In their own words, the duo has said the Thomas Cup triumph will remain their greatest accomplishment until an Olympics medal comes along.
New Delhi: The prestigious win by Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty in the Asia Badminton Championships will be cherished for a long time to come And, of course, the World Championships bronze is also a huge achievement, a special report in The Tribune, chandigarh says
In their own words, the duo has said the Thomas Cup triumph will remain their greatest accomplishment until an Olympics medal comes along.
It is an important win at the world stage and the fact that it came in an Olympics qualification year means they will get lots of points which will ease the pressure on them going into Paris. I think generally we need to respect where we are now, we are a solid badminton nation. Pullela Gopichand, National Coach
However, the pair’s historic success in the Indonesia Open is no less significant as the “special achievement” highlights the incredible rise of doubles in Indian badminton and the march towards world domination, something the singles superstars such as PV Sindhu, Saina Nehwal and Kidambi Srikanth have been tasked with.
Another thing to remember is that this is the Olympics qualification year.
The No. 6 duo on Sunday became the first Indian pair to win a Super 1000 title, just about a month after claiming the country’s first-ever gold in doubles at the Badminton Asia Championships.
“It is an important win at the world stage and the fact that it came in an Olympics qualification year means they will get lots of points which will ease the pressure on them going into Paris,” India’s national badminton coach Pullela Gopichand said. “Though Olympics is still more than a year away, they will now walk into any event as the top heirs to win the title.”
The Indian pair outwitted their second-seeded nemesis Aaron Chia and Wooi Yik Soh of Malaysia in the Indonesia Open final, a win that came after they endured eight losses in as many meetings against them, and following early exits in the Sudirman Cup, Thailand Open and Singapore Open.
“These guys have lost to them (Aaron and Soh) for a long time which could be a concern, so one more box is ticked,” he said.
The No. 6 duo on Sunday became the first Indian pair to win a Super 1000 title, just about a month after claiming the country’s first-ever gold in doubles at the Badminton Asia Championships.
After their win, Rankireddy mentioned how they had become “lazy and passive” in the last two tournaments, and it was a “wake-up call” they needed after two bad months.
However, Gopichand said that fundamentally, there was nothing wrong in their game. “If you break the game down into basics, their attack and parallel net play, serve and return, these are no less than anybody in the world. If they find conditions in some events difficult that’s okay, it’s nothing of concern. They are finding their sweet space,” he said.
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