Author: S Kannan

Tennis fans were in mourning on Thursday as Rafael Nadal, Spanish tennis legend, announced that he would retire after the Davis Cup finals in Malaga next month. In a video posted on social media, the winner of 22 Grand Slam titles was teary-eyed. “I am here to let you know that I am retiring from professional tennis,” said Nadal. “The reality is that it has been some difficult years, the last two especially. I do not think I have been able to play without limitations.” It has been a very emotional last two years for Nadal. The harder he tried…

One of the first people to return to work after the highs of the Paris 2024 Olympics is Jaspal Rana. As the ‘personal coach’ of Manu Bhaker, who won two medals in Chateauroux, the Dronacharya Awardee did meet several politicians and attended a few felicitation functions as well. Yet, as someone who loves the sport and wants to keep giving back to it, he has been back at work since September. Manu Bhaker has taken a three-month break and is off shooting until November, but Jaspal has no such luxury. As he said in one of his most sensational interviews…

Saying goodbye is always emotional for an athlete, unless you happen to Bjorn Borg, who shockingly retired at 26 after winning 11 Grand Slam titles. Superstars like John McEnroe tried to convince Borg to stay on. He refused. On Monday, Dipa Karmakar, India’s gymnastics queen, took to social media to say that she was retiring after nearly 25 years in artistic gymnastics. Those fortunate to watch Dipa compete in flesh and blood at the 2016 Rio Olympics will remember how she caught the attention of the world. Among the many fourth-place finishes which Indian athletes have come up with at…

In the good old days, those who reported for news agencies were considered the fastest. From the typewriter generation itself, belting out sports news stories at a fast pace was a challenge. Yet, the methods employed to write or type were natural. Given a massive subscriber base from newspapers and even Government agencies, wire reporting was accurate and reliable. In an era where speed minus accuracy has become shockingly acceptable, even wire or agency reporters are passe. The reason is that reporting from the ground has reduced drastically and reliance on press releases has increased. Of course, not all wire…

Clickbait, sensationalism and zero respect for privacy – this is the bane of several digital sports platforms ready to generate content which will get them ‘more views’. Sadly, this trend is now visible even on news websites which come under the banners of big newspapers. The latest example one can cite is of Formula One legend Michael Schumacher having attended his daughter Gina’s wedding in Mallorca, Spain, over the weekend. It is well-known that since the time Schumacher, a seven-time world champion, met with a skiing accident in 2013, not a single image of his has been put out in…

A major challenge confronting web journalism, especially in sports, is the lack of quality and credibility. Day in and day out, one reads on platforms like LinkedIn about ‘authors’ claiming to have written 2,000 articles in one year. A rough calculation shows that this equals a minimum of five articles per day. Assuming each piece is at least 500 words, how does one maintain such volume with quality in mind? This is a real danger threatening journalism today, particularly on digital sports platforms, where quantity is prioritized. It is humanly impossible to achieve this for two reasons: first, there will…

India stands on top of the medal tally in the ongoing ISSF Junior World Championships in Lima, Peru, with 10. This is bound to go up and the eventual haul may look even more healthy. In the past, as well, the junior Indian shooters have come through this competition but graduating to the next level has been a challenge. There have been many cases of talented shooters falling by the wayside in the last three years. The names of Chinki Yadav, Saurabh Chaudhary and even Palak Gulia will ring bells. Chinki had made the cut for the Tokyo Olympics but…

One sport in India which has faced enormous criticism for failing to win medals at two successive Olympics (Rio and Tokyo) is shooting. Three medals from Paris 2024 has made people believe the sport is back on the rails and more glory can be achieved in the next Olympic cycle. In an exclusive chat with RevSportz on Monday, Kalikesh Singh Deo, recently elected President of the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), opened up on the blueprint ahead. “There is no scope or room for just resting on laurels won in Paris 2024. We have the ISSF World Cup Finals…

The Karni Singh ranges in New Delhi will witness high-quality action when the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup finals are held from October 13 to 18. This being the season finale, where the best of the best compete after making the cut, it will be a chance for fans to see world-class shooters in flesh and blood. The focus, obviously, will be on Indian shooters, though Manu Bhaker will not be competing. She is on a break from shooting till November, something which she had decided after winning two bronze medals in the Paris 2024 Olympics and finishing…

Neeraj Chopra does not believe in hype or celebrations on returning home. The Paris 2024 Olympics silver medallist almost slipped into India unnoticed minus any fanfare. On Friday, he visited a Sports University in Rai, Sonipat, which is 90kms from New Delhi. Earlier, this was known as the Motilal Nehru School Of Sports, Rai. The way he spoke to the audience, it was clear that Chopra, winner of two Olympic medals, has not let success affect him. To the contrary, he stays grounded and spoke more on the success of the Indian athletes at the Olympics and Paralympics. For all…