A ballet dancer and a master of bluff

WHEN NIKHIL Kanetkar plays badminton, it's pure ballet on court. The graceful southpaw moves lightly, almost cat-like. And when he rises for the smash, he seems to float and fly.

Nikhil is the most stylish player on the circuit. ``He lands very lightly, like the Chinese. Even the Chinese chief coach Yong Bo had a lot of good things to say about him at the recent Thomas Cup qualifiers in Delhi,'' said international Vimal Kumar.

The lean and delicate star is a master of bluff. Deception is his forte. He is a stroke-cum-attacking player, an allrounder. He jumps for almost every stroke, keeping the opponent guessing. He has a lovely tactical game, mixing stinging smashes, naughty drops and half-smashes shrewdly to surprise rivals.

Nikhil was runner-up at the U.S. Open Grand Prix in California in October, his biggest success to date. Nikhil's world ranking has improved considerably. From 51, he has moved to a career-best 43, which is next only to Gopi's 26. Nikhil's game has also gone up a few notches. And the mental barrier that existed between him and Gopi has now broken down. At the recent BPL Grand Prix in Bangalore, Nikhil was on match-point against Gopi in the semifinal, before messing it up.

Nikhil idolises Denmark's world No.1 Peter Gade-Christensen and follows his style of play and movement. ``He is very light on his feet. Whenever I go abroad, I watch his matches and movements and try to do similar things,'' said the 20-year-old PSCB player, ranked number three in the country. Another favourite is Indonesia's Taufik Hidayat who is reputed to be very smooth on court.

The youngster has a long way to go. ``His approach needs to change, he needs to have the extra desire to excel at the international level. He also needs to be more professional. Being professional off-court is more important than being professional on-court. And he has to improve his diet'' stressed Vimal Kumar, his coach at the BPL-Prakash Padukone Academy in Bangalore.

Nikhil also needs to work on his fitness. Often, he is unable to take the strain of a long tour. ``If he plays for one and a half months, he needs to come back for at least a month's training. If he plays only tourneys, his level of fitness comes down,'' explained Vimal.

The heavy strain of the Thomas Cup qualifiers showed on Nikhil in the Kochi senior Nationals. He appeared weak and weary while bowing to Abhinn Shyamm Gupta in the men's semifinals.

Nikhil has talent and style...with a little effort, he could go places.

STAN RAYAN

Kochi

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