A few weeks ago he thought of quitting the sport following the demise of his father.
But, then remembering the words of encouragement from the departed soul, R.D. Dinesh Babu thought the best tribute he could pay to his father was to pursue the sport which he loves so much and quite naturally dedicated his title triumph in men’s singles in the inaugural US Open Grand Slam carrom championship to his father.
“This is the biggest win of my career. I was in a state of depression when my father, Dashrath, passed away this July. Definitely not sure where my future was heading for,” said the 40-year-old Dinesh, who works as a senior assistant in the AG’s Office in Hyderabad. “In fact, my dad was the inspiration for me to take up carrom and always supported my passion,” he added.
For the record, Dinesh beat Anil Kumar 9-20, 25-19, 25-21 in the men’s singles final to clinch the honours.
“This is a dream finish for my campaign in the US Open. I was confident but not sure whether I could pull it off,” said Dinesh in an interview from Dallas. “What gives immense pleasure is the fact that this is the maiden US Open Grand Slam (earlier it was just US Open). An unforgettable moment indeed,” he said.
For someone whose best in the Senior National was being runner-up to Yogesh Pardesi in the 2013 edition, Dinesh has been winning the odd title in the invitation and the zonal events to keep serving reminders that he is not yet finished.
“Somehow, the big title eluded me. May be, because of my inability to give the best in crunch time. But, in the US Open, I was more determined and focused than ever,” he said. “It is all Lord Sai Baba’s grace that I could win such a major title,” he added.
“Definitely, this win has already made me to think too far and re-set my goals. For sure, it is not all over yet,” Dinesh said.
Interestingly, for the first time many Indian carrom players are bought to represent four teams representing Dallas, Ohio, Toronto and New Jersey in the US Carrom Super League with each team comprising four players. “This being an initiative to promote carrom in a big way in US thanks to the efforts of US Carrom Association president Jaydev Suryadevara, it can be deemed just a beginning,” Dinesh said.
Clearly, Dinesh is eager to come back home and share his moment of joy with his family in Hyderabad.
