Olympics chapter has come at the right time for me: Ramit Tandon

Ramit Tandon may have taken a belated plunge into full-time squash, but there's one thing he reckons has come just at the right time in his professional career — the sport's inclusion in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

- Rutvick Mehta

MUMBAI: Ramit Tandon may have taken a belated plunge into full-time squash, but there's one thing he reckons has come just at the right time in his professional career — the sport's inclusion in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

"I caught it at the right time. Unlike, for example, my friend Saurav," he smiled.

While Saurav Ghosal, at 38, is fighting an aging body in his gradual return to the PSA tour after retiring last year, Tandon, at 32, has taken steady strides in recent years to take over from his friend as the India No.1 currently ranked 33rd.

"The way I look at it, I'm at the prime of my career. And in the next 3-4 years I can only get better because I'm going to develop that experience," Tandon said.

It's not common for a 32-year-old squash pro to speak about "developing experience." Tandon's career trajectory, though, has been anything but common.

Among the top juniors, the Columbia University graduate went from smashing balls to tracking Wall Street in a full-time hedge fund job. He swapped shoes again and went pro prior to the 2018 Asian Games where he was part of India's bronze winning team.