'Family time, new skills and strokes' - PV Sindhu on making the most of lockdown
The ace shuttler is hoping for a podium finish at Tokyo 2020 to add to her silver medal at Rio 2016
PV Sindhu might well end up being the sole representative from India in the Badminton women's singles category in the upcoming Tokyo 2020 mega event. The ace shuttler is leaving no stone undeturned to a win a medal at successive Olympics but at the same time, she doesn't want to take any pressure on herself.
"There are already many expectations from me, I don’t want to add further pressure on myself. Definitely, the ultimate aim would be to win a medal at the Olympics," the 25-year-old told The Times of India.
"But at the same time, each match is going to be important and I need to take it one match at a time. Everyone would have learnt new skills and techniques during this time and will give their 100 per cent. So I will need to be fully prepared for every challenge that comes my way."
Sindhu revealed that initially it was tough for her to stay indoors due to lockdown in India but soon she started discovering the pleasures of spending more time with her family.
"I spent time with my nephew Aaryan. We got a dog, Rio, and for the first time in many years, we got a chance to unwind and spend time with our families. All that was very new for us then, and we all felt it was temporary. But there’s still no clarity as far as the pandemic is concerned. Tournaments are still getting cancelled. We must look at the brighter side — we got so much time to work on our strokes, develop our game and learn new skills.
The change of rhythm after being used to spending so much time on the road is something that Sindhu admits took a while to adjust to. "It’s frustrating, but at the same time, you need to look at the bigger picture. Life comes first and our inconveniences are trivial while compared to the COVID situation out there."
In 2021, she gained some competitive minutes under her belt before the Olympics. The 25-year-old started off in Thailand, then went to Switzerland and finally to England to play in the prestigious All England Open. She started slowly in Bangkok but soon recovered her form.
"I felt my performance in Thailand wasn’t upto the mark. But I kept faith in my process and my game improved. I rectified my mistakes and all that training that I did in England paid off. In the end, it wasn’t the result I was expecting but you can’t win them all. It felt good to be back on the field, competing with the best again. I gained a lot of confidence from it."
Coping with Bio-bubbles
All these tournaments were played in a bio-secure bubble and Sindhu feels that apart from not contracting the virus, the biggest challenge remains to play without fans in the stadium.
"Bio-bubble is a new concept for all of us and it was definitely tough. To their credit, the organizers were careful and made us feel safe by maintaining strict protocols," she said.
"We got tested every three days. They ensured that we don’t go out anywhere, we would just stay in our room, go for training and come back again. Of course, despite all this, there were still cases of players testing COVID positive. For me, the biggest challenge was playing without spectators. Normally you’re used to playing in front of a crowd cheering you on, but unfortunately, spectators weren’t allowed. But safety comes first so the right decision was made."
Badminton matches will start on July 24 in the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.