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| SPORTS TRIBUNE | Saturday, March 17, 2001, Chandigarh, India |
| Gopichand:
a champion in our midst Ramu Sharma THE euphoria over the performance of Puella Gopichand in the All- England Badminton Championship is understandable. India does not have many sporting heroes and if and when one does arrive the reception is of overwhelming magnitude, perhaps overdone but acceptable under the circumstances. Gopichand’s march towards the title, the manner of his progress and the heads that rolled in front of him in the All-England is a culmination of a career which took the first steps towards greatness in an international tournament in Delhi some four to five years ago. A new dawn in Indian
badminton First Test hat-trick
by Indian The tiger is finally
tamed |
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Gopichand: a champion in our midst THE euphoria over the performance of Puella Gopichand in the All- England Badminton Championship is understandable. India does not have many sporting heroes and if and when one does arrive the reception is of overwhelming magnitude, perhaps overdone but acceptable under the circumstances. Gopichand’s march towards the title, the manner of his progress and the heads that rolled in front of him in the All-England is a culmination of a career which took the first steps towards greatness in an international tournament in Delhi some four to five years ago. Gopichand, an unknown commodity except in the close-knit badminton circles, then had the benefit of experience gained in the Padukone Academy in Bangalore and reached the final of the tournament in great style. He exhibited great resilience and unlike most other Indians, the stamina to pull back after being a game down. Almost every match of his in that tournament had been an extended affair. Since then he has overcome a knee problem, a couple of unexpected reverses on the international stage before climbing the ratings ladder. Placed sixth at the beginning of the year he had lost some positions and was seeded 10th among a galaxy of internationals at the All- England. He made a mockery of the seeding’s committee once he crossed into the pre-quarter-finals where he stunned the reigning Olympic champion Ji Xinpeng of China. This was a major hurdle as Xinpeng has the reputation as one of the most difficult players to beat on the circuit. Gopichand, however, had pleasant memories of earlier meetings where on two occasions he had had the better of the Chinese. The victory over Ji Xinpeng in the All- England was the third time. In beating Ji Xinpeng once again Gopichand also enhanced his reputation for an appetite for Olympic champions. In 1996 he had beaten the 1992 Olympic champion Alan Budi Kusuma of Indonesia and Poul-Erik-hoyer of Denmark, the Atlanta Games gold medal winner. Once he had crossed the quarter-final hurdle Gopichand was a player transformed. But he did have to bring into play all the reservoir of resilience and grit and determination at his command while coping with the challenge from top-seed Peter Gade of Denmark. He eventually did beat him in straight games in a match that proved to be his toughest outing as the scores of 17-14, 16-4 suggest. Gade made him earn every point after having run into a big lead in both games. Gopichand not only covered the huge deficits but proved that he had more staying power than the world No 1. The experience of the match against Gade stood him in good stead and he was easily able to quell the challenge posed by China’s Chen Hong in the title fight. Chen Hong folded up unexpectedly after holding the advantage in the first game and after a great fightback from 0-4 down in the second. What has helped Gopichand is the international exposure he received in the past two years while stationed in Europe with Denmark as the base. Prakash Padukone , if one remembers, also had the same background while claiming top honours in the badminton world some 20 years ago. What is really remarkable in Gopichand’s case is his great leap from somewhere down in the ratings to the sixth spot in the world. The improvement made by the Indian in the past three months borders on the phenomenal. According to reports from England one of the reasons for his rapid stride and success in the All-England was his decision to leave the BPL Prakash Padukone Academy in Bangalore and start practicing at the SAI centre in the same city. The reason for the shift from the famous academy, according to reports, was that Gopichand had begun to realise that he was playing too much like ‘‘Prakash Sir,’’ and that this game belonged to an earlier era, that of the feline, silky Morten Frost, Prakash's friend and mentor in Denmark. The style — toss, half-smash and drop — didn’t quite suit the new millennium. One may not agree with the observation particularly after watching the final on television but why quarrel with it if it has helped Gopichand to break out of Prakash Padukone's shadow and establish an image in his own right. Now to a very pertinent question. What does Gopichand’s All-England win means for India? The Badminton Association of India (BAI) could for instance use this opportunity to sell and market Gopichand, just as it did in the case of Prakash Padukone in the mid-seventies and eighties. The BAI could revive the ambience of that era, by organising internationals on the lines of the Nehru Invitation Tournament held for a few years in the Capital, and other competitions involving top foreign stars, held in Pune, Hyderabad, and Mumbai. Prakash, if one remembers correctly, won the edition in Pune, beating Han Jian of China, the top ranked world star then, and Morten Frost claimed the title in the tournament held in Mumbai, beating Prakash in two games. The Nehru Tournaments in Delhi attracted players from Indonesia, Malaysia, the UK and Japan and Thailand, all high-profile personalities, involved in the various circuits all over Europe. And India those days was blessed with some real stylists, from left-handed Satish Bhatia to the taciturn, returning machine Dinesh Khanna to add to the brilliant stroke players of the calibre of Suresh Goel and others. The Nehru Tournament was in fact an effort to revive to the spirit of the early 50s when giants like Nandu Natekar, Chiranjiv Lal,
P. P. S. Chawla, T. N. Seth and others dominated the game in India. The Nehru Tournament did indeed revive the game with Prakash Padukone being one of the biggest names to come out of it. Prakash, of course, had already established himself in the badminton world by then and had chartered the course the game was taking in the country. The BAI of the present day does not lack the necessary funds. And after Gopichand’s great doings in the All-England, the association will find it easy to attract sponsors for India to host tournaments on the international scale the like of which flourished in the 70s and 80s. The association must ensure that Gopichand’s victory in the All-England should rub-off on some of the other stars, a couple of whom have promised much but lack international exposure. |
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A new dawn in Indian badminton PULLELA
Gopichand’s winning the All-England championship is but a culmination of a badminton revival in India which seemed very much on the cards from the time he cut through a classy field and reached the finals of a grand prix event, the Indian Open, in New Delhi in early 1997. Despite the hiccup of a three-month stand-off between Prakash Padukone-led Indian Badminton Players Association and the official Badminton Association of India (BAI), the game survived a tense period, and the revival continued with a stunning four-medal performance at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur. So, for those following the sport since the late seventies or early eighties when Padukone ruled the roost or when Syed Modi promised to carry on the baton before a cruel assassin’s bullet cut short his career and life, the revival was only a matter of time. A large amount of that credit should go to Padukone himself. Not only did he make the Indian sports fraternity sit up and take notice by taking on the uncaring BAI in the summer of 1997, but also through his magnificent coaching academy in partnership with BPL. Indian badminton which had gone into hibernation in a manner of speaking returned to the forefront in the first half of 1997, when New Delhi hosted the Indian Open. Gopichand did not win the title, but a start had been made. The revolt led by Padukone to get rid of officials who had been in office for more years than anyone cared to remember was seen as a noble cause, but it almost ruined the careers of some talented players, including Gopichand and Aparna Popat, who were nearly victimised by the BAI. Only a year earlier in 1996, Popat had exhibited her brilliant talent by reaching the finals of the World Juniors in Sweden. With the BAI putting all kinds of pressures and threatening not to send players abroad for tournaments and issuing them show cause notices, the players were the on verge of a breakdown. Fortunately, for the game and the players, and because of Padukone’s large heart and vision, a potentially dangerous situation was averted and a compromise worked out. It helped Padukone stay involved in the game, erstwhile BAI President Fazil Ahmed made way for a more friendly face, V.K. Verma, who remains the President of BAI, and the players once again got their chances. The fruits of Padukone’s efforts in his academy were first seen fructifying when the Indian contingent put up a great show at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur. A silver and a bronze medal each from both men and women’s sections came India’s way. Gopichand reached the singles semis and took the men’s team to the finals. Aparna Popat reached the women’s singles finals and also helped the team reached the semis. Padukone suggested that Gopichand spend more time playing abroad for there was none in India who could give him a worthwhile challenge. Gopichand spent almost two seasons in Germany playing in their league. The results began pouring in 1999 and 2000. For not only was Gopichand standing out, overcoming injuries and still producing results, but there were others like Nikhil Kanetkar, Abhinn Ahyam Gupta, Sachin Ratti and Sidharth Jain who showed promise. They were still a step behind Gopichand, but in their own way had begun making a mark. In the second half of 1999, Sachin Ratti carved a niche for himself as he won the men’s singles in the New Zealand Open beating the then World No. 23 Rio Suryana of Australia. At the Sydney Olympics, Abhinn Shyam lost to the same Suryana, while Nikhil Kanetkar narrowly missed becoming the first Indian player to win a grand prix event after a gap of 15 years when he lost in the final of the U.S. Open to Colin Houghton of England. The women did not lag too far behind. If Popat was in the top 30, Manjusha Kanwar added to the glitter by finishing second in the women’s singles at the New Zealand Open. At that stage there were no less than eight Indians, four each in men’s and women’s section, in the International Badminton Federation’s top 100 world rankings. In addition, the doubles pair of Jaseel Ismail and Vincent Lobo also cracked the top 100 to come in at number 77. The impetus provided at the Commonwealth Games, where India won medals after a gap of 16 years, resulted in the Union Sports Ministry bringing back badminton into the ‘priority list’. The Indian national team was now eligible to make two foreign trips with all expenses to be met by the government. In addition the government would pay for airfares for two other trips. Sponsors like Air-India stepped in and added to the contributions by providing employment and free air tickets. BPL agreed to sponsor the national badminton teams participating in international tournaments abroad. Gopichand finally won good tournaments in Toulose, France and the Scottish Open in 1999 but in 2000, after a great start at the Thomas Cup qualifiers where he took India to the final after a gap of 12 years, he fell ill and lost a lot of valuable time. That setback his preparations for the Olympics. Meanwhile, Aparna Popat was unfortunate to be slapped a ban for three months for unknowingly using a banned substance. The two did make it to the Olympics, but without practice, Popat lost in the first round and Gopichand went down to the eventual finalist Hendrawan in the second round. Towards the end of the 2000, Gopichand was coming back into his own. He reached the semifinals of prestigious grand prix events but the major titles were yet to come. From number 38 at the start of 2000, he went into the top ten and finally climbed to number six. India has many more talented players coming along. They sure have the talent and now with Gopichand’s success, the right inspiration has been provided. As Mohammed Arif, who has coached Gopichand once said, “Our shuttlers are no way inferior to any in the world as far as technique is concerned. But what we lack is power, fitness and stamina.” But Gopichand has shown that it can also be achieved. |
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First Test hat-trick by Indian PLAYING in his only 10th Test match, Harbhajan Singh became the first Indian and the 26th bowler in Test cricket to perform a hat-trick. He achieved this feat by dismissing Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist, both leg before, and Shane Warne, caught by Ramesh, in his 16th overs which was the 72nd over of the Australian first innings in the second Test match at Kolkata on March 11, 2001. The list now includes nine Englishmen, eight Australians, three West Indians, two Pakistani and one bowler each from South Africa, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and India. It was the 29th hat-trick in Test cricket. Australians Thomas James Matthews and Huge Trumble alongwith Pakistan’s Wasim Akram are the only bowlers to perform this feat twice. The hat-trick was the first on Indian soil.
Hat-tricks in Test cricket
#Matthews did the hat-trick in each innings of the same Test match |
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The tiger
is finally tamed HE is known as the genius of the greens, the phenomenon of the fairways and the most awesome golfer ever. But the supposedly unbeatable Tiger Woods has apparently been cut down to size by a golf ball he is not allowed to touch. After months of winning everything in sight, Woods has suddenly lost his aura of invincibility. Rivals worried that they would never win a major tournament again are at last experiencing the rare taste of victory. The golf world has been turned upside down by the introduction of a revolutionary solid-core ball which is helping all Woods’s competitors hit their shots far greater distances. The Titleist Pro VI has given players who were previously no-hopers the chance of a swift counter-punch at the champion. The situation is rich with irony. When last year Woods began using a solid-core ball made by Nike, his sponsors, his performances improved from being simply magnificent to utterly awesome. He won 10 tournaments during 2000, became the first player to win three of golf’s four majors in a row, and pocketed millions in prize money. Davis Love, one of the circuit’s leading players, said Woods’s use of the Nike ball gave him a distinct advantage and helped explain why he swept all before him. Now almost all Woods’s rivals are playing the solid-core ball made by Titleist which is proving even more effective than the Nike version. Golfers using it have suddenly begun hitting their drives dozens of yards further. After months of frustration at not being able to catch the Tiger, they are enjoying the fact that the tables have been turned. Woods is unable to switch to Titleist’s ball because he has a $20 million-a-year deal with Nike which requires him to use their balls and wear their clothing. Titleist are delighted at their ball’s success, as the golf equipment market worldwide is worth billions of pounds. The Pro V1 was introduced in the United States late last year. Subsequently, Billy Andrade became the first of 10 players in seven weeks on six different golf tours to win a 2000 title using it. Previously pedestrian players suddenly became title-winners. By arrangement with The Guardian |
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Kudos to Gopi, Harbhajan Kudos to Pullela Gopichand, the 27- year-old Indian national champion, for winning the All-England Badminton Championship. He defeated strong contender Chen Hong of China by 15-12 and 15-6 in a one sided final. The modest Hyderabadi stunned the world when he ousted Olympic champion Ji Xinpeng to reach the quarter-final and then Denmark’s world No. 1. Peter Grade in the semi-final. SHEKHAR BHORAL, Shimla II Congratulations to Gopichand for winning the All-England Badminton Championship. He defeated Chen Hong 15-12, 15-6. He is the second Indian to win this title after Prakash Padukone who triumphed in 1980. The extent of Gopichand’s dominance can be gauged from the fact that he did not drop a single game in his run-up to the title. It is a great achievement as he had to battle three knee injuries which almost threatened to cut short his career. But he did not lose heart and worked hard to win this title. BHUPENDER GUSAIN, Panchkula III Kudos to Pullela Gopichand who won the coveted All-England Championship. He trounced China’s Chen Hong 15-12, 15-6 reducing the title clash to a one-sided affair. He thus became only the second Indian after his mentor and coach Prakash Padukone since 1980 to romp home with the most aspired and sought after badminton crown. Throughout the competition he showcased his command, control and authority by pulverizing his opponents in straight games, a remarkable performance which speaks volumes of his prowess. In the final he wore down his rival through perseverance and mental toughness. Gopi has done India proud. TARSEM S. BUMRAH, Batala IV Kudos to Gopichand for defeating his Chinese rival in the final in two straight games 15-12, 15-6. He won all his matches in two straight games which included the victories against present Olympic champion, present world champion and All-England champion, Gopi was so confident in all his matches that he never looked back and kept his cool. Hats off to Punjab offspinner Harbhajan Singh for his marvellous hat-trick. He also kept cool to make history. SANJAY CHOPRA, Jagatjit Nagar |
