Hyderabad :
The colour made the difference. Otherwise, the medals tally was the same. In the 2010 Delhi Games, India had won four medals. So too in Glasgow.
It was two gold, one silver and one bronze in Delhi. However, Indian shuttlers could bag only one gold, one silver and two bronze medals this time.
However, there will be ifs and buts on India’s show. Surely, the last-minute withdrawal of Saina Nehwal cost India a gold medal. But there were hopes that if Saina was not there, then young world championship bronze medallist PV Sindhu had the chance to retain the gold for the country instead.
But Sindhu fell to Canadian Michelle Li in the semifinals to finally end up with a bronze medal in her maiden venture. However, Parupalli Kashyap’s long wait for a championship medal was finally over. “I feel very happy for this Hyderabadi boy. He has a good game but somehow falters at crucial times. But this time there was no stopping him. He deserves the gold,” said former international Sanjay Sharma, adding, “it was not his fault if Lee Chong Wei (World No 1) pulled out like Saina.”
But Sharma was not happy with the overall performance, particularly with India failing to win a medal in the team event. “It was the biggest disappointment. We don’t have depth in doubles unlike in the singles where there is some bench strength. If India has done well in the team events in the recent past, it is surely because of Jwala Gutta, who has been a force to reckon with in the doubles for India. She has done yeomen service as far as doubles is concerned for India. But then we can’t depend too much on her every time,” he said.
Former national coach Vimal Kumar, too, agreed that doubles is surely going to be the Achilles’ heel in any team event. “The singles in the recent past was not an issue but it is the doubles that is the biggest problem for India. Jwala and Ashwini (Ponnappa) have won laurels in women’s doubles but where are the men’s and mixed doubles combinations. It hurt India and will continue to do so in future tournaments. India has to do a lot of catching up to improve their doubles combination. I think the Badminton Association of India (BAI) has to give more emphasis to doubles by grooming young talent for future tournaments,” he opined.
Sharma said if India have to think of any team medal, then BAI should make concerted efforts to groom a strong doubles combination. “When we could not win any medal in CWG, which has more of a depleted field, then India stand no chance in Asian Games and other big events. It should start planning in the right earnest for the 2016 Rio Olympics,” he added.
The former doubles specialist said the CWG gold could propel Kashyap to greater heights. “It is a huge boost to Kashyap’s confidence. We could see a pumped up Kashyap in World Championships and Asian Games where the field is much stronger.”
Vimal feels that Kashyap is always a better player in individual events. “In team events, he is under some sort of pressure. But in individual events he plays more freely. He was impressive in the individual event and I liked the way he handled the pressure, specially in the semifinals and final.
“Remember, in terms of standard of the game, CWG is not of high quality as there are no Chinese, Indonesians, Danes or Japanese players. But this win came at the right time. He will have a much tougher time at the Worlds and Asian Games,” said the former chief national coach.
Sindhu, according to Sharma and Vimal, faltered. “It is a good learning experience for Sindhu. But I thought she had a good chance to win a gold medal but then she failed to capitalize on the golden opportunity,’’ said Sharma, who is now a TV commentator on the game.
Vimal felt Sindhu has to improve her defence. “I think it is time she should depend on instructions. She should make the match analysis by herself and improve on her defence. She need to have more variations in her game,” said the present Prakash Padokone Badminton Academy coach.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Sport / by N. Jagannath Das / August 05th, 2014
