Manu Attri and Sumeeth Reddy- a mountain to climb
When the team for Rio was formalised and announced, one of the biggest surprises was the inclusion of the Men’s Doubles duo of Manu Attri and Sumeeth Reddy. While Attri and Reddy may have tasted success at Grand Prix Gold events, competing and winning at the Olympics is a whole different ball game altogether.
However, it is under such scenarios that players have nothing to lose and so if the Indian pairing can take it one game at a time and not give too much attention on the talk outside, they could well make some serious strides in the competition.
Attri and Reddy will head into the event with some confidence under their belt, following their win at the Canada Open Grand Prix and a semifinal finish at the US Open, that succeeded that.
They will also do well to have a chat with the rest of the contingent that will board the flight, who have had past experience of competing at an Olympic Games to try and understand the stage that they are about to set foot on.
The duo will keep their eyes of the draws that will be announced on Tuesday and hope that they can benefit a bit during the early rounds.
