Mumbai, Feb 7: With squash failing in three consecutive bids since 2005 to become part of the Olympic programme, Indian star Dipika Pallikal expressed her disappointment on Sunday and said she and other top players are hurt the sport hasn’t got deserving place in the quadrennial Games.
Squash was kept among eight sports short-listed for possible inclusion at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo but eventually failed to make be in the five sports that were recommended by the host nation in September last year. Squash is being played in more than 185 countries and World Squash Federation president Narayana Ramachandran was left devastated after the sport was not included in the Tokyo Games.
“For every athlete, being part of Olympics is the biggest thing and it is a dream to win medals. It obviously hurts, and we are disappointed that our sport is doing well in all the spheres and still failed to win Olympic bid,” Dipika, an adidas athlete who is promoting the initiative adidas uprising, told IANS in an exclusive interview on Sunday. ”Our sport is an Olympic sport and deserves to be there. We are proud what squash has done over the years,” she said.
Squash player Dipika Pallikal, who has been fighting for equal pay, says freedom is about expressing yourself and that people are no longer afraid to stand up for what they think is right
Dipika Pallikal, 23 Squash player Claim to Fame Dipika Pallikal recently bagged her second national squash championship and was the first Indian to break into the top 10 in the Professional Squash Association’s Women’s rankings in 2012
I have been travelling outside the country since I was 13 and did everything by myself. The independence that my parents gave me at that age is a reflection of their confidence and trust in my ability to achieve my goals. Independence, according to me, is expressing yourself and pursuing the goals that you have set for yourself. As an athlete, expressing myself on court is very important for me.
When I was a junior, a lot of girls did not play squash. At that point, education played a very important role as something to fall back on. Though my parents were supportive of my decision to play sport, they were very clear that I had to finish my education before taking up the career that I wanted. Education remains important, but now you have people like Sania Mirza, Saina Nehwal and myself showing the world that you can be World No. 1 and make a living out of the sport you play.
Our country has definitely grown over the years, especially in connection with women’s sport. Some years ago, parents did not allow their girls to wear a tiny skirt and go on court to hit a ball. That is changing. The country has become more open to actually wanting women to go out there and play. In every sport, we have a woman ambassador and that’s good for women in the country. People are also starting to take other sports as seriously as cricket; [earlier] we lacked world champions whom we could watch on TV.
We play an individual sport… playing for your country and playing as an individual is very different. But when we put on our India T-shirt, there is no better feeling than representing your country—be it in the Commonwealth Games or the Asian Games. The high of getting a medal for India is unparalleled. Two years ago, I won in the Commonwealth Games and we bagged a gold medal for India. I have played squash for 13 years but that remains my most memorable achievement to date. Also, the sense of belonging you feel when you come to your own country is unmatched.
However, women’s safety is something we need to work on. When I go abroad, I’m literally walking around the streets doing whatever I feel like and feeling safe doing that. But here, we read stories of rape, abduction and so on every day, and it only has to do with women.
I have also been very vocal about equal pay. I’m not saying it just for the money; I’m saying it for respect too. I think we women put in equal effort and study as much as the men, but are paid less. Over the last five years, I have fought for equal pay at the nationals and things changed this year. The women’s and men’s teams got equal prize money.
Things are changing and that’s what the new India is all about. People are no longer scared or afraid to stand up for what they think is right.
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New Delhi: India’s top-ranked player Dipika Pallikal is conspicuous by her absence at the ongoing National Squash Championship but she remains firm on her stance of not being part of the premier domestic event until equal prize money is offered to male and female participants. Pallikal, who has Kerala roots, wanted to compete in the first ever Nationals in the state but with the prize purse being bigger for men, she decided to give the tournament a miss for the fourth year in a row. The 23-year-old last played the Nationals in 2011, when she won her first and only title till date. Indian squash player Pallikal last played the Nationals in 2011, when she won her first and only title till date.
“The reason is the same why I haven’t played in the last three years. I feel we deserve equal pay like most of the tournaments which are becoming equal prize money on the PSA professional circuit,” Pallikal, the sole Indian to break into World’s top-10, told PTI.
“I don’t see why there should be a difference between men and women. I would have loved to play in Kerala and definitely miss playing the Nationals,” said the player, who is currently ranked 18 in the world.
Anish Mathew, secretary of Squash Rackets Federation of Kerala, said the total prize money of the tournament is Rs 6.7 lakh but winners’ purse in either category has not been decided yet. However, it has been learnt that men’s champion will pocket Rs 1,20,000 and women Rs 50,000. While Pallikal is not around, other top players Saurav Ghosal, Harinder Pal Sandhu and Joshana Chinappa are vying for top honours in their respective categories.
Pallikal is the sole big name missing but Mathew says her presence would have been a big boost to the tournament’s popularity.
“It is disappointing for us that she is not here. She is based in Chennai but has roots here. Everyone has been asking about her. It would have been great to have her playing. Having said that, we respect her decision,” said Mathew. With the merger of men’s and women’s professional body, PSA and WSA respectively, there has been an apparent push to offer equal prize money. Though the money difference remains, PSA World Series tournaments have started to offer equal money.
“If women have started getting equal prize money at professional tournaments around the word, why can’t the same happen in India?” Pallikal questioned as she signed off.
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