The 16-year-old Madurai boy shocked top seed Dhruv Negi of Uttarakhand with a 21-16, 21-14 win: Pranauv Ram towards transition to seniors
Seven years ago, when a young boy Pranauv Ram decided to shift his base to Hyderabad to take training at the Gopichand Academy from his native place Madurai in Tamil Nadu, his family had to make a decision. With his father Nagalingam running his brick construction business in Madurai, Pranauv’s mother Prabhavati decided to shift along with the boy to Hyderabad.
On Sunday evening, as the teenager shocked top seed Dhruv Negi of Uttarakhand with a 21-16, 21-14 win to book his spot in the boys’ singles final in the Yonex Sunrise 30th Smt Krishna Khaitan Memorial All India Junior Ranking Prize Money tournament being organised by Express Shuttle Club Trust at the Tau Devi Lal Sports Complex, the 16 year youngster was on a call for a long time with his mother.
“While my father manages the brick construction business, my mother stays with me at Hyderabad and ensures that I get healthy and nutritious home cooked food apart from making sure that I would be on time for my training since I joined the Gopichand Academy in Hyderabad. My father has never asked me to join the brick business later and badminton has been my only priority since I started playing it just for fun,” tells the 16 year boy to the press.
While the young boy started playing badminton in his neighbourhood field in Madurai and later at a local sports academy, in year 2017 along with his mother shifted to Hyderabad. Ram made it to the semi-finals twice in the Under 13 All India Junior Ranking Tournament in 2018 before winning his first Under 13 Junior Ranking title in Hyderabad the year 2019.
Last year, the youngster reached the third round in three events, Under 17 and Under 19 All India Junior ranking tournaments apart from a semi-final finish in the Pembangunan Jaya Raya Junior International Challenge in Indonesia. “I have always believed in seeing older opponents same as myself. When I used to compete at the Under 13 level, I would watch the Under 15 and Under 17 matches as well, post my matches. The main focus since the last two years competing at the Under 17 and Under 19 level has been on my attacking game as well the finishing apart from controlling the pace of the shuttle,” says Pranauv.
This year, the youngster reached the final of the Under 17 Junior National Championship at Hyderabad apart from final and semi-final appearances in the Under 17 All India Junior Ranking Tournaments. Pranauv Ram also won the title in the Bahrain Junior International Series by defeating Balasubramanian B in the final.
“The coaches at the academy understand that I have to play more and more Under 19 tournaments as well whatever opportunities I get to play on the international circuit like the Bahrain International. I do watch videos of players like three-time Olympic medallist Lee Chong Wei when I am free and the way he approaches the game tactically has been the learning template for a lot of us,” signs off Ram. I am a die-hard fan of Lee Chong Wei, the teenager added.
Hope this teenager will bring glory to the country and pride to his native place and parents. Wishing him a great career ahead.
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