A romantic of the ferocious Rafael Nadal forehand, Rutvick Mehta loves his tennis but has been covering various other sport since 2012. He writes for HT.
Articles by Rutvick Mehta
20% away from Olympic medal level but we are on right track: Graham Reid
India hockey coach says he wants to try out young players to ensure he is not missing any “diamond in the rust”
Published on Mar 31, 2021 02:54 PM IST
Rutvick Mehta
Indian derby: All horse power, little human roar expected amid Covid-19
Only 200-odd people will be allowed into the Mahalaxmi course for India's grandest horse race in the calendar.
Published on Mar 28, 2021 08:40 AM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
For Tokyo, India's most important athletes may be without their coaches
For India’s best athletes, this could mean losing their essential support system when it’s needed the most.
Updated on Mar 26, 2021 06:14 PM IST
Rutvick MehtaAvishek Roy, New Delhi/mumbai
At 30, Ashutosh Mehta finally gets a chance to wear the blue jersey
The right back from Mumbai has had a decade of success, jumping from club to club in the I League and now the ISL. Now he gets a chance to prove himself for India.
Updated on Mar 25, 2021 06:46 AM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
Leander: 'I'm getting fitter, stronger...I'm back'
In his 30 years of playing professional tennis, the 18-time Grand Slam champion has never had 11 months off like he did from March last year, a season that was meant to be Paes’s “One Last Roar” but instead saw him switch off totally from the sport.
Published on Mar 23, 2021 07:15 PM IST
Rutvick Mehta
Indian Olympic faithful feel the pain as Tokyo bars its doors
Organisers of the Tokyo Olympics have announced that overseas spectators will not be allowed at the Games over Covid-19 fears.
Updated on Mar 23, 2021 06:56 AM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
Tokyo Olympics: Sharath Kamal and Manika Batra seal mixed doubles spot
Seasoned Sharath shakes off doubts as the Indian pair rallies to beat superior Korean rivals in the Asian qualification tournament final at Doha, Qatar
Updated on Mar 20, 2021 08:21 PM IST
ANI | Rutvick Mehta
How a personal tragedy shaped Sathiyan's route to Tokyo
Sathiyan, 28, recalled his father as being a towering personality at home for both him and his mother, who soon realised it was her turn to stand tall for her son’s table tennis career.
Updated on Mar 20, 2021 09:55 AM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
Intense, tough & driven: India's finest homegrown coach is just getting started
As interim coach of NorthEast United, Jamil deadpanned through television interviews during a string of 11 unbeaten games which also made him the first Indian to reach the play-off stage of the Indian Super League (ISL).
Updated on Mar 21, 2021 10:33 AM IST
Dhiman SarkarBhargab SarmahRutvick Mehta, Kolkata/mumbai/new Delhi
From Beed to Tokyo, Sable’s long, hard run
Avinash Sable’s gritty journey, from growing up in a drought-hit village where his parents were daily wage labourers, to breaking national records and qualifying for the Olympics.
Published on Mar 19, 2021 12:02 PM IST
Rutvick Mehta
CFG has big plans for Mumbai, but first Lobera just wants to enjoy trophy no. 1
Twice he repeated the sentence on being asked about the road ahead for his team. Rather than glance at the future, the Spaniard wanted to savour the present.
Updated on Mar 16, 2021 09:07 AM IST
Rutvick Mehta
The European connection in ISL dominance
If Atletico de Kolkata won in 2014 and 2016 and made the semi-finals in 2015, it was in no small measure because of the support from part-owners Atletico Madrid.
Updated on Mar 16, 2021 06:58 AM IST
Dhiman SarkarRutvick Mehta, Kolkata/mumbai
Sharath Kamal, Sathiyan, Manika Batra set for Tokyo Olympics qualifiers
A world event followed by an Asian event will give a good opportunity for India’s top table tennis players to seal berths for this year’s Games.
Published on Mar 13, 2021 10:37 PM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
ISL Final: Counter-attacking Bagan take on Mumbai's possession game
The final of the seventh edition of the Indian Super League (ISL) on Saturday will be a classic contest of contrasting styles of play between Habas’s Bagan and Sergio Lobera’s Mumbai City FC.
Published on Mar 13, 2021 07:21 AM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
Delighted to see Indian players develop: Damian Willoughby
City Football Group’s India CEO Damian Willoughby reflects on Mumbai City’s successful season.
Updated on Mar 12, 2021 04:23 PM IST
Rutvick Mehta
Top-100 consistency next target for Nagal
Nagal was looking good to notch up his sixth straight win at the ATP 250 Argentina Open before he ran out of fuel to lose to fifth seeded Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-4, 2-6, 5-7 in the quarter-finals on Friday night.
Published on Mar 10, 2021 07:13 AM IST
Rutvick Mehta
Pick and choose model to drive Novak’s Slam focus?
The two-year gap might have remained in the subsequent milestone weeks (Federer hit 300 weeks at 31; Djokovic at 33), but Djokovic has had as much flex to his stranglehold on the throne as Federer did during his kingship days.
Published on Mar 10, 2021 07:06 AM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
After almost three years out of action, Yuki Bhambri returns targeting Slams
Taken off the doubles draw, Bhambri was scheduled to play his singles match on Wednesday, and for the preceding two days he was made to cancel practice and isolate in his room until a decision was arrived at.
Published on Mar 09, 2021 07:14 AM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
Numero Uno Novak Djokovic eyes new high
Federer’s 310 weeks as the world’s No. 1 tennis player was a mythical figure; an almost unreal statistic of dominance that was largely believed to be out of bounds when he broke Pete Sampras’s 286-week record in 2012.
Updated on Mar 12, 2021 08:33 AM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
Sumit Nagal registers biggest win of career, beats world No.22
The 23-year-old Indian earned the biggest victory of his career thus far, defeating world No. 22 and second seed Chilean Cristian Garin 6-4, 6-3 in the second round of the ATP 250 Argentina Open.
Published on Mar 04, 2021 11:18 PM IST
Rutvick Mehta
Mumbai City FC winning ISL Shield was about being strong mentally: Coach Lobera
In this chat with Hindustan Times, Lobera talks about overcoming the challenges of this unique season and why he doesn’t want to put a limit on how far this Mumbai team can go.
Published on Mar 03, 2021 07:48 PM IST
Rutvick Mehta
The Indo-Pak Express is running again
Bopanna and Qureshi will renew their highly fruitful partnership - labelled popularly as the “Indo-Pak Express” - for the first time since 2014, signing up to play the ATP 500 Acapulco event beginning from March 15.
Published on Mar 03, 2021 01:06 PM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
India men’s hockey team beats Germany 6-1 in first match for over a year
After being confined to the Bengaluru SAI centre for almost a year due to Covid-19 restrictions, India have resumed their proper build-up for the Tokyo Olympics.
Updated on Feb 28, 2021 10:32 PM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
Sania Mirza ready to rebuild after Covid-19 recovery
India’s former world doubles No.1 looks at her season ahead with Tokyo Olympics an added motivation.
Published on Feb 28, 2021 08:41 PM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
Excuse me while I kiss the sky
Meet skydiver Sajid Chougle, who explains what it was like to fly again after being chained to the ground for most of 2020
Published on Feb 28, 2021 08:13 AM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
India hockey team faces hosts Germany in post-pandemic re-build
As they prepare for the Tokyo Olympics, the Graham Reid-coached side will have to make up for a year without any competitive games.
Updated on Feb 27, 2021 10:29 PM IST
Rutvick Mehta
Djokovic, Federer, Nadal: The Big Three are all right
Women's tennis has found its Next Gen but the men still live under the shadow of the Big Three.
Published on Feb 23, 2021 07:08 AM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
Naomi Osaka and Novak Djokovic: Thin line between the loved and loathed
The young woman tennis champion is hailed for speaking out on social issues but the Serb 18-times Grand Slam champion has been criticised for his views.
Published on Feb 22, 2021 11:53 PM IST
Rutvick Mehta
No walk in the Park for Novak Djokovic
A one-sided final notwithstanding, Djokovic braves a 3rd round abdomen injury making it his hardest Slam victory.
Published on Feb 22, 2021 08:03 AM IST
Rutvick Mehta, Mumbai
The Naomi Osaka star keeps rising
The third seed broke away to win the next four games in the second set, and soon after the 2021 Australian Open title, beating 22nd seed Brady 6-4, 6-3 in Saturday’s final that pit a three-time Slam winner against a first-time finalist.
Published on Feb 20, 2021 09:13 PM IST
Rutvick Mehta