Saina Nehwal was not sure whether she would be back in the competitive league during the three-week shin injury break before and during the PBL, according to her husband-cum-coach P. Kashyap.
Kashyap, who was seen along with the other coach Md. Siyadatullah when Saina was facing reigning Olympic champion Carolina Marin in the Indonesian Open final on Sunday, informed The Hindu from Indonesia that given the backdrop of the break and the kind of tough phase Saina has gone through in the recent past, it has been a very impressive start to 2019.
“Even if Saina were to end up as the runner-up, we would have been still happier. For, we are glad [about] the way she played in the Malaysian Open (semis) and here in Indonesia. It is a tribute to her courage, conviction and ability to execute any suggestion regarding change of strategy on a given day very quickly,” said Kashyap.
Biggest challenge
“The biggest challenge for me doubling up as a player and a coach to Saina is to get the message across to her after a critical analysis. You have to say it a bit louder and a couple of times too,” he says with a big smile.
“But, again having known Saina and her game for so long, it is a huge plus as a coach for me to play my bit in her success,” he added.
On what was the mood when Marin was racing away to a 10-4 lead in the first game, Kashyap revealed that the strategy we sorted out was not really getting right as Marin was making Saina to play to her (the former’s) strength.
“No doubt, Saina got stuck early in the final. But, honestly, it was too early to pass a judgement on Saina’s game in the final.
“It could have still gone either way but it was obvious Marin was off to great start,” he explained.
Sincere prayer
“Well, frankly, we both were disappointed that Marin had to walk off the court with an injury. We don’t wish it to happen to any player. Saina is known to win the games the hard way.
“We sincerely pray that Marin recovers quickly and is back in the circuit,” Kashyap said.
“We just hope to have a great year as our next big event will be the Senior Nationals in Guwahati and then the All England championship though I am planning to play in Spain,” said Kashyap.
