Actually, Saina is fitter than ever. To be precise, she has never been this fit before. But there's one aspect of her game that still hasn't changed for the better. To put it simply: Saina is very poor at finishing a rally. If her attacking shot is returned, then, rightaway, she is in trouble. Even if the return can be attacked again, she won't attack it. She will either switch to a soft shot or opt for a clear. Effectively, if the first try fails, she automatically relinquishes control to her opponent. Her coach has tried to rectify this. But, for some reason, she can't bring herself to change! Earlier today, she scored a few points by faking a smash and dropping the shuttle. But on the next faked shot, Eriko Hirose wised up and retrieved the shuttle easily. What would have been a certain point was thus lost cheaply. And did Saina stop doing it? No, she tried it again and again! Gopichand's patience is admirable
My general impression of Saina (not having seen the match) and taking Oldhand's observations, is that she has difficulty recovering her balance after a smash. The options of a drop or clear give her time to recover her balance. That might be tied up with her vulnerability to shots that force her to twist her body.
I want to know at what position of the court she played those dropping shot? I’ve watched lots of her matches since 2010. Saina did play some high-quality deceptive dropping shots in her backhand area in many matches I’d watched. On the other hand, when she was forced to move to her forehand area, it seemed she was unable to produce shots at the same quality. The smash as well as those dropping shots are then so predicable and the opponents could easily score points. My question is whether she or Gopichand has already sort the problem out? In the match earlier today, If those deceptive dropping shots came from her forehand area, taking your observations, I'll think she was probably just practicing without fearing of losing. Then I’ll still have faith in her for the future.
I did talk to a few people in the know. They were near-unanimous about the 'doesn't know how to end the rally' part Since she is one of the sport's biggest draws (today, at the Singapore Open, there were more cheers when she entered than there were for Lee Chong Wei), I really really hope she wises up and changes her rally strategy. Badminton needs Saina Nehwal
I agree. She cannot finish off a point, this is the reason she struggles against the players with good defense. But I also think, that her speed and agility was better during 2010 and 2012 than now a days, that may be one explanation, why she cannot finish a point
If SN is fitter than ever, then she is hiding it well. Fully agreeing on her inability to finish, but that's how she has always been, even back in the days when she had a lot of successes. Before, she had this doggedness to keep doing her less than effective attack until her opponents finally succumbed. Nowadays, she can't seem to follow through on her attacks and gives up way too easily. Is the problem mental or physical? Take your pick. She is actually similar to WYH on this. Given their physical potential, they work way too much for each point. If they don't have their body and mind fully ready, they struggle.
Actually before winning OG medal, sn had been trained by Edwin Iriawan and fater OG as well...but Gopichand saw it as a threat and moved this guy to Lucknow to handle the juniors and Edwin quit after PBSI offered him a job..so there are 2 Indonesian coaches , Hendra and Dwi to help Gopichand and juniors....also SN had been less friendly and honestly SN is not up there yet but money did change the people..that's a reality...India wanted Indonesia helping them but India has not supported Indonesia's tournaments at ball in last 2 years ( like INA GPG and Challenge) but INA did ...personally, I did voice it out to BAI about the arrangement and I L wanted INA players badly but BAI! In this case, Gopichand never responded to I A's request for Djarum Superliga...I think Ego did run over Gopichand and SN...when SN is out of top 10, we may see old SN back again? I hope so...missing the friendly and humble old SN.
India is all about protectionism. It's there in every plan, process and sphere. Badminton (and sport) is no exception. One would imagine that a clever coach like Pullela Gopichand (who was a singles player) would try to bring in an accomplished doubles coach to help prop up India's woefully bad doubles pairs. But he has not and will not do that, for it would mean allowing someone else a say in how things are run. Right now, multiple centres are pulling the sport in different directions. There's Gopichand's academy where the current crop of Indian professionals reside, play and train. There's the IBL which, funded by Yonex, is attempting to cash in on the sport's middle-class appeal. There's Prakash Padukone's academy which doesn't want to invest in professional coaches although it keeps producing less-than-desirable outcomes year after year. And then there's an army of vengeful ex-players and outdated coaches and other has-beens trying to produce exceptional players without modernising themselves or their strategies (Ashwini Ponnappa is now training with Tom John - if anything, she has been losing more than ever!) Madness is repeating a stupid mistake over and over again and expecting it to suddenly become right! If Saina Nehwal doesn't overhaul her approach to the game, she will soon be eclipsed... permanently
Its nice to see many more experienced and respected persons finally vocalising the very same fears and reservations I have had about Indian badminton and the politics, factionalism and greed that is threatening to ruin things for the sport -just at the time they were actually finding some real traction. Just when many of their players were demonstrating some real potential and beginning to show real results. I guess this is just par for the course. Tragic. India is slipping to one of those tragic "could-have-been" stories. Their MS stable is full with the promise of some good players. Are they also going to be counted among the victims of circumstance of the past 5 years?
Insightful news indeed from our dear Hau-Ge. So, Edwin Iriawan (the new XD coach accompanying Owi/Butet at the All-England) has been quite instrumental in transforming Saina Nehwal into an Olympic medal-winner.
Hau-ge had mentioned much of this earlier as well. He was very disappointed with BAI's brushing off PBSI for reciprocity in the leagues. Edwin has been very responsible for Saina's improvement in 2011-12 and also had a significant part to play in Sindhu's progress. But towards the end it was very clear to see that there was a lot of tension between him and Gopi. Before Edwin, there was another respected INA coach, Atik Jauhari who was also responsible for Saina's early-years progress.
There are ways to get SN standing up. The best way is hiring best ex-Chinese coaches and ex-Chinese players for sparring purpose. If that is not possible, Susi Susanti badminton school in INA will certainly help her game.
Saina launches Yonex Nanoray badminton racquet http://zeenews.india.com/sports/others/saina-launches-yonex-nanoray-badminton-racquet_787714.html Excerpts: India`s leading badminton player Saina Nehwal launched the latest Nanoray 900 badminton racquet from Japanese sports equipment brand Yonex here in the national capital. "It gives me immense pleasure to be here today as Yonex achieves another milestone with this store and some very impressive new products now available in India. The brand has always been synonymous with badminton since its inception, and has played a critical role behind the success of many budding badminton players including me," said Saina. The racquet specially designed and made in Japan boasts of a super slim long shaft resulting in higher repulsion power and faster delivery of drop cut smashes. The product is available for Rs.20,450.
Deepika Padukone to play Saina Nehwal onscreen? While there have been reports that a biopic on Saina Nehwal is in the pipeline by none other than veteran filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, Saina is keen to have Deepika Padukone roped in for the same. At an event that the Olympic Bronze winner attended earlier this week in the city, she said, "I think only Deepika Padukone can do justice to my onscreen image. Firstly, people should be able to connect with the character and given Deepika's popularity, she would be perfect for the role." Apart from being one of the top actresses in the industry, Saina feels that Deepika is the only actor who can pull off a badminton player's role well. "She knows badminton quite well. Apart from the strokes and bends, she is aware of all the actions in the game. And since it will be a film based on a sportsperson's life, it wouldn't be right to go with flaws in strokes and patterns. I have seen her play, and she is really good at it," Saina added. Speaking on the confirmation of the film being made, Saina said, "There have been media reports about the film and only Mahesh sir can take the final call on it. But Deepika would be the best choice for it," she gushed. When we followed it up with Mahesh Bhatt, he confirmed saying, "There is a very honest intention to contract a meaningful document which captures the essence and resilience of Saina's life. However, the project is in its nascent stage now. It has to be given a green light and be commissioned. Once it is done, I am sure it will come out very well." While Saina is keen on her biopic, she feels she isn't ready to face the camera as yet. "I want people to know me for the sport and my game, and for nothing else. Also, it's very important to remain focussed as once you lose focus you can't perform well anymore. So it is a conscious effort on my part to avoid the limelight. If the film happens, it will only show my struggle to achieve what I have," she added.
Now where is the 'like' when you need it! Deepika Padukone would be an excellent choice...... Look forward to it. Jwala can play herself - can anybody do it better?
