The next few months offer us a unique opportunity. Having a team of eight journalists here in the UK allows us to experiment. And that’s what we will do. Not many, for example, are talking about India women’s tour of the UK. It is at the same time in June-July and offers us the chance to cover it on ground. In normal circumstances, it is always about ROI in a business. What’s the return? Can we monetise? This is different. With the men’s tour at the same time, you have the additional opportunity of being able to get things done.
In sum, it gives us at RevSportz the chance to cover the women’s tour from the grounds as well. And true to what we have done so far – we sent multiple reporters to the women’s World Cup last year, for example – we will have Trisha Ghosal here in the UK to front the coverage, with Gargi Raut and Rohan Chowdhury for support. The idea is comprehensive, holistic coverage, and it will help us build to the women’s World Cup in September-October.
Also, the Indian team with disabilities is traveling to the UK at the same time and will be playing a series of games between June and July. Rarely has such an overseas series been covered on ground, and this is yet another opportunity. With cricket expected to make it to the Paralympics, this is one sport that will see serious growth in the coming years. Rohan, who specialises in Paralympic sport, will be in England to cover this series for us.
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I have always felt that covering Test cricket is the most challenging and, at the same time, most enjoyable assignment for a journalist who loves the sport. More so when it is, say, the Lord’s Test. The intensity and the drama, everything adds to the theatre making it a spectacle unrivalled. That’s what should get the best out of a journalist. How do you report on the match? How do you stand out? How do you break the clutter? What can you do differently in an already cramped space? How can you not be sensationalist like most are, and yet get viewers to consume your content?
Much like it is a Test for the Indian team, it is also a test for journalists. To see how good they are.
That’s what prompted us to get a big team here to the UK. Showcase the stories that aren’t really documented. Go beyond the practice and the press conference and bring to life the more human side of sport. Give the fans their due and add to the coverage. If there are one or two people on ground, it is natural that they will report on the practice or the press conference. With two teams practising for three hours each, followed by a press conference from either team, your entire day is spent doing the basics. But then, is that complete coverage? Can you really get the pulse by just doing the basics?
This England tour is as much a challenge as an opportunity. To break new ground and create new templates. And the team is ready for it.
Also Read: After the Olympics, Paralympics and Australia, RevSportz will go big in England