 "Indian badminton at Paris Olympics 2024: Hope and frustration in equal measure")
There is no badminton medal for India at the Olympics for the first since 2008.
There was never a badminton medal for India at the Games before 2008 but since 2012 it has been a contributor. Ever since Saina Nehwal broke the glass ceiling in London 2012 with a bronze, India won three medals in total. Apart from Saina, PV Sindhu won the other two - a silver (Rio 2016) and another bronze (Tokyo 2020).
The run, however, came to an end at the Paris Olympics 2024 with Lakshya Sen being the only one coming close to a medal.
PV Sindhu, who has an impressive record at big tournaments with two Olympic and five World Championship medals, for the first time in her career, failed to win a medal at the Summer Games.
It was one of the least shocking results though.
Sindhu fails at Olympics for first time
The 29-year-old ace shuttler had been struggling for form for a while while fighting a battle with injuries at the same time. She returned to action only in February after recovering from a knee injury but suffered first or second round exits at the All England Open, Swiss Open, Asia Championships, Singapore Open, and Indonesia Open.
The Malaysia Masters was the only tournament where she reached the final but lost after winning the first game.
Poor form wasn’t the biggest concern, as the Hyderabadi player had never entered an Olympics in top form but had managed to win a medal. The real issue was her fitness and injury rehabilitation.
At the Olympics, the drop in fitness level and the lack of cutting edge ended her chances.
After securing one-sided wins over lower-ranked players in the group, Sindhu faltered at her first real test, against China’s sixth seed He Bing Jiao in the Round of 16.
Three years ago, Sindhu defeated He Bing Jiao to win bronze in Tokyo. However, in Paris, Sindhu struggled to create lead as Bing Jiao’s solid defensive game and attacking forehand left Sindhu with no opportunity to relieve the pressure, highlighting the impact of age on her performance.
Sindhu is hurt but not out.
“This loss is possibly one of the hardest of my long career. It will take time to accept, but as life moves forward, I know I will come to terms with it,” she wrote on social media after the Olympics exit.
“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.”
Satwik-Chirag disappoint
Given Sindhu’s struggle with poor form and injury, her exit was disappointing but not entirely surprising. However, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty in men’s doubles were seen as strong medal contenders. The former world No.1 pair has earned a reputation of being carefree but capable of beating the best on their day.
They advanced to the Round of 16 with easy wins in the group stage but stumbled at their first real challenge against Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik of Malaysia in the quarter-finals.
The No.3 seeded Indian pair led after the first game and seemed destined for a semi-final spot. However, the Tokyo bronze medallists staged a comeback, eventually winning the match. The Malaysians also secured bronze at Paris 2024.
Although Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik once held an 8-0 head-to-head record against Satwik-Chirag, that dominance had been overturned with the Indian duo winning the last three encounters. In this crucial quarter-final, Satwik and Chirag struggled with nerves and rushed their play after falling behind, rather than taking their time and adjusting their strategy.
As Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik began to control the match, the Indian pair wilted under pressure, losing 21-13, 14-21, 16-21.
The women’s doubles pair of Tanisha Crasto and Ashwini Ponnappa failed to get out of their group.
In the men’s singles, HS Prannoy reached the Round of 16 where he was thumped by compatriot Lakshya Sen 21-12, 21-6 when the senior shuttler didn’t look physically ready for the game.
Sen’s brush with history
Lakshya, however, had a lot left in the tank as he went on to produce one of his best performances against higher-ranked Chou Tien-chen of Taiwan in the quarter-finals. It was seen as a potential stumbling block for Sen and while the Taiwanese won the first game 21-19, the Indian was quick to reply and blew him out of competition with a 21-15, 21-12 win in the last two games.
Sen’s supercharged badminton of quick reflexes, flat smashes, and the ability to cover the court and return almost anything proved too tough for the veteran who fought cancer last year.
With that win, the 22-year-old from Almora created history by becoming the first male shuttler from India to cross the quarter-finals barrier at the Olympics.
He entered the semi-final against reigning champions Viktor Axelsen with the same energy, taking a 20-17 lead in the first game and 7-0 in the second, before losing both and the opportunity to secure a first badminton medal for an Indian male shuttler at the Games.
More than anything it felt like Sen slipped under pressure and not Axelsen’s long reach, lethal forehands, quick returns, or mental fortitude.
The bronze medal match against Malaysia’s Lee Zii Jia proved to be something similar where Sen won the first game but then dropped the tempo as the match progressed and saw the medal slip away from his hands. Lee was error-prone in the first game and sort of gifted the initiative to Sen but the young shuttler wasn’t ready to grab them with both hands.
The failure has kicked off a major controversy with his coach Prakash Padukone taking him to the cleaners .
Padukone's method can be questioned but his words can't be .
Satwik-Chirag and Sen did become victims of pressure and expectations at the Games as shuttlers returned empty handed.
But then again Rome wasn’t built in a day. Before Saina Nehwal won that bronze in 2012, many tried and failed.
If we take that as a precursor, then good things should happen in the future and if we are mistaken then Indian badminton is in for a tough time.
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