Indian Stamp on All England Badminton Championship.
Indian Stamp on All England Badminton Championship.
The first round of the prestigious All England Badminton Championship commenced with an astonishing win for Indian shuttler Sai Praneeth. The 23 year old stunned the World no. 2 & three time All England champion Lee Chong Wei in an engaging contest, 24-22, 22-20. The highlight being the fact that in both the sets Praneeth revived himself from respective deficits of 15-7 & 16-10 to deliver what was truly an awe-inspiring performance to defeat Lee. Apart from Praneeth, fellow compatriots Saina Nehwal & Srikan
The first round of the prestigious All England Badminton Championship commenced with an astonishing win for Indian shuttler Sai Praneeth. The 23 year old stunned the World no. 2 & three time All England champion Lee Chong Wei in an engaging contest, 24-22, 22-20. The highlight being the fact that in both the sets Praneeth revived himself from respective deficits of 15-7 & 16-10 to deliver what was truly an awe-inspiring performance to defeat Lee. Apart from Praneeth, fellow compatriots Saina Nehwal & Srikan
On the cusp of Independence
It was way back in 1947, when Prakash Nath became the first Indian to enter the final of the championship. In a tournament where players had to battle the elements along with opponents - it snowed on the court during the first round - Nath fought his way into the semi-finals where he was pitted against his team-mate Devinder Mohan. As luck would have it - so to speak, the players decided to flip a coin to decide the fate of the match. Nath ended up calling it right & went on ahead to go up in the finals against Swedish Conney Jepson. Nath failed to cross the final hurdle, as he was defeated 15-7, 15-11. But his effort was enough for the world to take notice of Indian Badminton.
Two steps at a time
Prakash Padukone brought India's next success in the championship. Arguably India's best ever to grace the Badminton court, Padukone became the first Indian to win the tournament in 1980, as he bested Indonesia's Liem Swie King 15-3, 15-10. The Indian Ace almost two in a row, as he again made it to the finals the following year against the same opponent. This time though, he was defeated by King, albeit not before firmly securing his place among legends.
Gopi goes agog
Two decades after Padukone's exploits, his apprentice Pullela Gopichand fulfilled his destiny by winning the 2001 All England Championship. This victory was of significance moreso because it had come on the back of a career threatening knee injury. In the finals Gopi defeated China's Chen Hing 15-12, 15-6 to become the second Indian to bag the title.
Woman on top
The one who redefined India Sportswomen's stature across the globe, Saina Nehwal became the first Indian woman to enter the tournaments semi-finals twice (2010 & 2013). In 2015 though, she broke the barrier by entering the finals for the first time. Even if she was defeated 21-16 14-21 7-21 by Spainard Carolina Marin, we know she is quite capable of pulling off the much eluded woman's title.