As Hyderabad’s PV Sindhu calmly played her way to a third consecutive Macau Open Grand Prix title on Sunday, she added another chapter to a narrative that has largely gone unnoticed in Indian sport: Indian badminton is in the pink of health.
Among the believers is Dinesh Khanna, who in 1965 became the only Indian to win the prestigious Asian Championship. He said that this is the “golden age of Indian badminton”. And it is not difficult to see why.
While Olympic medallist Saina Nehwal has been flying the flag of Indian badminton for the last few years, a customary glance at the world rankings reveals that she is not alone. Six Indians rank among the top 50 men’s singles players in the world, with three of them in the top 20 – Kidambi Srikanth ranks eighth, Parupalli Kashyap is 14th and HS Prannoy is 20th.
The women aren’t faring too badly either. Nehwal lost her world number one ranking recently, but there is a huge gap between her at second spot and the rest of field. Then there’s Sindhu, who at 20 has already won titles on the international circuit and is now ranked 12th in the world.
While many may be aware of their individual achievements, these Indian shuttlers have combined to make India a definitive force in world badminton.
A golden age
Sindhu has had a year to remember. Apart from the Macau Open, which she has now won three times in a row, Sindhu pulled off a huge upset when she defeated world number one Carolina Marin to reach the finals of the Denmark Open Super Series in November.
Fellow Hyderabadi Saina Nehwal won two titles – the Syed Modi International and the India Open – at the start of the year and shot up to the number one. However, injuries and a lack of form affected her performance as she made early exits at the Japan Open and the Denmark Open and finished runner-up in three events. This hasn’t been her best year, but impressive nevertheless.
As for the men, Kidambi Srikanth seems to be on a mad dash to rewrite Indian badminton records. Hailing from the stables of Indian badminton great Pullela Gopichand, Srikanth already has two distinctions to his credit. He became the first Indian man to win a Super Series Premier Men’s title when he won the China Open in 2014 by defeating Lin Dan. This year, he became the first Indian man to win gold at the 2015 Swiss Open.
That said, this has been an up and down year for him in many ways. From being ranked fourth in the world, he has slipped to eighth courtesy some early exits from key competitions. However, as his mentor and coach Pullela Gopichand noted, there is no cause for worry. Aged just 22, Srikanth has time on his hands to build on his already exceptional achievements.
Bright future
His older compatriot Kashyap hasn’t quite hit the highs in 2015. The 29-year-old’s performances have plateaued since a historic gold at the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
But 23-year-old HS Prannoy has given cause for optimism and is quietly rising up the ranks. He ended 2014 promisingly and has consolidated his position in 2015, reaching the semi-finals in the India Open. In the India Super Series, he achieved an impressive victory over world number two Jan O Jorgensen.
India’s badminton exploits have not been limited to singles events. Doubles veteran Jwala Gutta has forged a formidable partnership with Ashwini Ponnappa and the duo are now ranked 12th in the world. They won a historic bronze at the 2014 Uber Cup as India entered the semi-finals of the competition for the first time ever. This year, the pair won the Canadian Open and reached the quarter-finals of the World Championships. This good form propelled them up to number ten in the rankings for a short while.
Given the evidence, there is a definite air of heady optimism when it comes to Indian badminton. An Olympic year beckons and there is a quiet belief that India will put up a good show in Rio de Janeiro. In more good news, after a protracted court battle, the Badminton Association of India has also got the green signal from the Delhi High Court to host the second season of the Indian Badminton League.
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Among the believers is Dinesh Khanna, who in 1965 became the only Indian to win the prestigious Asian Championship. He said that this is the “golden age of Indian badminton”. And it is not difficult to see why.
While Olympic medallist Saina Nehwal has been flying the flag of Indian badminton for the last few years, a customary glance at the world rankings reveals that she is not alone. Six Indians rank among the top 50 men’s singles players in the world, with three of them in the top 20 – Kidambi Srikanth ranks eighth, Parupalli Kashyap is 14th and HS Prannoy is 20th.
The women aren’t faring too badly either. Nehwal lost her world number one ranking recently, but there is a huge gap between her at second spot and the rest of field. Then there’s Sindhu, who at 20 has already won titles on the international circuit and is now ranked 12th in the world.
While many may be aware of their individual achievements, these Indian shuttlers have combined to make India a definitive force in world badminton.
A golden age
Sindhu has had a year to remember. Apart from the Macau Open, which she has now won three times in a row, Sindhu pulled off a huge upset when she defeated world number one Carolina Marin to reach the finals of the Denmark Open Super Series in November.
Fellow Hyderabadi Saina Nehwal won two titles – the Syed Modi International and the India Open – at the start of the year and shot up to the number one. However, injuries and a lack of form affected her performance as she made early exits at the Japan Open and the Denmark Open and finished runner-up in three events. This hasn’t been her best year, but impressive nevertheless.
As for the men, Kidambi Srikanth seems to be on a mad dash to rewrite Indian badminton records. Hailing from the stables of Indian badminton great Pullela Gopichand, Srikanth already has two distinctions to his credit. He became the first Indian man to win a Super Series Premier Men’s title when he won the China Open in 2014 by defeating Lin Dan. This year, he became the first Indian man to win gold at the 2015 Swiss Open.
That said, this has been an up and down year for him in many ways. From being ranked fourth in the world, he has slipped to eighth courtesy some early exits from key competitions. However, as his mentor and coach Pullela Gopichand noted, there is no cause for worry. Aged just 22, Srikanth has time on his hands to build on his already exceptional achievements.
Bright future
His older compatriot Kashyap hasn’t quite hit the highs in 2015. The 29-year-old’s performances have plateaued since a historic gold at the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
But 23-year-old HS Prannoy has given cause for optimism and is quietly rising up the ranks. He ended 2014 promisingly and has consolidated his position in 2015, reaching the semi-finals in the India Open. In the India Super Series, he achieved an impressive victory over world number two Jan O Jorgensen.
India’s badminton exploits have not been limited to singles events. Doubles veteran Jwala Gutta has forged a formidable partnership with Ashwini Ponnappa and the duo are now ranked 12th in the world. They won a historic bronze at the 2014 Uber Cup as India entered the semi-finals of the competition for the first time ever. This year, the pair won the Canadian Open and reached the quarter-finals of the World Championships. This good form propelled them up to number ten in the rankings for a short while.
Given the evidence, there is a definite air of heady optimism when it comes to Indian badminton. An Olympic year beckons and there is a quiet belief that India will put up a good show in Rio de Janeiro. In more good news, after a protracted court battle, the Badminton Association of India has also got the green signal from the Delhi High Court to host the second season of the Indian Badminton League.