Prannoy Kumar (aka HS Prannoy)

Some Lesser Known Facts About Prannoy Kumar

• Does Prannoy Kumar smoke: Not Known

• Does Prannoy Kumar drink alcohol: Not Known

• Prannoy began playing Badminton at a tender age of 10. He was initially trained by his father, Sunil Kumar, who was himself an All India Air Force Badminton champion.

• However, when it came to finding a professional coach, Prannoy had to face rejection each time he went for a trial. In an interview, he revealed that no coach was willing to train him as he was ‘slow’. Owing to this lack of agility and speed, many coaches advised him to turn into a doubles player.

• Prannoy is supported by the ‘GoSports Foundation’, Bangalore and has been a part of their scholarship programme since 2011.

• The 2011-2012 period was a rough phase in his career as he was plagued with a number of injuries. As a result, the young shuttler was completely out of action during this time.

• He played for the “Mumbai Rockets” franchise in the 2017 edition of Premier Badminton League.

• At the 2017 Indonesian Open, Prannoy came out all guns blazing and defeated Chong Wei, the reigning Olympic Silver medalist and Chen Long, the reigning Olympic Champion, in consecutive matches.

• In May 2022,  he was part of the Indian men’s badminton team that scripted history on 15 May 2022 after they win their maiden gold medal at the Thomas Cup; they defeated the defending champions Indonesia in the summit clash. Following this historic win, HS Prannoy shared a picture with the gold medal on social media.