Now Reading: Exclusive | ‘Dining hall overcrowded, no meals, no ACs’: Harmeet Desai recalls Paris Olympics woes | More sports News
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Exclusive | ‘Dining hall overcrowded, no meals, no ACs’: Harmeet Desai recalls Paris Olympics woes | More sports News
Exclusive | ‘Dining hall overcrowded, no meals, no ACs’: Harmeet Desai recalls Paris Olympics woes | More sports News
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NEW DELHI: Before COVID-19 introduced the world to a standstill, “Gully Boy” hit the theatres. A musical drama, impressed by the real-life tales of rappers Divine and Naezy, delivered a soundtrack that quickly turned anthemic — particularly “Apna Time Aayega” (which interprets to “My time will come”).
The phrase caught on so rapidly that it advanced right into a motion, making its approach onto t-shirts, cellphone covers, and the vocabulary of each dreamer hustling towards success.
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For Commonwealth and Asian Games medallist Harmeet Desai, although, the expression carries a slight twist — “Apna time agaya” (This is my time) — because it proudly says on his WhatsApp standing.
“I believe that whatever time I am in now is my time — good or bad. I don’t want to keep waiting for some future moment; I focus on the present,” Harmeet advised TimesofIndia.com throughout an unique interplay.
Preparing for Chennai: The grind behind the sport
Harmeet, who’s a part of the sector for the WTT Star Contender Chennai from March 27 in the principle draw, is coming off an intense coaching schedule — first at SAI Bengaluru after which in Sweden’s Karlstad.
“For about 23 days, we practiced with all the training partners in Sweden. We had match practice, especially focusing on doubles. In Bengaluru, we were mostly playing amongst ourselves, but in Sweden, we got the opportunity to play against European players,” he explains.
“Bengaluru is at a higher altitude, so the ball tends to fly more. In Sweden, the conditions were slower because the location was near sea level. Cold weather slows things down, while heat speeds them up.”
An avid reader of all genres, Harmeet has just lately been diving into books on spirituality and stoicism — philosophies that appear to enrich his advanced method to the game.
From Surat’s enterprise lanes to the world stage
Harmeet Desai. (AP Photo)
Harmeet’s love story with the TT desk started on the age of six, impressed by his father, who performed the game as a interest.
“My father bought a table tennis setup at home, and I got very excited about it. I started playing on my own, which led to serious practice,” he recalls.
While a younger Desai dabbled in a number of sports, together with cricket, tennis, and badminton, it was desk tennis that lit up his eyes.
“I was fascinated by the spin and speed of TT,” he says.
I needed to journey to totally different cities or invite gamers dwelling for apply
Harmeet Desai
However, his hometown, Surat, lacked a powerful sports tradition, making it troublesome to search out good coaching companions and infrastructure.
“When I started in Surat, there was no sports culture. The city was known for business, not sports. I had to travel to different cities or invite players home for practice,” he provides.
In the absence of an lively platform the place he might observe different gamers play, his father performed an important position, even recording Asian Championship matches on a handycam when Desai, busy together with his exams, might analyse them later.
Determined to enhance, he skilled in Ajmer at simply eight years outdated and later moved to Sweden at 15 to realize high-level teaching.
“Back then, India didn’t have the best infrastructure. Sweden gave me exposure, but being vegetarian made things tough,” he admits.
A brand new section in life
Now, after 26 years within the sport, the 31-year-old, who’s married to fellow TT participant Krittwika Sinha Roy, has matured each as a participant and an individual.
“Yes, marriage brought a different perspective. I’ve become more mature and balanced. Earlier, results affected me a lot, but now I focus more on the process. If I had this mindset 10 years ago, my results might have been even better,” he displays.
‘Middle-class athletes can thrive too’
Recently, badminton coach Pullela Gopichand made headlines by stating that middle-class households ought to rethink sports as a profession alternative. Harmeet, nonetheless, respectfully disagrees.
“Many high athletes come from middle-class backgrounds. The sports infrastructure and help system in India have improved quite a bit within the final 15-20 years, although there’s nonetheless room for progress,” he asserts. “Saying that sports is just for the rich isn’t completely right.”
Having represented India at the Paris 2024 Olympics, Harmeet, while acknowledging his ‘dream’ to play at the Olympics, also opened up about the less-than-ideal conditions at the Games last year.
“Cleanliness wasn’t a major issue, but the heat was unbearable. There were no ACs in the rooms, and even the buses had no air conditioning. We weren’t allowed to open windows either, making travel extremely uncomfortable. The dining hall was overcrowded, and sometimes food would run out. Managing these things was definitely challenging,” he reveals.
With Chennai as his immediate focus, Harmeet is also preparing for upcoming WTT tournaments in China and Slovenia.
Beyond that, his sights are firmly set on the 2026 Asian Games and the 2028 Olympics, as he continues his journey with one mantra: A step at a time.
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