Nikhil Kanetkar (born 13 May 1979) is an Indian former badminton player from Pune.[1]

Nikhil Kanetkar
Personal information
Country India
Born (1979-05-13) 13 May 1979 (age 44)
Pune, Maharashtra, India
Height1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
HandednessLeft
Men's singles
Highest ranking33
Medal record
Men's badminton
Representing  India
World Senior Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2017 Kochi Men's singles +35
Commonwealth Games
Silver medal – second place 1998 Kuala Lumpur Men's team
South Asian Games
Gold medal – first place 2006 Colombo Men's team
Silver medal – second place 2006 Colombo Men's singles
BWF profile

Born in a Maharashtrian family, Kanetkar played badminton at the 2004 Summer Olympics in men's singles, defeating Sergio Llopis of Spain in the first round. In the round of 16, Kanetkar was defeated by Peter Gade of Denmark.[1] In addition to Olympics, Kanetkar has represented India in the Thomas Cup, All England Open, Asian Games, World Championships, Commonwealth Games, SAF Games, Swiss Open, French Open, Toulouse Open and numerous other championships.

In 2011, he retired from competitive sports and set up Nikhil Kanetkar Badminton Academy (NKBA, www.nkba.in) in Pune, India. The academy is based at Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex, Mahalunge-Balewadi, Pune, India. NKBA was established with a vision of "Grooming Talent to Make Champions". Nikhil Kanetkar is currently the Director and Head Coach of NKBA.

Kanetkar is also a columnist and commentator. He wrote for the Marathi newspaper Sakal from Athens during the Olympics and subsequently was invited by StarSports for covering the Badminton events of the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Kanetkar played after 7 years post retirement and won the Men's Singles Title in the 35+ age category in the 41st Indian Masters (Veterans) National Badminton Championships 2016–17 organised by Kerala Badminton Association at Regional Sports Centre, Kadavanthra, Kochi, Kerala. In September 2017, he won the bronze medal in the same age group at the BWF World Senior Badminton Championship held in Kochi, India.

Achievements edit

BWF World Senior Championships edit

Year Venue Event Opponent Score Result
2017 Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium, Kochi, India Men's singles +35   Naruenart Chuaymak 3–8 Retired   Bronze

South Asian Games edit

Men's singles

Year Venue Opponent Score Result
2006 Sugathadasa Indoor Stadium, Colombo, Sri Lanka   Chetan Anand 14–21, 12–21   Silver

IBF World Grand Prix edit

The World Badminton Grand Prix was sanctioned by the International Badminton Federation from 1983 to 2006.

Men's singles

Year Tournament Opponent Score Result
1999 U.S. Open   Colin Haughton 6–15, 0–15   Runner-up

IBF International edit

Men's singles

Year Tournament Opponent Score Result
2006 India Satellite   Lee Cheol-ho 11–21, 11–21   Runner-up
2006 Victorian International   Richard Vaughan 20–22, 13–21   Runner-up
2005 South Africa International   Kaveh Mehrabi 15–8, 15–7   Winner
2004 Mauritius International   Abhinn Shyam Gupta 16–17, 8–15   Runner-up
2003 Le Volant d'Or de Toulouse   Andreas Wölk 15–9, 15–11   Winner
2002 Welsh International   Irwansyah 6–15, 11–15   Runner-up
2001 Scottish International   Irwansyah 5–7, 6–8, 2–7   Runner-up
1998 Sri Lanka International   Ting Chih-chen 15–13, 15–6   Winner

Sources edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Nikhil Kanetkar Statistics". Sports-Reference.com. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2010.

External links edit