A 10-year break from professional badminton has not dampened Pochana Arjun Reddy’s enthusiasm for the game nor has it rusted his skills. The Hyderabad shuttler, who had played alongside top Indian stars like Chetan Anand, Arvind Bhatt, Anoop Sridhar, Diju, Sanave Thomas and Roopesh among others, was back to his winning ways in the last couple of weeks.
Arjun Reddy and fellow Hyderabad player Doddavarapu Achutaditya Rao gave India’s doubles badminton circuit a new momentum. The duo had a dream run on the international stage as they bagged four consecutive medals in just four weeks — gold in Mexico, silver in Trinidad & Tobago and Zambia, and bronze in South Africa between October 29 to December 1.
It was a splendid run by any standards and for Arjun it was reliving his past – days of winning tournaments and being counted among the top players of the country. For 43-year-old Arjun, the achievement is nothing short of of being historic and memorable. HReturning to professional badminton after a 10-year break, he has scripted one of the sport’s most inspiring comeback stories.
His young partner, 23-year-old Achutaditya Rao, has been instrumental in the pair’s sharp on-court strategy and consistency throughout the tour.
Arjun had famously won the Morocco Open in 2013, merely three months before retiring. He quit the sport at his peak to manage his family’s construction enterprise (Silpa Homes Pvt. Ltd.) and later co-founded an education mentoring venture (Gradvine Advisors). But badminton was never out of his mind. He just couldn’t get it out of his system. It was lying dormant all these years as he pursued his business.
Driven by his passion to nurture new talent, Arjun now runs A Zone Sports, one of Hyderabad’s biggest badminton academies, where he trains under Indonesian coach Namrih to prepare for his international comeback.
“I am happy to become the first Indian to win four consecutive international medals after returning to the sport. This journey has reinforced my belief that passion and devotion can help us achieve bigger things. I will continue to work harder and make India proud,” Arjun Reddy said.
Their exceptional performance over the last month not only strengthens India’s presence in global badminton but also showcases the power of resilience, partnership, and unwavering commitment to the sport.
