Can only do short-term contracts: Doubles coach

Express News Service

CHENNAI: Dane Mathias Boe, the current doubles coach of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, will officially train them for only the next six months. Beyond that, “we will have to see,” he said during a conversation with this daily on Wednesday. “My life is such that I can only do short-term contracts because my future’s also a little bit uncertain,” he said. “So it’s difficult for me to say ‘next 3-4 years, it’s possible for me to work full-time with the boys’… that’s not possible right now. 

“I need to take it in short intervals and see how it is. So right now it’s (the association) for the next six months. After that, we will have to see how my situation is and also what Badminton Association of India (BAI) and the players will like… we will have to see.” 

In the next six months, Boe says ‘it’s my job to make them hungrier for more’. “Winning the Thomas Cup at a young age is obviously a very big thing,” he said. “It’s one of the three or four biggest things you can win in the sport. I want to win more titles with them, it’s my job to make them hungrier after this. Make them even better in the future.”

If there’s only complaint that can be made against the pair, it’s that they haven’t racked up the titles on Tour. On the circuit, the duo have won only two titles (India Open, Thailand Open) since the beginning of 2019. It’s something the 41-year-old wants to change. “Think they should be able to challenge more, and win more tournaments than what they are doing right now. Pretty confident that we are going to be able to do that going forward.”