Agnimitra Bhattacharya dreamed of a career in tennis and spent six hours a day for seven years on the court, tirelessly honing her skills and amping up her stamina. But fate charted a different course. Now a pickleball player, she is determined to carve out a name for herself at the international level.
She has embraced pickleball with single-minded focus, and her rise has been impressive. At the Kolkata Open in May, the 18-year-old completed a golden hat-trick, capped by a victory over Indian Pickleball League (IPBL) star Shreya Chakraborty in the women’s singles final.
Agnimitra has been selective in choosing her tournaments on India’s PWR circuit, with the Monsoon Pickleball Championships in Nashik set to be her next event in July.
Internationally, however, she is eager to test herself more often. Following her PPA Tour Asia debut in Kuala Lumpur in May, she is now preparing for her second appearance on the circuit at the China Open 1, a PPA Tour Asia 500 event scheduled for June 17-21.
The comeback
What makes the Kolkata girl such a standout talent is her solid background in tennis, the sport she was forced to quit in 2021 after seven years of rigorous training due to a life-threatening spine injury.
“I had got a fracture in my spine, both L4 and L5 muscles. I was advised to stop playing completely because it would otherwise harm my future,” she told Pickleball Now.
“I was training in Pune for 6-7 hours a day. I was serious and my family backed my decision to pursue tennis. My mother and sister had even shifted to Pune to stay with me. But the injury caused so much pain and I could not take that. So I quit,” she added.
With her dream shattered, she did not return to the court for four years. Instead, she picked up her hobby, playing the drums. It was the most convenient option available to her, as the Bhattacharya family is deeply immersed in music. Agnimitra loved it, but over time, she began to feel a growing uneasiness about being at home all the time.
“Last year when I was in Bombay, I was feeling very, very homesick. I was like, I need to go out, I need to do something because I was always into sports my whole life. So, it was really like a detachment. I couldn’t take it. So, I told my mom, let’s just go out and find something to play,” she revealed.
“Initially I wanted to start with badminton or something. But you know, I saw a pickleball court. It was near my house. I was like, okay, let’s see what is there. And I had no idea what pickleball was back then. So, I went there, I saw everyone playing and I’m like I’m going to try this out. And like the coaches were so surprised to see me playing. I was like hitting everything as I had a tennis background. Then I decided that I should continue playing this sport and get better,” Agnimitra added.
But the concern of injuring herself again remains.
“I was a bit scared, you know, what if this pain comes back? But, you know, I had really started working on my fitness,” she said.
Supported by personal fitness trainers and coach Sourav Panja, she gradually rediscovered the joy of being back on the court and grew in confidence. She started trusting her body again, allowing her to move freely, while her tennis background helped her adapt to pickleball quickly.
Asked whether pickleball is a relatively easier sport than tennis, which helped her adapt quickly, Agnimitra said the sport is not as physical as tennis but has its own charm.
“Pickleball is a game of mind more than like, you know, and you need to have a lot of mind. It’s more of a strategical game, I would say. So, I think I’m really good in that,” she observed.
Target PPA
Her clean sweep at the Kolkata Open, eastern India’s biggest pickleball event, was a testament to her rise as a teen prodigy. Agnimitra is now determined not to let that momentum fade. Her steady rise also helped her enter the PPA Tour Asia, and she is determined to become a regular on the circuit.
At the China Open 1 in Beijing, her first event since her debut at the Kuala Lumpur Open, she will play in women’s singles and partner with Paranya in women’s doubles and Colin Wong in the mixed doubles category.
“This is my second PPA and by God’s grace, I have gotten into all three events. But it’s really hard because you’re on the waitlist for all the events. It depends on your ranking as well as finding good partners as well. This time I’m very lucky to have got the chance in all three,” said Agnimitra.
She is now determined to put up an improved performance as she looks to establish herself as a regular on the PPA Tour Asia circuit. At Kuala Lumpur, her campaign ended in the main draw itself, as she and her then partner Jace Morris lost in the first round.
“My coach is pushing me harder every single day. I am putting in three-four hours a day as well as working on my fitness, whatever it is. So I really want to go out, play the PPA and just make a statement of my name and you know being the top 10 of the world soon. So that’s my aim right now,” said the Hayden Patriquin and Anna Bright fan.
Missing the Pickleball World Cup trials
Agnimitra, however, will miss the selection trials for the Pickleball World Cup as she plans to stay in China longer. The Picklebay Zonals – North, which will serve as the senior selection trials, will be held on June 24-28.
Despite missing the trials, she remains optimistic about competing in the women’s singles category by registering as an individual player.
In the long run, her target, the St. Louis Shock fan says, is to earn a deal with the Indian Pickleball League and UPA, which runs the PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball (MLP).
“Last year I couldn’t play in the IPBL because of an injury. I’m really looking forward to this year. I think there are going to be more new players,” Agnimitra signed off.
