CHENNAI: Sathish Kumar Karunakaran is one of the singles aspirants from India looking to follow the path of Lakshya Sen at the highest level. He's mindful that it's going to be a steep climb. It's a gruelling process that has the potential to challenge the patience of many. Only a few generally tend to overcome that strenuous phase and come out on the other side. Each victory is a step towards the right direction. That was the case for the shuttler from Tamil Nadu as he captured the men's singles crown at the Guwahati Masters Super 100 in Guwahati on Sunday.
On paper, the Super 100 might be the lowest level on the BWF World Tour (Grade 2), but for Sathish, this is just the push that he needed.
"I'm happy. I was actually waiting for this win. For the last six to ten months, I was struggling, I was not getting any breakthrough at all," Sathish, who beat Zhu Xuan Chen of China in the final, told this daily.
All in all, he got the better of five shuttlers to clinch the top prize, his second Super 100 title of his career.
The Chennai-based shuttler, who's originally from Coimbatore, is naturally eager to ride on this momentum and emulate this performance in the upcoming Odisha Masters 2024, which is scheduled to be held from December 10 to 15. Barely hours after his success, the World No 49 was already making his way to the airport for that event in Cuttack. Incidentally, that is the same venue where Sathish had captured his first Super 100 title last year. The 23-year-old also has his eyes on bigger events next year.
"This will give further confidence as I'll be taking part in big events, All England and all that, from 2025."
Given the demands of the sport at the elite level, Sathish has been training in Malaysia for the last year or so in order to raise his game and he's happy with the things that has learnt so far. "I have coaches and trainers, who have been fully behind me. They have set a programme for me. It (Malaysia training) has helped me a great deal. After going there, my style has gradually changed. I'm more aggressive," he said.
Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto also tasted success on the day. The women's pair from the country beat China's Li Hua Zhou and Wang Zi Meng 21-18, 21-12 in the final. However, Anmol Kharb, who's regarded as one of the potentials to challenge top players in the future, lost her title match against Cai Yan Yan of China.
Finals (India results)
Women's singles: Anmol Kharb (IND) lost to Cai Yan Yan (CHN) 21-14, 13-21, 19-21.
Women's doubles: Ashwini Ponnappa/Tanisha Crasto (IND) bt Li Hua Zhou/Wang Zi Meng (CHN) 21-18, 21-12.
Men's singles: Sathish Kumar Karunakaran (IND) bt Zhu Xuan Chen (CHN) 21-17, 21-14.