CHENNAI: It’s becoming a familiar sight no Indian wants to see. PV Sindhu ending on the losing side of a close contest towards the business end of a marquee competition. She gives it her all, leads at crucial points and looks decisively superior at times, only to finish second best in the end.
There is no doubting that it takes a lot of talent and dedication to reach the position Sindhu has. She is a force at the highest level, instrumental in ending Chinese domination in women’s badminton. Players of her stature usually have a few big titles under their belt. Having built an enviable collection of silver and bronze medals, top of podium in blue-riband events must be something Sindhu thinks she is capable of.
But if the narrow defeats in the Olympic and World Championship finals were expected to harden her up for the nerve-wracking moments matches at this level produce, it is yet to happen. The towering 22-year-old commands respect, dominates proceedings and more often than not looks superior in certain stages. That the opposition still finds a way to outlast her in matches that matter most is becoming a disconcerting trend for Indian badminton and fans yearning for gold in top events.
Experts feel it is a combination of stamina and strategy pulling Sindhu back in the closing stages of marathon three-setters. While former World No 16 Aparna Popat feels the lanky Hyderabadi is losing steam and needs to work on improving stamina, noted coach U Vimal Kumar says Sindhu can consider slowing the game down when it goes down to the wire.
Referring to Sindhu’s defeat against Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi in the recent All England semifinal, Aparna said, “You could see that she was getting tired in the third set, while Yamaguchi was pushing for extra pace. Sindhu had a great chance to finish off the game in two sets, considering that she had gained sizeable lead in the first game.”
Vimal Kumar said Sindhu should consider making things different for opponents in situations when she is unable to make a headway. “I don’t agree that Sindhu is unfit or inferior in fitness to players like Yamaguchi. She was just out of breath after playing those long rallies. It doesn’t mean she got tired or wasn’t fit enough. What she can do is try to upset the rhythm of players like Yamaguchi and Okuhara, who are retrievers, by varying the pace, as they thrive on fast retrievals,” said the coach.
These observations bring back to mind how in course of these matches repeated attempts by Sindhu to finish came back from the other side of the court, when it seemed she was going to get the point. She was in dominant positions, but unable to break down the opposition’s defence, lost steam gradually. Having worked extraordinarily hard already to reach this level, does she have to slog harder and raise her fitness a few notches further?
Those working on the fitness of players don’t think Sindhu has shortcomings on this front. “The difference between the top three or four players is miniscule in terms of fitness. I think Sindhu has only improved, as she is making fewer mistakes. It was an intense match (All England semifinal) which could have gone either way,” said Johnson Solomon, one of the physios of the Indian team.
So what does Sindhu have to do to break this before it becomes a barrier. The answer is not simple. Most possibly, it’s a combination of factors including stamina and strategy that her core team has to work on.
(With inputs from Vishal Vivek)