Journalism of Courage
If we were to trace the career trajectories of Pullela Gopichand,Saina Nehwal and Jwala Gutta the three biggest names in Indian badminton over the last decade-and-a-half and look for a common point,our search will lead us to the door of SM Arif,who coached all the three in their formative years. What magic ingredient did this Dronacharya Award-winning Hyderabadi impart on his awe-inspiring list?
I have been lucky that such good players have come to me. As coaches,we are only the guides, was Arifs modest response.
This,perhaps,led Arifs wards to train with more zeal without needing to summon any external motivating force than counterparts under other coaches.
Never in his lifetime has Gopi said no to training,and its the same with Saina. Youll never see her grimace and tell you she is tired, he said. Thats what separates champions from other players. That is willpower.
In the city to witness the opening day of the Maharashtra Badminton League,Arif hailed the tournament for its potential impact on the structure of Indian badminton.
This is the need of the hour. The biggest bane of Indian badminton today is that the second rung hardly gets to play tournaments. Because of this,our progress is at a snails pace. What Indian players need is more competition among themselves,and a lot of exposure trips. This format will be of great help, he said.
In the MBL,they play a lot of matches in quick succession. In the qualifiers for the All England championships,you might have to play 5-8 matches a day. This format helps players meet the strenuous physical demands. Maharashtra league is a pioneer in this respect. I hope other states follow,and wish a similar league comes up at the national level as well.
A couple of months from now at the London Olympics,five Indian shuttlers will vie for top honours. Saina Nehwal and P Kashyap will contest the womens and mens singles,respectively,while Jwala Gutta will partner Ashwini Ponnappa in the womens doubles and V Diju in the mixed doubles. How does Arif rate their chances?
Saina should definitely be in contention for a medal. I have high hopes from her, he said. Both doubles pairs have a chance too,depending on their draw. Kashyap,I think,will go in with comparatively the least expectations,because he only got a chance to qualify because of Chen Jins walkover (in the quarterfinals of the Indian Open Super Series).
Of the five,Gutta and Ponnappa are training directly under Arif ahead of the Olympics. Where does the pair stand right now,in his estimation? Jwala reads the game very fast,and Ashwini does a great job as far as attacking is concerned, he said.
Im trying to improve their defence,with respect to their on-court positioning,which cost them points on a few occasions. If they get that right,they are capable of toppling even the Worlds number one pair, he signed off.
