Jwala,Diju start all over again

The mixed doubles pair will participate in their first competition after injury lay-off.

It8217;s been four months since Indias star mixed doubles pairing of Jwala Gutta and V Diju took to the court competitively last participating in the Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold where they suffered a second round exit. Dijus back injury meant that he could only start light training three weeks before the World Championships at London and according to the doctors advice,a full recovery would take no less than three months. While the duo are evidently under-prepared for the mega event,their Olympic ambition has forced them to take part. They arent expecting much.

The doctor said I have at least 2-3 months to recover completely from my injury so I wont go all out. However,I will want to do my best at the World Championships. The first tournament after a long lay-off is always tough. It would have been better if this was not such a top level tournament but we will give it our best. We are looking to get the feel of the court again, Diju told The Indian Express.

Jwala and Diju had their best run of form in 2009 when they reached the top 10 a first for any mixed doubles Indian pairing and achieved their highest ranking of No 7 in July that year. Their ranking has,however,slipped in the years that followed and stood at 16 when they last played competitively this March. Following the injury break,it has dropped down to 49,and this remains a matter of concern if they want to qualify for the Olympics.

It will be difficult to regain the top 10 spot as it is an Olympic year and the competition will be even tougher. We will be looking to gradually increase our rankings and have no specific target in mind, said Jwala.

The break,however,has not affected the on-court chemistry that the duo share and they claim to have taken off from where they left. I thought it was going to be tough to adjust to playing with Jwala after a long break,but it wasnt. Once I got on court with her it all came back to us very quickly, Diju said.

Olympic qualification is their ultimate target. Without making too many changes in their training pattern,they will want to play select tournaments to improve their level of play. We will need at least 2-3 tournaments to get into rhythm. The plan is to participate at Chinese Taipei,Japan and China before the Olympics, said Diju. There is no better way to kick start the preparation for the Olympics than a good performance in the World Championships. Jwala and Diju have done it before when they were the first mixed doubles pair to reach the quarterfinals in 2009. For this edition,however,they will just be looking to take things a game at a time.

Dan,Shixian advance

Meanwhile,Chinas Lin Dan eased into the second round with a 21-11 21-10 win over Lithuanian Kestutis Navickas on Tuesday. Lin,seeded two behind Malaysias Lee Chong Wei,told reporters: Conditions in the hall are good and the drift and light are favourable for me. I feel comfortable here. I concentrated well and played well.

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Wang Shixian,Chinas top seed in the womens singles,started her campaign with a comfortable 21-11 21-14 victory over Bulgarias Linda Zechiri. There was more success for Ireland when Scott Evans beat Austrias Michael Lahnsteiner 21-15 21-16 in the mens singles,following Chloe Magees opening day win in the womens event. Kabir Mandrekar

Indian Results: Mens doubles: Rnd 2: Rupesh Kumar/ Sanave Thomas lost to 8 Alvent Yulianto Chandra/ Hendra Aprida Gunawan Indonesia 19-21,21-11,21-12.

On Wednesday: Sania Nehwal vs Chloe Magee.