Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Beyond the flurry of fast-paced,sharp net repartees from the world No 8 mixed doubles pair of Jwala Gutta and V Diju lies a tale of how the two can out-sluggard each other in laziness off court. Hes a bit lazy. Imagine,even lazier than me, laughs Jwala,who has to often drag the tall Keralite to practice. Of course Im the more hard-working one, is Dijus summation of the situation,before the two seemingly reluctant-to-train shuttlers trudge onto the court. Despite all this,the pair is tipped to go deep into the draw of the upcoming World Championship starting Monday.
Climbing 82 places in 7 months,the two shrug off the lazy label as soon as they enter the court. At the Worlds,a tricky opener after a first-round bye awaits them in the form of the English pair of Nathan Robertson and Jenny Wallwork. Robertson is formidable with medals from both the Worlds and the Olympics but Wallwork will find herself a marked woman,with the Indians targeting her inexperience. Its not as easy as everyone thinks. Weve been consistent over the past 7 months and that gives us the confidence we can win any tournament,be it a Super Series or the Worlds, Jwala says.
Rollercoaster journey
Three seasons after they were first paired together,the Indian pair finds itself on the crest of a rollercoaster journey. A year-and-half lost when Jwala was disallowed to play was followed by a revival last year when they returned with back-to-back titles in Germany and Bulgaria,bagging Indias first mixed doubles Grand Prix title. The beginning of this year saw the Indians stun Indonesian top-ranked Nova Widianto and Liliyana Natsir at the Korean Super Series.
On-court compatibility,it would seem,lies in being poles apart. While their left-right handed attack makes them tactically sound,its their divergent personas that helps them. Loud crowds can unnerve Diju while Jwala acquires a sort of feline focus and alertness,thriving for the most part under pressure.
She talks almost endlessly while Diju chooses to look amused and content just listening to all thats being said. Hed rather plug into internet,and do a marathon Malayalam movie session.
I have no idea why we click,Ive been thinking about that for long, he muses,before quipping,If we talk too much off court,well end up fighting. I do my own thing,she does hers.
The unlikely pair has had rough times,but neither would settle for a sub 100 per cent performance. So Jwalas been working on her backhand shots,while Diju works on his footwork. Together,theyve come a long way.
