India's two-time Olympic Games medal winner PV Sindhu did not look good enough to add a third to her kitty at the Paris Olympic Games on Thursday. She bowed out to China's He Bing Jiao 21-19, 21-14 in the pre-quarter final, a rival Sindhu had defeated in Tokyo to bag the bronze.
Change of coaches at the drop of a hat, injuries and loss of form all combined to prevent her 'hat-trick'.
Sindhu did not look sharp against Bing Jiao and, even when she was 19-19 in the first game, the feeling at the noisy Porte de La Chapelle Arena was that the Chinese would pull through. Sindhu did not have many smashes against Bing Jiao, a weapon she used so often to kill the games against tougher opponents, and was always on the back foot. Her body language on the court also did not indicate any confidence.
"I should have controlled the mistakes on my defence," she said at the mixed zone. It's a bitter pill to digest for a badminton superstar and a former world champion. But then the writing was on the wall. It's just that many did not read it.
In between Tokyo and Paris, she changed several coaches. Sample this. She won the Olympic bronze with South Korean Park Tae-Sang and then the duo parted ways in February 2023. In July, Malaysia’s Muhammad Hafiz Hashim, an All England and Commonwealth Games champion, came on board. With results not coming which also affected rankings, out went Hashim. In January 2024, Indonesia’s Agus Dwi Santoso took over. Sindhu also acquired the services of Prakash Padukone as her mentor, shifting base to Bengaluru.
It takes time for a coach to deliver but Sindhu probably was in a hurry. To be fair to Sindhu, maybe she did not want to be in Paris just as a mere participant. But given her age — she is 29 now — maybe she has pushed herself too far, trying to regain her attacking prowess which disappeared in the last two years. Also one needs to keep into account the injuries she suffered in the last two years.
Following a knee injury at the French Open in October 2023, there was a three-and-half months injury lay-off. Before that, en route to the 2022 Commonwealth Games gold medal, there was a stress fracture on her left ankle. That kept her out for five months.
"Everybody worked hard. Rest is destiny. I could have done better but I gave my all. It's been a wonderful journey so far. There were ups and downs, and I came back from an injury, and everything was going on well. You can't expect easy wins or picking the form at the right time. Sometimes it might not be your day," Sindhu would say on Thursday.
Parupalli Kashyap, Olympian and 2012 Commonwealth Games champion said it would not be prudent to say Team Sindhu erred in preparing for the Paris Olympic Games.
"She tried her best. And let's not forget at 19-19 in the first game, it was anybody's match. If she won yesterday, today (Friday) we would have discussed her quarter-final opponent," Kashyap told The Telegraph from Mumbai.
Sindhu was asked if she would be around at the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028. "It's still four years away. Right now, I just go back and rest for a bit, maybe just take a break and then come back and let's see what it is."
On Friday, she wrote on X: "Regarding my future, I want to be clear: I will continue, albeit after a small break. My body, and more importantly, my mind need it. However, I plan to carefully evaluate the journey ahead, finding more joy in playing the sport I love so very much."
Kashyap felt Sindhu should take six months at a time. "Once you are 30, the body starts to give up. Do not forget, badminton is more about the physical aspect. I would like to see Sindhu giving herself short-term targets. And then see where she stands in 2028. Four years is a very long time for a sportsperson."
True.
The poster girl of world badminton has a rugged terrain to manoeuvre in the next Olympic cycle.
