Kolkata: If Saina Nehwal’s Olympic bronze in 2012 was a stepping stone, PV Sindhu’s silver medal in 2016 Rio Olympics took Indian badminton a notch above but 2017 was a mile apart that saw India scale new heights in the sport, unparalleled by any meagre success it may have had in the past.
National coach Pullela Gopichand stated that India is long behind from dominating the world of badminton but 13 medals from seven different shuttlers that too keeping aside Saina and Sindhu’s respective bronze and silver medals in the World Championships clearly indicate it the opposite.
Never in the past had so many Indian shuttlers been crowned champions but in 2017, podium finishes became regular as the likes of Sindhu, Saina and Srikanth ensured that the Indian national anthem enthralled the stadiums across the world. Often called ‘fringe players’, the likes HS Prannoy, B Sai Praneeth, Sameer Verma as well as the doubles pair of Pranaav Chopra and Sikki Reddy got into the mould as the cricket frenzy land soon made space for Badminton’s rising popularity giving the game it’s own fan base.
Sindhu and Saina till last year were India’s sole hope in international tournaments but for a change, this year belonged to the men’s contingent led by the magical Kidambi Srikanth, who ever since showing glimpses of his potential after stunning Lin Dan in 2014 took three years to become a star- probably the first since Gopichand. The 24-year-old came into his own in 2017 ripping apart opponents, champions and Championships. His sudden resurgence twice in two successive weeks led him to four Super Series titles in a single year – a feat no Indian had ever achieved before.
The year had however began with Sameer Verma’s truimph over compatriot Praneeth at the Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold final in January, gifting India it’s first title in 2017. Praneeth then took charge defeating another compatriot Srikanth at the Singapore Open. The 25 year-old also won the Thailand Open Grand Prix before Srikanth took control.
If his Indonesian Open and Australian Open titles in successive weeks was unexpected, Srikanth repeated the inevitable once again in October winning both the Denmark and French Open in consecutive weeks to come out as truly the star of 2017 that propelled him to a career best ranking at the second position.
Meanwhile HS Prannoy although could not decorate his impressive performance with laurels defeated many elites that came his way often making it easier for Srikanth to earn glory. His comprehensive wins over Malaysian legend Lee Chong Wei and Olympic champion Chen Long paved the way for his Hyderabadi teammate to clinch the Indonesian Open, while it was he who ousted both favourites Lee Chong Wei and Lee Hyun as Srikanth won his final two Championships medals.
Prannoy who has lost to Srikanth in the semi-finals of French Open nonetheless avenged his loss with a victory at the National Championships final to add to his US Open title. He also entered the top 10 as a result of an incredible year.
However discussion about Indian Badminton will never be complete without the mention of Saina and Sindhu, two women’s shuttlers who first consolidated India’s position in the map of World Badminton.
Not long ago Saina was the undisputed queen of Indian Badminton and making a return after battling a career threatening injury, the 27 year-old rose above expectations to clinch the bronze medal at the World Championships. She had also earlier won the Malaysian Grand Prix before notching up an incredible win over Sindhu depite playing with frail fitness. Incredible because she won it in straight sets against someone who had played two of the biggest finals in 2017.
But the highlight of the year remained PV Sindhu’s one hour and 50 minutes battle against Nozomi Okuhara at the World Championships final, a day when the Japanese proved a tad better than the Indian claiming the gold, but the 22 year-old became only the second Indian after Saina to play the World Championships final, winning silver.
Her exhausted frame after another such long battle against Akane Yamaguchi in the Dubai Super Series showed her determination, while her triumphs at the Korean Open and the Indian Open were equally energy-sapping.
However failure to beat the final hurdle still remained a side of Sindhu’s game that needs improvement. Failure to clinch extraordinary moments saw her endure three summit clash losses at the World Championships, Hong Kong Open and most recently the Dubai Series Finals, while she emerged victorious at the Korean Open, Indian Open and the Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold.
Meanwhile, the only time India triumphed in the doubles was when Pranaav Jerry Chopra and N Sikki Reddy won the mixed doubles title at the Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold.
With most of the Indian shuttlers sans Saina, still in their early years, fans will expect many more laurels from the stars, while the likes of Sindhu, Srikanth, Prannoy and Saina will hope to make Super Series wins a habit.