The new millennium was witness to two divas ruling the roost in Indian badminton. Sania Nehwal and PV Sindhu have carved a niche by winning so many World, Olympic and Super series titles that – barring Kidambi Srikanth’s four successive Super series titles in a year – it shaded the efforts of the men on the circuit.
But the last few years have seen a gradual shift with the men reclaiming lost ground. After Prakash Padukone’s memorable All England triumph, it took 21 years for another Indian – Pullela Gopichand – to emulate him. And now after a 16-year gap, the likes of Srikanth, Sai Praneeth and Lakshya Sen are winning big tournaments.
Indian badminton owes a lot of its success to Gopichand’s coaching. He won the Olympic bronze with Saina in 2012 and Olympic silver with Sindhu in 2016. With him as her coach, Sindhu also won the World Championships in 2019.
In 2014, after Sindhu won her second bronze at the Worlds, Gopichand had said that in four years, Indian men can taste similar success. He was right on the money, as Srikanth won four Super Series titles in 2017 and became world No. 1 in April 2018. Praneeth ended the 36-year drought when he claimed bronze at the World Championships in 2019. Padukone had won it in 1983.
“Achieving success in men’s badminton is quite tough as the field is very strong. But we are working, our time will come,” Gopichand had said in 2014. More than Sindhu, he expected medal from Srikanth in Rio Olympics. “He was perfect, did not commit even a minor mistake but was unlucky in the quarterfinals,” Gopi had said then.
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In Pics: India stun Indonesia to win maiden Thomas Cup title
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<p>India’s men’s badminton team pulled off a major upset by crushing 14-time champions Indonesia 3-0 in the final on Sunday to win their maiden Thomas Cup title. (PTI Photo)</p>
<p>Lakshya Sen set the tone for the first-time finalists when he stunned Olympic bronze medallist Anthony Sinisuka Ginting in the first singles at the Impact Arena. (PTI Photo)</p>
<p>Satwiksairaj Rankireddy combined with Chirag Shetty for a similar come-from-behind victory over Mohammad Ahsan and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo in the first doubles. (AFP Photo)</p>
<p>Kidambi Srikanth tamed Jonatan Christie 21-15, 23-21 in the second singles as India became only the sixth nation to win the coveted trophy. (AP Photo)</p>
<p>After a 48-minute slugfest, Srikanth leapt to drill a crosscourt smash to Christie’s left. (AFP Photo)</p>
<p>The importance of his win was not lost on Srikanth who dropped his racket and let out a roar before being mobbed by his team mates who invaded the court. (AP Photo)</p>
<p>India proved their knockout stage victories over five-time champions Malaysia and 2016 winners Denmark were no fluke as they produced another courageous display against the badminton powerhouse. (AP Photo)</p>
<p>Sen typified that fight in his 8-21, 21-17, 21-16 victory against Ginting even though he was outplayed in the first game but he won the second and overcame a 7-11 deficit in the decider to prevail. (AFP Photo)</p>
<p>The first doubles match followed a similar script with Rankireddy and Shetty losing the first game, but they saved four match points in the second to roar back and prevailed 18-21, 23-21, 21-19. (AFP Photo)</p>
<p>Srikanth kept it simple by winning the first game in 19 minutes, but Christie put up more resistance in the second game but Srikanth’s reflexes at the net and calculated aggression ensured India won the final without dropping a match. (Photo Courtesy: Kidambi Srikanth Twitter)</p>
However, Srikanth was laid low by injuries after 2017 and lost confidence. The last 12 months saw him working with his old team, perhaps a reason for his success in the last six months. While Prannoy was brilliant in patches, he too suffered several injuries. The success of Lakshya was icing on the cake for the Indian team.
Much of the credit for Lakshya’s success goes to Vimal Kumar and Padukone. Winning the Thomas Cup is mission accomplished for Gopichand. The men have scaled a peak, which even the famed Indian women failed to.
“It’s a phenomenal success. What our boys achieved is simply incredible. It was my dream. I am confident that we can build on this success,” Gopichand said.
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