Paralympic gold medalist Pramod Bhagat has attributed his calm on-court demeanor underneath stress to the sportsmanship and swish demeanor displayed by iconic cricketer Sachin Tendulkar in his profession.
Defending world champion Bhagat gained India’s first Paralympic gold medal with a straight-game win over Great Britain’s Daniel Bethel within the SL3 class remaining in Tokyo final week.
The 33-year-old Indian, who contracted polio on the age of 4, confirmed nice psychological fortitude after recovering from an eight-point deficit within the second recreation to return trump in opposition to his opponent.
“I used to play cricket in my childhood. During that time we used to watch cricket on Doordarshan and I was always impressed by Sachin Tendulkar’s calm demeanor, the way he conducted himself and it had a big impact on me,” Bhagat informed PTI in an interview.
Childhood dream come true!
I can not imagine how joyful I’m at this time
As a child I took inspiration from Siro @sachin_rt
The phrases you spoke to me at this time will at all times be with me and can proceed to encourage me all through my life.
I thanks wholeheartedly ️
i will not sleep tonight pic.twitter.com/KdssKlFqij— Pramod Bhagat (@PramodBhagat83) September 8, 2021
“I began following him. His sportsmanship impressed me rather a lot. So once I began taking part in, I adopted the identical thought course of and it helped me make memorable comebacks in lots of matches together with the World Championships.
“When I was down 4-12 in the second game of the final, I believed I could recover and so I could stop my nerves, stay calm and come back and win.”
Bhagat had met Tendulkar after returning dwelling from Tokyo. He gifted his racket, which he used within the remaining, to Tendulkar, who gave him an autographed T-shirt and his autobiography e-book.
“I’ve at all times been impressed by Sachin since childhood, so once I met him it was a giant second for me. He informed me about balancing life and sport. It was a dream come true second.”
Bhagat, who hails from Attabira in Odisha’s Bargarh district, mentioned he didn’t see any future within the sport when he began out, however is now feeling overwhelmed by the response he has acquired from his gold medal.
“When I started badminton in 2005, I thought there was no future, but I won the 2009 World Championships title and once BWF recognized para-badminton, things slowly changed,” he mentioned.
“But there wasn’t much recognition for para badminton and somehow I knew a gold in the Paralympics could get me recognition and I must say I’m getting everyone’s attention.”
Indian para shuttlers have gained 4 medals together with two gold, one silver and one bronze from the Tokyo Paralympics, the place badminton made its debut this 12 months.
Bhagat, who has over 45 worldwide medals together with 4 World Championship gold medals and one gold and one bronze on the 2018 Asian Para Games, mentioned the time has come for para shuttlers to dominate the world.
“This is just the beginning for us. The time for struggle is over and it is time to step up and achieve more.”
“In Tokyo, we have proved that we are the best and in the years to come, you can expect a very high level of performance and I think in next year’s Asian Games and 2024 Olympics, we will do better.”
Bhagat was scheduled to play the World Championships in Tokyo subsequent month nevertheless it has been postponed as a consequence of COVID-19 and mentioned his subsequent goal is to win a medal within the match which could possibly be held in December or March.
Bhagat additionally acknowledged the contribution of childhood coach Shiba Prasad Das.
“He actually discovered me, coached me and made me who I’m. He is my first mentor (coach). I used to play outdoors, he launched me to indoor badminton and it was underneath his steering that I gained the 2009 World Championships gained the title.
“He helped me financially, mentally and bodily. I used to coach underneath him earlier than huge occasions. So I’m very grateful to them.”
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With inputs from TheIndianEXPRESS
