Dhyan Chand award a huge honour - Trupti Murgunde

Trupti is among three former badminton players to be conferred with the Dhyan Chand award this year.

After retirement, Trupti Murgunde has stayed connected to sports in various avatars.

Trupti Murgunde, Pradeep Gandhe and para-shuttler Satyaprakash Tiwari were among the three former badminton players to be conferred with the Dhyan Chand Award this year.

Trupti, the 2009 women’s singles national champion and two-time South Asian Games singles gold medallist, is over the moon. “This is a huge honour,” Trupti said.

Born in Pune, Trupti took the important step of moving to Bengaluru as a teenager to train at the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy (PPBA). The Indian Oil Corporation employee has since made the city her home.

Trupti picked the National Championship and 2006 Commonwealth Games team event bronze as the highlights of her playing career. Incidentally, in the third round of the Nationals, Trupti edged out P. V. Sindhu, then an immensely talented 16-year-old sub-junior national champion.

'New beginning'

After her playing career came to an end, she stayed connected to sports in various avatars. Trupti has served as a badminton national coach and selector, and as a television commentator for events like the 2016 Rio Olympics, 2018 Asian Games and international badminton tournaments.

The Dhyan Chand award - given to sportspersons for their contributions both as a player and after retirement - has motivated Trupti a great deal. “This is a new beginning for me. From a young age, I have always wanted to do something to help junior players from smaller towns. This award has inspired me to work for this cause,” the 38-year-old said.