It was a mere toss of the coin that launched the shuttle in Indian badminton. Just a coin toss to kickstart a sporting dream that has gone from strength to strength since. That’s so hard to believe in today’s times, when a dominant India dethroned four-time champions Indonesia for the Thomas Cup title two months ago.
In the 1947 All England championships, Prakash Nath became the first Indian to reach the final, where he would lose to Conny Jepsen, a Dane who emigrated to Sweden during World War II.
But before that, he would have the luck of the toss on his side, calling correctly ahead of good friend Devinder Mohan to make the semifinals. As they watched Kidambi Srikanth smash home the winner for India in Bangkok on television, it was a dream come true for the pioneers of Indian badminton. To think it all started with a gleaming coin spinning in the air.
“We grew up hearing about the exploits of Prakash Nath and Devinder Mohan, who impressed at the All England in 1947,” remembered 79-year-old Dinesh Khanna, independent India’s first semifinalist at All England Championships in 1966. An engineer by profession and also the first Indian to win the Asian title (1965), Khanna travelled down memory lane as he recalled some path-breaking performances by India on the world stage that would set the tone for future generations.
EARLY TRYSTS WITH THOMAS CUP: 1952, 1955 & 1979
Esta historia es de la edición July 27, 2022 de The Times of India Hyderabad.
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