[1] Born in a Maharashtrian family, Kanetkar played badminton at the 2004 Summer Olympics in men's singles, defeating Sergio Llopis of Spain in the first round.

In 2011, he retired from competitive sports and set up Nikhil Kanetkar Badminton Academy (NKBA, www.nkba.in) in Pune, India.

The academy is based at Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex, Mahalunge-Balewadi, Pune, India.

Kanetkar played after 7 years post retirement and won the Men's Singles Title in the 35+ age category in the 41st Indian Masters (Veterans) National Badminton Championships 2016–17 organised by Kerala Badminton Association at Regional Sports Centre, Kadavanthra, Kochi, Kerala.

In September 2017, he won the bronze medal in the same age group at the BWF World Senior Badminton Championship held in Kochi, India.