Shuttling against the wind

In 1989, Shibbir Ahmed, then a Class-IV student, was persuaded by his friend Khaled to accompany him into badminton training under coach Sheikh Jahangir.

Being a sports enthusiast himself, Shibbir saw this as a great opportunity to spend time doing what he loved doing most. However, little did he know at that time that the sport of badminton would become an integral part of his life.

Now a national badminton coach, Shibbir recently talked to The Daily Star, recalling his journey with the racquet and the shuttlecock.

"After years of practice under coach Jahangir, I joined Sylhet district team in 1994 and the divisional team the following year. Around a decade later, I won the district championship title consecutively in 2004 and 2005," Shibbir recalled.

In 2009, Shibbir brought an end to his playing career, switching to coaching instead.

"My family wanted me to settle in the UK like my brother. But I fled home and stayed out for four days so my family could not force me to apply for a passport," the 42-year-old coach said.

The following year, Shibbir set up Sylhet Badminton Academy with only one student. He soon realised that girls are being deprived of proper badminton coaching, so he started coaching girls in the academy.

Over the years, the respected coach has trained more than 200 players in his academy, producing national champions like Afrina Islam Mouly, Maibam Mangal, Busra Jahan, Nazia Sharmin Jenny, Akramul Islam Chowdhury Arik, Gourav Singha, Nazrin Tuz Johra and many more.

For the last four years, Shibbir has been working as a coach of the national team, however, he is not content with the state of affairs of badminton in the country.

"Being a national coach like five others has no special perks, not even a minimum honorarium. This is more like a contractual job where the team is formed for specific international tournaments and payments are made on piecemeal basis," Shibbir said out of disappointment.

What worries Shibbir most is the lack of professionalism in the sport in Bangladesh.

"Youths come to me with passion for badminton. But as a coach, I cannot show them the vision of a bright future. I know the path is rigid and we are losing a lot of bright players in the process," he said.

Shibbir said that the federation is not willing to extend its support to players who are doing well while the district sports association never shows interest in badminton.

In Sylhet, there are two indoor badminton grounds — Abul Maal Abdul Muhith Sports Complex and Mohammad Ali Gymnasium. But the indoor ground of the gymnasium has been occupied for indoor cricket for a long time, resulting in a lack of practice venue for shuttlers.

"Our players have potential to win international titles, but they are dropping off due to lack of adequate support from the federation and sponsors," Shibbir said. "Some sustain by earning little playing on rent in regional level outdoor tournaments."

Despite all the frustration, Shibbir is sticking with badminton and also wants Thought the future of badminton is still grim in the eyes of the coach, he wants his daughters, 10 and 4, to forge a career in the sport.

"They already like playing badminton and I wish they could someday win prestigious international tournaments," Shibbir concluded.