Yash Milind Shah, a 12-year-old student from Delhi Public School East in HSR Layout, has carved out a niche for himself in the world of badminton. With two years of experience in the sport, plenty of practice at the State level, and oodles of spirit, Yash covets to compete at the national level. He found his love for badminton when he moved to Bangalore at the age of 10, and there has been no looking back since then.
Having won many gold medals in inter-school tournaments such as the Ramesh Padukone – Mehul Sirur Memorial Inter-school Badminton Tournament and The International School of Bangalore Inter-school Badminton Tournament in the under-13 category, Yash admitted that his best achievement so far has been finishing as a semi-finalist in this year’s Davangere Li-Ning 5 Star State Ranking Badminton Tournament in the under-13 doubles category.
Fitness and focus
“Like any other sport, badminton requires fitness and focus,” said Yash, whose day begins at five in the morning, with an hour of running and another of badminton, followed by school and another go with the racquet in the evening. He explained that at the outset, it was difficult to get his body accustomed to such a strenuous routine. “There were days when I just didn’t feel like getting out of bed after studying late into the night,” he said. But he admitted that the initially dreaded fitness routine soon turned into a must-have.
Yash, one of the school prefects, said that balancing his sporting commitment with his leadership responsibilities was also a challenge initially, but he took to the role of a multitasker like a duck to water. While badminton remains the number one priority, he ensures that it doesn’t come in the way of his studies. “I aspire to be as great as Lee Chong Wei,” he adds with a twinkle in his eyes as he speaks of his role model.
