Posted by Aakash Verma
The cricket season is in full swing and when we switch on our television sets to watch the pre or post-match analysis, we often see a smartly dressed woman anchoring the show with utmost knowledge and grace. For a sport which has always been male-dominated, both on and off the field, Mayanti Langer is refreshing to watch. She is one of the most well-read anchors in the country and very few people would have as much knowledge of the game. Today, she is one of the most successful sports anchors in the country.
Mayanti loved to play football when she was in school and college. She trained at the Super Soccer Academy in Delhi before graduating in B.A (Hons) from Delhi University. She also ran the Indian Youth Soccer Association (IYSA) League in Delhi. She wanted to pursue a career in graphic designing after this. Fate, however, had something else in store for her. She experimented as a guest sports anchor at the FIFA Beach Football in 2010 and there was no looking back after this. She was approached by a sports channel to host their shows and Mayanti decided that this was what she wanted to do.
She has an astute knowledge of cricket and football and is genuinely interested in these sports. This led to her steep rise as she started hosting one big tournament after another. She started with hosting football tournaments and quickly moved to hosting cricket shows as well. In just one year after she started anchoring, she was selected to be a host during the ICC Cricket World Cup in 2011. Other prominent shows that she has hosted include the Commonwealth Games, the FIFA World Cup, the Olympics and most recently, the Indian Premier League as well.
Mayanti Langer has had a tough ride with online trolls. She has often been targeted by trolls who have been extremely demeaning at times. She was made fun of because her husband, cricketer Stuart Binny, had performed poorly in a few matches. She has also been trolled for her clothes on many occasions. However, she knows how to give it back to those mocking her. She has written a few notes to those who tried to troll her and her reaction had drawn praises from the entire cricketing community.
Most sports lovers would agree that Mayanti Langer is a delight to watch. The way she presents her show is admirable and it is no surprise that she is the star anchor of Star Sports. She is respected and loved in the cricketing world. She has also interviewed many famous personalities including Virat Kohli, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, AB de Villiers, Saina Nehwal, PV Sindhu, Kidambi Srikanth and many more.
However, the journey to the top has not been a smooth one for the Delhi-born girl. In any sport in our country, male sports anchors were generally preferred as it was believed that they would have more knowledge of the game. Female anchors were just hired to add to the glamour quotient. Mayanti has played a huge role in changing this mindset and paving the way for more female anchors. She showed one and all how impactful a female sports anchor can be and how they are more than their conventional looks. We hope that many more women are inspired by Mayanti Langer’s grit, determination and fighting spirit to take on the world and be the best at what they do.
Also read: Dutee Chand: A Sportswoman Who Broke All Barriers
Featured Image Source: Khaleej Times
