Is H S Prannoy the next big thing in Indian badminton?

H S Prannoy

Incredible feat in Indonesia

H S Prannoy made headlines after winning the gold medal at the prestigious Indonesian Masters Grand Prix recently. The shuttler is coached by Pullela Gopichand and has dreams of emulating in master in the future.

Prannoy had a difficult time playing in back-to-back tournaments on his way to winning gold in Indonesia. The Vietnam Open concluded on September 7 and the Indonesian Open started on September 9. However, the victory has made him forget all the fatigue. “I am delighted to have won the Indonesian Open. I was disappointed after finishing runner-up at the Vietnam Open that preceded the Indonesian one. I so badly wanted to win this one... my joy knows no bounds,” Prannoy said.

“My body had given up. I was drained out physically. But my mind never gave up. It told me to fight,” he added. Prannoy described his victory. “The first couple of matches were tough. In the second, I had to come from behind to win. I was trailing 6-11 in the third game. But I kept telling myself to hang in there and fight. I eventually won that match. The rest of the tournament was a cake-walk,” the 22-year-old player said.

Seniors guidance

He felt that he deserved the title after a consistent run in the recent past. "I think a title was due for me. I reached so many quarterfinals in tournaments, played against top players, but I was not winning a title. Many people even told me that I was not playing well. But I knew I could win and I think it came at the right time," he said.

The 22-year old said he is beginning to overcome nervousness during tournaments. "Now I think the fear of losing is gone. I am not so nervous anymore. Earlier I used to be very nervous in the first two rounds. Now I am able to think on court and manage myself. I am confident on court. Such title wins boost you to train harder.”

Prannoy is keen to get more wins under his belt and attributes the role played by seniors in his growth as a player so far. “Kashyap, Saina (Nehwal) and Guru (Saidutt) have always been very helpful. They are always there to guide me. When I get struck during my training or whenever I have any doubts they are more than happy to help,” he said.

He also talks to Gopichand before a tournament for support. “I don’t talk to Gopi sir during the tournament. I speak to him before the tourney and that’s enough for me to keep myself motivated throughout the event,” Prannoy said.

Difficult few years after first success

Prannoy came into the limelight after winning silver at the Youth Olympics in Singapore in 2010, but a lot of injuries kept him away from the game for a while.

"I suffered lots of injuries in 2011 and 2012. I hurt my knee in 2011 just before the nationals and then again I injured it in 2012 but my back injury before the Vietnam Open in 2012 was really bad. It took me 5-7 months to recover fully and I lost a lot of time," Prannoy said.

"It was a tough phase. It was difficult looking at my friends playing sitting on the sidelines. Those 5-7 months, you are really lagging behind, you have to really focus and be patient enough to again compete with those guys. You need to have a lot of will power. I knew I have a lot of advantages. I trusted my instinct and it paid off," he added.

Consistency matters

The youngster is confident of ending the year on a good note and believes being consistent is the key to achieving success. "I am looking to play well in the upcoming tournaments, like French Super Series and Bitburger Open Grand Prix Gold. But now I have to be more consistent, that is the harder part. There are lots of expectations," he said.

Asked about his ranking targets, Prannoy said: "I will be happy if I can be inside top 25 by this year end."