Road to Rio: Kidambi Srikanth, India's only men's singles shuttler, is a strong medal prospect

Name: Kidambi Srikanth Age: 23 Discipline: Badminton Category: Men’s Singles Qualification: Kidambi Srikanth qualified for Rio due to his good standing in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) rankings, which were used to determine the Olympic qualifiers from the points accumulated between 4 May 2015 and to 1 May 2016. Strengths: Kidambi Srikanth has an attacking style of play, but can keep a cool head under pressure. Has has improved a lot in the last few years and has the match-winning temperament and experience which will give him an edge in Rio. Past Olympic performance: Debut Past record (best performances): - Won the China Open Super Series Premier in 2014, beating champion Lin Dan for the title - Won the Thailand Open Grand Prix Gold in 2013 - Won the Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold, in 2015 - Won two gold medals at the 2016 South Asian Games, in men’s team and men’s singles - Won a silver and bronze medals at the Commonwealth Youth Games in 2011 Rio Prospects: While the men’s singles draw will undoubtedly be tough, world number 11 Kidambi Srikanth has the ability to cause big upsets, as we have seen in the past, and can be looked at as a potential medal prospect. [caption id=“attachment_1806387” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File photo of Kidambi Srikanth. Reuters[/caption] Kidambi Srikanth is one of India’s brightest talents in badminton right now. The sole men’s singles contender in India’s Olympics 2016 contingent, the 23-year-old has seven professional titles under his belt and is seen as a strong medal prospect in Rio. Srikanth is India’s top-ranked international male shuttler, but has had a roller-coaster season so far in 2016. He started on a subdued note when he lost the Malaysia Masters semifinal in January. But then bounced back to  win the 2016 Syed Modi International title. He also bagged two gold medals at the 2016 South Asian Games, and reached the semifinals of the Badminton Asia Team Championship. Srikanth was aiming to break into the top eight to avoid the top tier players in Rio, but he is currently ranked 11 in the world. However, considering his history of upsetting top players, the draw might not be so much of a hindrance. Srikanth is working on perfecting his technique to bag a medal at Rio. “The challenge for me now is finding ways to keep my game effective. The attacking game is what works for me. So I can’t just abandon that. It has brought me great success but I also realise that I cannot be attacking all the time,” Srikanth had told Firstpost . “I have to be able to rally. I have to figure out strategies depending on whether we are playing on fast or slow courts,” he added. His former coach, Sudhakar Reddy, believes that his ward has another trick up his sleeve. “Because of his doubles experience, he’s fast and good on the net. He has improved his smash power too,” Reddy told  Forbes when asked about Srikanth’s medal prospects. Srikanth caught the attention of the badminton fraternity when he became the first Indian to win a SuperSeries premier title, winning the 2014 China Open. Only five tournaments in the world are designated ‘Superseries Premier’, a category that was introduced in 2011. The icing on the cake was the fact that he won this top-tier tournament beating Lin Dan, a five-time world and two-time Olympic champion, often considered the best in the game. Two of his role models happen to be Pullela Gopichand and Lin Dan; having one coach him for Rio and defeating the other is quite the feat for Srikanth. The shuttler and his coach make it a point that he never gets caught up with rankings and that he doesn’t get carried away by big victories. “When I step on the court, my sole focus is the opponent; him and him alone. The way he plays, the way I have to play. Everything else - including my ranking - doesn’t matter. And it shouldn’t either. At this level, you can’t afford to blink. If you lose your focus, it won’t matter if you have all the strokes in the world,” he had told Firstpost.   Srikanth is hard at work to win a medal in Rio, and is ready to face the best in the business to make it happen. “I want to win a medal. It is a tough draw and I have to play at my best from the start. There will be no chance to cruise. And while that is a challenge, it is also why I enjoy the game. The competition is what makes us step on to the court again and again…That and the love of the game,’ he had told Firstpost. Both he and his fans will hope that he can maintain this consistency and aggression when the Games begin in Rio and win another Badminton medal for India. With inputs from agencies