It was Sindhu's day
The final match of the South Korea Open Superseries was nail-biting, but Sindhu ultimately outshone Japanese shuttler Nozomi Okuhara.
By clinching her third super series title on Sunday, and her third win this year, looks like there is no looking back for the 22-year-old as she emerges as the woman of the moment.
Shuttler P.V. Sindhu made the country proud, yet again, on Sunday, by being the first ever Indian to win the Korea Open Superseries. Hardly a month after tasting defeat against Japanese shuttler Nozomi Okuhara during the World Championship, it must have been sweet revenge for Sindhu to vanquish the latter to clinch the international title.
Since winning the India Open Super Series and Syed Modi Grand Prix, looks like Sindhu has become the woman of the moment. We find out what has been working in Sindhu’s favour, and how her game plan has evolved after her Olympic win last year.
“It was an emotional moment and I felt absolutely ecstatic about the victory. Seeing all the Indian supporters cheering for me was great. This success means a lot to me as it further boosts my confidence and strengthens my ability in believing in myself. The success is a result of hard work, perseverance and focus. It was a great match, and she (Nozomi Okuhara) fought hard too. Both of us played long rallies and were patient enough, but I’m glad I had the last laugh. I want to dedicate this title to the country, coach, my parents and all my support staff. I always fought hard and yes, maybe it is sweet revenge,” says Sindhu.
P. Gopichand, talking about Sindhu’s performance, explains, “It is amazing to see an Indian woman winning at the highest level in a physical sport. Her physical ability has a lot of advantage. People who don’t give up till the end of the match are the real winners. The way she fought back in the third round during the Korea Superseries final was fantastic. There is always an area of improvement which needs to be worked on, and which she has been doing since her loss at the World Championship. At every tournament there is someone who wins and someone who loses; you just take the points and work on them.”
Throwing light on Sindhu’s winning performance, Amrish, National Camp Coach, who accompanied her, says, “Sindhu played a very controlled game; she kept her cool and played strokes to a good length.” Mentioning that Sindhu’s success rests in her ability to constantly thrive on excellence, Anil, a coach at the Gopichand Academy, explains, “Her on-court strategies have been spot on. Also, her ability to comeback even after losing out on the second game is just a reflection of how hard she is training.”
Badminton player Prannoy H.S., who has been training at the same academy as Sindhu, says, “I guess everything has been working in her favour at the moment. Earlier, she used to be very impatient with matches that lasted for long, but post-Olympics, she has been able to change her attitude and sustain during longer matches. Another thing that I have noticed is that earlier she used to lose against lesser-ranked players because of a lot of pressure, but these days she has been able to handle it with much more ease.”
Sindhu’s proud father, P. Ramana, who travelled with her for the tournament, says, “It was very close and could have been anybody’s game, but it was Sindhu’s day! I guess Sindhu is evolving with each game and all the credit goes to the coaching staff and the people rooting for her. Also, it’s heartening to see the congratulatory messages (tweets) pouring in after the win.”
Actor Sonu Sood, who is producing a biopic on the shuttler, says that Sindhu promised to have biryani with him if she clinched the title. “It’s a great achievement for Sindhu, and a great day for India.” When asked whether her latest achievement would make it to the script, Sonu said that he needs to discuss it with his writers.