How a packet of masala chips played a role in Saina Nehwal and Parupalli Kashyap’s road to recovery
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Saina Nehwal and Parupalli Kashyap
A packet of masala chips progressively losing their crunch proved to be more than just a munching accompaniment during Saina Nehwal and Parupalli Kashyap‘s road to recovery from COVID-19. The two of them are now healthy and back in action. They are training at an unused badminton court in Hyderabad. Kashyap recalled the fortnight that saw him and Saina largely asymptomatic except for the loss of smell and taste.
“No one had fever above 98.5 degrees. Just some chills and cold at the start. But it was when we couldn’t sense the very strong taste of masala chips that we were sure even Saina was positive,” he was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.
The infection started after the group of friends attended the wedding of close buddy, Guru Saidutt. COVID-19 protocols such as social distancing and masking went for a toss. Fellow players Guru and HS Prannoy started feeling feverish and the four of them returned positives. Initially, Saina’s test was negative but she immediately isolated herself. However, the loss of sensory smell and taste prompted her to go for a re-test which came back positive.
“I tested because the others felt symptoms. There was cold and cough on Days 3, 4 and 5 and I lost taste on the 4th. It wasn’t the worst cold I’ve had (though I hadn’t had cold for 2-3 years) and things were back to normal by 6th day, though I was positive still on the 8th day,” Kashyap said.
‘The tests can confuse at times’
Parupalli Kashyap said that he and Saina Nehwal would taste one chip from the packet everyday to check whether they could taste the flavors or not.
“I could taste sweet a little – honey. But salty and bitter were completely gone, so everyday food, I had no taste of. Everyday we would have one chip from the packet. After 3 days I could feel the flavours on the chips so that was the cue. When we tested next, we got negatives,” he said. “But it’s different for every person,” he added.
He can now look back and laugh about the packet of masala chips flippantly. However, he said it would be wrong to assume that being athletes spared them from the worst. “Someone in my family was only 36 and very fitness conscious. One day she was negative, next day she tested positive and suffered a fatal cardiac arrest soon after. It’s scary and no athlete should assume they are immune,” he said. “Also a non-badminton player friend who was also at the wedding needed to be hospitalized,” he added.
The false positive prior to heading off to Maldives among the group of friends had also confused him. “The tests can confuse,” he said. He also hadn’t lost his appetite. “In fact I might’ve put on 3 kgs because I couldn’t stop eating and was getting very hungry,” he said.
Kashyap is asthmatic which raised concerns over whether he would need more than just anti-virals. “I monitored oxygen levels every two hours and asked my asthma doctor. But she said unless the O2 saturation levels really fell, there was no need for anything like steroids which might’ve been difficult as an athlete,” he said.
‘If I won it, I’ll show it everyday to everyone as if I’ve won the Olympics!’
Although Saina Nehwal and Parupalli Kashyap have rallied back from the dreaded virus and resumed training, the return to the court is tough.
“Two weeks of zero activity means muscles are sore and have lost tone. At Thailand, on a scale of 1 to 10, I’ll probably be playing at 3. But I don’t want to push in training immediately and risk any problems. We waited a week for clearance from the district medical officer after the negative and still check oxygen levels every two hours after walking 6 minutes,” Kashyap said.
As things stand, the duo will head to Thailand. They are hoping for the best case scenario to play in all the 6 tournaments as planned, aiming for qualifications. “There’s 9 day gaps between each so I’m guessing quarantines are factored in,” he said.
Although England Open isn’t a part of the qualifications, Kashyap reckoned all the players will be present there. “It’s prestigious,” He said. “It’s big. If I won it, I’ll show it everyday to everyone as if I’ve won the Olympics! Of course it means a lot and every player will play,” he quipped. “But right now there’s no point thinking ahead. Situation is changing every hour,” he added.
The Indian shuttler however claimed that he is quite done with chips for life- bitter, sweet, tangy, tasteless- all kinds of them.
Also Read: BAI names strong squad of Olympic-bound shuttlers for Asian Leg
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Ira Deokule
(181 Articles Published)