'Every generation needs its writers to tell its stories' - interview with Sharda Ugra

In this special episode, we chat with veteran sports writer Sharda Ugra. From interviewing star cricketers as a college student... to blazing a trail as a sports journalist in the early '90s... to writing on a variety of sports for The Hindu... to being the chief sports writer at India Today... to presently working as a senior editor at ESPNcricinfo... Sharda has been an inspiration for a number of sports writers around the world. We chat with Sharda about her illustrious career – and are riveted by her range of experiences as well as her inexhaustible bank of anecdotes. Talking Points: The magazines that hooked her on to sports The interviews she and her college buddies did with the stars of the 1980s Memories of Imran Khan Landing her first job Finding Sachin Tendulkar's number Covering sailing  Watching Kenya's biggest cricketing moment The match-fixing shock The fall of Hansie Cronje The Azharuddin she interviewed Authoring a book with John Wright The Ganguly era Player access and the importance of stories Women's cricket - past, present and future And much, much more Participants: Sharda Ugra Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee) Ashoka (@ABVan) Related: The stolid buccaneer - Sharda Ugra on Mark Taylor Hansie-gate - Sharda Ugra's piece on the King Commission hearings What makes sportsmen go corrupt Manoj Prabhakar? Love? - on a cricketer Sharda Ugra hated to love All Indian cricketers should write books like this - Sharda Ugra reviews Sanjay Manjrekar's book Girls aloud - Sharda Ugra on how TV is redefining TV commentary Couchtalk with Sharda Ugra - interview with Subash Jayaraman This is personal - Sharda Ugra's letter to Mumbai post 26/11