Badrinauth wants to be a professional squash player
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By Isaiah Chappelle
Guyana Chronicle
July 3, 2003
TODAY, Shawn Anthony Badrinauth celebrates his 25th birthday, ruling local squash as the reigning National Men’s Singles champion.
“My game is on top right now. No one is going to beat me, once I put in the hard training,” Badrinauth told Chronicle Sport on the eve of his birthday at the Georgetown Club as he started defending his title.
“I’m looking forward to winning it again. With the recent exposure, I don’t see I will have any problem. I’m playing top squash right now,” Badrinauth said.
The champion recently returned from a two-week Caribbean tour in which he successfully defended the Barbados Open title and was runner-up in the prestigious St Lucia Open.
Badrinauth’s game has been one of steady progress from the first time he set foot on the squash court at the Georgetown Cricket Club in 1989. He was eleven years old and he played cricket and football for fun.
“My best friend Javed Ali introduced me to the game,” Badrinauth disclosed.
The following year, he attended coaching sessions conducted by Georgetown Club each Saturday, and two years later his dedication paid off; he won the Mash junior title, then the Christmas Boys’ Under-14 crown.
Badrinauth was National Boys’ Under-16 runner-up in 1992 and that very year he made his first tour with a National team in the Junior CARASRA championships in Bermuda. He reached the Boys’ Singles final but lost to a Bermudan for the title.
The next year, he was crowned National Under-16 champion and was a member of the winning team of Junior CARASRA championships here.
But for the rest of the year and for most of the following year, he could not play because of injury to his thigh muscles and problems with his ankles. His ankles still affect him, thus he has to rest after major tournaments.
Badrinauth was back on court for 1994 Christmas tournament and won the Boys’ Under-19 title, but was the runner-up in that division at the National championships the following year. He was on tour again and was runner-up to Regan Pollard in the July 1995 Junior CARASRA championships in the Cayman Islands. That was his last year as a junior.
The following month, he made the senior team for the Southern Caribbean Championships in Trinidad & Tobago, placing seventh or eighth in the Singles competition.
“From there I made the senior team coming out in the top four,” Badrinauth recalled.
Badrinauth won the Easter Boys’ Under-21 title, the following year, but the first real signal that he was ready to occupy the top slot in country was when he won the Bounty tournament in 2001. Then he upset Fraser in the semifinals of National championships, ending one slot away from the crown. He lost to Regan Pollard.
“It was a big turnaround for me. I told myself I could beat other good players,” Badrinauth said.
Then June 30 last year, three days before his 24th birthday, Badrinauth was crowned National champion. He also won the Barbados Open, after placing third the year before.
Badrinauth’s runner-up position to a Frenchman in the St Lucia Open was a progression from placing eighth the first year he entered and fourth last year. Even in the final, Shawn showed improvements, losing 0-9, 3-9 and 5-9.
“I would like to thank coach Carl Ince. Without him, I would not have reached the finals in both tournaments. He pushed me a lot. He made me get to the top.” Shawn said.
Schoolmate Jonathan Beepat came in for public thanks, too, for sponsorship provided by Beepat & Sons - for the Caribbean tour - along with Winston Brassington.
Shawn trains from 11:00 hrs daily. Court speed, retrieving the ball and fitness were assets that served him well in achieving the coveted titles.
Badrinauth is the only child to a maternal single parent, who supports him in the game. Shawn lives a disciplined life, no drinking when training for competition, no excessive partying and no smoking.
“I want to be a professional player. It will take a lot of hard work, but I think I can reach there,” Badrinauth said.