WARANGAL: Legendary ball badminton player J Pitchiah passed away at the age of 104 in Warangal on Sunday afternoon after a brief illness. An Arjuna awardee, Pitchiah had celebrated his 104th birthday on December 21 at his second daughter's residence at Karunapuram village, on the outskirts of Warangal.
The centenarian, who was born in Kuchipudi village in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh, started playing ball badminton during his school days and then went on to win State-level competitions in 1935-1936. Till he breathed his last, he could read, write and speak well, which only upheld the fact that health and sports always go together.
Post Independence, he moved to Warangal where he joined the Azam Jahi Mills and then opened a sports shop, all the while managing to find time for ball badminton.Pitchiah did not participate in the national championship in 1950 due to financial constraints, but in 1954-55 national-level ball badminton tourney held in Hyderabad, he won the trophy.
Pitchiah played in 15 nationals between 1955 and 1970 and pocketed nine titles. His success inspired thousands of people in the State to take up the sport. The ball badminton legend continued to play the game long after retirement as a professional sportsperson, and this may have had something to do with his fitness till his last moments. For his efforts, the Indian government had honoured Pitchiah with the Arjuna award in 1970.
Such was his fame in his heyday that the ball badminton racquet was also called the “Pitchiah model”. In his later years, Pitchiah led life with the assistance of his grandson V Prashanth, the son of his second daughter V Janaki Devi, who had been taking care of him after the death of his wife Satyavathi in 2007.
Just a couple of days ago, Pictchiah, speaking to the The New Indian Express, made an appeal to the government to help the players who have hung up shoes and retired from the sport. He lamented that even though Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao had promised to provide assistance when he met him a couple of years ago, no financial aid came his away.