Prakash Padukone- How One Man Changed The Face Of Badminton In The Country

Badminton, is now one of the premier sports followed across the country. The racquet sports gave the country a chance to follow and excel at something other than cricket.

Badminton might not be as popular as cricket in the country but it has been quite successful in rapidly growing a huge fan base in the country, which can be seen from the fact that Indians were glued to their TV screens when P.V. Sindhu was taking on Carolina Marin in the Rio Olympics final. Sindhu was not victorious in the night of the finals but what was so heartwarming to see that the Indians were following the game so passionately that the whole nation was sad and disappointed with the loss. Sindhu’s efforts were appreciated and she was honored with a grand welcome even after the loss.

This was not the case with the sports earlier. People played badminton as leisure sport but not as a professional one. It was not seen as a means to fame and glory.

This was all going to change. Prakash Padukone was eighteen when he first participated and got a taste of the All England Open. He was participating in the most prestigious at such a young age. The reason it was the most prestigious tournament of all times because, first of all it was held in England at that time which once dominated the whole world and second, it was the oldest badminton tournament in the world

When Padukone first took part in the tournament in 1973, it was a daunting task for the young teenager from India and the challenges were huge. He was able to make it only to the quarterfinals (again in 1977 and 1978). When the Banglore shuttler returned to the tournament in 1980, he was not just a young teenager from India. He was more experienced and adapted to the European surroundings by playing in Denmark and Swedish Open. Padukone was third-seed for the tournament and made it to the finals with ease.

THE FINAL SHOWDOWN

“Even on the day of final, I had taken the train, carried my kit, and walked to the court”, Padukone told in an interview.

In the finals, Padukone was up against

one of the best players of that era- Liem Swie King. The Indonesian shuttler was number one in the world and completely ruled the previous two editions of the All England Open and everyone was hopeful about his third.

Padukone, however, was himself a confident player going into the finals. He reached at this stage by defeating the second seed in the tournament- Morten Frost in the semifinal. The final started with Padukone having a lead of 15-3 in the first game.

Due to the early dominance of Padukone he had a great advantage going in the second game. However he was not able to gain any points there, result being 15-10 at the end. The match was over and history was made. For the first time an Indian shuttler had won the tournament.

By defeating King in the finals, perception changed about badminton in the country and now it’s not just a leisure sport.

This feat was only repeated once by Pullela Gopichand in 2001. Right now, badminton in India is not what it was at the time of Padukone. Several young player have emerged and are now winning different tournaments.

In many ways Prakash Padukone was the man behind the success of Badminton in India and it being considered as serious career option in the country in the field of sports