For two decades, Shiva Keshavan has hurtled himself down an icy concrete chute, going 130kmph without brakes and pulling more Gs through the corners than an astronaut during a rocket launch. And that’s the easy part. Making his way back to the starting line each time has been an Olympic challenge.

Jinder Mahal's ascent has been followed by a barrage of abuse from a rabid fanbase and criticism from the industry’s ‘insiders’, coupled with fleeting adulation from India and Canada for the Calgary-born Sikh. The meteoric rise has been termed both a billion dollar empire’s latest marketing stunt and an underdog’s tale of redemption. Perhaps the reality lies somewhere in between.

Somebody tell Maria Sharapova 2-19 does not a rivalry make. And the 18 straight defeats to Serena Williams make ‘Unstoppable’ an audacious choice for the title of her memoir. Pride and Prejudice, sadly, is already taken.

Yin and yang. Chinese philosophy describes how two seemingly opposing forces are complementary and interdependent. Is there a more apt way to describe the relationship between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal? The righty versus the lefty. Federer’s free-flowing shot-making and point construction, a remnant of tennis’s classical era versus Nadal’s brutish ground-strokes and untiring legs, a template for today’s baseline slug-fests.

“Freakshow,” is how veteran boxing promoter Bob Arum describes the contest between boxer Floyd Mayweather and mixed martial artist Conor McGregor. Almost like putting a world-class boxer against a professional wrestler, a freakshow Arum himself promoted 41 years ago — “the most atrocious crap that I’ve ever put on.”

In addition to an overwhelming myriad of acronyms, pro boxing in India suffers from backroom politics and lack of larger-than-life prizefighters. The first call that all boxers have to take is to move away from the system that gives them medals, cash incentives and job security. The national body, for one, believes most still choose to stay on the well-trodden path of amateur boxing.

It was in 2008 that Sushil Kumar won a bronze in Beijing, the first Olympic medal by an Indian wrestler since KD Jadhav at Helsinki 1952. Due recognition followed soon enough — the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award was bestowed upon Sushil just a year later. But while many coaches have taken – and, indeed, been given — credit for the grappler’s success in the form of Dronacharya Awards, one man has flown under the radar of the powers that be.

Let’s get the obvious out of the way first — this has been the golden generation in men’s tennis. The players currently ranked in the top five have accounted for 50 of the last 55 Grand Slam singles titles. Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are strong G.O.A.T. contenders while Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka have multiple Grand Slam titles to their name and could have had many more had they played in another era. As a result, for the first time in the sport’s history, the ATP rankings

In the many gaming houses across the country, young eSports teams live together to learn more about their chosen game, and one another. The rows of computers and large gaming chairs are paid for; so is the high-speed internet, air-conditioning and food. There are mid-executive level salaries, starting from Rs 10,000 to Rs 20,000, in addition to sponsorship and prize money, to sweeten the deal. All they need to do is play — and play to win.

You can’t use the ‘F’ word in tennis ace Sania Mirza’s hearing unless you’re begging for an icy comeback. I learned that when I began to ask her if she’s a feminist and got cut off midway through my question. “The fact that ‘feminist’ is a word means we live in a man’s world,” says Mirza. “Why do we need that word? I don’t think I am a feminist. I am a person who thinks the normal way about equality. It’s about having equal opportunities and rights. All basic things and I don’t get why I need to be a feminist to say these things.”