It was another long day at practice. Three sessions (from 7 to 9, 11 to 12:30, 5:30 to 7) have left Kidambi Srikanth, the World No.3, exhausted. With just a few days left before the Indian players leave for the World Championship that begin on 10 August, Pullela Gopichand is pushing his wards really hard.
It is the final stretch and this is no time for the meek. You either sweat tears of blood now or cry later — at the highest level, they take no prisoners and your fall can be even swifter than your rise.
In between the practices, there is more discussion about badminton about styles, about strategies; about strokes, about opponents. It is all consuming. Srikanth, however, isn’t complaining. Not one bit
The World Championships are a yearly affair now and perhaps the allure to win them isn’t as strong as it once was but name one athlete… in any sport… who wouldn’t want to be tagged World Champion. And given that the 22-year-old has a real chance of winning the title, motivation isn’t even a factor.
Of course, there was a time when as a 16-year-old, Srikanth would look to skip as many training sessions as possible. Tell him, there is a chance to play a match, he would be there. Tell him, there is a tough practice session and he would go incommunicado.
“I would rather chill at home,” he says sheepishly. But those days are now clearly in the past.
Srikanth, who is also supported by the Go Sports Foundation, seems to be particularly enjoying himself but even he knows that the challenge for him is just beginning.
His rise has been swift – still very much a kid when he beat Lin Dan at the China Open in November 2014 – but it has been consistent. There has been no plateauing… not yet at least… and while it took some by surprise in the first year — they have now firmly trained their eyes and their cameras on the Indian star.
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