Racketlon may have made its presence known in India just a few years ago, but Indians have repeatedly shown their calibre to not just adapt to this unique sporting format but also excel at four different sports against the best in the world. For those who don’t know what racketlon is, it’s a combination sport where competitors play four different racket sports, table tennis, badminton, squash and tennis one after another. Each sport is played for a total of 21 points and the participant with the most points is adjudged the winner.

One such racketlon player from Delhi, Mr. Siddhartha Nandal is one of the top 100 players in the world. This talented racketlon player from Delhi comes from a sporting family and has won a number of accolades in both India and abroad. In this exclusive interview with SPOGO, Mr. Siddhartha Nandal speaks about being introduced to racketlon, his strengths and weaknesses, special achievements, mental strength, future goals and more!

Q 1) As someone who comes from a sporting background, how were you first introduced to Racketlon and what motivated you to take up the sport professionally?

I came to know about this wonderful sport from a news article when I was already playing Badminton and TT at national level for the Income Tax Department. Then I met Ashutosh Sir and Cheema Sir who guided and mentored me to pursue it further. I had been a national level player in badminton and state level player in Table Tennis in my school days. Since then, I had always dreamt of wearing the Tricolour on my chest. Playing for the nation has been my greatest motivation for pursuing Racketlon professionally.

Q 2) Out of the four racket sports, table tennis, squash, badminton and tennis, which ones do you consider as your strengths and weaknesses?

Badminton and Tennis are my strengths and I only started training for Squash and Tennis after I decided to pursue Racketlon professionally and I believe I hope to improve in both of them (TT and Squash).

Q 3) How much of an influence has Mr. Om Prakashji Dahiya who is also a Dronacharya winner in wrestling has been encouraging you to become a sports person yourself?

My father- in – law is an inspiration for thousands of national and international players including me. We both share a special "sporting bond " and he would often challenge me for a game of volleyball or basketball when I visit him. He has been producing hundreds of national and international champions from his school campus, Pratap Sports School, Kharkhoda which is located in Sonipat, Haryana. The  training environment and methodologies adopted by him at the school campus always motivated me to live a  disciplined lifestyle, follow a strict diet and to build this wonderful sporting career.

Also read: Ashutosh Pednekar is an Indian navy captain with a prodigious talent for racket sports​​​​​​​

Q 4) You are one of only two players who has achieved the feat of Top 100 Men Singles players in World Ranking, which Racketlon achievement is the most special for you and why?

Winning Gold for India and hearing that national anthem at the award ceremony of the Challenger Cup in Germany at the 17th World Championship has been the best moment so far. Also winning 3 Golds and 2 silvers in one week's time at the Thailand Open 2020 and Indian Open 2020 has given me immense confidence and self belief .

Q 5) How important of a role does mental strength play in succeeding in racketlon and why?

Mental strength and perseverance and the will power to give 100% for every single point is the key to succeed in Racketlon. You may not be able to dominate your opponent in all 4 games  but you must try to score as many points as possible, even in your weakest game in order to win the match eventually.

Q 6) What are your future goals and aspirations in Racketlon? How do you plan to achieve them?

Nowadays I am training for the 18th World Championship for singles and Doubles which are to be held in Zurich and Prague in late October. I may get deputed to Mumbai in my department anytime soon now, so I am planning to train under the mentorship of Cheema Sir, Aashutosh Sir, Kotak Sir and Moonmoon Ma'am in Mumbai for few months and then train with my doubles partner Adarsh in Germany for some weeks before the tournament. I aspire to win the National title in the next nationals and to raise my world ranking by winning as many international tournaments as possible.