Special, Sunday 03 May 2026, Kamikaze

Welcome to our new setter KAMIKAZE. Bouquets and Brickbats welcome.

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Enjoy.

The Hindu Cryptic on Sunday No 54, Sunday 03 May 2026, Vidwan

Three answers per commenter till 4 PM (Annotations compulsory) 

Please submit all your answers in one comment.  

(COMMENTS ENTERED WITH LESS THAN THREE ANSWERS/ANNOTATIONS WILL BE DELETED WITHOUT NOTICE, UNLESS THE COMMENTER SPECIFIES THAT IT IS A COMPENSATION FOR A REPEAT)

Thanks for the response, here's the regular blog.

ACROSS

9   Listen in, the first lady has a small mention (9) EAVESDROP {E{A}VE}{S}{DROP}

10 Go on about English being meanest (5) LEAST {L{E}AST}

11 Cry about adopting India colour (5) LILAC {CAL{I}L<=}

12 Fool hosting a short form of artistic work/period drama on TV (4,5) SOAP OPERA {SO{A}P}{OP}{ERA}

13 So return could be sponsored (7) RESPOND {RESPOND+SO}*=SPONSORED [CA]

15 Good and right to take responsibility as adult (7) GROWNUP {G}{R}{OWN UP}

17 I've innocence! No convoluted nuisance! (13) INCONVENIENCE {IVE+INNOCENCE+N}*

21 Perhaps only chap relinquishing power to become happy (7) HALCYON {ONLY+CHAp}*

22 Scoring century in gentleman's game and yet a bit shaky (7) RICKETY {cRICKET}{Yet}

23 Local clubs McCartney regularly goes to dehydrate (9) DESICCATE {DESI}{C}{mCcArTnEy}

25 Stir fear over fine (5) AWOKE {AW{OK}E}

27 Cause devastation with clubs discarded by amateur (5) WREAK  WRE(-c+a)AK

28 Fan crossing line to watch engaging royal consume grass in excess (9) OVERGRAZE {lOVER}{G{R}AZE}

DOWN

1   Cryptic callers' crypts (7) CELLARS*

2   Oddly you've a large cricket ground (4) OVAL {yOuVe}{A}{L}

3   Go back into shop coyly, perhaps for study of personality (10) PSYCHOLOGY {GO<=} in  {SHOP+COYLY}* Extra O in t he fodder

4   A forced kind of despair (6) PRISED {PRISED+A}*=DESPAIR [CA]

5   Small request by German peacekeepers for painting tool (5,3) SPRAY GUN {S}{PRAY}{G}{UN}

6   Drop of olive oil used for Spanish style stew (4) OLIO {Ol..e}{OIL*}

7   Temple spread included pickled crane (10) TABERNACLE {TAB{CRANE*}LE}

8   Gifts back case of peltry with belts (7) STRAPPY {PARTS<=}{Pe..rY}

14 Wildebeests upset by girls' shades (10) SUNGLASSES {GNUS<=}{LASSES}

16 Say O+ve strain (10) OVERCHARGE {OVER}{CHARGE}

18 Ex-Indian cricketer taking kid around to find a Goan delicacy (8) VINDALOO {VIN{LAD<=}OO}

19 Dark had replaced northern cold (7) SHADOWY S(-n+had)HADOWY

20 Latin apple stones, perhaps for tennis player (7) PYRENES [DD] Player or Tournament?

22 Point about English sailor's coat (6) REEFER {RE{E}FER}

24 Bakery item about to make bar millons (4) CAKE {C}{mAKE}

26 Short Indian PM from south state (4) OMAN<=

Reference List

Small = S, English = E, India = I, Good = G, Right = R, No = N, Power = P, Century = C, Clubs = C, Amateur = A, Line = L, Royal = R, Large = L, German = G, Northern = N, About = C