Commonwealth Games squash gold medallist Dipika Pallikal talks to Shrabasti Mallik about her pride in bringing home the first gold medal in the discipline and lessons for youngsters
It was a one-of-a-kind-opportunity for squash enthusiasts in the city to learn and train in the ropes of the game from the best. In a Masterclass, organised by sports giant ADIDAS, Dipika Pallikal demonstrated the traits of her game and also encouraged them into taking the game seriously. “The problem is that people rarely think of turning sports into a profession,” she says. Pallikal recalls falling in love with squash when she picked up the racket, stepped into the court and decided to stick to the sport.
Currently holding the world number 10 rank, Pallikal coached young aspirants on improving their game. From guiding them on the most effective warm-up routine to her tricks on the perfect serve — she also gave tips on how to ramp up on stamina, create balance and proper stance.
Dipika feels fortunate to have been coached under the likes of Amir Wagih in Egypt, Ritwik Bhattacharya to Sarah Fitz-Gerald. “You learn something new everyday and I try to implement it into my game. All of them have been working towards one goal and that is to get me achieve the world number 1 title. Hopefully in a few years, I can reach that goal,” she says enthusiastically.
She continues, “Teaching others is always humbling. I can relate with each individual present here, since I have been in their shoes at some point in time. This is a fantastic initiative from the brand that inspires the youth to come together for the love of squash and I am eagerly looking forward to the next session.”
She hails from a family who, though orthodox, have accepted exposure to sports. She says, “Support from friends and family is important. My parents have not forced me and my sister to take up any sport, but encouraged us to take our decisions.”
After all the encouragement and motivation, Dipika however sits down to reveal that she might consider pulling out of the forthcoming Asian Games. She and her long time teammate Joshana Chinappa are drawn to meet in the quarterfinals, which the competition does not allow. According to the rules, two players belonging to the same country cannot be in the same half of the draw. “It is disheartening to see the draw like this. Clearly the drawmakers have not gone by the rules and put us in the same quarter, let alone the half. I have already written to our federation to appeal against the manipulated draw but I haven’t got any reply yet. I am surely going to think about pulling out if the draw is not set right,” she says.
This is the third time in a row that the Games, that something like this has happened, and she feels that it isn’t coincidence. She rounds off, “It is a bit disheartening. We just won India’s first gold at the recently concluded Commonwealth Games. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that my message goes through to the people who know this and am hoping the draw is changed.”