Racket science

Hyderabad: Coaching kids can be hard, even more so when it’s your own child. But it seems to have worked perfectly so far for Hyderabad-based father-daughter badminton duo J. Rajendra Kumar and Meghana Jakkampudi.

The two are currently head coach and junior player, respectively, in the Hyderabad Hunters team at the ongoing Premier Badminton League.

“He’s always been cool and calm, whenever he sits for my matches he’s not shouting ‘what are you doing?,’” says Meghana about her dad’s coaching method, adding, “He calmly explains things, and I think that’s why I’ve been able to play for this long.”

Rajendra, who began his career as a badminton player in Vijayawada — winning his first tournament when he was 12 — says that he never felt the need to force her into picking up a racket.

“Meghana was very good in studies and she wanted to become a doctor when she was young, as she was interested in science and was one of the toppers in school,” he says.

After months of persuasion, Meghana says her father finally took her to one of his training session when she was still in school, and she has been hooked onto the sport ever since.

Balancing studies and sports was hard, she admits, but she chose to follow her sporting dream after high school.

“I got a seat in an engineering college, but I decided to take up a regular degree course instead because I wanted to focus on badminton.”

Rajendra perhaps chose to pressure Meghana into playing badminton after experiencing the pressure of balancing education and a sport when he was a child himself, but he says that his father eventually came around and let him follow his heart after seeing just how well he played.

“Whether they’re winning or losing, every child should play some sport or the other to stay healthy. It helps increase their grasping power with their studies too,” he adds.

Meghana, who recently ranked number one in the country in the junior doubles category, also says that playing in a team under her father’s tutelage does not divide her loyalties.

“Last time I was in the Bengaluru team, and it was complicated because I wanted our team to win as well as my dad’s. And now I’m playing for my hometown, so I don’t have to ask God to make two teams win. Now I can just say please make Hyderabad win!” she says with a laugh.

With intense six-hours-a-day practice sessions for six days in a week, the 20-year-old will be aiming for more doubles glory at the Syed Modi International Badminton Championships in Lucknow later this month, after already winning big in the women’s doubles tournament at the Radhey Shyam Gupta Memorial in Bareilly.

“I’ve started playing with a new partner for my women’s doubles and we won a tournament in Bareilly a few days ago, and that’s our first national ranking tournament that we’ve won together,” she adds.

Hyderabad’s badminton coaching facilities, such as the Pullela Gopichand Badminton Academy where Meghana trains and Rajendra coaches, have helped sportspersons rise quicker than ever.

“Now we have a double’s specialist coach from Malaysia, so he’s taking care of things with Meghana very well,” Rajendra says, adding, “The only thing I need to tell her is to work hard and work sincerely.”