First racquet of a superstar, watching Taufik Live & disappearing English

At the 2009 Badminton World Championships in Hyderabad, a father in the stands caught a racquet that newly crowned men’s doubles world champion Cai Yun had hurled into the crowd after securing the title. A decade later, the son who grew up wielding that racquet is Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, a key member of India’s most accomplished badminton pair alongside Chirag Shetty.

The man who snatched the racquet was the young boy’s late father, Kasi Viswanatham. “My father was in the stands and he had a habit of collecting racquets. So when the Chinese player tossed it after winning, my father caught it and had to hide it behind his shirt,” Ramcharan reminisced to the Indian Express. The racquet became the genesis of Satwik’s illustrious career, leading to multiple accolades.

Despite family financial hardships, the family repurposed the racquet for Satwik’s use, stringing it repeatedly for his training. The 2009 edition also inspired young Indian talent like HS Prannoy and B Sumeeth Reddy, who later became Olympians. Prannoy, who was in the stands as a young boy, was captivated by the spectacle, particularly the final game where Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng clinched their second world title against Korean duo Jung Jae-sung and Lee Yong-dae.

Prannoy, who later won a bronze medal in 2023, said the match was a thrilling contest that left him cheering intensely. Sumeeth, who had moved to Hyderabad in 2008, was equally enthralled by the experience of witnessing legends like Lin Dan, Sony, and Taufik Hidayat in person. The 2009 Worlds played a pivotal role in shaping India’s first generation of badminton superstars, even as the English team withdrew due to security concerns following the 2008 Mumbai attacks.