Vinay Sethia Spurs Kolkata Pickleball Growth, Battles Dhiren Patel on Senior Circuit

Vinay Sethia has emerged as a central figure in Kolkata’s pickup of pickleball, pairing “strong performances at the IPA Nationals in Bengaluru” with grassroots coaching through his One Love pickleball academy. His dual role as competitor on India’s senior circuit and organiser has made him a visible engine for the sport in Kolkata and West Bengal.

Times Now published an in‑depth regional feature on February 22, 2026 that profiles Sethia as a confectionery entrepreneur who “has emerged as one of the most dedicated ambassadors of the game in eastern India.” The feature’s photo shows Sethia during a senior men’s singles match, underscoring that he remains active on court while building local structures off it.

On the competitive front, the Times Now piece credits Sethia with consistent results across India’s event calendar: “consistent medal finishes at the Indian Masters, Kolkata Pickleball Championship and the recently concluded Ultimate Pickleball Showdown,” together with the Bengaluru outing. Those named events frame his recent season and signal regular podium appearances on the senior circuit even though the profile does not list specific medal types or match scores.

Sethia runs coaching programs at One Love pickleball academy in Kolkata and is explicit about the next phase of growth. He assesses that “Kolkata already ranks among the top four or five regions in India in terms of pickleball growth,” and cautions that much of the rise so far has been inward-facing. “Kolkata’s pickleball scene has grown a lot. It is just that most of the pickleball is growing internally. There are not many players yet who want to travel and play more seriously. But as time goes by and better players emerge, that will also happen,” he explained. That diagnosis links his academy work to the larger objective of producing players who will travel for national competition.

The Times Now headline also frames a rivalry with Dhiren Patel, presenting a competitive narrative around Sethia’s senior-circuit efforts. The feature highlights the rivalry as a storyline without providing head-to-head scores or detailed match chronology, leaving the competitive ledger between Sethia and Patel an item for follow-up reporting.

Sethia’s profile ties three concrete levers together: competitive visibility at events such as the IPA Nationals in Bengaluru, coaching through One Love pickleball academy in Kolkata, and an entrepreneurial base as a confectionery business owner supporting local investment. Together those elements position Kolkata’s scene to shift from internal expansion to a more travel-ready, nationally competitive pool of senior players as Sethia predicts, and they make the Kolkata-West Bengal corridor one to watch in India’s evolving pickleball map.