“It was surreal” – Padel star Nikhil Mohindra on his viral match with Stormzy & the upcoming European Padel Championships
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“Who is this!?” – British rapper and songwriter Stormzy looks on in disbelief after getting thrashed at his new favourite sport – padel – by an unknown player at his local club.
The UK music icon had been invited to play padel with YouTuber Niko Omilana as part of his latest challenge video – with an undercover guest, British padel star Nikhil Mohindra.
23-year-old Mohindra joined forces with the YouTube sensation to trick Stormzy and win their match with ease.
For the young Brit it was an unforgettable experience to be a part of and showcased padel on a video feature that has already had over 20 million views across all social media channels.
“It was surreal – being with my favourite musician and YouTuber in one day was insane to be honest,” Mohindra said as we caught up with the GB padel player ahead of the European Padel Championships in Italy.
"He called me and explained that he was doing a video where Mr Beast (another high-profile YouTuber) had set him a challenge to earn £10,000 and he wanted to try and hustle Stormzy - I was just thinking, this can’t be real!
“I turned up on the day – didn’t think he’d even show up – but they rolled through, and we started warming up before Stormzy turns up. He’s got a completely different aura about him.
“You can see in the video, he thinks they are going beat us easily, they win the first game and then I turn it on and we start smashing them. He lost the plot, like who are you!?
“He (Stormzy) trains with the GB head coach a few days a week – you can see that he’s getting there. He has the potential to be a good player – he’s focused and really competitive which is always good.”
When he’s not playing with world famous internet stars and the biggest musicians in the country – Mohindra spends his time training and focusing on a career as a professional padel player.
Just seven years on from when he first picked up a racket, Mohindra has represented the GB team at five events already with another European Championships taking place in Cagliari, Italy from the 22-27 July.
For the young Brit, having risen high in the sport in a short period of time, the feeling of being called up to play for the national team has never been lost.
“I left school at 16 to go into the family business,” he explained, delving back to how he first got into the sport. “I was quite bored – in the office from about 8am to 7pm – which was fun, but I was always a very active kid at school and played a lot of sports.
“Padel had just been introduced to my local tennis club at David Lloyd Chigwell and I played once or twice. I’m not naturally talented at all – I wasn’t very good at it! I started to play once a week just in socials and then the British Tour came about and I started playing that once a month, got better and better.
“2019 was the first year that I was really in contention for the European’s in Rome. I didn’t end up making it – I actually got a phone call on my birthday to tell me, which really hurt but I think it was the best thing that could have happened to be honest.
“After that I put my head down and trained extremely hard – I used it as motivation. The next time around I got a phone he told me I was in and I was over the moon.
“Now every time I get the letter from the LTA, it’s still really cool. It doesn’t matter how far you think you are into the team, it’s just insane.”
Having been part of the sport and the Great Britain set up for a number of years now and seen the changes since the sport was integrated into the LTA, Mohindra, has witnessed first hand how the sport has developed over the years.
“It was pure luck when I started out, padel was nothing like it is now in the UK,” he said. “When I first started it wasn’t organised at all but as soon as the LTA adopted it, the professionalism has gone through the roof.
“When we travel to these countries now, travel and accommodation is already booked, you’re told when and where you need to be, the levels of training – it just gives it another level of like ‘oh this is real, this is serious’.
“It’s become much more accessible (competing internationally). Not just because of the takeover from the Qatar Investment Fund but also with the LTA helping so much and funding us.
“I’m travelling now about twice a month to countries all over the world like Japan, Lithuania, Chile. Having those opportunities will help me take it to the next level and I’m improving a lot. I hope to play in some of the Premier Padel events soon.
“To be able to see that development, I feel proud because I was there at the start.”
We’re now just two weeks out from the European Championships getting underway and Mohindra is one of eight men’s players selected by captain John Leach and new coach, Jordi Munoz.
Having finished sixth at the Championships last time around, the team are aiming for another top eight finish to qualify for the World Championships in October. Having a former experienced pro in Munoz now on board with the team, Mohindra is optimistic about the Brits’ chances in Italy.
“It’s the first time we’re going and everyone in the team has represented GB before – we know what it takes to compete at the highest level,” said the young Briton.
“What brings us together is our bond of friendship. Sam (Jones) and I went to school together, Sandy (Farquharson) and I are working on a few projects together, so the bonds we all have actually add quite a lot on the court.
“We’ve got the most full-time players that we’ve ever had, which is thanks to the LTA, and that’s a massive step. Every year we’re getting physically and mentally stronger and have more experience behind us.
“To see our top players like Christian (Medina Murphy) winning FIP titles and him and Sam competing in the Premier Padel events as well, I think it’s only going to keep getting better.
“I’m very close with Jordi (Munoz), I trained at his academy for about eight months. Having someone of his calibre who has coached some of the best players in the world and competed at the top of the game has been surreal.
“It adds that extra 10-20% when you’re on court and you have that expertise behind you. Again, his aura and the other nations knowing that you have one of the best coaches behind you is huge.”
We’ll have all the latest from the Brits competing at the European Padel Championships from 22-27 July here on the LTA website and across our social media channels.
