'Saina and Sindhu are top contenders, but they will have to beat players who are playing solid badminton at this juncture.'
The SAI has formulated a detailed draft of the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to be followed before reopening of its training centres by the end of this month, as suggested by Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju but subject to clearance from the Health and Home ministry.
'In this year, we had the Commonwealth Games, Asian Games and World Championships and we have been successful (in those) and that was our target for this year. And I'm happy that at the end of the year they (players) are able to maintain their rankings'
National coach Pullela Gopichand on Wednesday defended Indian Badminton League's decision to reduce the base price of Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa before the IBL Players' auction, saying it was done so that the doubles specialists do not incur financial loss.
Indian mixed doubles pair of Sikki Reddy and Pranaav Jerry Chopra clinched their maiden Grand Prix title, bagging the Brazil Open with a straight games victory over Canadian combo of Toby Ng and Rachel Honderich at Foz do Iguacu in Brazil, on Sunday.
Ace shuttler PV Sindhu, the first Indian woman to bag a silver medal at the Olympics, is the latest athlete whose story is set to be portrayed at the big screen.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Monday, met the Indian athletes who will represent the country at the forthcoming Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and wished them luck.
Indian women's team had won a bronze medal at Incheon four years ago and Sindhu hoped they can change the colour of the medal this time when the multi-sport event gets underway on August 18.
Star shuttler H S Prannoy has credited top women shuttlers P V Sindhu and Saina Nehwal for the positive change in mindset of other players while facing tougher opponents.
Praneeth said he needs to work on his fitness to trouble big players such as two-time world champion Kento Momota.
The Olympic silver-medallist, who out-played Japan's Nozomi Okuhara 21-7, 21-7 in a lop-sided final in Basel, Switzerland on Sunday, was mobbed at the airport after she touched down, with national coach Pullela Gopichand by her side, late on Monday.
In a bid to keep herself fit for the packed international schedule this year, Indian shuttler P V Sindhu will not be defending her women's singles title at the $120,000 Malaysia Grand Prix Gold badminton tournament to be held at Johor Bahru from March 25-30.
PV Sindhu finally fetched India its first ever World Championships gold in the sport but spent rest of the year struggling for form.
'Well, I think every year, in the last few years, has been better than the previous one'
The government has rolled out its ambitious TOP (Target Olympic Podium) Scheme, under which 2016 Olympics medal prospects will be funded for their specialised world class training and top-level competition, and offered ace discus thrower Seema Punia a budget of Rs 75 lakhs till the Rio Games next year.
This is only the second endorsement in the baba-led space by a celebrity after wrestler Sushil Kumar featured in an ad last year for Patanjali Ghee.
Set to return to the international circuit at Denmark Open, India ace shuttler P V Sindhu, on Friday, said winning the silver medal at Rio Olympics has given her a lot of confidence and she would look to play without any pressure in the upcoming events.
PV Sindhu is keen to work harder on various aspects of her game and put up better performances against top players in the coming year.
While Pusarla Venkata Sindhu was aiming to earn a gold for her country in the Rio Olympics, back home thousands of kilometres away many were, shockingly, fighting to stake claim over her.
Gopichand, who shaped Sindhu and Olympic bronze-medallist Saina Nehwal among others, believes it will take some time for the next big star to emerge.
"Sometimes, these small things affect a long match where you need extra energy," Gopichand said on Tuesday.
He is known to be a demanding coach but Pullela Gopichand is of the opinion that Olympic silver medallist PV Sindhu's odd defeats can't be termed as her failure, not even by a single per cent.
The 23-year-old remains India's 'silver girl', having lost finals at the Olympics, Commonwealth Games and two world championships before Tuesday's Asian Games title showdown defeat to world number one Tai Tzu-ying of Taiwan.
Sindhu and compatriot Saina Nehwal have lost 22 matches between them to Tai.
Prakash Padukone backed Sindhu to win the World Championship crown soon after two consecutive silver medal performances in the prestigious event.
Young Kidambi Srikanth continued his meteoric rise in world badminton as he ended the season by becoming only the third Indian male shuttler to break into the top-five, reaching a career-high fourth after hovering in the 40s in the beginning of the year.
Pullela Gopichand salutes P V Sindhu on her superb showing that saw her return with a silver medal from the Rio Olympics.
Indian shuttler Ajay Jayaram notched up a superb straight-game win over Estonia's Raul Must in the finals to defend his men's singles title at the Dutch Open Grand Prix in Almere, The Netherlands on Sunday.
Enduring the worst injury phase of his career, Indian shuttler Parupalli Kashyap says he had doubts if he would be able to play again after dislocating his right shoulder at the Premier Badminton League in January.
India's top shuttler Saina Nehwal has split with National coach Pullela Gopichand and sought the help of former chief coach Vimal Kumar to prepare for the prestigious Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.
Olympic silver medallist P V Sindhu made a winning start to her maiden campaign at the prestigious BWF World Super Series Final, defeating higher-ranked Akane Yamaguchi of Japan in an entertaining opening women's singles Group B match in Dubai on Thursday. Sindhu, who recently clinched the China Super Series Premier and reached the finals at Hong Kong Open, eked out a 12-21 21-8 21-15 win over World No. 8 Yamaguchi in an exciting clash which lasted little over an hour. In the opening game, Sindhu conceded a 3-6 lead early on as she faltered with her strokes even as Yamaguchi grabbed points with her deception and riding on her rival's mistakes to go 11-5 up at the break.
A decade after his triumph at the All England badminton championship, Gopichand cherishes the famous victory, writes Bikash Mohapatra.
Thank you, Sindhu, for inspiring us with your passion.
After much dilly-dallying, the Sports Ministry has included Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa in the 'Target Olympic Podium Scheme' (TOP) scheme, putting an end to the controversy surrounding the doubles duo's complaint of bias against the Ministry and chief national coach Pullela Gopichand.
Olympic silver medallist P V Sindhu avenged her heart-breaking loss at the Rio Games to two-time World Champion Carolina Marin with a thrilling straight-game victory in a do-or-die, women's singles Group B contest and sealed her place at the semi-finals of the BWF World Super Series Finals in Dubai on Friday.
Top shuttlers, including Olympic champion Carolina Marin of Spain and Rio silver medallists P V Sindhu, will be for grabs when the high-profile Players' Auction for the lucrative Premier Badminton League (PBL) gets underway in New Delhi on Wednesday. Besides Marin and Sindhu, Olympic bronze winner Viktor Axelsen of Denmark will be among the 16 Olympic medallists who have confirmed their participation at the second edition of the event to be held from January 1 to 14.
The parents of P V Sindhu, who became the first Indian woman singles player on Friday to ensure a medal at the ongoing World Badminton Championships, attributed their daughter's success to hard work and determination.
Confident about their preparation for the upcoming World Championships, India's chief badminton coach Pullela Gopichand said the home shuttlers have the best chance of winning multiple medals at the prestigious tournament next month.
India's trailblazing gymnast Dipa Karmakar on Thursday denied reports that she was returning the BMW car presented to her by cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar for her historic performance at the Rio Olympic Games.
Indian Olympic Association President Narinder Batra today said that the country should aim to win 'double digit' medals at the Tokyo Olympics
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