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What's the story?
Following the footsteps of his father Pullella Gopichand and sister Gayatri Gopichand, young Sai Vishnu is making his mark in the domestic scenario and is currently playing his second U17 tournament in Chandigarh.
Playing in the 26th Smt.Krishna Khaitan Memorial All India Junior Ranking Badminton Tournament, Vishnu was seen being cheered on by his grandmother Subbaravamma, who is now accustomed to the badminton courts, having seen her own son Pulella Gopichand plying his trade in major tournaments.
In case you didn't know
Currently serving as the Indian senior team's badminton coach, Pullela Gopichand has been a wonderful servant of Indian badminton. Winner of the All England Open Badminton Championships in 2001, Gopichand enjoyed a short, yet illustrious career before he chose to coach youngsters.
The founder and coach of the Gopichand Academy, that was established in 1998, the 44-year-old has tutored the likes of Saina Nehwal, PV Sindhu, Kidami Srikanth amongst others to titles all over the world.
Given that both Vishnu and Gayathri are children of the great player, it comes as no surprise that the two children have managed to assert their dominance at a very early age.
Heart of the matter
Running around with her grandson to support his every move and cheer him on as he chalks his path up the ranks, Subbaravamma, Gopichand's mother fondly recollects memories of the superstar's childhood.
Recollecting a threatening injury that almost put a halt to Gopichand's life, Subbaravamma says that she believes that injuries are always part of a sport and that's one driving factor that has always allowed the family to let the children excel in the sport.
In addition to this, she also lays out a day's structure at the Gopichands' home in Hyderabad. A regular day starts at 4 AM for Gopichand and his wards as they set for the academy for the day's practice. The children begin their practice an hour later, after which, Subbaravamma joins in on the fun at 8 AM.
While opining that their father's absence at home is a major disadvantage, Vishnu adds that he enjoys facing his sister in practice matches twice a week, while also watching videos to hone his skills.
What's next?
While both the children have done marvellously well to grab many titles at a raw age, Vishnu's coach Anil Kumar, who has been mentoring him for half a decade now, hopes his ward plays in the U17 category soon, and also backed him by saying that he was getting better and better with his skill set.
Author's Take
The children indeed have been given a lot of exposure to the world of Badminton and it's good to see that they are taking long strides and if they do keep up the hard work, it won't be long before we would see them in Indian colours.
