Lists of bests are subjective affairs. In my case, I will vote for sporting activities that the masses of my country can play - football, cricket, hockey, chess, athletics or badminton.

Recently, the All Sports magazine rated Abhinav Bindra's Olympic Gold as the top Indian sporting achievement of all time. I beg to disagree. It is a fine achievement all right, especially for a country starved for Olympic glory. Having said that, shooting is a pretty elite sport, played by only those who gave access to guns and expensive bullets. Even Bindra got to excel because his father could fund his froeign training. The guy has his own private shooting facility, one hears. Give a rifle to every Indian and Bindra will be as ordinary as an American Gold-winning shooter.

My number one Indian sporting achievement from All Sports' list goes to the World Cup Win in 1983. This is my own top 5 from All Sports'  Top 10:

The Top 5 Indian sporting achievements of all time:
1. Kapil's Devils' coup in the 1983 Cricket World Cup.
2. Dhyan Chand-orchestrated golden symphony in the 1936 Berlin Olympics field hockey event.
3. Viswanathan Anand's victories in the 2007 (tournament) and 2008 (match play) FIDE World Chess Championships.
4. Ajit Wadekar's twin series triumphs in the West Indies and England in 1971.
5. Prakash Padukone's [ Images ] triumph at the All England Badminton Championship in 1980.