Syed Modi

Syed Modi (31 December 1962 – 28 July 1988), born as Syed Mehdi Hassan Zaidi, was an Indian badminton singles player.

In 1976, aged only 14, Syed Modi became junior national Badminton champion.The same year, Modi started training under Mr. P.K. Bhandari (Pushp Kumar Bhandari – chief badminton coach, N.I.S, Patiala) which continued until 1982.

Thereafter, he trained under Dipu Ghosh, National Coach of Indian team.

In 1978, while he was a junior national champion, the 16-year-old Modi was selected for participating in an international tournament to be held in Beijing, China.

A girl badminton player of his own age named Ameeta Kulkarni was in the women's team, and, as the Supreme Court would later record, "there arose intimacy between the two."

While Modi was a Muslim from north India, Ameeta was a Hindu from Maharashtra, had grown up in cosmopolitan Mumbai and came from an affluent, upper-class English-educated family, very different from Modi's own background.

Both families were stridently opposed to marriage between Modi and Ameeta, not just because of the vast chasm in their backgrounds, but also because they anticipated that professional issues, jealousies, and oneupmanship would also become major factors in a marriage between two ambitious, target-oriented, over-achieving individuals.

Indeed, the families remained opposed to the marriage even to the bitter end.

However, Modi and Ameeta were adamant and got married in a registry office in a hastily arranged ceremony.

As soon as they had had their way and married each other, the couple began having problems.

Behavioural expectations and professional jealousies have been identified conclusively, but religious issues have also been hinted at in a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) report.

Most important of all was the involvement of a third person.

He was eight-time National Badminton champion (1980–1987).

In 1980, as soon as he was eligible (aged 18), Modi won the national badminton championship.

In the same year, the department of sports (Government of India) recommended his name, and Modi was given a paying job as a Welfare Officer in the Indian Railways (NE).

He was initially posted in Gorakhpur, nearest to his hometown and family.

Syed Modi went on to win the national badminton championship every single year between 1980 and 1987 (eight times in a row).

In 1981, he received the Arjuna Award from the Government of India.

His most notable achievement at the international badminton circuit came in the form of men's singles title at the 1982 Commonwealth Games.

In 1982, his new coach wanted that he should train in Lucknow which had better facilities, so he was transferred there.

At the 1982 Asian Games, he won the bronze at the men's singles event.

The same year (1982), he beat England's Nick Yates, 7–15, 15–5, 15–7 to take home the Men's singles Gold at the 1982 Commonwealth Games.

He also won three other international titles, namely Austrian International (in 1983 & 1984) and USSR International (in 1985), both of which were European Badminton Circuit tournaments.

In 1983 and 1984, he won the Australian International.

His game started going downhill only in 1987–88 when his marriage came under strain (his wife was having an affair) and Modi lost the national badminton championship for the first time ever in 1988.

A few months later, he was murdered.

Modi's career was cut short in his prime when he was shot dead on 28 July 1988 in Lucknow as he came out of the K. D. Singh Babu Stadium after a practice session.

The murder sent shockwaves through India, especially after the police filed murder charges against Modi's wife, Ameeta, and her lover (and future husband) Sanjay Sinh.

Syed Mahdi Hassan Zaidi was born in the town of Sardarnagar, 5 km from Chauri Chaura in Uttar Pradesh.

He grew up there, but his family hailed from Zaidi Sadat Kandipur (or Kadipur) near Jalalpur town in Ambedkar Nagar District, Uttar Pradesh.

His father, Syed Meer Hassan Zaidi, worked in Sardarnagar sugar mill and his mother was a housewife.

Syed Modi was the youngest of their eight children (six sons and two daughters).

Modi's elder brothers were educated, but they worked and contributed significantly towards meeting family expenses and supporting Modi in his childhood, including for his badminton coaching, after it became clear that he had the potential to become a great player.

When Modi first began going to the local school, the person who entered his name in the school roster mistook his name "Mehdi" for the more common Indian surname "Modi" and wrote it down that way.

As a result, this became his name in all educational and government records and he did not take the trouble to rectify the matter in adulthood.

In school, Modi achieved only average grades in his academics but became a notable sportsman.

He was very popular in school for his open, affectionate nature and bright good looks.

His elder brothers doted on him and financed his training as required.

Far from considering him a burden, they pinned their hopes on him earning a good name and bringing honour, pride and happiness to his parents in their old age, after a lifetime of poverty and struggle.

Modi fulfilled their hopes and prayers during his short life.