CHENNAI: B Sumeeth Reddy recently made one of the biggest decisions of his life. Having dedicated his life to badminton for over two decades, he called time on his professional career. His playing days might have ended but it's also the beginning of a new chapter, a chapter he hopes will bring wealth of success. Brimming with hard-earned wisdom, Sumeeth, having donned the hat of a coach, is now eager to pass on the knowledge to youngsters in the days to come.
"I only wanted to do it (retire) when I felt like I couldn't improve any further than whatever I was during my peak. Lately, I could feel that my body wasn't able to keep up. I had lost a lot of power due to a back issue. Despite that, I used to manage because of my experience. Even last week, I was World No 25. However, I couldn't get myself into the top-10, something that was always in my mind. Maybe, I could have pushed a little more but that would not fulfill my goal," he said.
Once recommended by the doctors to quit playing the sport (due to a back injury), the man from Telangana had overlooked their suggestion to soldier on and carve out a respectable career for himself. Against all odds, Sumeeth, alongside partner Manu Attri, had made history in 2016 by becoming the first men's pair from the country to qualify for the Olympics. Manu and Sumeeth climbed as high as World No 17 at their peak. That might pale in comparison to what Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty has produced, but it was a significant push for Indian badminton then. It was not just his personal injury that Sumeeth was battling, the Indian doubles department, for various reasons including the results, did not use to get the attention required to thrive at the elite level. He has played alongside other notable players like Ashwini Ponnappa and N Sikki Reddy, with whom he tied the knot in 2019, in the mixed doubles category as well. Being part of the Olympics is something that will remain in his heart forever. "Getting selected for the Olympics was special. Only 13 spots (three others would be part of continental quota) were there and to be part of that number was always special. I had to wait 12 or 16 years to get the Commonwealth medal. I had always missed it by a whisker. That was special. We also had some big scalps against top-ranked players. That was special too. All those Grand Prix wins were also quite special," he recalled.
Despite the injury that ended his aspirations to become a singles star (he was former India junior No 1 in singles) and despite the challenges that tested players from doubles category then, Sumeeth is filled with gratitude. "We were lucky that we were at one of the top centres in the country, the Gopichand Academy. The atmosphere was always positive, looking to win big titles. Apart from that, my dad has always been a source of strength and motivation. He was also a national athlete. Obviously, he couldn't get any support from my grandparents and he wanted me and my brother to pursue sports. He always supported me. I could see him day in and day out and that pushed me to achieve bigger things in life."
The 33-year-old is encouraged by the talent in store, especially Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand apart from Satwik and Chirag. But he also felt that doubles players, especially the youngsters, still have a lot of learning to do.
"When I started, I had helped them (Treesa and Gayatri) for a month before China. They have done pretty well. Recently, they won against a Korean pair (Kong Hee Yong/Kim Hye Jeong) and that was really good. The pair from Korea had been winning all the top tournaments. Winning against them was also special. I'm also taking care of the mixed doubles pairs and upcoming players. A few juniors have shifted from singles to doubles and I can see some potential in them. It is obviously a tougher task as they are still learning the basics of the sport but I'm obviously enjoying my role."
"If I say right away, it looks tough (doubles). Satwik and Chirag have won almost everything. Treesa and Gayatri have shown a lot of potential. Apart from that, there's a sizeable gap and that's a big concern which needs to be addressed. The other pairs are also trying. I think it's a lot about confidence and tactical things that we Indians have to look into. We need to focus a lot more on our tactical game. We think we can be ahead if we do that. I would say that it always helped me. I never had a big smash but I was not very skillful. The reason how we could pull off some good matches is by employing this tactical side of the game," he assessed.
With his passion and hunger for the sport intact, Sumeeth will be hoping to take India to new heights with his freshly-acquired role.