CHENNAI: “Namma thalaivarukku puratchi kalaignarukku pinnaala naanga iruppom. Avar sonnaale senju mudippom.” (Our leader, the revolutionary artiste. We will be behind him. We will achieve what he asks of us).
It’s a song from Thirumoorthy, a Vijaykanth film released in 1995. It also happens to be Vijay Prabhakaran’s caller tune. At first glance, there is not much connection between the song, Vijay and Chennai Smashers’ victory in the second edition of the Pro Badminton League (PBL) in New Delhi on Sunday.
Dig a little deeper and the role Vijay has played in fashioning the triumph becomes evident. The owner of the franchise isn’t one for Churchillian speeches. But, in his own way, Vijaykanth’s son went about inspiring the team.
“There was this funny thing that I told them before the first match,” he told Express. “Win matches for me. It wasn’t serious, it used to be a bit fun. But over the course of the two weeks, that sort of became like a rallying cry. So on the day of the final, the players got together and told each other ‘just win it for Vijay’.”
They did that. Lots of times. They won even when they thought they would lose. After P Kashyap’s injury, it was left to Thai Tanongsak Saensomboonsuk to take the Smashers home. He did that but many wearing yellow on Sunday night had started to bite the flesh on the fingers. Fingernails had long vanished when the 26-year-old completed a come-from-behind 9-11, 11-7, 11-3 victory to seal the title.
PV Sindhu, like many who were at the stadium, said she couldn’t bear to watch. “It was unfortunate that Kashyap got injured. Otherwise, we could have won the title then itself,” she told this newspaper. “It was very tense during the end but I was happy that Tanongsak pulled us through in the end.”
The 21-year-old, who has seen more in her last four months than most people witness in a lifetime, thought the team had a good chance of winning the title even before the tournament began on January 1. “I thought the team was good, compared to last year,” she opined. Leagues such as these add glamour to A-list matches like Carolina Marin and Sindhu. It also acts as an invaluable tool to further the education for the likes of B Sumeeth Reddy, one of the country’s leading doubles exponents. “It was a good experience for me overall,” he said.
The most balanced side in the league ultimately won and while it’s too early to plan for 2018, Prabhakaran has already conveyed one simple message to his players. “I would look to retaining everyone in yellow.”
swaroop@newindianexpress.com