On the evening of 14th of December, Wednesday, the popular Indian silver medallist PV Sindhu won her opening round match in the BWF World Superseries Finals groups stage, against Yamaguchi in Dubai.
Sindhu had a nervy start to the match, hitting more than a few shots directly into the net. However, once the first game got over 21-12 in favour of Yamaguchi, the well-known coach of Sindhu, Pullela Gopichand, joined her as she got ready for the second set. His talk with Sindhu had an immediate impact on the 21-year old as well as on her game, as she went on to win the next two games 21-8 and 21-15 respectively.
Over the years, Gopichand has largely been known as a strict instructor, providing intense training regimes and well-executed strategies to his trainees. Even as a player, Gopichand was known to be a fitness freak. According to the player-turned-coach, staying fit as a trainer is key to being an effective sparring partner to his players.
Despite all the sets of rules and rigorous practices, what interests badminton fans nowadays is Gopichand’s obsession with his players’ diet and daily routine. When Saina Nehwal was his student, Gopichand knew what she did at what time, every hour, every day. He was so obsessed with her diet routine that, when accompanying her in tournaments abroad, he even checked Nehwal’s refrigerator to see if anything there was part of the list of foods not to be eaten.
Sindhu, who has trained with Gopichand for the last 12 years, has acknowledged as well as accepted the fact that her coach can go to any extent to make sure she remains fit for her badminton matches. Like Nehwal, even Sindhu got a personal list by Gopichand, of things she was not supposed to use – both edible and non-edible. Here is the list of things that were banned for Sindhu during the run-up to the Rio Olympics:
• Chocolate• Hyderabadi Biriyani• Mobile Phones• Drinking water from outside • Sweets and Savouries• Temple Prasad
While chocolate and Hyderabadi Biryani were Sindhu’s personal favourites, she wasn't allowed to go anywhere near them. Cell phones are prohibited for most of Gopichand’s players, including K Sreekanth. Gopichand even went to the extent of preventing Sindhu from eating temple ‘prasad’ because, despite being in small amounts, it spoilt her daily diet.
During the Rio Olympics, Sindhu was instructed to eat in the dining area, with Gopichand for company, and not to wander anywhere alone. However, in addition to these regimes for his players, Gopichand also devoted himself to improving his players’ performance at the Rio Olympics. He used to advance his waking up time by an hour and would spend the first 60 minutes of his day analysing the previous games played by Sindhu and Srikanth.
“You can feel lazy about having to get up at 3 am every day to reach the academy for training, but when you see Gopi Sir do it for you, you only feel inspired,” said Srikanth, who got eliminated in the quarterfinals of men’s badminton at Rio.
Despite the criticism he occasionally faces for the way he runs his private academy, Gopichand deserves a lot of credit as well as respect, with several of his charges displaying spirited performances on the global stage. The man is a perfect example of the fact that having a good coach is one of the most vital aspects of being a successful sportsperson.
Today, the Pullela Gopichand Badminton Academy is located in two different buildings in Hyderabad, and more than 150 get trained there every day.
