Senior circuit on Pranay's mind after Assam medal rush

City shuttler Pranay Shettigar with the trophies he won at the Badminton Asia South Asia Regional Junior Championships held in Guwahati recently

Mumbai shuttler Pranay Shettigar, who won two golds and a silver at the Badminton Asia South Asia Regional Junior Championships held in Guwahati, (September 28-30), said his performance has given him a lot of confidence.

In the U-17 singles final, top seed Pranay registered a 21-15, 21-5 win over Sanskar Saraswat. Meanwhile, in the U-17 doubles final, Pranay and his partner Sanskar defeated the Sri Lankan pair of Shenuk Samararatne and Pulina Wellalage 21-10, 21-13. In the U-17 mixed doubles final, Pranay and his partner Rujula Ramu lost to fellow Indians Sanskar and Tiwari Aishani 16-21, 21-19, 18-21.

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Pranay, 16, who trains at the Bhaskar Babu Marri Laxman Reddy Institute of Technology (MLRIT) Badminton Academy in Hyderabad, is elated to have won two golds in Assam."This is the first time I was selected for this tournament [Badminton Asia South Asia Regional Junior Championships]. I didn't expect two golds, but was happy I could achieve it. The mixed event silver was a bonus. I wish we could have won a gold in the mixed event too, but the performance in Assam has given me the much-needed confidence," Pranay, a Class XI student of Kala Vidyalaya Junior College, Malad, told www.mid-day.com.

The young shuttler, who loves playing both singles and doubles with best friend Krish Desai, said he wants to graduate to playing senior ranking tournaments soon. "I have a couple of events that I will participate in the coming months [All India sub-junior tournament in Hyderabad, U-17 state event at Satara, U-19 state in Karad, among others], but my target is to start playing the senior circuit," remarked Pranay, who secured 92.80 per cent in Class 10 earlier this year.

Meanwhile, Pranay said he cannot thank coach Bhaskar Babu enough for his unconditional support. "I shifted base from Mumbai to Hyderabad three years ago. Sir [Bhaskar Babu] has trusted me even when I have not performed well. He stood by me during my lows more than when I won. His love is unconditional," said Pranay. His favourite player is HS Prannoy, who was part of the Indian team that clinched the country's first-ever Thomas Cup title in May, by beating 14-time champions Indonesia in Bangkok.