Badminton News: Two-time Olympic medalist PV Sindhu revealed on Tuesday that he has chosen Malaysian Mohammad Hafiz Hashim as his new coach.

PV Sindhu expressed his confidence in Hashim, saying he has all the qualities one could wish for, including an impressive pedigree and strong attacking instinct, which he is looking for ahead of the upcoming Paris Olympics next year.

“IT’S GO!! In typical Fabrizio style, I’m thrilled to announce Hafiz Hashim as our new coach!!” Sindhu, who is currently in Yeosu for the Korea Open Super 500 tournament, wrote in a social media post.

“After a long and painstaking process, I am happy to announce that I have chosen the wonderful Hafiz Hashim as my coach.”

“Hafiz has all the traits I look for in a manager, including size, speed and attacking sense. As a former 2003 English champion, he has to have a pedigree too. Having manager (Misbun) Sidek as a former manager adds that aura to him.”

PTI had earlier reported that PV Sindhu had written to the Sports Authority of India (SAI), asking for their approval to train with the former English champion from Malaysia under the Ministry of Sports’ Target Olympic Podium Program (TOPS).

With PV Sindhu facing challenges related to inconsistent form, his focus shifted to the 2024 Olympics. As the Olympic qualifying period began on May 1, Sindhu realized the importance of finding a coach who could provide guidance and support in his preparation.

With his sights set on the coveted gold medal at the Olympics, Sindhu is looking for a mentor who can help him hone his skills and achieve peak performance for the upcoming Olympics.

“Welcome aboard Coach Hashim. Buckle up, it’s going to be a great trip with Captain Hafiz at the helm!”

PV Sindhu hasn’t looked the best this season after returning from a five-month injury layoff following a stress fracture in his ankle en route to Commonwealth Games gold in August last year.

In February, the 28-year-old from Hyderabad parted ways with Korean coach Park Tae-Sang, who helped win a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

The highlights of the season for him were finishing at the Madrid Spain Masters Super 300 and finishing in the semi-finals at the Malaysia Masters Super 500 and the Canada Open Super 500. However, he was eliminated early from a series of events earlier in the year.

Hafiz, a 2002 Commonwealth Games gold medalist, was a junior coach with the Malaysian Badminton Association before joining Suchitra Academy in Hyderabad in February on a three-year contract.

Sindhu had sought advice from the 40-year-old, who is also the coach of Warriors Awadhe in the Premier Badminton League, during his visit to Suchitra Academy where he underwent strength and conditioning training under coach Srikanth Verma.

Article Tags: PV Sindhu, Hafiz Hashim