AFTER SINDHU, WHO?

Women's badminton faces uncertainty due to a shrinking talent pool, lack of quality coaches, and overreliance on Gopichand

- Vishal Menon

Over the past two decades, thousands of parents have embarked on a journey of hope with their daughters. They navigate through the obdurate traffic in Hyderabad's Gachibowli area, snake past the towering tech hubs in Cyberabad, and finally arrive at the Pullela Gopichand Badminton Academy.

This bustling state-of-the-art centre built by Pullela Gopichand, the soft-spoken bona fide Dronacharya of Indian badminton, also fondly known as Gopi sir, is a beacon of aspiration for these parents. This hallowed turf has witnessed the metamorphosis of Saina Nehwal, Jwala Gutta, Ashwini Ponappa, and P V Sindhu from anonymous aspirants into world champions.

At Gopi's academy, the dreams and potential of these young girls take flight. This is where the 2001 All England Open Champion has been moulding dreams and giving Indian badminton a steady stream of world-class shuttlers. But, for the first time last year, this supply line of Indian badminton—which has hitherto meticulously engineered champions—is facing a glitch. This disruption is especially glaring among women shuttlers, whose performances and development have faltered in a way that has raised concerns.

Barren cabinet

P V Sindhu, Indian women's badminton's superstar, endured a lacklustre 2024. The 29-year-old lost to Canada's Michelle Li in the first round of the Arctic Open 2024 BWF Super 500 at Vantaa, Finland.

At the Paris Olympics in August, she endured her biggest heartbreak of the year when she went down in straight games to China's He Bing Jiao in the pre-quarterfinals.

Nehwal, at 34, has conceded that her career is on its last legs. The 2012 Olympic bronze medallist has been out of mainstream badminton for some time, battling arthritis. "The knee is not very good. I have arthritis. My cartilage has gone to a bad state. It is very difficult to push for eight-nine hours," Nehwal said on the House of Glory podcast.