Gayatri Gopichand is about to plunge into the international senior circuit full-time. She was a part of the Indian team at 2018 Asian Games. The name is a giveaway. Gayatri, 17, is the daughter of Pullela Gopichand, one of India’s best performers in the sport at the world level, who has created bigger ripples as a coach. But the name tells just half the story.
Gayatri’s mother PVV Lakshmi was one of the best badminton players in the women’s section during her time. The former national champion in singles and doubles played her part when her husband set up the academy in Hyderabad. Now looking after their children in their journey as budding players, Lakshmi is on a long leave from her job in BPCL.
Both Gayatri and her brother Vishnu, who too is a badminton player, “have tutorials almost everyday. I drop and pick them up. They travel about twice a month. I go with them”, says Lakshmi. “Because Gayatri has started playing at a serious level, it’s mostly me with her these days.” says Lakshmi. Lakshmi and Gayatri form a rare Indian mother-daughter duo to have made a mark in the same sport. “Badminton was not thrust on her. She used to accompany Gopi to the academy. Sometimes I made her play. But she took it up due to her own interest.”