Nikhil Kanetkar, the stylish, fluid left-hander who was once ranked in the world top 50, announced the launch of his badminton academy in Pune.
It was, he said, his way of “giving back to the game”, and came two weeks after he announced his retirement.
The academy will be located at the Balewadi indoor stadium. “It’s been on my mind for a while,” Kanetkar said. “I visited the Balewadi stadium for the first time two months ago. I’d never been there even though the stadium is five minutes from my house. When I saw the complex, I was impressed. It’s phenomenal. I spoke to deputy director Sabnis and he encouraged me and asked me to submit a proposal.”
Kanetkar was part of the early batch of the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy. He was among a generation of shuttlers - including Gopichand, Siddharth Jain and others — who raised the profile of Indian badminton after its bleak period in the 90s.
He would be part of the team that helped India qualify for the Thomas Cup finals in 2000 for the first time since 1988.
