India 5, CA-NADA

Women crush Canada 5-0 in Uber Cup opener but tougher tests await; Men go down 4-1 to Malaysia in Thomas Cup.

Saina Nehwal had an easy 21-4 21-12 win against Canada’s Jocelyn Ko as India beat Canada 5-0 in their opening tie of the Uber Cup. Ravi Kanojia

Saina Nehwal had an easy 21-4 21-12 win against Canada’s Jocelyn Ko as India beat Canada 5-0 in their opening tie of the Uber Cup. (IE Photo: Ravi Kanojia)

National coach Pullela Gopichand almost never takes his eyes off his wards while sitting courtside during a game. He watches them with the focus of a sentry on duty atop a watchtower. Between points, when the deficit widens or a good lead is gained, players turn towards him hoping for a muttered tip or a quick hand gesture to dissect an opponent’s game. This form of communication is the lifeline of a player.

On Sunday, during the five ties of the Thomas Cup, which India lost 1-4 to Malaysia, the coach had plenty to tell the men’s team during breaks between games.

Before Uber Cup engagements, only RMV Gurusaidutt’s win in the final singles tie, a hard-fought 21-18, 13-21, 19-21 over Daren Liew, had brought a semblance of respectability to the Indian challenge.

The kind of influence the coach’s inputs have on the outcome of a game was clear when Gurusaidutt attributed his ability to win a close match to the courtside tips he received.

Less than an hour later, Gopichand was watching two of Saina Nehwal’s upcoming opponents – Hong Kong’s Yip Pui Yin and Thailand’s Rachanok Intanon — play their first singles ties against each other even though his most famous ward was on court. Sitting in the coaches’ corner on Court No.1, where Saina was engaged in India’s first singles Uber Cup match, the coach glanced sideways to watch a full point being played out between the girls from Hong Kong and Thailand.

A while earlier, when Saina had wrapped up the first game against Canada’s Joycelyn Ko 21-4, the Indian World No.8 watched the game on Court No.2 during her break.

The scoreline of her first game was a pointer to how the rest of the match would unfold. That both the coach and player turned their attention to the adjacent court indicated that they were already planning for tomorrow when opponents tougher than Joycelyn will stand across the net.

Story continues below this ad

Joycelyn played the first singles – between highest ranked players of two countries – only because Canada’s top player Michelle Li isn’t at the Uber Cup. Moreover, the Uber Cup squad has fielded only six players in this edition compared to India’s 10.

The 21-4, 21-12 verdict in favour of Saina was an expected result, as was the 5-0 scoreline by which India beat Canada. PV Sindhu took time to find her rhythm but breezed past Rachael Honderich 21-16, 21-3 while the doubles pair of Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa wrapped up India’s first tie with a 21-11, 21-12 win over Bruce Alex and Phyllis Chan. It was a strong start for the women’s team but also one which comes with a rider.

Weak links

The hosts will continue to be concerned about their third singles player and the second pair of doubles – both seen as weaker links.

Though PC Tulasi beat Brittney Tam 21-11, 21-13 in the third singles, the performance of the second doubles of Pradnya Gadre and Sikki Reddy against Canada’s Grace Gao and Rachel Honderich was not reassuring because the win came in three hard-fought games.

Story continues below this ad

In the Uber Cup, the expectations are of a quarterfinal entry. Saina reiterated on Sunday that a semifinal finish remains a realistic possibility. But the challenge that Hong Kong will present on Monday, and Thailand the day after, will require the Indian women to be at their best. After not having to break into a sweat to defeat Canada in their opening tie of Group C, the Indians will have to quickly shift a gear up if they want to progress.

The key will be Saina because she will be playing the first singles and if she slips it can have a domino effect on the morale of the side.

“My strokes were coming off well today and I found my rhythm early but we have much tougher matches ahead so hopefully I will continue to do well,” Saina said after her opening game of the Uber Cup. India’s highest-ranked singles player had skipped the Asian Badminton Championships to train her guns on the Uber Cup. Yet, a real assessment of her current form can be made only over the next two days when the quality on either side of the net is more even.

RESULTS (India) Thomas Cup: Malaysia 4 bt India 1 (Lee Chong Wei bt K Srikanth 21-19, 21-12, Boon Heong Tan-Thien How Hoon bt Sumeeth Reddy-Manu Attri 21-14, 21-11, Wei Feng Chong bt P Kashyap 21-13, 21-6, Shem Goh-Wee Kiong Tan bt Akshay Dewalkar-Pranaav Jerry Chopra 21-17, 14-21, 21-14,Daren Liew lost to RMV Gurusaidutt 21-18, 13-21, 19-21)

Story continues below this ad

Uber Cup: India 5 bt Canada 0 (Saina Nehwal bt Joycelyn Ko 21-4 21-12,PV Sindhhu bt Rachael Honderich 21-16, 21-3, Jwala Gutta-Ashwini Ponnappa bt Bruce Alex-Phyllis Chan 21-11, 21-12, PC Thulasi bt Brittney Tam 21-11, 21-13, Pradnya Gadre-N Siki Reddy bt Grace Gao-Rachael Honderich 20-22, 21-18, 21-16)