Vol. 3. No. 7 August - September 2012For Private Circulation Only

I was so close

I want to win a Superseries

Ajay Jayaram

Saina Nehwal

Parupalli Kashyap

I still can’t believe

August - September 2012 >3

“I was so close”

Your most memorable match this year:

It would have to be against Kenichi Tago in the first round of the China Masters. I played an almost error-free game and that win paved the way for me to reach the semifinals. I hit so many smashes in that match, I almost injured my abdomen!

Lin Dan in one sentence:

Roger Federer – Tennis’s Lin Dan!!!

Your dream match would be:

My dream match would be playing the finals of the Olympics, World Championships or the All England. I don’t think I’d really care against who it would be.

The one place you’d love to visit:

Vegas! Because I enjoy the occasional thrill of the casino!

If you hadn’t been a badminton player, you would’ve been --

I’m pretty sure I’d be an engineer and/or an MBA graduate. Being from a middle class south Indian family, I’m not sure there are that many options :)

The friendliest player on the international circuit:

Derek Wong, Singapore.

Your favourite way of countering jet-lag:

I wish I knew the way to counter it effectively... I struggle quite a bit, especially when traveling to countries that are ahead of Indian time. But what I do is try and stick to the routine bed time and not sleep at odd hours.

The semifinal against Hu Yun at the China Masters:

I definitely think I could have won that semifinal against Hu Yun. It was very disappointing to lose at that stage when I knew I was so close to playing the final. All I wanted after the match was to have that chance again. Hopefully I’ll get it soon in the coming tournaments.

Working with (coach) Tom John:

Tom John has been like a saviour for me. A couple of years ago I was well behind in the rankings, and struggling to string in good results. Tom literally picked me up and put me back on track. Training with him isn’t easy as he always looks for perfection and shouts at you a lot. But then he manages to get the best out of you and that has brought me a lot of good results. I owe him a great deal for where I am today.

Your kind of music:

I listen to rock, pop, Bollywood. My favourite singer is Shankar Mahadevan, and my favourite rock band is Nirvana.

Tushar Karani, a maker of chocolates in Hyderabad, is an angry man. His elder

daughter, he says, gave up playing competitive badminton because she was constantly facing opponents aged way over their real age categories. Now his younger daughter too is facing the same problems, and Karani is determined to fight it out.

The ‘overage’ problem may not be unique to India badminton, but it is perhaps the biggest threat to sports in the country. The abuse involves parents fudging the date of birth of their children, enabling them to play in lower age categories, and denying true competitors a fair chance of winning their age-category titles. Most of these cheats tend to fade out by the time they reach the senior category, but by then the damage is done.

Unlike other parents who complain and do little about the issue, Karani is trying to establish a parents’ body that will lobby for stricter measures from Badminton Association of India.

“It’s a big problem,” says Karani. “At the moment, if I have to register a complaint, I have to pay Rs 5000 to BAI, but it will be a long time before the issue is resolved. Why should I have to pay money to prove that a player is overage? The BAI should have a system in place to prevent overage abuse.”

“I heard that at RSC,Cochin tournament protests have been lodged on few players paying Rs.5000 each to BAI. Many months have gone by and those players are still playing and enjoying.”

Karani started his efforts to put together an organizination during the Union Bank All India Sub-Junior Ranking tournament at KBA, Bangalore. He says several parents have come forward, and he has collected about 20 signatures so far.

In theory, it should be fairly simple to stamp out this menace. The state associations should be responsible for verifying documents when the child is first registered as a state player, and both the child and the coach should be penalized if there is any violation. The BAI will have to regard itself seriously on these issues, and not just seek attention when a player wins an international medal.

Ajay JayaramAjay Jayaram, the second-highest ranked Indian at No.27, is a quiet and unassuming player. A stylish, strokeful player who has logged some impressive results over the last year, Jayaram is a thoughtful and articulate sort. A semifinal performance at the recent China Masters is a signpost of the progress he’s made. He answers this light quiz from Dev S Sukumar:

still haunts junior events ‘Overage’ menace

Who will bell the cat?

Business Head for sports major Li-Ning in India, says the company’s monthly turnover tripled after Saina won the Olympic bronze. “Badminton is now one of the major sports in India,” he says. “We’ve seen a decline in the sales of cricket and football equipment. I think people have had an overdose of cricket. Saina winning the bronze has made a big difference.”

Even before the bronze, the increase in interest was evident. Pullela Gopichand talked of how he was getting around 30 emails a day enquiring about admission at his academy. “There is massive interest in badminton now, but we just don’t have the courts to accommodate them,” he said. “Imagine if one academy like ours can produce around ten top quality players, what it would be like if there were more academies across the country?”

Former Indian Olympian Nikhil Kanetkar, who runs a seven-court academy at Pune, confirms the view that the Indian performance at the Olympics has made a big difference not just to badminton, but all sports. “There has definitely been a rise in people seeking to take up badminton,” he says. “More girls are likely to think of badminton as a career. When Saina came to

Saina Nehwal’s Olympic bronze seems to have propelled a resurgence of interest in badminton at the grassroots

level. Coaches all over the country are reporting a massive increase in interest in children opting for the game – so much so that the existing infrastructure is proving to be inadequate to accommodate them.

One measure of the upsurge in interest was at the Union Bank All India Junior Ranking Tournament which was held at Bangalore immediately after the Olympics. The tournament, held for the under-13 and under-15 categories, has seen a dizzying 1100 entries in eight events. The qualifying rounds constituted a mini-tournament in itself, comprising of 700 matches over two days.

“There has been overwhelming response,” concedes Vimal Kumar, “Saina’s bronze medal has made a big difference to badminton. Parents are willing to initiate their children to badminton. We are seeing a sudden surge in youngsters taking up badminton. There are lots of enquiries pouring in for admission to badminton courts. I would say badminton is in a healthy state right now.”

Equipment companies couldn’t be happier at the state of the game now. Ram Malhotra,

Pune for a felicitation recently, there was a traffic jam on the road. I see an increase in the numbers at the junior level. When we get the quantity, we will get the quality as well.”

“Saina’s victory has attracted sponsors to badminton,” says international coach Tom John. “Media is giving more space to badminton and a lot of money has come into the sport after this one Olympics bronze. Parents now believe that badminton can be taken up as a career. In India badminton was on a high in the last few years and badminton academies are running full. If you can deliver quality training there is no shortage of players. Indian badminton is marching on in the right direction. There are around 15 players in the top 50. With the exception of China, no other country can claim these kind of numbers.”

Saina’s bronze propelsIndian junior badminton

Dev Sukumar

Que

stions

: Q1. Who won the Olympics Badminton Men's Singles Gold a) Lee Chow Wei b) Lin Dan c) Chen Long

Q2. Who won the Olympics Badminton Women's Singles Gold a) Saina Nehwal b) Yihan Wang c) Li Xueruib)

1 each for the 2 winners-2 Nos

1 each for the 5 winners-5 Nos

1 each for the 3 winners-3 Nos

Antony FernandoNiharika Saini

Santosh Udipi, Lakshmi Chenicheri Sreesh Waghray

Shivani A Pathi, Nabha Pai Naveen V.P., Sangram Patil

>5August - September 2012

On winning the medal:

I still can’t believe that I got a medal, because it’s unbelievable that an Indian can get an Olympic medal. But we worked so hard… Gopi Sir worked so hard, and my parents… and all my well-wishers there in India. It’s great. I’m so happy that I could do this for my country and I came here to get a medal for India. I’m happy that I’m going back with a bronze medal for India. It’s a great feeling.

The match against Wang Xin:

I think today’s match was crucial… I was still thinking of yesterday’s match. I thought I could’ve pulled out yesterday’s match. It was still playing on my mind. I came back from 14-20 to 18-20. She was getting tired. I thought she took a break, but I didn’t know she was injured. I was confident I was coming back strong and she was getting tired. It was unfortunate that she got injured.

When I was 11-6 up, I could feel she was almost on her knees. She was asking for water breaks, and for mopping the court. I thought she fell down to take a break. It was sad to know she got injured.

Expectations and pressure:

I was scared because after I won in Thailand and Indonesia, there were many expectations. I was scared to look at the news reports. I didn’t see any paper because I would feel the pressure. I was confident of getting a medal, I had that feeling, but I didn’t want to win in this manner. I still can’t believe I did it for India, in badminton. It’s a difficult sport for women in India. I still can’t believe it.

Whether it was a relief when Wang Xin quit:

From when I started at the age of nine, until today, I’ve never won a match like this. I can’t believe the match is over. Maybe I was lucky today, but I still don’t have the feeling of winning matches like this. I was confident in the second game. The five-minute (injury) break disturbed me. She came with a

different strategy in the second. When she fell, I was shocked.

On resting for this match:

I slept well last night, because I was aiming for the final. Yihan is faster, but I could handle Xuerui or Wang Xin. Yihan is tougher. What I wanted, to be in the final, didn’t happen, but I was sure I could get bronze, and I was not tense for today’s match.

I’ll be training from the next day – that’s the celebration. We’ll be relieved because we worked so hard for last five-six years, won so many titles, my main aim was to do well for my country and to get a medal. I’ll take a break now, watch some movies, because I love watching movies.

On speaking to her father:

Frankly, I didn’t speak to dad after the match, because I was upset after losing the match. It was sad yesterday that I couldn’t make the final. It was a dream to make India’s flag come up.

How badminton in India will change:

I think a lot will change, badminton will change. A lot of youngsters are coming up. Sindhu is there, but I want more girls to come up, like in Korea or China. And then you can have more results coming. Now the results are coming, and it will happen more after this medal.

Saina versus China:

It’s always going to be Saina versus China. I’ll be more confident against them. This year I beat six-seven of them. Now they are very scared of me, I know that. Because

I woN A meDAl’When the win came, it happened so suddenly that no one expected it. Excerpts from Saina Nehwal’s interaction with Dev Sukumar of GUTS immediately after winning the Olympic medal in London:

Saina: ‘Still can’t believewhen Yihan won yesterday, I could see the happiness on their faces. When they play other players, they look normal. Against me, I can see they’re scared. I’m happy I’m the only one scaring six-seven of them. I have to be ready always, fit always. I have to remember that I cannot just go on court. I have to be ready to play long rallies and fight to the last point.

They have eight or nine players who are as good as the No.1. For them, it’s a matter of studying one player, but for me, I need to come up with different strategies for each player. It’s not easy to play four-five of them at every tournament. China has hundreds of academies and hundreds of former champions who work as coaches. They do a lot of video analysis of my game. I’m lucky that I won four tournaments last year.

Advice to youngsters:

It’s important to have belief. The medal will help to inspire more youngsters. You need to set a target for yourself. I had a dream when I was nine. Over the last 13 years I’ve been working hard. This medal will see a lot of people wanting to take up badminton. But there should be more infrastructure and better coaching. I wish the corporate sector would come forward and sponsor more players. We’re telling everyone, that it’s possible for India to win more medals. At the last Olympics, there were two of us (from India in badminton). This year there were five.

Dev Sukumar

kumar@kumarsports.com 9844059912

Distributors for India

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Que

stions

: Q1. Who won the Olympics Badminton Men's Singles Gold a) Lee Chow Wei b) Lin Dan c) Chen Long

Q2. Who won the Olympics Badminton Women's Singles Gold a) Saina Nehwal b) Yihan Wang c) Li Xueruib)

1 each for the 2 winners-2 Nos

1 each for the 5 winners-5 Nos

1 each for the 3 winners-3 Nos

Antony FernandoNiharika Saini

Santosh Udipi, Lakshmi Chenicheri Sreesh Waghray

Shivani A Pathi, Nabha Pai Naveen V.P., Sangram Patil

Srinagar: National level badminton had returned to the Jammu and Kashmir capital after over two decades and

while the organisers had a point to prove, the two eventual national champions also answered their critics with a performance that could define their careers in the future.

Sayali Gokhale of Air India regained the women’s singles crown from PV Sindhu while PSPB’s P Kashyap laid his hands on the Vikas Topiwala Challenge Cup for men’s singles in his third final appearance with a clinical performance against teammate Ajay Jayaram.

Sayali bounces back

In the women’s singles, as Sayali slumped to her knees after hitting the winner to clinch the title, Badminton Association of India (BAI) officials were busy asking each other whether the 25-year-old was part of the core group for the 2014 Commonwealth Games.

Since her maiden national title in 2008-09 season, Sayali hasn’t been in the scheme of things of the national selection panel and the Pune girl gave them a timely reminder in the Jammu and Kashmir capital as they finalise a list of campers for the coming season.

In the final, Sayali got the better of defending champion and the girl who is touted to be the future of Indian badminton, PV Sindhu, in over an hour. Even Sayali admitted after the match that Sindhu wasn’t at her physical best and she managed to make the most of her slow movements due to a knee injury.

However, that should not take away the credit from Sayali’s performance as only she could manage to hold off Sindhu, who carried the injury throughout the tournament and forced her other opponents in abject surrender.

“Since I was not being picked for international tournaments, I concentrate a lot on my fitness and adapting a more aggressive approach on the court and that helped me here,” said Sayali after the winning the title.

Kashyap heaves a sigh of relief

While Sayali made a comeback of sorts, Kashyap had been at the receiving end of many doubters who felt that the Gopichand Academy trainee was getting all the national

Senior nationalS 2012

honours without yet winning the national title.

That criticism had been playing even in Kashyap’s mind and the first thing the Commonwealth Games bronze medallist did after winning the final was to straight away jump into the arms of chief national coach and his mentor Pullela Gopi Chand to thank him for the support.

Kashyap played like a champion throughout the tournament and the way he bulldozed through K Srikanth in the semifinal it was very clear that the London Olympics quarterfinalist meant business in the final against a player who was his nearest challenger for the Olympic berth through the qualification period.

However, Ajay could not match the guile and assured attack of Kashyap as he went down in straight games in his first ever final appearance at the nationals.

The women’s and mixed doubles titles were expectedly won by the highest ranked pairs but it was the men’s doubles final that ended the championship on a high. Dark horses Manu Attri and B Sumeeth Reddy recovered from a first game hammering to upset third seed Akshay Dewalkar and Pranav Chopra to win the final.

The third seeds looked like taking it easy in the second game against a pair that surprised even themselves by reaching the final. But the complacency cost the experienced campaigners dearly as they choked under pressure.

mANu AttrI and B Sumeeth reDDyupset the top order

Abhijeet Kulkarni

Kashyap, Manu Attri, B Sumeeth Reddy, Arun VishnuSayali Gokhale, Sikki Reddy, Aparna Balan

Men: Singles: P Kashyap (PSPB) bt Ajay Jayaram (PSPB) 21-18, 21-17

Doubles: Sumeet/Manu Attri bt Akshay Dewalkar (AI)/Pranav Chopra (PSPB) 10-21, 21-14, 21-12

Women: Singles: Sayali Gokhale (AI) bt PV Sindhu (PSPB) 21-15, 15-21, 21-15

Doubles: Aparna Balan/Sikki Reddy bt Varsha Belawadi/GM Nischitha 21-11, 21-13

Mixed doubles: Aparna Balan/Arun Vishnu bt Ashwini Ponnappa/Tarun Kona 21-13, 18-21, 21-15

What went through your mind before the finals? Were you excited at the prospect of Saina’s victory?

I don’t get excited,she is expected to do so.I’m happy her training is back on track. I definitely will get excited when Saina wins the All England, Worlds or the Olympics gold.

To what do you attribute Saina’s performance? How can we duplicate it across the board?

See, here is the result of a professional approach by a coach and a player. Gopi was taking care of Saina’s needs for years – skill development, physical training, food and rest. And Saina follows it without any questions.

I recently travelled with a few of the top players to Singapore and Vietnam. The official Indian team was also there. Only few players were keen to practice regularly as the hall was 30 minutes away. Practice courts should be booked by the association before the players arrive and see that players practice. We(India) are a major player in men’s and women’s singles now.

When we get more organised and sent the right coaches with players, then performance level will increase by 20 percent. Gopi and Edwin won’t be able to go always, we should have a good panel of experienced coaches.

Any thoughts on the Nationals.....

Coming to professionalism in organising, the senior Nationals held at Srinagar was a total

“Its all about Professionalism”

Results (final):

Among the others, Chattigarh’s Shreyansh Jaiswal announced his arrival on the big stage with a second round upset of top seed and defending champion Sourabh Verma.

However, apart from the women’s singles final, the quality of matches in the finals left a lot to be desired and so did the overall tournament organisation.

The players were seen complaining for lack of warm up facilities and improper court conditions throughout the tournament and there was hardly any effort to attract sports lovers from the state to the stadium.

BAI president Akhilesh Das Gupta admitted that the organisation was not up to the mark but said the Jammu and Kashmir Badminton Association (JKBA) did their best under the circumstances. “We need to remember that they were hosting a major tournament after a gap of 25 years. The whole idea of giving the nationals to

Srinagar was to take the sport to different corners of the country and I think we are doing that well,” said the Member of Parliament and former national level player.

BAI gave JKBA a grant of Rs 25 lakh to conduct the tournament and senior officials were in Srinagar throughout the tournament to ensure that everything went smoothly.

mess. Starting with basic facilities like toilets and playing conditions, it was pathetic. Courts were not ready even on the eve of the tournament, players waited for hours and went back disappointed.

It is high time BAI has its own courts, instead of borrowing from here and there. It is also important that we provide good facilities and conditions – quality shuttles, reasonable hotels, good courts, transport, food etc. In Srinagar food and transport were OK, while the playing conditions were plainly dangerous. Some senior players refused to play on those courts.

Do you think this event serves as a launch pad for budding talent?

Everyone was busy planning their sightseeing trips rather than preparing for this important tournament. There were many upcoming talents who played their hearts out like Jaiswal, Pratul, Tanvi Lad, Jacqueline etc. This is the event where the

selection committee should watch and tap these youngsters as upcoming players and give them international exposure. I doubt any selection committee members were available to see the matches.

If you had to pick one thing that is holding back badminton, what is it?

Another area we lack professionalism is age fraud, which is a big problem in Indian sports. That’s why we get flatteringly good results at the junior level and no results at senior world level. This manipulation should be stopped at the Under 10 to 15 level – where Secretaries, coaches are in control of the situation. Here nobody is bothered. Whom are these officials scared of? Like drug abuse, age fraud is a criminal offence. Let the cheats go, bring in fair play.

Professionalism should come from top to bottom – officials, coaches and players. The system should be clean, then only the investors will come forward and badminton will sustain itself.

Closing thoughts (after Saina’s triumph in the finals)...

Job well done, good! Have a small party, a nice dinner with members of the team and move on. Next day it’s another day, report for the training. Plan for the next tournament and try to win that. I told her mother many years back(when she was training under me) that she is capable of winning all major championships and to become World number one.

excerpts from a talk with international coach tom John on the sidelines of Saina Nehwal’s Demark open performance

Senior Nationals 2012 Continues...

>7August - September 2012

Your thoughts on winning the national championship?

It means a lot. It was one of my childhood dreams. I’ve always wanted to win the national title. I missed it last year because I was playing international events.

Having made some big strides on the international circuit, does the national title make a difference to your career?

I guess not. No one is worried about whether you’ve won the national title. Winning an international event is more challenging. The national title is personal. Many people had said it was a title I had not won. Being national champion sounds good, but the only thing that matters is your international success.

Did you feel any pressure to prove that you’re the best in the country?

I’ve proved it over and over again that I’m the best in the country. I did well at the Olympics. But I didn’t play at the nationals with the mindset to prove anything. I was rusty in the beginning. The competition is tough and there’s a lot of pressure.

technique or who trained harder than everybody else need not win – the player who adapts to the conditions wins.

Although the shuttle was of good quality, the speed was higher than usual. They should have used Speed 1 instead of Speed 3. The courts too were also not up to the mark.

About the Olympics.

I would rate Olympics as one of my best tournaments: well organised, and it felt special. I have good memories. The pressure from the public and media was less on me, but I kept a target for myself to win a medal. I was disappointed and upset for not getting a medal – I was close..

How has it been on the sponsorship front after the Olympics?

I’m looking for sponsors. Sports management companies should come forward. The IBL (Indian Badminton League) will be a good event, but it depends on how they format it. Hopefully there will be enough opportunities for all the players in a team.

Did you carry the confidence of your victory over Chen Long into the nationals?

I was carrying that confidence. In China (China Masters) I lost to Guru (Sai Dutt) in the second round, and I was under pressure. In Indian conditions, people expect me to win easy. I have been doing well under pressure.

Everyone is talented. There are 10-12 of us, and each of us has our own strengths. Apart from Ajay and Guru, there is Sameer, Sourabh, Prannoy, Srikanth… we’ve been working very hard.

I’ve been confident since the Olympics. I didn’t have time to train for China and Japan, but I beat Gao Huan in the first round of the China Masters. It was a tough match because he’s a good player. I have to continuously reach the semifinals and finals of major events. I want to win a Superseries.

At the nationals you started slow with a few tough matches, but towards the end you won quite comfortably.

In a tournament the best player doesn’t always win. The player with the best

There was no stopping Parupalli Kashyap at the 77th National Championships. After a tentative start in the team event, Kashyap hit cruise mode in the open category, winning the men’s singles title without losing a game. Excerpts from a conversation with Dev S Sukumar:

I want to win a Superseries

Tom John

M a i n s p o n s o rE q u i p m e n t S p o n s o r

Chief Coach:

www . to m s b a d m i n to n a c a d e my . c o m | P h : 9 8 4 5 0 2 7 8 7 8 , 9 0 3 5 3 9 0 3 4 6

Sindhuon the cusp of big thingsIt was one of the most stunning upsets

in badminton this year. Li Xuerui, reigning All England, Asian and Olympic

champion, beaten by rising Indian talent PV Sindhu in the quarterfinals of the China Masters – it’s a feat that will evoke wonders across the world.

A day later, Sindhu proved the win was no fluke as she came within a heartbeat of upsetting another top Chinese player, Jiang Yanjiao. The world No.9 was stretched all the way before prevailing 21-10 14-21 21-19.

That Sindhu was an exceptional talent was without doubt even in her sub-junior days. With Saina showing the way, everyone assumed it would be a matter of time before Sindhu began emulating the feats of her senior compatriot. What nobody foresaw was how quickly she would rise. With her performance at the China Masters, Sindhu has now presented Indian fans with a prospect that was unthinkable just five years ago: two Indian women in the top ten. Who would’ve foreseen this fantastic possibility?

It was at the India Open earlier this year that we saw her potential at the elite level.

She downed (current No.12) Tai Tzu Ying of Taipei in the first round, and then shocked sixth seed (and current No.8) Sung Ji Hyun of Korea in the second. In the quarterfinals, she put fourth seed Jiang Yanjiao of China through the wringer before losing in three tough games. It was her breakthrough moment. And at the Asian Youth Championships she became the first Indian to take the title.

Sindhu’s most obvious advantage is her height. Her lanky frame and long limbs help her cover the court with ease, while her sharp clips and attacking smashes carry plenty of sting. She also seems immune to pressure, and that is a quality that has long impressed junior coaches.

“I’ve never seen her crumble under pressure,” says U Vinod, coach at the Padukone Academy. “Probably that is because she has played so many events at each junior tournament. She used to play the singles and doubles in two or three age

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categories, and I’ve never seen her fall to pressure.”

“Sindhu maintains good composure and discipline” said Indian junior coach B.N.Sudhakar. “Sindhu will surely reach greater heights” says Sudhakar. “ Sindhu has achieved her accomplishments by sheer determination and her will to win”.

Can Sindhu become the next Saina Nehwal? To be sure, Sindhu is a different player. While Saina is a counter-puncher, Sindhu is capable of creating more openings with her variations, and she has to expend lesser energy because of her reach. However, as she goes up the ladder, she will find that it gets ever more difficult. Her videos will be analysed, flaws underlined. She will have to learn to play under greater scrutiny.

She has so far fulfilled every prediction about her ability. Time will tell if she can match or even go better than Saina. And time’s on her side.

P.V. Sindhu beating li Xuerui, was one of the most stunning upsets in world Badminton this year. – Dev Sukumar

A sabbatical timed wrongAfter a luckless Olympic campaign,

Jwala Gutta announced a six-month sabbatical from the game. The

Hyderabadi left-hander turned 29, and one wonders what her birthday resolutions will be.

One must say, however, that her sabbatical is ill-timed. With four top women’s doubles pairs out of the game for a while, and most other top pairs still not battle-ready after the Olympics, the Jwala-Ashwini combine would’ve had a golden opportunity to break into the top-ten by the end of this year. The four pairs were disqualified from the Olympics by the Badminton World Federation, and three of those four pairs were banned for a few months by their national associations.

The future of world No.1 pair Yu Yang and Wang Xiaoli is uncertain – Yu Yang has already retired, and it remains to be seen who Xiaoli will partner in future.

Consider the draw at the China Masters: the women’s doubles had so few entries that the draw started with the quarterfinals! Of the eight in the draw, there are two good

Chinese pairs, but Jwala/Ashwini would’ve fancied their chances against the other six. The China Masters, along with the China Open, are the two toughest Superseries events on the circuit, and it is unlikely that such an opportunity will arise again.

The Japan Open that followed the China Masters has an equally enticing draw. Olympic silver medalists Reika Kakiiwa/Mizuki Fujii were top-seeded. Apart from the top two Japanese pairs and one Chinese team, the draw would’ve been comfortable for the Indian duo.

A strong showing in the two Superseries would have set the year up for the Indians to enter the elite Superseries Finals at the end of the year. After a lukewarm start, the Superseries Finals has become one of the most coveted titles for any top badminton player, and to qualify for that event is considered prestigious. Jwala and Ashwini could therefore have targeted a strong finish to the year despite their disappointment at having lost a quarterfinal spot at the Olympics.

What is Ashwini to do? She will be playing the mixed doubles with Tarun Kona, the men’s doubles national champion. Ashwini needs a partner who is good at the net, and Tarun is a dependable ally. It remains to be seen how effective they will be at the highest level. One wonders if her Bangalore compatriots Anup Sridhar or Arvind Bhat would be interested in a mixed doubles pairing with her. Both Anup and Arvind are clever doubles players, skillful at the net, and their height gives them an advantage against other Asian pairs. Or perhaps she could look outside India and think of someone like Lee Yong Dae, who is without a partner in both the men’s and mixed doubles!

As far as women’s doubles goes, Ashwini should probably look outside India. There are several European players with whom she could strike a fruitful partnership. Ashwini is getting better with every tournament; the next couple of years will see her at her prime. A good partner will help her – and Indian badminton — a great deal.

–Dev Sukumar

“I am not really a planner. I would want to play with Ashwini at rio, but four years is a long time. I am not growing any younger. Probably, I would have wanted to quit after getting an olympic medal in london but to try for it all over again, I need to come back highly motivated.” - Jwala Gutta

Doubles players would also like some recognition sirThe Badminton Association of India on

Wednesday announced a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh each for singles stars P Kashyap and PV Sindhu.

Kashyap was honoured for reaching the quarterfinals of the London Olympics while Sindhu earned the accolades for her Asian junior triumph.

However, in the entire euphoria, the apex sporting body failed to recognise the contribution made by the doubles players in taking India on the world map.

The trio of Jwala Gutta, Ashwini Ponnappa and V Diju had created history by becoming the first women and mixed doubles combination to qualify for the Olympics. In fact, Jwala and Ashwini had also won the Commonwealth Games gold and are also the first combination to win the World Championship bronze medal.

BAI should also remember that in the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games, the doubles combinations need to fire if India has to have a chance of a medal.

Hopefully this will be the last time they will suffer this discrimination.

Otherwise, no player would ever be keen to take up doubles as a career and we would continue to falter in team championships.

BAI should kindly note that, many players have not received the prize money they won at International tournaments and some Indian tournaments.

Abhijeet Kulkarni

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“Sayali is a disciplined player” said Tom John,“ We communicate for each point and she executes exactly as planned. Many players don’t have that ability”.

From a graceful, stylish player to one who has proved her physical toughness under pressure, Sayali Gokhale’s transformation

is complete. The Pune girl showed aspects of a game that no one associated with her, as she won the National Championships for the second time, beating title favourite PV Sindhu in the final last week.

Like all naturally gifted strokeplayers, Sayali was reckoned have deficiencies in the physical department, especially after Saina Nehwal redefined the meaning of fitness in Indian women’s badminton. But over the last year, the Tata Padukone Academy trainee has been working diligently at improving her strength and stamina under the guidance of Deckline Leitao, Performance Enhancement Specialist. The results are showing. Each of the last three matches at the Nationals went over an hour, but Sayali still had enough left to close out the final against PV Sindhu.

The quarterfinal at the Nationals saw her overcome the aggressive PC Thulasi 23-21 21-19, while the semifinal was a long encounter against Tanvi Lad that went into three games. The final, another long match against an in-form PV Sindhu, but Sayali

managed to thwart the big-hitting teen from Hyderabad.

“I must thank Deckline,” says Sayali. “I’m at my fittest-ever. I was able to last in the long rallies, and recover immediately. Vimal sir too helped me in training.”

Deckline himself credits her development to her attitude. “She does everything I instruct her to, and she doesn’t ask too many questions,” he says. “If I tell her to do something, I know it will be done. She looked so weak earlier, but now you can see the change even in the way she walks. She’s much more confident because of her physical ability.”

Sayali, who has won the Nationals once before( 2009) went in without thought of winning the title. After all, Sindhu was the overwhelming favourite as she had beaten the recent Olympic champion, Li Xuerui, at the China Masters last month. “I didn’t think about winning or losing,” says Sayali.

“Winning wasn’t on my mind. But after I won the quarters against Thulasi, I got confident. It was a good match, and went over an hour. At 11-11 in the third game, I won two-three points at a stretch, and that gave me a lot of confidence.”

The transformation is not so much in her strokes as in her approach to the game. Her increased strength and fitness mean she is able to dictate the pace, unlike in earlier times when she was a more reactive kind of player. “People used to look at me as a defensive player,” she says. “But it was different this time. I practised attacking more in the practice sessions, and that’s what I did at the nationals too. Tom John was there with me in the corner for the entire tournament. We planned the strategy for each player and I played as per the plan. His tips and support gave me that extra motivation and the push which is required to win big matches.”

“Sayali is a disciplined player” said Tom John,“ We communicate for each point and she executes exactly as planned. Many players don’t have that ability”.

Sayali’s performance here should force administrators to invest in more women’s singles players. Saina and Sindhu are already among the game’s elite players, but the others have been relinquished to the shadows. There has to be a concrete plan not just for up-and-coming youngsters, but also experienced players who are yet capable of performing internationally. Players like Sayali get limited opportunities to prove themselves, and it is to her credit that she has grabbed this opportunity to make a statement that she is among the best in the country. “It’s time we looked at the bigger picture,” she says. “We need to look at four-five women’s singles players and make them on par. We all have the capability.”

Sayali is headed to Sweden next, where she will play with Toby Badminton Club in the elite league.

–Dev Sukumar

proves a pointSayali Gokhale

August - September 2012