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ShareMumbai: It started off as a joke. Former National champion Aparna Popat was chatting with Joy T Antony when the latter suggested that he would enter her name in the mixed doubles. At first Popat laughed it off. But Antony was serious.
Popat and Antony breezed past the Andhra Pradesh pair of Kiran Kumar and Suswetha N 21-6 21-6. The match was played on Court No.4, which is located on the first floor of the Cricket Club of India (CCI). Only a handful watched the former nine-time champion return to competitive play after three years. Popat was all smiles at the end of it.
During her time off, Popat hasn't been able to devote much time to training. She wore a knee brace, just to ensure everything stayed in place. Sudden movements on a court have known to be injurious to the health of even some of the fittest players.
"I have never played mixed doubles before so it'll be difficult for me to gauge how I did today. Initially, I was feeling a bit cold but once I played a few points everything fell into place," Popat said after the game.
However, Popat is still in love with singles. "Singles still lures me. If you noticed I was hitting those cross-court drop shots. Though I am tempted to play singles I first need to find a goal and a purpose to make a comeback. If I decide to target the Nationals and win one more title then it'll be worth making a comeback in singles. But I need to first make up my mind. I don't know whether I'll be able to do that," Popat said.
Incidentally, she won her last National title in Bangalore in 2006 beating Saina Nehwal. "I have jogged on three occasions over the past two years. I have started playing but only twice a week. When you watch these youngsters you think, 'I can comeback and do well'. But it is not as easy as you think it is."
