Denmark Open challenge for PV Sindhu & Co

It’s going to be a mighty test for Indian shuttlers as they face one of the toughest tests after an already demanding season.
Saina Nehwal will be up against Hong Kong’s Li Ngan Cheung in the opener
Saina Nehwal will be up against Hong Kong’s Li Ngan Cheung in the opener

CHENNAI: It’s going to be a mighty test for Indian shuttlers as they face one of the toughest tests after an already demanding season. PV Sindhu & Co will be crossing fire against their biggest rivals in the quest for the Denmark Open, beginning on Tuesday.

First glance of the draw suggests the Indians will have to play out of their skin. Not a surprise as only the top-ranked players make the cut. “It’s going to be tough. We’ll have to wait and see how things go. We had a good time to prepare and depending on the conditions, we should see how things will pan out,” Pullela Gopichand, India’s chief national coach, told Express.

The shuttlers have had a mixed year. Some gutsy shows at the Commonwealth/Asian Games and World Championships were laced with some below-par showing in World Tour tournaments. Gopichand is just focussed on the positive front and believes that things can get much better with some homework. 
“For me, the year has gone well. We have had the Asian Games, the Commonwealth Games and the World Championships. We had good results then. In the rest of the events, we have to build our strength back and prepare for the bigger events next year.”

Someone who is trying to rediscover her old force is Saina Nehwal, who started 2018 brightly with a runner-up effort in Indonesia Masters. The World No 11 had lost to Tai Tzu Ying then. The latter, who has been a class apart from the rest, has made that a habit and inflicted three more losses on Saina. But Saina, who won CWG gold,  has shown enough evidence to suggest that she can fight her way to success. “With Saina, there is no problem for motivation. She keeps doing the simple things right. She is an athlete with an innate will to excel and win,” Gopichand remarked. 

Apart from Saina, Kidambi Srikanth will also be keen on finding his old form. The former World No 1 had an exceptional 2017 and was regularly grabbing headlines. In fact, Denmark Open was one of the four titles that he won last year. But things have been much quieter this year. Gopichand expects the World No 6 to find his A game soon. “It’s been a challenging time for him. He had his fair share of injuries. He is a good player and I’m sure he will start coming (good) soon,” the former All England Open champ said. One shuttler who continues to be India’s biggest bet in marquee tournaments is Sindhu. Even though she has had issues in the final, she has regularly been among the top contenders.  

On the doubles front, the Indians will be banking on the likes of Ashwini Ponnappa and B Sumeeth Reddy. Ashwini, along with her women’s partner N Sikky Reddy, had won a bronze medal in the CWG earlier this year. For Sumeeth and his partner Manu Attri, it has been a learning curve. “I’m just looking to play my best. If we do so, I’m sure things will be in our favour,” Sumeeth told this newspaper from Denmark.
anmol@newindianexpress.com

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