CHENNAI: P V Sindhu is the toast of the nation. And why not? The rigours of competing at the Olympics is immeasurable. It gnaws and growls, especially in your head. That ubiquitous word PRESSURE keeps fiddling in every cell of your brain. It’s enough to scar you for a lifetime.
Winning one medal at the Games is seen as something improbable, especially in our medal-bereft country. Winning two? Well, nothing short of a miracle. But somehow in Sindhu’s world, the word is a misfit.
She has made the moniker ‘Big Game Hunter’ her own. She may lumber her way into a World Championships or an Olympics, but once there, garbed in an aura of invincibility, Sindhu dredges her way through everything. Sindhu’s record since the World Championships gold in Basel is perhaps the most unimpressive part of her career. She appeared in 15 tournaments and managed to win only 23 matches — 1.5 on an average. For such a prodigious talent, the figure doesn’t fit in her resume.
It’s why she kind of flew under the radar going into Tokyo. Yes, she was a big tournament monster but the pandemic had ensured that she would be coming in with almost zero match practice. Add to that the needless controversies she had to tide over in the last year or so. Other Indian athletes would have possibly wilted. But Sindhu is made of sterner stuff, she doesn’t wave the white flag. Her strong mind on those strong shoulders have been companions on this most surreal of journeys.
On Sunday, she used both to traverse past the challenge of China’s He Bingjiao to become just the third woman in the sport’s history to win back-to-back singles medals at the Olympics. The southpaw had a better head-to-head record but Sindhu isn’t one to let that affect her. Not at the Olympics anyway.
She smashed, used the effective cross court smash to add to her winners count and induced errors.
He was expected to trouble her but Sindhu used her height and reach to her advantage. Just before the end, the sight of He on her knees and looking at the floor wondering what hit her rammed home Sindhu’s performance. She is a generational Olympian from a country that doesn’t produce generational athletes.
Proactive approach pays dividends
On Saturday, Sindhu was subdued, as she let the Chinese Taipei to dictate the pace. But on Sunday, she dictated the proceedings. He Bingjiao wasn’t allowed time to breathe. Sindhu also used her height to maximum advantage as she used the smash to create winners
Chance to end 41 years of hurt
1980 The last time the men’s hockey team played in the semifinals of the Olympics was in 1972. They last won a medal in 1980 (gold). Against Belgium on Tuesday, they will have to be at their best. The world champions are probably the best team in the tournament