CHENNAI: Both Saurav Ghosal and Joshna Chinappa will be ranked second at the upcoming Asian Championships, as the draw for the meet was held on Monday. Both the Indians, who will be receiving first round byes, are expected to go deep into the tournament, but national coach Cyrus Poncha has designs on them winning the whole thing. “We would love to win gold in both events,” he told Express.
“Joshna is a strong contender. She has been in good form, and we hope she can lift the crown. Someone else who is as strong is Dipika Pallikal, who also has the game to triumph. I’m hoping for an all-India final,” he added.
“Hong Kong and Malaysia are extremely strong sides. Apart from those two nations, Pakistan are the dark horses. As they don’t play in many PSA events, their ranking is a touch low, but they’re more than capable of beating anybody on their day.”
This is also an important event for the country, as they are trying to reclaim their lost glory. As reported by this newspaper, the Pakistan team is participating. They have made some sweeping changes, and will be hoping to keep the momentum going.
From an Indian perspective, the focus will naturally be on the triumvirate of Joshna, Dipika and Saurav, but one wonders how upcoming talents will perform. Velavan Senthilkumar, the reigning British Junior Open champion, for instance, will be unseeded. Given he starts life on the pro tour in a few weeks with a competition in South Africa, it will be interesting to see where he is at. “He’s the next big talent,” was how Poncha described the 19-year-old.
He is slated to face Iran’s Soheil Shameli in the first round, and Poncha expects a tough outing. “Given he’s not unseeded, it could be a stern test for him, but there are other boys like Mahesh (Mangaonkar) and Vikram (Malhotra) who’re more than capable of stringing together a run.”
swaroop@newindianexpress.com