Badminton News: India's surprise victory in the Thomas Cup has given its badminton bosses the opportunity to change the profile of the game in the cricket-mad country and they are determined not to waste it.
India shook the badminton world last month with a 3-0 victory over reigning Thomas Cup champions Indonesia in the final of the prestigious men's team championship in Bangkok.
The Impact Arena was the perfect venue for India, playing in their first final, to surprise 14-time champions Indonesia and become only the sixth nation to win the coveted trophy.
Editorials were written, cash rewards were announced and Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to players Lakshya Sen, Kidambi Srikanth, HS Prannoy, Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy.
“Not many people in India know about the Thomas Cup, and overnight the players became big names,” Sanjay Mishra, secretary of the Badminton Association of India (BAI), told Reuters.
“Our effort is to take advantage of this euphoria. Our Prime Minister has said that the number of badminton players in the country should increase five times.”
Many believe that a Thomas Cup victory could do for badminton what the 1983 World Cup victory did for cricket in India.
Mishra considers this a legitimate expectation.
While the National Sports Authority takes care of training and travel, the BAI has recruited 30 coaches and built half a dozen new training centers across the country.
“Winning the Thomas Cup is a dream come true, but now begins the more difficult task of maintaining this level,” Mishra said.
“We are preparing the next group of players who will be ready to replace the current generation in the next two years.”
“BAI has also received approval from the Badminton World Federation (BWF) to host two international Challenge tournaments,” Mishra said.
Badminton has led India to Olympic medals in the last three Olympics, including two thanks to PV Sindhu, who also won gold at the World Championships in 2019.
“We were successful at the individual level, but winning the men's team title is huge,” Tuhin Mishra, managing director of talent management firm Baseline Ventures, told Reuters.
“Sindhu has done well in the last five years, but we have also seen a big rise in men’s badminton recently.”
The baseline features, among others, Sindhu and four of the five players from that Thomas Cup team.
“The media spotlight, the praise from the Prime Minister and his cabinet, the tweets from Bollywood stars and cricketers – that's the boost badminton needs,” said Tuhin Mishra.
At least four brands are chasing Lakshya Sen, who won a bronze medal at the World Championships last year and reached the final of the All England Open this year, he said.
“This will inspire a new generation of players. BAI have done a good job so far and they need to ensure a pipeline of talented players capable of playing at this level.”
Article tags: bay, India, Thomas Cup 2022, cricket
