The news report in the Times of India on Tuesday about Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu training at two different centres of the Pullela Gopichand Badminton Academy set the cat among the pigeons, with social media beginning to speculate the breakdown in the relationship between the two star players and the fallout of the same.

The two were never BFFs, or Best Friends Forever, and can never be. They are both extremely competitive, vying to be the best badminton players in the world. But that doesn’t mean they don’t see eye to eye.

Training in two different centres may look like a huge step towards separating them from each other, but it is worth noting that ever since Sindhu graduated to the elite group, she never really trained alongside Saina even during their earlier stint together at the academy.

Gopichand himself explained the system in one of his recent interactions where he said that he used to work with Sindhu from 4.15 in the morning, while Saina and others would come to train in the second batch after 5.30 am.

Even when Saina and Sindhu used to “train together” at the Sports Authority of India-Gopichand centre soon after the former moved back to Hyderabad, they were always on different courts with different coaches and a separate set of sparring partners.

An insider who has seen both the players train at the academy over the years insists that they must have been on the same court during practice very rarely and must have played against each other during game days not more than a dozen times.

One needs to understand that none of the top players who compete at the highest level train as a team. Everyone has individual areas to work on and there is no way one would let their opponent – even if they are from the same academy – know about the aspects of the game they are working on.

The stakes are all the more higher when both the players are in the world’s top-10 and are looking to outdo each other for major titles.

It is true that the men’s singles players continue to help each other as feeders when they are working on their movements and strokes, but this was rarely the case with Saina and Sindhu ever.

Difference in personalities

During Sindhu’s formative years, Gopichand probably kept both of them away from each other given the difference in their personalities. Even training with Saina can be intimidating and given the soft nature of Sindhu, he felt it was imperative to protect her till she matured enough to challenge the senior pro.

When Saina decided to return to Hyderabad after the 2017 World Championship, following three years with former national coach U Vimal Kumar in Bengaluru, those who have been part of the national system always wondered how things will pan out, and how Gopichand would handle the job of giving both of them equal attention.

It is true that the two consecutive losses to Saina – in the finals of the senior Nationals and Commonwealth Games – did result in the Sindhu camp hitting the panic button and feeling that the former world No 1 was getting the better of the youngster because she was getting to know all her weaknesses.

Given the high stakes both the stars have and the constant scrutiny they go through, such a reaction was totally understandable.

It was therefore imperative for Gopichand to find a solution. With the Indonesian coaches Mulyo Handoyo and Heriawan leaving the Indian camp, Gopichand himself had to work with Sindhu and Saina at two different times so that he could give them equal attention and importance. But he probably opted for having them train at two different centres for practical purposes.

The talk of training at separate centres had started immediately after the senior nationals in November and was implemented immediately after the Indian squad returned from the Commonwealth Games, where Saina defeated Sindhu in the singles final.

While the news of the two girls training separately may make it look like something is terribly wrong between them, those in the badminton circle would know that training separately is normal for India’s shuttle queens.

So badminton fans, there is really no need to panic. Both the players are as focused on winning the next title and it is this hunger that is keeping them apart in two different academies.