With the 2020 Tokyo Olympic qualification season set to commence in April, it is crucial for Indian badminton players to get the best results while maintaining a high level of fitness. This calls for careful planning — picking a few important tournaments, rather than compromising on fitness by competing in several tournaments in the hope of piling on Olympic qualification points.
While this is the ideal approach, the reality could play out differently, P. Gopi Chand believes. The national badminton coach spoke on various topics after the Premier Badminton League (PBL) final held here.
Excerpts:
On Olympic qualification: There will be a mad rush of players trying to qualify for the Olympics. Players need to take extreme care about injury prevention, but they have to also make sure to consistently get good performances. I can come back to you in a year’s time, and say that players will choose some bad tournaments. They will expect miracles to happen and somehow get good results, but that doesn’t really work. So you need to be mature and clear with the plan, and the back-up plan should be based on sound principles and not wishful thinking.
K. Srikanth, who remained unbeaten in the PBL: His performances in the PBL is testimony to the fact that he is capable of beating the best players in the world. Conditions and players across the world, however, will be different, and Srikanth will have to face these challenges in the big tournaments.
Oftentimes inconsistent Sai Praneeth: I want to see Sai develop physically so that he can last the full match. He needs to ensure that he plays the long matches with the same speed at which he does in the first and the second games.
Struggle to find top-level coaches: We’ve struggled to manage players, because each player’s level has gone up. We have players in the top-10 and top-20, ones who are aspiring to get into the top-100, and those in the junior ranks trying to make the step up. We have spoken about coach development being a big priority, but we have not succeeded because we haven’t really invested in it like we should. Coaches are not produced in terms of learning. Coaches need to be nurtured, empowered and rewarded. The entire ecosystem needs to get better.
Impact of PBL: PBL has a positive impact on many levels. Players benefit, both monetarily and experience-wise. The less-heralded players benefit from getting tips from the top players. Thirdly, the PBL has taken badminton to different cities, which gives people the chance to see the likes of P.V. Sindhu, Saina Nehwal, World Champions and Olympic champions in action. People will want their kids to take up the sport. The badminton ecosystem benefits from an event like this.
