Federer, Patrick Patterson, Sindhu, DD Sports: The Field’s selection of 2017’s best stories

Sports writers are, for the most part, sports fans in the first place. The reason most get up every day and go to work is because they enjoy what they write about. As another year comes to an end, we saw plenty of thrilling action unfold in front of us around the sporting world. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni. PV Sindhu and Kidambi Srikanth. Aizawl and the Indian women in the World Cup. Everywhere we turned, we saw stories that filled us with emotion that only sport can.

So here we are at the end of 2017. And we, at The Field, wanted to share the stories that we enjoyed writing. And not only that, picking stories that we, as fans, enjoyed reading from other publications.

Here goes. Let us know which story you enjoyed reading the most, from The Field or otherwise.

Ashish Magotra (@clutchplay)

A game of chess, a game of life, The Field

A chance tweet, an old memory and the unpredictability that comes with genius. Few stories that I wrote in 2017 gave me as much joy as the piece on Srinath Narayanan, who became India’s 46th GM earlier this year.

Srinath was India’s youngest FIDE rated player at the age of 8, U-12 World Champion, IM at 14 but somewhere along the way things became so difficult that he stopped playing the game. In many ways, this was a story of him finding himself through the game of chess.

Nick Kyrgios, the Reluctant Rising Star of Tennis, The New Yorker

The year of Federer. Yes. The year of Nadal. Yes, to that too. But perhaps the most fascinating individual on the tennis courts is an Australian, who is the only active player ever to defeat Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic in their first meetings and this New Yorker profile game us deep insight into what makes Krygios the kind of guy he is.

Abhijeet Kulkarni (@abk6580)

Brutal rallies, triumphant spirit: PV Sindhu v Nozomi Okuhara, The Field

A dream of any sports journalist is to witness some of the biggest sporting events from the best seat in the house. That is the one incentive that makes one go out and report day in and day out, hoping that history would be created under your watch.

The BWF World Championship final between PV Sindhu and Nozomi Okuhara was the second longest match in women’s singles, It was so draining not just on the players but everyone watching it, that it was difficult to make sense of what exactly happened on the badminton court and then try and replicate it in the analysis.

A hockey coach who had nothing; and now has everything, The Indian Express

This is a short, but beautiful story that came out of the Hockey World League Final. A star player in his day, Maximiliano Caldas went from the top of the game, to losing everything, but bounced back, and is enjoying a second wind as a coach. A story with some rich quotes.

Anand Katakam (@anandkatakam)

The bizarre yet incredible career of Nehra Ji, The Field

For all the brouhaha when Ashish Nehra made his debut, he was never a successful bowler, consistently. In a injury-ravaged career spanning nearly 18 years, he’s played only 165 international matches across all formats. To me, that’s a combination of persistence and luck. When I was researching this piece, I saw absolutely no reason for Nehra to be ever a part of the Indian team. He’s no Zaheer Khan or Javagal Srinath, but I learnt he’s more than just his numbers. He’s Nehraji.

The Lonely Road Back From a Very Public Injury, The New York Times

Injuries can be career-ending. For Manchester City’s Ilkay Gundogan it was a long recovery. It’s not only the physical aspect of it, but the mental confidence to get back to your best. I’ve never read a sports piece that really goes into the gruelling aspect of recovery.

The depth and time spent on this piece were unparalleled. Arguably, the New York Times isn’t the place I’d look to when reading about football, but if you must, read this one.

Angikaar Chaudhary (@AngikaarC)

The story of four Indian gymnasts inspired by Dipa, The Field

Gymnastics is a challenging sport. In terms of aesthetic value though, it doesn’t have an equal. I got to experience this sport first-hand and not through a television screen. If you’ve ever watched been enthralled at a gymnast’s dexterity through the television set, do yourself a favour and watch it live at a stadium. It’s worth it.

Dipa Karmakar’s star turn at Rio 2016 shifted focus towards the challenges faced by these athletes in India. Yet, none of these four upcoming gymnasts spoke with frustration or rage - they all spoke out of a genuine love to improve a sport they excelled in. An inspiring tale.

Remember Marty, The Cricket Monthly

This is not a sports story. The two main characters in the story, the writer and the subject he writes about, are associated with sports, but that is it. This is a human story, a story of two brothers, two colleagues, two friends and the journey they took together. It is a deeply personal tale and as you keep reading it, you realise that it cannot have been easy to write. It resonates on an individual level to anyone who has ever had a good friend pass away.

Arka Bhattacharya (@Heilige_Kugel)

A brief history of Shillong football, The Field

Personally, this was the most challenging story that I’ve worked on during the time that I’ve worked at The Field, as part of the Goal for India series.

The history of football in the North East isn’t documented in great detail, so this piece had to be sourced from various old-timers as well as enthusiasts with a strong knowledge of the local game. In the end, it took the recollections of nearly 40 such people and a significant amount of research to put this piece together. This piece is all about nostalgia and documenting an important piece of our football culture, albeit by cramming it into 2000-odd words.

Tomorrow Belongs to God, The Players’ Tribune

Quite often with sportspersons, we tend to forget that they’re as human as we are. The Chapecoense crash was a jarring reminder of this fact and the uncertainties surrounding sport, as the footballing world found out in the November of 2016. Of the entire Chape first team, only Neto, Jakson Follman and Alan Ruschel survived and their recollections of that tragic day culminate in an emotional read. Heartbreaking, yet beautiful.

Bibhash Chatterjee (@bibhash1990)

Hockey India’s own Chak De! experiment, The Field

It happened for the first time and I was there to witness it.

Hockey is a fast sport and when you organise a mixed-gender hockey tournament in India, it’s bound to generate intrigue. While the men were reluctant to attack their women opponents while defending, the women would not hold themselves back and go for goal. Coaches would yell at the their men players and talk calmly to his women players. It was quite an experience to cover such a tournament.

Federer is peerless but he and Nadal have made each other great, The Guardian

Roger Federer is one of the people I Idolise. I love Rohit Brijnath’s piece on Federer after he won Wimbledon as well. There was another piece in the New Yorker by Louisa Thomas but then Kevin Mitchell’s piece in The Guardian seems to be the better story. The piece gives due credit to both players and signifies their contribution to tennis. Without them, tennis wouldn’t be the sport it is today.

Crystelle Rita Nunes (@crystellenunes)

Abbas Moontasir, the Asian All-Star who rose from the courts of Nagpada, The Field

Well, as a basketball fan, it’s not surprising I chose this video. What made this edit fun was that I had a whole lot of mixed emotions going through all the newspaper cuttings, photographs, knowing that, all this while, they were just lying there in a tiny book. The passion with which Abbas spoke made this particular interview quite engaging. Basketball may not be one of the most popular sports in the country but this is the kind of importance that it should be given to help it grow.

Kyrie Irving got tired of being son to The King, The Undefeated

Stephen A. King, doing what he does best. Enough said.

Kushal Phatarpekar (@kushalp06)

The Yo-Yo Test and the skill vs fitness debate, The Field

One of the buzzwords of Indian cricket in 2017 was the Yo-Yo Test. For the first time in history, it wasn’t just your performances that mattered, your fitness was also crucial. It was intriguing to know that the team management was so enamoured by fitness. It also became clear while speaking to these coaches, that at the domestic level not many teams were even bothering to get into this latest obsession of the Indian team, which by all means is the trend-setter.

Patrick Patterson: The story of an Unquiet Mind, The Indian Express

This story was one of the most fascinating ones that I read in 2017. Not only for its subject matter or the style of writing, but also for the determination with which the writer tracked down a cricketer, who had disappeared into oblivion. Considered one of the fiercest bowlers of his generation Patrick Patterson’s expertise in today’s batting-heavy times would have been invaluable. But, as his memory slowly faded away, so did the man from everyday life in the Caribbean islands. The writer spent years piecing together ways to find Patterson. From hearsay to hard clues, he kept gathering information and finally found a way to trace Patterson. It is an intriguing journey and is worded quite eloquently.

Jaideep Vaidya (@jaideepjourno)

The sorry state of DD Sports, The Field

I went through a lot of pain and hardship for this story – because I spent almost a month watching DD Sports! No, but in all seriousness, I enjoyed doing this story as I had to do a lot of research regarding sports broadcasting in India. Tracking the channel’s fall especially after the liberalisation of the economy was quite enlightening as I learnt of the numerous legal battles the public broadcaster went through just to preserve its perceived “right” over Indian sport (read: cricket).

Deliverance from 27,000 feet, The New York Times

This is one of the most harrowing stories I have ever read but it’s also exceptional journalism. The story is about an Everest climb gone wrong for four Indian mountaineers, three of whom never returned. I won’t reveal much else so please take 20 minutes out to read this brilliant NYT interactive story.

Praveen Sudevan (@praveensudevan)

CSK, Dhoni, Chepauk: For Chennai fans, it’s a bond that goes beyond words, The Field
While working on the piece I witnessed the love the fans of CSK have for their team and “their” captain. That Dhoni is from a different region, speaking a different language is of no concern to them. He has given them, on many occasions, reasons to celebrate, wearing the team’s bright yellow jersey. That’s all that matters to them. And they are all waiting with excitement for him to wear it again in the upcoming IPL.

I hope you have a Federer too, when you grow up, The Straits Times.

My favourite sports writer, Rohit Brijnath, writing about my favourite tennis player after he won the sport’s most prestigious tournament for a record-breaking eighth time at 35. In this lovely letter that he writes for his three-year-old granddaughter’s 18th birthday, he talks about Federer as a God on court and a gentleman off it.

Shashank Rajaram (@shashankrajaram)

KnowYourLegend: Murlikant Petkar, The Field

It was the first video where I actually got to travel and meet a legend. Truly humbling experience with an even better life story. Petkar is a legend who didn’t get his due when he was in prime, he certainly deserves it now.

Video on the legacy of Maradona and Messi, Copa 90

Brilliantly done video in terms of making interviews seem grander than just two people talking. Technically there were better ones, but this stuck with me for some reason. My other favourite story, is the one The Times on How Salah is more than a footballer for Egypt.

Sharada Rajagopalan

How playing on grass has changed over the years, The Field

The article on grass, was my editor’s idea and I shall be forever glad that I got to write on the subject. Speaking to Roger Federer for the article, on the surface where he’s incomparable, still feels surreal. A lot of pre-conceived notions were shattered and a different idea emerged. Not just about the surface, but also about the player who had played through such evolution.

Jana Novotna, A Tennis Perfectionist, The New York Times

This speaks about a player whose loss at the Wimbledon final came to mind before her win did. In fact, not many even wondered about her and it not been for her unexpected death, Jana Novotna would have remained consigned to the deepest recesses of our minds. A true champion, her loss is one too many for tennisdom.

Vishal Radhakrishnan (@vishhell)

India’s vegetarian women boxers and the challenge of a meat diet, The Field

It was punishing but enriching and fun at the same time as I tried to explore a subject that is completely alien to me. Through this story, I got to talk to a wide range of people: Players, coaches, dietitians etc. Having spoken to the Indian coach (an Italian) and the players, I got to see how the former and his team worked around this after the girls refused to eat meat. Many of the boxers won gold medals in the event and that is all that matters.

Vinod Kambli can go out of sight but never out of mind, The Indian Express
I have always been a huge admirer of Kambli, and for the first time, the great man spoke in length about his highs and lows. There are some really interesting anecdotes away from the cricket pitch too. Watching the left-hander step out to the spinners and punching the ball through the covers gave me some of the greatest joys as a kid. Kambli also sheds light on how his talent was wasted by mismanagement, a characteristic of Indian cricket in the nineties.

Vinayakk Mohanarangan (@vinayakkm)

The story of Chess Gurukul, The Field

Chess is a game that barely gets mainstream media coverage in India, but hidden in a busy locality in Chennai, an academy has been nurturing the brightest young talents in the country. To spend a day at Chess Gurukul and see kids aged 9 to 19 enjoy spending time with their mentor was rewarding. RB Ramesh, a Grandmaster himself, deserves to receive wider attention for his achivements as a coach.

A young boy’s commentary for his blind friend, The Guradian

For fans, sports, ultimately, is an escape from the mundane realities of life – a chance to find happiness in an entity that moves us. And every now and then, a story comes along, that reaffirms that faith. It doesn’t matter where you live, it doesn’t matter what team or player or game you follow, this story in The Guardian of these two boys in Australia is the reason we watch sports.

And since the second story is supposed to be from another publication, honourable mention to Prem Panicker’s column for The Field on the Sindhu-Okuhara epic. One of the best I have read all year.

Zenia D’Cunha (@ZENIADCUNHA)

Jemimah Rodrigues: A future women’s cricket star in the making, The Field

In another year, maybe, an interview with a domestic woman cricketer at the age-group level would not be counted as one of the top picks. But in 2017, women’s cricket in India received a major, and deserving, boost thanks to the team’s runner-up run at the World Cup in England. While detailed media coverage and recognition followed Mithali Raj and Co ever since the final in June, the domino effect the final appearance has had is more important. That is why I chose the interview with Jemimah Rodrigues. A woman domestic cricketer getting her achievements highlighted in the media is kind of a big deal. And I was glad to be able to share this story.

We are here to stay: Sharda Ugra on women journalists, The News Minute
Surprise, surprise, turns out there is a glut of Roger Federer pieces in everyone’s list so I will not include Rohit Brijnath’s letter to his granddaughter or his interview with ESPN where he talks about what happened in the fifth set against Nadal in Australia.

However, the standout piece of the year 2017 on a personal level would be Sharda Ugra’s interview with the News Minute. An interview of a journalist, you ask? Well, this one is on the challenges of being a female sports journalist in the country and it’s an inspiring read. Sometimes, the journalist can become the story.