Game, set, match: Punjab’s young aces rally to win medals

After a successful run at the under-11 Punjab State Badminton Championship held in Jalandhar, young players Krishnam, Vivan, Tanshiv, Anika, Kaanhvi and Shanaya made their parents and coaches proud by clinching medals.

Former international badminton player Mayank Behal, along with a team of eight coaches, is grooming these promising athletes. He attributed their success to a policy of catching players young. All have been training here for the past two to three years and are under 10 years of age, attending different schools across the city.

Coaches prefer children between six to seven to join the game for effective grooming. Currently, around 50 players in this age group are actively playing. Nearly three competitions take place annually at district and state levels, providing valuable opportunities for players and coaches to assess their progress.

Behal, a Junior National champion in 2000 and World Railway Champion in 2005, said parents are eager for their children to take up badminton as a healthy alternative to screen time. Equally, the youngsters themselves are keen to learn and compete.

In the recent championship, Krishnam, Vivan and Tanshiv were runners-up in the under-11 boys’ singles, while Vivan and Tanshiv also finished runners-up in the boys’ doubles. Anika and Shanaya won bronze in the under-11 girls’ doubles and Kaanhvi Mahajan and Shanaya also secured bronze in the same category.

The sport has also become a thriving business opportunity. Businessman Jagdeep Singh operates badminton courts that have helped increase the number of players from around 100 to approximately 200. The facilities include wooden court mats and other international-standard equipment.

In other news, Class 10 student Kritagya Arora was the runner-up in the under-17 state championship held in Jalandhar this month, having won the state championship the previous month. Behal said Kritagya’s selection for the nationals depends on his performance in the forthcoming State Badminton Championship in Ludhiana in November. A win there will secure his place at the nationals.