Watch out for Sai Praneeth

Rising badminton star Sai Praneeth recently returned to his hometown, Hyderabad, clinching the Canada Open title. The 24-year-old home-grown champion, who won this title after years of battling multiple injuries, was beaming. “It feels great. I had beaten top players before, but I have never won a big tournament like this one.” Praneeth was introduced to the sport at the age of eight by his aunt, who was a national level player herself. He fell in love with badminton instantly and realised that he must harness his talent well. His interest kept growing as he won matches after matches.

“Since I started playing, I have been winning many national-level tournaments. I won under-10, under-13, under-16 and under-19 nationals. Each time I won, my interest in the sport grew,” he says. Talking about his first international title win, Praneeth says, “The experience while playing in Canada was great. I had participated in the Open last year too, so I knew what the conditions would be like. This time, as I kept winning each round, my confidence rose. I won the finals pretty comfortably. I didn’t expect that at all! I thought it would be really tough,” he reveals.

However, the race to the trophy was not an easy one. Injuries cost Praneeth heavily as he had to pull out of many tournaments in 2013 and 2014. “The injuries kept troubling me because I would never go even six months without an injury.  Before the Canada Open too, my shoulder was troubling me, but I had enough time to prepare. Luckily though, I have been free of major injuries for the past 10 months. Let’s hope the streak lasts that way,” he says.

Praneeth has great admiration for the badminton legends. “All the top players are my inspiration,” he smiles, adding, “Taufik Hidayat from Indonesia is my favourite. It’s fantastic to watch his graceful moves. I also like the Olympic Champion’s style.” A graduate from the St Joseph’s College, Praneeth currently works with the ONGC as an HR executive. “We endorse them during tournaments,” he says adding, “Once we retire from the game, we will go to office like anyone else.”  

Praneeth’s daily routine consists of five hours of practice at the Gopichand Academy. But when he is not busy playing badminton, he loves to hang out with his friends and watch movies. Asked if he misses home as he stays in the academy, he says, “I visit my family every weekend, so it is quite comfortable.” The young talent has great plans for future games. “The next season of tournaments will start after the Olympics. In September, I will be playing the Indonesian Masters.”