New Delhi: Marking its seventh edition with a decisive leap forward, the Ekamra Sports Literature Festival (ESLF) on Saturday announced that its famed awards—so far recognised as Asia’s premier honours for sports writing—will go global in 2026. Director Sundeep Misra declared that the festival will open its doors to international sports writers, transforming the awards into a truly global benchmark for excellence in sports literature.
The announcement capped off a day that celebrated the most compelling voices in Indian sports writing, underscoring why ESLF has grown into one of the most respected literary platforms in the sporting world.
Honouring the Finest: From Deepa Malik to Shikhar Dhawan
The headline award—ESLF Sports Book of the Year 2025—went to Bring It On by Paralympic medallist Deepa Malik and co-author Soni Sangwan, a work that blends resilience, sporting vision, and personal grit into a narrative that resonated powerfully with the jury.
The festival’s Biography of the Year was awarded to The Diary of a Cricketer’s Wife by Puja Pujara and Namita Kala, a book that offers a rare, intimate lens into the world surrounding elite athletes—a perspective often overshadowed in mainstream sports literature.
In the Autobiography of the Year category, The One: Cricket, My Life and More by Shikhar Dhawan, co-authored with Chandresh Narayan and Namita Kala, captured the complexities of a modern Indian cricketer navigating fame, setbacks, reinventions, and personal evolution.
The Cricket Book of the Year was awarded to Fearless by Mohinder Amarnath and Rajinder Amarnath, a work that bridges personal memory, cricketing history, and the transition of Indian cricket across generations.
A notable highlight was the Special Jury Award presented to Sacred Grounds: A Journey Through People’s Football in India by Sandeep Menon, recognised for its meticulous research, cultural insight, and rich documentation of the country’s footballing heritage.
HarperCollins bagged the Publisher of the Year award for its consistent contribution to Indian sports publishing.
Global 2026: A Milestone in the Making
For six editions, the ESLF Awards have been regarded as the definitive recognition for sports literature within Asia. The decision to expand globally represents a turning point—not just for the festival, but for the ecosystem of sports writing itself.
“We have always believed this festival belongs to authors. Writing is the heartbeat of Ekamra,” said Director Misra. “Going global is a natural progression because stories of sport know no borders.”
The move will now allow celebrated sports biographers, thinkers, journalists, analysts, and historians from around the world to enter the competition—placing ESLF alongside the world’s leading literary recognitions in sports.
The announcement comes at a time when global interest in Indian sport is at an unprecedented high, and Indian authors too are producing a wider canvas of nuanced, research-driven sports writing.
A Day of Sporting Icons and Unforgettable Conversations
The 2025 edition of ESLF, held at Delhi’s iconic Bikaner House, was more than just an awards ceremony—it was a confluence of Olympic champions, world record holders, celebrated sports authors, emerging athletes, and readers passionate about the written word.
One of the standout sessions featured the legendary Javier Sotomayor, Olympic gold medallist and holder of the still-unbroken men’s high jump world record of 2.45m. In conversation with India’s National Record holder Tejaswin Shankar, Sotomayor reflected on the discipline and competitive atmosphere of his era.
“I learned from the great jumpers before me,” he said. “Dedication, focus, and discipline were constant. Every year, the goal was simple: be better than last year.”
The rare pairing of two athletes separated by eras but bound by the same discipline gave the audience a masterclass in sporting evolution.
The Science of Batting and a Changing Era in Cricket
The day concluded with a lively interaction featuring cricket writer and filmmaker Jarrod Kimber, whose new book The Art of Batting dissects the cognitive and scientific dimensions of elite batting. Having compiled a list of the 50 greatest batters across global cricket, Kimber argued that players are always shaped by the demands of their era.
“You can’t be Rahul Dravid in today’s cricket,” Kimber said. “You have to be what your era allows you to be. The game has changed enormously after DRS and the review system.”
His session—which explored analytics, adaptability, and the evolution of technique—was one of the festival’s most intellectually charged conversations.
A Confluence of Global Sporting Voices
The 2025 event brought together an eclectic and inspiring mix of personalities from across the globe:
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Franco Nugnes from Italy, celebrated Formula 1 writer
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Mohammed Dwedar, Palestinian middle-distance runner
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Deepa Malik, India’s first female Paralympic medallist
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Authors Sandeep Menon and Jaydeep Basu
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Director-author Sundeep Misra
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India’s emerging athletes—Shourya Ambure (hurdles), Poorva Sawant (triple jump), and Bushra Khan (middle- and long-distance running)
Their presence highlighted the festival’s expanding reach and the growing global curiosity about Indian sport and sports literature.
Why the Global Leap Matters
With its global expansion in 2026, ESLF aims to achieve several milestones:
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Position itself as one of the world’s foremost platforms for sports writing
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Build cultural exchange between Indian and international sports writers
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Encourage cross-border dialogue on sport, identity, and society
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Bring Indian sports literature into mainstream global circulation
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Provide Indian readers access to global perspectives on sporting history and analysis
For authors, this shift opens new possibilities: broader readership, international recognition, and deeper collaboration.
For Indian sport, it offers visibility, legitimacy, and cultural currency—allowing stories from India’s sporting evolution to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with global chronicles.
A Festival Growing in Spirit, Ambition, and Influence
What began seven years ago with the singular objective of celebrating sports books has now evolved into a global platform that blends literature with athletic excellence, research, biography, conversation, and cross-disciplinary insight.
With each passing edition, ESLF has expanded its ambition. From cricket to football, from mental conditioning to children’s sports literature, from Olympic champions to first-time authors, the festival now reflects the full spectrum of what sport means in contemporary society.
The move to go global in 2026 is not merely an administrative expansion—it is a statement of confidence in the festival’s cultural standing and in the power of sports writing to connect continents.
As the applause settled in Bikaner House, one message was unmistakably clear: Ekamra Sports Literature Festival is no longer just an Indian event—it is poised to become one of the world’s key stages for the stories behind sport.
