PV Sindhu believes India has immense talent to produce a second Sindhu soon

PV Sindhu believes India has immense talent to produce a second Sindhu soon

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Just three days after winning the World Championships silver in Glasgow, PV Sindhu has stated that India has immense talents and the day is not too far when another Sindhu will emerge. She has also stated that her journey has just begun and she will try to earn more laurels for the country.

Sindhu bagged the silver medal after a valiant effort against Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara in a thrilling summit clash at the BWF World Badminton Championship. Saina Nehwal had made sure that the 2017 World Championships became the most successful one India's history. Indian finished fifth with a tally of one bronze and one silver which took India’s total tally at the World Championships to seven - a haul that had started with former All-England champion Prakash Padukone winning a bronze in the men’s singles competition, way back in 1983.

"I wish the very best to the BAI. I would like to see a second Sindhu coming up and that is very much possible. India has immense talent," Sindhu said in an event organized by Badminton Association of India (BAI) as reported by the Times of India.

The 22-year-old has four medals from global tournaments, including the silver at the 2016 Rio Olympics, besides her two Super Series titles – India Open 2017 and China Open 2016. 

"It really feels amazing!! However, this is just the beginning and I have a long way to go and many more laurels to bring for India," she said.

On being asked about the deciding game of the World Championship final, when both Sindhu and Okuhara were locked at 20-20, the Hyderabadi said, "All I was thinking was to play one point at a time and move ahead. I wanted to stay away from the pressure and focus on my game."

"Okuhara was never easy... It was the final and obviously was going to be a tough one with tough rallies going on.

"I never took her easy. I was prepared for the match to be really long, but unfortunately it wasn't my day."

After beating China’s Chen Yufei in a one-sided semifinal, the Hyderabadi lass had to again back on the court after 17 hours for the final, which went on for 110 minutes to become the second-longest women's singles final in history. Asked about if the short gap took the toll in the final, Sindhu revealed that she stressed the importance of sound sleep and good food in that period.

"Well, I didn't have too much time between my final and semi-final. Hence I focused on resting well to be ready for the finals. There was nothing much we could do with the scheduling of the tournament; so I rested well," she said.

Besides national coach Pullela Gopichand, Sindhu credited her Indonesian coach Mulyo Handoyo for helping improve her fitness level, which was evident from the 73-shot rally in the second game.

"Along with Gopichand, I have been training under an Indonesian coach who has helped immensely in training for the games as well as for fitness.

"Everyone is asking about that particular rally, but every rally was equally long and there were too many shots from both sides. We both were really tired but it turned out to be one exciting contest," she said.

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