From practice to performance: Sparring Player makes tennis and badminton players match-ready

In the world of racket sports, talent and hard work often collide with one unavoidable barrier: access.

For many young players, the journey from raw potential to competitive success is not just about perfecting strokes or building endurance; it is about finding the right partners to train with, the right coaches to guide them, and the right opportunities to test themselves.

This simple yet stubborn gap inspired the creation of Sparring Player, a platform designed to connect players with hitting partners, coaches, and academies across the globe.

Founded in 2022 by Vikas Chaurasia, after watching his son, Yash Chaurasia, struggle to translate training into match-day performance, the platform connects tennis and badminton players to high-quality hitting partners, trusted coaches, and credible academies.

Born from a parent’s problem

The origin story of Sparring Player is disarmingly personal.

As a parent, Vikas Chaurasia saw that disciplined training drills do not necessarily replicate the unpredictability of real competition.

Instead, structured hitting sessions and high-level match play were vital ingredients that honed the skill of a player. Also, Vikas observed that emerging players, who aspired to hit with a better player, found it difficult to find a hitting partner that matched their skill.

That insight sowed the initial seeds of creating a possible solution to address the problem. Soon enough, and inspired by ‘sparring’ - the combat sport terminology for controlled yet unscripted training in sports like boxing - Sparring Player was born.

Today, the organisation is driven by co-founders Yash Chaurasia and Yogendran Krishnan. While the former is a professional tennis player, the latter is a former Malaysian badminton player and now national-team coach.

Yash remembers the personal frustration that sparked the idea. “Senior players competing professionally struggle financially, while upcoming players lack exposure and guidance,” he tells The Bridge. “It struck me, why not connect the two? If we create a platform where experienced players can offer sparring, it benefits everyone.”

For Yogendran, who has spent decades as both a player and a coach, the mission felt immediately familiar. “Even in Malaysia’s top training centres, we often struggled with a shortage of sparring partners,” he recalls.

“That challenge never really left me. When I heard about Sparring Player, it made immediate sense. This was the solution I wished we had years ago.”

At its heart, sparring is about simulating real match conditions, the pace, the unpredictability, the rhythm of a contest that drills alone cannot replicate.

A young player who trains with someone stronger adapts faster to pressure and match situations.

“Instead of facing the unknown in tournaments, you walk in already familiar with different styles of play,” Yash explains. “That kind of preparation is invaluable.”

A global network of opportunities

Sparring Player’s model is straightforward: players log on, select between tennis and badminton, browse available sparring partners, and book sessions based on location and timing.

Payments are processed securely through the platform, ensuring that sparring partners receive the complete fee they set for themselves.

“We don’t take commissions from them,” Yogendran emphasizes. “If they’re happy and motivated, they give their best service. That’s how we ensure quality.”

Though it began in India, the platform has now gone international.

Several ATP-ranked Indians are listed alongside players from the US, Europe, and Japan. On the badminton side, Sparring Player has even helped shuttlers cross borders.

“We’ve sent sparring partners to Spain to train with Olympic champion Carolina Marin, and even to China,” Yogendran says. “It’s not just local, it’s global.”

The solution’s impact is tangible and some of the stories are remarkable. Yash recalls how a young Tennis player in Pune booked a session and emerged with a transformed perspective of the game.

Yogendran has an anecdote of his own: “A Sri Lankan shuttler qualified for the Olympics after we connected him with a sparring partner from India. The Sri Lankan association actually reached out to thank us officially. That was a turning point.”

Building the future of racket sports

Such are the evolving needs of sport the founders are also looking beyond just sparring as a solution.

Recognizing that players often travel to tournaments without personal coaches, the platform recently introduced a ‘Personal Coach’ service that allows athletes to book certified coaches for daily or weekly engagements.

“There isn’t really a LinkedIn for coaches,” Yash notes. “We give them visibility, their certifications, experience, achievements — so players and parents can make informed choices.”

Sparring Player is now partnering with European academies, and this provides Indian players with overseas training options while giving those academies a direct channel to reach new talent.

And the vision doesn’t stop just here.

Over the next five years, Yash and Yogendran see Sparring Player expanding into squash, table tennis, and pickleball, eventually building a global ecosystem for all racket sports.

“We want every player who needs sparring, every senior who wants to earn, and every coach who wants exposure to benefit from this platform,” says Yogendran.

And Vikas’s simple message to the sporting fraternity is to use the platform to hone skills.

“Don’t keep shifting academies hoping for the right match. With Sparring Player, you can book a sparring partner anywhere, anytime. It decentralizes the system and gives your child exactly the exposure they need.”

From Olympic aspirants to coaches seeking steady income, Sparring Player is bridging a gap that has for long held players back.

By making access transparent, affordable, and global, the ingenious platform is not just changing how players train; it is helping them dream bigger.