Mood of the Nation: Virat Kohli still the coolest, can't say the same about cricket

India's status as a cricket-crazy nation is being challenged. With football, badminton, hockey and table tennis getting prime time TV coverage, there are new icons to root for, prominent among them Olympic silver medallist P.V. Sindhu. She isn't the only shuttler to feature in the MOTN list, Saina Nehwal and India's top-ranked male player Kidambi Srikanth figure too. The entry of Paralympics silver medallist shot putter Deepa Malik is further proof that Indians seek inspirational heroes.

But the pole position is still Virat Kohli's to lose. The captain's influence on the Board of Control for Cricket in India may be growing but his popularity among the public waned. From 30 per cent votes in January 2017, Kohli has lost ground by 7 percentage points six months later. India's loss in the Champions Trophy finals to Pakistan and Kohli's feud with erstwhile head coach Anil Kumble which subsequently led to the latter's resignation may be factors.

Indians, though, are convinced the government's not doing enough for sporting infrastructure: 40 per cent feel there's been no positive change in the past three years. Surely a nation of a billion deserves more sporting stars.