Padukone to join Sindhu's setup as mentor

In her quest for a 3rd consecutive Olympic medal, PV Sindhu has now enlisted Indian badminton nice Prakash Padukone as her mentor. While the Hyderabadi has been visiting the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy (PPBA) in Bengaluru off and on because the finish of August, as reported previous through this newspaper, the two-time Olympic medallist made the ideas public on Saturday.

India's PV Sindhu leaves after losing the Women's Singles quarterfinal badminton match (PTI) — India’s PV Sindhu leaves after shedding the Women’s Singles quarterfinal badminton fit (PTI)

“For those wondering and constantly asking me, the cat is finally out of the bag! Prakash sir is assuming the role of the mentor in my setup. I started training with him at the end of August, and it’s been uphill ever since. He’s more than a mentor; he’s my guide, my guru, and, above all, a true friend,” Sindhu tweeted.

“I wholeheartedly believe he possesses the magic to bring out the absolute best from my game. I am so grateful he reached out to me with one call when I was in Japan, and we’ve built on that connection exceptionally well. Dear sir, I am pumped! Looking forward to training with you! Let’s get to work.”

Sindhu is taking a look to flip round what has been the worst season of her profession. After returning to the circuit in January following a six-month harm smash, the 28-year-old has no longer been in a position to achieve the highest echelons of her recreation that outlined her profession.

Barring the Spain Masters in April the place Sindhu reached the overall, the previous international champion has most commonly exited tournaments within the first couple of rounds that noticed her drop out of the highest 10 in international scores for the primary time since 2016.

In her quest to the upward push to the highest, she parted techniques with Korean Park Tae-sang, employed former All England champion Muhammad Hafiz Hashim as her trainer earlier than starting her journeys to Bengaluru.

Sindhu’s transfer is paying homage to former international No.1 Saina Nehwal’s shift of base from Hyderabad to Bengaluru in 2014. It used to be beneath PPBA head trainer Vimal Kumar that Saina completed international No.1 standing, reached the All England Open ultimate and turned into the primary Indian to achieve the World Championships ultimate — all in 2015.

“Change of coaches will assist if you are feeling one thing isn’t operating beneath some trainer. Change of environment additionally is helping every now and then. You want to test it out. What I felt at that time of time used to be that on the finish of my profession I must no longer really feel dangerous that I didn’t check out one thing new. I must no longer have that remorseful about,” Saina had told HT in September.

“I tried it and reached world No.1 and the World Championships final after playing five quarter-finals. Somewhere my mind stopped thinking if I can ever cross quarter-finals. But I did it after the change. It is required for a player. And why not? It is your career. After all, it is you who will sit and think what I have achieved in my career. So changes are always good if they help.”

The exchange is already reflecting in Sindhu’s performances of past due. Though nonetheless some distance from her very best, the reigning Commonwealth Games champion’s effects have advanced within the closing couple of months.

The five-time World Championships medallist reached the quarter-finals on the Asian Games, the semi-finals of each the Arctic Open and Denmark Open. After shedding to No.17 within the scores – first time since 2015 – Sindhu has made her long ago to international No.11.