Tags:
Journalism of Courage
NEW DELHI, FEB 15: After three days of action in the Uber Cup events, the spotlight now moves on to the Indian Thomas Cup team. The Indians take on Japan on Wednesday in the first Super League match, the outcome of which will virtually decide their fate a place in the final round, to be played three months from now at Kuala Lumpur.
With the top-ranked Indian Pullela Gopi Chand in excellent form, a victory against Japan is quite possible and this will boost the confidence of the team to do well against second seeded Korea, another strong team, in the group.
8220;The setting and conditions are familiar and we have no pressure at all,8221; said coach Mohammed Arif. If Gopi world No 32 puts up a grand show against top-seed Japanese Keita Masuda, it will also inspire his team members to follow suit. Maybe, India will find the going tough against Hidetaka Yamada 37 and Tadashi Ohtsuka/ Shimaya Ohtsuka, their trusted pair. Their rankings are higher than Indian singles player Nikhil Kanetkar and the first doublespair of Jaseel P Ismail and Vincent Lobo. But Abhinn Shyam Gupta has it in him to pull it off and the second doubles pair possibly Gopi playing in it can take the heat off the Japanese.
In fact, the coaches have been toying with the idea of playing Gopi in the doubles a strategy they have been working on from the Bangalore camp days. Though the coaches played their cards close to their chests, one has to go by the earlier statements by them and Gopi himself. 8220;I have been training hard and am prepared for everything.8221; And that gives enough hope to the hardcore Indian fan.
