After a 4-year hiatus, squash champion Dipika Pallikal Karthik is set to make a smashing comeback

After a four-year hiatus, squash champion Dipika Pallikal Karthik is all set for a smashing comeback. Playing the game from the age of 10, she became the first Indian to break into the top 10 in the PSA Women's rankings and also part of the gold medal winning Indian Women's team in 2016, Dipika is also a vocal advocate of equal pay in the sport.

In 2015, she dropped out of the National Squash Championship to protest against women and men being paid differently.

During her break from the game, Dipika became the mother of twins and also started an interior designing business.

Now back on the court and raring to go, Dipika is all set for the World Championships and the Commonwealth Games this year.

In a fireside chat with Rekha Balakrishnan, Editor, YourStory on the side-lines of HerStory’s Women on a Mission Summit, Dipika spoke about her comeback, her foray into entrepreneurship and pushing the boundaries.

“I think as an athlete it’s important to make those tough decisions when you have hit a roadblock, feel stagnated, and are not happy with your rankings. It was a hard decision to take when I dropped out in 2018,” Dipika says.

Though she didn’t really give herself a timeframe for her comeback, she is happy to be where she is now.

“Coming back to the sport has been hard both mentally and physically. But, I am happy at making it back in the Indian team. The priority is to play for the country and win medals. That’s also the responsibility of going back home to my boys. I like this life,” she adds.

Charting a different path

On her break from squash, Dipika set up an interior designing business. She didn’t just want to travel with her cricketer husband Dinesh Karthik or sit at home. She wanted to do something different.

“Though I don’t have a background in interior design, I took the brave step of starting something I knew very little about. I have been fortunate to have a business partner in a friend I have known since I was two. She’s an architect and has guided me through my dream of setting up a business,” Dipika says.

Recounting a 17-year-long career, Dipika believes that it’s important for any athlete to take in the wins and losses equally, and be surrounded by good people.

“It’s imperative to be part of a loyal team, loyal sponsors, a loyal coach and over and above, family members who are okay with you taking a break. This is especially important for women,” she says.

Breaking barriers

While chasing her dreams, Dipika is part of a growing number of women in Indian sport who are breaking different barriers.

“Being an athlete is tough, but being an Indian woman athlete is tougher when you play for the country. But it’s heartening to see so many women taking up sport because of strong role models like Mary Kom, PV Sindhu, and others,” she explains. 

Dipika is part of this year’s ‘Impossible is Nothing’ campaign from Adidas. Driven by the belief that sport has the power to change lives, the brand will support those who are breaking down barriers and driving gender equity, on and off the field of play.

The champion says ‘impossible is nothing’ has been the guiding motto in her life. “I am very happy to be supported by Adidas especially as they do great campaigns for women. I have to emphasise this because I have lost on quite a lot of sponsors in the last years, and I am thankful for the brand’s continuous support,” she says.

The coming months are going to be tough as Dipika prepares for her tournaments and husband Dinesh Karthik busy with the IPL.

“He has been the biggest supporter of my career. He has always given me the freedom to go out there, and do my thing. Our careers are crazy right now, but we are lucky to have both sets of parents with us. We are doing something we both want to do – give our careers a 100 percent and I am sure our kids will understand this when they are old enough,” she says, as she signs off.

A shout out to the sponsors of Women on a Mission Summit 2022, an Initiative by HerStory, by YourStory - BYJU’S, the presenting partner, and other sponsors - Kyndryl, Sequoia Spark, Zilingo, Atlassian, Akamai, Freshworks for Startups, and Netapp Excellerator.