Tactical error proves costly for India

Call it ignorance or oversight, but the fact remains that India missed a trick or two during their 3-0 drubbing by the mighty Danes in the quarter-finals of the Thomas Cup in Tokyo today. Perhaps it wouldn’t have made a difference to the outcome, but the Indian think-tank has been left embarrassed by the glaring tactical errors, which forced them to play a doubles match after two singles ties instead of the initially planned three singles first-up. At their team meeting last night, the Indians decided to field their second singles player Anup Sridhar in the doubles as well. They were obviously unaware of the rules of the tournament and believed that only two formats existed.

The first format allows for alternate singles and doubles matches to be played in case of no common player, and the second allows for three singles to be played followed by two doubles in case of a common player. But, a third format also exists, a fact that escaped the Indian think-tank. Sridhar is India’s second singles player and was paired with Jaseel P Ismail for the second doubles match. The tournament committee decided to employ the third format where, (as in Sridhar’s case) if a player is playing the second singles and the second doubles he is allowed a customary two-match rest. Had this format been followed, India would definitely have played their third singles rubber before the second doubles.

Had India fielded their third singles player, Arvind Bhatt, to play the doubles, it would have given the Indians a chance to play the three singles matches first. But ignorance of the tournament rules doused whatever little hopes they nurtured.

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For the record, India lost all three matches rather easily. Chetan Anand made too many errors against the steady World No 3 Peter Gade Christensen to go down 14-21, 8-21 in just 28 minutes. Sridhar lasted six minutes longer in his 12-21, 11-21 defeat to World No 5 Kenneth Jonassen. Bhatt then watched in frustration from the sidelines as World No1 Jens Eriksen and Martin Lundgaard Hansen took out Rupesh Kumar and V Diju 21-14, 21-19.

Meanwhile, world number ones Lin Dan and Zhang Ning spearheaded China’s challenge as they booked their semi final berths at the Thomas and Uber Cup championships today.