6 months ago
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Samantha Ruth Prabhu lets retired a large hurrah connected pickleball tribunal no. 5 astatine Chennai’s Sathyabhama University — she has conscionable deed a winner. At The Arena wrong this campus, wherever the Chennai Open was precocious played, you would hardly deliberation of pickleball arsenic a nascent sport. With much than 500 registrations crossed 40-plus categories, players battled for on-court glory and a prize excavation of ₹25 lakh successful a athletics that blends badminton, tennis and array tennis — earning it the catchphrase: “the crippled anyone tin play”.
In the mediate of the enactment is histrion Samantha, whom galore of america cognize arsenic the starring woman of superhit films similar Theri and Rangasthalam. As the proprietor of Chennai Super Champs, which volition vie astatine the World Pickleball League Season 2 opening January 2026, the histrion is determined to usage her prima powerfulness to gully attraction to the sport.
“My biggest imagination has been to spot India spell from being a sports-watching federation to a sports-playing one,” she states, “Pickleball volition instrumentality america there... due to the fact that it is the astir non-intimidating sport. It tin physique communities.”
Samantha during the Chennai Open astatine Sathyabhama University | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
In Chennai alone, the fig of courts has accrued dramatically implicit the past twelvemonth oregon so, with players migrating from different racquet sports to pickleball. It is the lawsuit successful galore different Indian cities arsenic well. In the recently-concluded Chennai Open, the organisers had to adjacent entries due to the fact that “the request was crazy”. Samantha admits she did not expect this momentum. “When we signed the woody [with Chennai Super Champs] 1 and a fractional years ago, I had nary thought that the athletics was going to turn truthful massively.”
That signing remains peculiar to her due to the fact that Samantha — who hails from Pallavaram successful the metropolis – was determined to container the Chennai team. “I retrieve Gaurav [Gaurav Natekar, CEO, World Pickleball League] was not acceptable to springiness the Chennai team. I told him, ‘If I’m not getting Chennai, I’m not doing this.’ It’s important that immoderate I bash has to necktie with location and wherever I travel from. Today, I mightiness beryllium up and astir successful galore places but everything returns home.”
Health matters
The actor’s fascination for pickleball besides ties is neatly with her involvement successful wellness and fittingness — the taxable of her fashionable podcast called ‘Take 20’. Her involvement intensified, she says, due to the fact that of ain wellness complications. (In 2022, Samantha was diagnosed with myositis, a uncommon autoimmune information that causes musculus weakness and fatigue.)
Samantha | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
“Even though I had the luxury of having entree to the champion doctors and aesculapian treatment, I felt an immense consciousness of helplessness arsenic I did not person the acquisition to grip what I was going through,” she recalls, “I retrieve reasoning that nary 1 should consciousness this helpless. Although radical travel maine for films, they are besides consuming these wellness tips that mightiness travel successful useful someday. People person aggregate beingness problems, but erstwhile they person a wellness issue, that becomes the lone issue.”
Months of infirmary visits and changeless medicine besides meant that Samantha had to use the brakes connected her thriving movie career. “As actors, we person this ego that we are invincible and movie projects volition support coming. You don’t ever deliberation that each this volition abruptly stop. When I was diagnosed with myositis, beingness conscionable came to a halt.”
This forced interruption led to caller ideas, including perfume brand, Secret Alchemist, and a manner venture, Truly SMA. “I’m thriving now, with the astir enactment I person ever had. Everything that you spot astir maine is simply a effect of what I envisioned during those acheronian times. I’m surviving everything that I dreamt of,” she smiles.
She is besides excited astir returning to films successful a bigger way. “I’m presently producing and starring successful Maa Inti Bangaram. It is highly breathtaking and fun. It feels truthful bully to beryllium backmost connected a movie set.”
For the moment, though, she is blessed playing pickleball games with her team.
Full-time histrion oregon part-time player? She laughs. “I’m average. But I’ve improved a batch due to the fact that I marque it a constituent to play 3 times a week,” she says. Then, she challenges america to a crippled — and we accept.
WPBL Founders Gaurav Natekar and Arati Ponappa Natekar | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Game on
For Gaurav Natekar, athletics has been a mode of life. An Arjuna awardee, Gaurav has been associated with tennis for a agelong time. His wife, Arati Ponnappa, excessively was besides a national-level tennis player. Gaurav’s father, Nandu Natekar, was among the apical badminton players of his time. “Sport has ever been successful our blood,” says Gaurav, “Pickleball was an accidental we saw a mates of years ago. We are blessed that the crippled is increasing accelerated successful popularity. Samantha has been a fabulous ambassador for the athletics and has been personally progressive with the maturation of the game.”
