How HS Prannoy and Kidambi Srikanth proved to be the ‘Zen masters’ of India’s Thomas Cup triumph | Badminton News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: When the Indian team landed in Bangkok, dressed in pristine whites, they numbered nine. The tenth member, Lakshya Sen, was already in Thailand; but the news about him was not good. He had flown in carrying a stomach bug he caught possibly from something he ate before boarding the flight from Bengaluru.
Ten days later, Lakshya would turn up in India’s first rubber of a dream Thomas Cup Final against Indonesia, He got hammered in the first game 8-21 by Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Anthony Ginting. “I thought he would lose.” That was Vimal Kumar’s thought, sitting inside Bangkok’s Impact Arena with the Indian squad.
Lakshya, ‘the baby of the team’ who has grown in the past year to stun some of the finest exponents of the sport, went on to beat Ginting at his own game over the next 45 minutes. He won 8-21, 21-16, 21-17 to give India a rousing start.

(Indian team upon arriving in Bangkok for the Thomas Cup – Photo: Kidambi Srikanth Instagram)
The context of that story is embedded in the ‘team bonding’ that was probably better than ever before in any Indian team. And it was championed by two senior statesmen of the squad — HS Prannoy and Kidambi Srikanth.
Prannoy’s decisive win in the quarterfinals against Malaysia, which he repeated in the semis against Denmark, must have brought a wry smile on the selectors’ faces, who were criticized for picking Prannoy and even allowing him to bypass the selection trials.
Srikanth, the former world No. 1, showed more than a glimpse of his 2018 form. He remained undefeated throughout the tournament, winning all his six singles matches. HS Prannoy too did not let any of his opponents go past him, winning all the five singles matches that he played.
But what those performances did off the court was equally important. The duo commanded respect from the younger lot, whose belief soared and the bond with the two ‘Zen masters’ grew stronger. That’s possibly why the solitary loss to Chinese Taipei in the last group encounter didn’t affect the team’s morale going into the quarterfinals against Malaysia.

“I think the day when we left Hyderabad, this was the first talk that we had in team discussion, saying that this is the time when we can win this because we have a team that can challenge for the title. The only thing we had to consciously do is help and support each other because that is what’s going to change the results in the entire tournament. That’s what happened,” said Prannoy, talking to a group of journalists after India’s historic win.
In that sense, Prannoy and Srikanth proved to be the perfect shepherds of the herd, especially when there are no ranking points on offer and no prize money to play for.
Srikanth said the pride to play for the country tides over such distracting thoughts.
“In these tournaments, the win is for the country. People will say ‘India won the Thomas Cup’, not Srikanth won the Thomas Cup or Prannoy won the Thomas Cup or anyone else. That in itself is a very special feeling,” said Srikanth.

Such words ignited the passion, resilience and belief in the rest of the team, comprising Lakshya, Chirag Shetty, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, MR Arjun, Dhruv Kapila, Krishna Prasad Garaga, Vishnuvardhan Goud Panjala and Priyanshu Rajawat.
It was that resilience which saw Satwik-Chirag save four match points before winning the doubles rubber against Indonesia in the final.
“I think the way everyone bonded this week, I should give credit to all the players. We made a conscious effort to do this because we knew this is not something very common between us. We play individually the entire year, and then to come into a team event all of a sudden and to gel is slightly tough,” Prannoy said.
But were there any particular conversations that the two senior men had with the youngsters? Srikanth said, nothing in particular.
“I didn’t really have to give any long speech, just letting them know that they are doing well and that you only get to play one hour (in the match they are involved in) and you have to do really well in that one hour you get. I am very happy that all the youngsters have really stepped up and played well when it really mattered,” said Srikanth.

Lakshya Sen (AFP Photo)
Prannoy felt that the belief that they could actually go on to lift the trophy went up a few notches after the victory against Malaysia in the quarterfinals.
With the tie locked at 2-2, it was Prannoy who put the Malaysians out of the tournament with a facile 21-13, 21-8 win over Leong Jun Hao.
“I think the feeling (that India can win the trophy) was always there. All of us believed this was the team that could actually contend for the title. I think the quarterfinal was the crucial one. That was a big-pressure match because we knew we didn’t have a Thomas Cup medal. All of us stepped up at the right time.
“Post that quarterfinal, the belief became better. In the semis and the final, I think we were playing probably 25% more than we actually played in the previous matches,” said Prannoy.
When asked if this performance of his was in a way a reply to those who questioned his inclusion in the team, Prannoy chose to just thank those who supported him.

“I think I have always performed under pressure; and to be part of this team, I am really proud. Thanks to everyone for supporting me. I think I have done justice at least with my performance this time,” he said.
“Nothing has sunk in yet.”
India’s victorious Thomas Cup campaign in numbers:
– 21/28 matches won (win percentage: 75%)
– 44 games won, 24 lost (win percentage: 64.7%)
– 1311 points won, 1159 lost (win percentage: 53.1%)