By: Nihaarika Singh
The views and opinions expressed in this article are personal and do not reflect the views or
official policy of Ashoka University, Sports Ministry, Her Campus, and Her Campus Ashoka University.
When I first arrived at campus, I never thought I would never pick up a badminton racket.
I used to play badminton till my 10th grade. After that, I never really picked it up again. And
then the pandemic happened. Like everyone else, I was stuck at home, no chance of playing any
sport. Coming to campus, I found people who were like me, who hadn’t played sports in a long
time. In them I found solidarity. Then out of nowhere, we decided, why not try playing
badminton. It was late evening when we came to the makeshift badminton court.
I picked up the racket, anxious about how I would play. The first couple of shots were
horrible and trying to hit the shuttle was not working for me. Those few shots made it hard to
think that I had once been (relatively) good at playing badminton. Then, things changed. Once
we got into the groove of things, I felt myself feeling increasingly joyful as I remembered how
much I had loved (and still love) this sport. I could land more shots, we got longer rallies
going…it was nice.
I thought I would feel left out. I thought, ‘Here’s this non-athletic person running around
the court, trying not to make a fool of herself, hoping people don’t make fun of her.’ But no one
ever made fun. They were exceptionally kind and so nice to be around. They made me feel like I
could play, and that I could play well.
By the time I left the court, I felt as though I had started anew.