CHENNAI: Kidambi Srikanth began the year in Thailand, almost unsure of himself. There were too many questions and not many answers. His experiences at the Thailand Open — 2021’s first event — did little to ease his mind. While undergoing a routine Covid test, a nasal swab left him with a bloodied nose. “Unacceptable,” he had posted on Twitter. Over the next few months, he became increasingly desperate to pick up Olympic qualifying points but nothing worked. Whenever he took two steps forward, he would inadvertently go back four. The world, it seemed, was conspiring against him.
In that context, the last week has been magic, a balm that’s reminded him of the good times. Sure, he didn’t win the final of the World Championships on Sunday — Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew emerged winner 21-15, 22-20 — but getting to that stage is a fair indication that he has taken adolescent steps to rediscovering his lost mojo. His net game and the jump smash, the two areas that propelled him to World No 1 territory in 2017, was visible in every game at Huelva. He’s fit again and, more importantly, will get to train under Indonesia’s Mulya Handoyo in the new year. Handoyo, who made Srikanth a machine in 2017 thanks to a variety of non-negotiables in areas like conditioning, has been reappointed by the Badminton Association of India (BAI).
And Handoyo would have liked Srikanth’s approach against Loh Kean, who became the first Singaporean man to strike gold at the Worlds. What let Srikanth down wasn’t so much technical as much cheap errors during big moments in both games. The first game was 21-15 but the Indian was leading 9-3. He had the jump smash working but allowed the 24-year-old back into the contest to close the gap to 11-8 at the first interval. The match was just seven minutes old and Srikanth, despite a physically tiring encounter against Lakshya Sen in the semis, was more than hanging in. But a clear shift in momentum meant Loh Kean raced ahead, partly thanks to the errors from Srikanth’s racket. Thirteen apiece became 20-15 thanks to several unforced errors and there was no way back.
It was almost a similar story in the second as Srikanth took the early lead as the rallies began to stretch. The Indian won that point with a nicely-worked backhand crosscourt drop to open a 16-14 lead. That’s when he let himself down; in an urgency to close out the game, he either found the net or shanked shots that ought to have been comfortable winners. Srikanth atoned for his errors by saving two championships points but two more errors handed the Singaporean the title.
If you were to see this as a glass half-empty scenario, Srikanth closes 2021 the way he started it: that title drought continues. But that’s deeply uncharitable for somebody who became the first Indian man to win silver at the Worlds. The challenge now is to use this to set himself up for a big 2022. One thing, though, is certain. He’s back.
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
