read: Asian Athletics Championships 2025: Gulveer Singh wins gold in the men’s 10,000m, third Indian to achieve this feat

Meanwhile, India’s 4x400m mixed relay team successfully retained the gold medal as the quartet of Rupal, Santhosh Kumar, Vishal TK and Subha Venkatesan earned top spot with a timing of 3:18.12sec.

Decathlete Tejaswin Shankar added a silver for the nation, as he finished second in his event after accumulating a score of 7618 following the 10 events.

Earlier, India’s Gulveer Singh claimed the gold medal in the 10,000m event, while Servin Sebastian bagged the 20km race walk bronze.

The 26th edition of the Asian Athletics Championships features over 2000 athletes from 43 nations. Indian athletes are participating in a total of 30 medal events - 15 for men, 14 for women and one mixed team - over the five-day competition.

Asian Athletics Championships 2025 | India’s medal winners

Asian Athletics Championships 2025 | Medal Tally

The Indian men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty performed brilliantly in the Singapore Open 2025 badminton tournament, making it to the semifinals with a straight-game win over world No. 1 Malaysian duo of Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzuddin on Friday.

Also Read : Kidambi Srikanth Stuns Yushi Tanaka to Reach Malaysia Masters Final, First Since 2019

The Indian pair, which has been facing fitness challenges for some time, showed excellent performance in this match. The Indian pair displayed rock-solid defence and controlled the front court with precision to register a 21-17, 21-15 win in a 39-minute quarterfinal clash at the Singapore Open 2025 Super 750 badminton tournament.

Third semifinal of the season

This is their third semifinal appearance of the season, having reached the last-four stage at both the Malaysia and India Open earlier this year.

The former world No. 1 Indians held a 6-2 head-to-head record against the Malaysians going into the match, although they had lost their most recent meeting at the India Open.

Match Report

The match began with two service faults in the first four points and featured short rallies as both pairs looked to execute angled returns and attack at the earliest opportunity. As a result, the score moved evenly from 1-1 to 7-7 before the Indians gained a three-point cushion at the interval, with Satwik dictating the serve and third shot.

The Indian pair maintained the pressure to go up 15-11 before Satwik committed a service error and Izzuddin unleashed a jump smash to narrow the gap to 13-15. A brutal forehand smash from Satwik pushed India ahead at 18-15. Izzuddin then hit one wide, and Chirag, who had earlier sent a shot long, redeemed himself with a straight smash to earn three game points.

Goh buried a service return into the net, handing the Indians the opening game and the early advantage. Chirag made a few errors early in the second game, but the Indians did well to keep pace in the high-speed exchanges, with the score level at 6-6.

Satwik and Chirag then reeled off four consecutive points before an unforced error halted their momentum. A body blow from Chirag forced a weak return from Izzuddin into the net, giving India a four-point lead at the interval. A sharp backhand at the net took the Indians to 15-9 after the break. Satwik then sent down a thunderous smash to make it 16-10.

Though the Indians committed a few unforced errors, Satwik produced another fierce return to earn five match points. They sealed the win after another error from their opponents.

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) have been one of the most popular franchises in IPL history with millions of followers around the globe. However, despite having many great players of the game playing for them, RCB have failed to win the IPL title till now.

In the 18 seasons of the tournament, they have reached the IPL final four times so far. They first reached the final in 2009 and then qualified for the IPL finals once 2011 and another time in 2016, before reaching the final this season. Unfortunately, they have faced defeat on all three previous occasions. 

2009 IPL final: Lost vs Deccan Chargers by 6 runs

After beating Chennai Super Kings in the semi-finals of the second season in 2009, RCB qualified for the final. In the final at Johannesburg, RCB bowled first, winning the toss. Their captain, Anil Kumble, was on fire with a spell of 16/4 in 4 overs and restricted Deccan Chargers to 143/6 only. Herschelle Gibbs was the best batter of Deccan with an unbeaten 53 from 48 balls. 

But during the chase, RCB struggled from the beginning and even with a good-looking 32 from Roelof van der Merwe, RCB fell 6 runs short of the total. Pragyan Ojha, with 28/3 in 4 overs, was the pick of the bowlers for Deccan in that final. 

2011 IPL final: Heavy 58-run defeat against CSK

Two seasons later, RCB again reached the IPL final, this time under Daniel Vettori. RCB had finished at the top of the points table after the league stage, and despite losing the qualifier 1 against CSK, they qualified for the final after beating Mumbai Indians in the second eliminator.  

In the final, RCB were asked to bowl first. CSK managed a huge total of 205 in the first inning, with the help of a 95 from Murali Vijay. Chris Gayle was the star with the ball for RCB with 34/2 in four overs. 

During the chase, RCB crumbled, and except for Saurabh Tiwary's fighting unbeaten 42 from 34 balls, no one could get going. Virat Kohli also played a slow 32-ball 35 innings. In the end, RCB lost by 58 runs. Ravichandran Ashwin picked up three wickets, giving away just 16 runs in four overs, for CSK.

Read Also | IPL 2025: RCB batters create this unique history before the playoffs

2016 IPL final: Lost by 8 runs against SRH

Among the three defeats in the final, this one is the most heartbreaking for RCB fans. After finishing second in the league stage, they defeated Gujarat Lions in the qualifier 1 to enter the final. 

In the final, Sunrisers Hyderabad won the toss and decided to put runs on the board. David Warner scored a stunning 69 from 38 balls, and Ben Cutting, with an unbeaten 39 from 15 balls, took SRH to 208 in the first innings. 

Unlike the two previous finals, RCB got off to a flyer during the chase. Chris Gayle smashed 76 from 38 balls while Kohli scored 54 from 35 balls, to finish with a record-breaking 973 run season. 

With 67 needed from 8 overs and 8 wickets in hand, RCB struggled under pressure and eventually lost the game by 8 runs. 

IPL 2025: Reached the final

RCB qualify for the IPL finals for the fourth time!

Will it be their lucky time this time in Ahmedabad?

📸IPL#RCB #PBKSvRCB #ipl2025playoffs #IPL2025 pic.twitter.com/jrO4LnCSo4

— Sportz Point (@sportz_point) May 29, 2025

RCB finished second in the group stage to set up a date with Punjab Kings in the IPL 2025 final. Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma, and Yash Dayal did exceedingly well to restrict PBKS to 101 in the first inning. 

Phil Salt played an incredible inning of unbeaten 56 from 27 balls to take RCB over the final in just 10 overs.