The emergence of players like Saina Nehwal & PV Sindhu on global badminton map proves that the players have been taking the game seriously & want to make it to the top.
Stating that badminton has improved a lot in India and today many people are aware of the progress that the game is making in the country, Indian badminton coach Padmashree Pullela Gopichand has said that the young and upcoming players should play in a positive frame of mind so that they can excel in the sport.
“The emergence of players like Saina Nehwal, PV Sindhu, Jwala Gutta, Parupali Kashyap and others on global badminton map proves that the players have been taking the game seriously and they have the hunger to make it to the top. There are and will be challenges ahead, but the young players should remain positive and believe in themselves so that they can also carve a niche for themselves,” Gopichand said.
Gopi (as he is affectionately called) was the chief guest at the prize distribution function of the Rajiv Gandhi memorial inter-district and individual badminton championship for junior boys and girls, played at Ramsheth Thakur International Sports Complex (RTISC) in Ulwe on Saturday.
“There will always be winning and losing in the game but players should not get lied down by the losses and in fact, they should look at it positively and come back strongly. Instead of thinking about the defeat, they should think as to how they can convert that defeat into victory. If they think this way, success will always be at their feet,” Gopi, who won the All England Championship in 2001, said.
Lauding the facilities provided at the RTISC, the national badminton coach said that he was happy to have come to Ulwe since the infrastructure available at the sports complex is world class and he would like to come to the facility often during some or the other championship.
In his speech, the president of Maharashtra Badminton Association (MBA) and vice-president of Badminton Association of India (BAI), Pradeep Gandhe expressed happiness over organising the championship at the Ulwe facility in a short span of time. “This complex should be made as west zone centre of the game for which Gopichand should take special efforts. I also wish that with the availability of such state-of-the-art facility, the sport will get the necessary boost in this part of the world and that many champions will be produced from here,” Gandhe added.
Former MP Ramsheth Thakur, Panvel, MLA and president of RTISC, Prashant Thakur, also spoke on the occasion and hoped that this facility will serve as the launchpad for future Nehwals and Kashyaps. At the outset, Gopichand and Gandhe were also given honorary membership of the RTISC.
Results (all finals)
Individual Championship
Girls Under-17 Singles: Karishma Wadkar (Mumbai Suburban District) bt Kalpita Sawant (Mumbai Suburban District) 21-5, 21-19
Girls Under-19 Singles: Karishma Wadkar (Mumbai Suburban District) bt Mrunmayee Saoji (Nagpur) 21-11, 21-18
Boys Under-17 Singles: Chirag Shetty (Mumbai Suburban District) bt Sai Dinesh Reddy (Mumbai Suburban District) 21-8, 21-13
Boys Under-19 Singles: Chirag Shetty (Mumbai Suburban District) bt Sushrut Karmarkar (Mumbai Suburban District) 21-10, 21-14
Girls Under-17 Doubles: Cherish D’Souza-Kalpita Sawant (Mumbai Suburban District) bt Poorva Barve (Pune)-Ria Arolkar (Mumbai) 21-19, 21-11
Girls Under-19 Doubles: Karishma Wadkar (Mumbai Suburban District)-Rewati Devasthali (Pune) bt Vaishnavi Bhale (Nagpur)-Vallari Bukane (Pune) 21-15, 21-14
Boys Under-17 Doubles: Nihar Kelkar-Pouras Kulkarni (Thane) bt Harsh Jagdane (Satara)-Sai Dinesh reddy (Mumbai Suburban District) 21-14, 21-19
Boys Under-19 Doubles: Kabir Kanzarkar-Vighnesh Devlekar (Thane) bt Nihar Kelkar-Pouras Kulkarni (Thane) 21-15, 21-14
Team Championship:
Girls Under-17: Mumbai Suburban District beat Nagpur
Girls Under-19: Nagpur beat Greater Mumbai
Boys Under-17: Mum Sub beat Thane
Boys Under-19: Thane beat Mumbai Suburban District
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