Satwik-Chirag Triumph In Indonesia A Fillip For Doubles In Olympics Qualification Year

In their own words, the Thomas Cup triumph will remain their greatest accomplishment until an Olympic medal comes along. Then there is the prestigious Badminton Asia Championships win, which the crack duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will always cherish. (More Badminton News)

Needless to say, the World Championship bronze is also huge. But the pair's historic success in the Indonesia Open is no less significant, as the "special achievement" highlights the incredible rise of doubles in Indian badminton and the march towards world domination, something the singles superstars such as PV Sindhu, Saina Nehwal and Kidambi Srikanth were tasked with in the not-too-distant-past.

Another thing to remember is that this is the Olympic qualification year.

The world number 6 duo on Sunday became the first Indian pair to win a Super 1000 tournament title, just about a month after claiming the country's first-ever gold in doubles at the Badminton Asia Championships.

"It is an important win at the world stage and the fact that it came in an Olympic qualification year means, they will get lots of points which will ease the pressure on them going into Paris," India's national badminton coach Pullela Gopichand told PTI from Jakarta.

"Though Olympics is still more than a year away, they will now walk into any event as the top heirs to win the title."

The Indian pair outwitted their second seeded nemesis Aaron Chia and Wooi Yik Soh of Malaysia in the Indonesia Open final, a win that came after enduring eight losses in as many meetings and following early exits in the Sudirman Cup, Thailand Open and Singapore Open.

"These guys have lost to them (Aaron and Soh) for a long time, which could be a concern, so one more box is ticked."

After their win, Satwik mentioned how they had become "lazy and passive" in the last two tournaments, and it was a "wake-up call" they needed after two bad months.

However, Gopichand said that fundamentally there was nothing wrong in their game.

"If you break the game down into basics, their attack and parallel net play, serve and return, these are no less than anybody in the world. If they find conditions in some events difficult that's okay, it's nothing of concern. They are finding their sweet space."

Since pairing up, Satwik and Chirag have won multiple titles, including Commonwealth Games gold, Thomas Cup gold, bronze medal in World Championships and wins in Super 300 (Syed Modi), Super 500 (Thailand and India Open) and Super 750 (French Open).

Gopichand believes that their success has reaffirmed India' position in world badminton.

"I think generally we need to respect where we are now, we are a solid badminton nation, and I do believe we have a lot of potential," Gopichand said.

"I think it is about belief and trust, about working hard and not being satisfied with small results. Now we have Gayatri and Treesa doing well. Ashwini and Tanisha won yesterday in France, Sikki and Rohan also won recently. So we have enough to be proud of. I am not concerned about the next generation." 

While Jwala Gutta was the first one to provide the impetus to doubles with her pairing with Ashwini Ponnappa and V Diju, there was a lull after her retirement.

Things started to change when Malaysian doubles coach Tan Kim Her was brought on board by the Badminton Association of India (BAI) in 2015.

He was the one who had pushed Satwik and Chirag to form a team.

"I think systematic support to the players has been the key for the turnaround in doubles," feels Vimal Kumar, former India coach and current mentor of Lakshya Sen, who trains at the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy.

"I'll give a lot of credit to Tan Kim Her. He played a major role, he groomed many pairs. Many foreign players have been playing in India, especially with the PBL happening. The Indians got a chance to interact with the top foreign players and it made a huge difference. So I feel reviving the league will be key."

"Thomas Cup win also made a big difference, it has also inspired others to take up doubles. Many small academies are now grooming doubles players. Overall, it is the best phase for Indian pair events."

Multiple Commonwealth Games medallist Ashwini feels a change in "mindset" towards doubles has made the difference.

"Players are getting doubles training now, youngsters are lucky now that such push is given to doubles. Satwik and Chirag have taken the baton to a new degree and set the benchmark high, so it is exciting.

"We have foreign coaches and they are implementing those ideas while training. Also, Indian coaches have gotten better."

BAI's efforts in having a vibrant domestic structure, with dedicated Indian coaches and support staffs, along with foreign coaches training a specific bunch of players, focus on fitness and nutrition, have also contributed to the success.

Having trials for big-ticket events, creating a pool of junior players (category A, B and C) and conducting more international tournaments in India have given the players a lot more exposure.

"Our objective is to have a long-term and sustainable approach so that more and more players can feature in the top 20 and beyond instead of just one or two in the top 20," said BAI secretary Sanjay Mishra.

With a Super 1000 title in their pocket, Satwik and Chirag will now be expected to add an Asian Games and World Championship gold to their cabinet.

"Last time it was a bronze at World championships and I feel they have a good chance to win gold this time. Olympic Games, they will qualify, and their success is a great thing for the sport," signed off Vimal.