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India’s PV Sindhu is on a roll. The top-ranked Indian badminton player stormed into the semi-finals at the Tokyo Olympics 2021 when she brushed aside a stiff challenge from Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi.
Sindhu has been on the money since the start of the tournament. She did not drop a game and was stretched for the first time on Friday when Yamaguchi had two game points in the second. However, Sindhu, showing exemplary skills, staved off the challenge to emerge victorious.
Sindhu’s rise on the BWF circuit should also be attributed to two coaches – Pullela Gopichand and Park Sae-Tang.
Also Read: Indian athletes fight multiple battles to win medals, says shuttler Jwala Gutta
Also Checkout: The Olympics 2021 Points Table
From her formative years, Sindhu has been training under the watchful eyes of Gopichand in his academy and has scaled several heights under the Indian – the notable being the silver medal at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
However, in March 2019, Sindhu started training under South Korean Kim Ji-Hyun. However, within months Kim Ji-Hyun had to quit and Park Tae-Sang was assigned the role to take Sindhu’s forward.
Who is Park Tae-Sang?
Park Tae-Sang is also from South Korea and was active in the BWF circuit in 1990s and 2000s. He played in the 2004 Athens Olympics and was knocked out in the quarter-finals in the men’s singles event.
He won the gold medal in the 2002 Asian Games in Busan and has won many bronze medals, including in the Sudirman Cup, Asia Cup and Asian Championships.
Also read: India at Olympics: Tokyo Olympics 2021 Schedule
Park Tae-Sang is known to be a good strategic coach and has been making Sindhu work hard to upgrade her Olympic silver medal.
The duo spent hours together on Sindhu's game at the Gachibowli Stadium in Hyderabad and has prepared her well for the ultimate challenge, heading into the Tokyo Olympics 2021.
Sindhu, in an earlier interview with the Olympic channel, had spoken highly about the impact Park Tae-Sang has on her game.
According to Sindhu, Park Tae-Sang has been instrumental in working on her tactics and his excellent reading of the opponents’ game and strategy has been top-notch and at the Tokyo Olympics 2021, Sindhu is reaping rewards of it.
Park Tae-Sang also allows Sindhu to think and wriggle herself out of crunch and pressure situations and the duo have established a winning working partnership.
At the Tokyo Olympics 2021, Park Tae-Sang can be seen getting animated on the sidelines. He is always up for advice and many a times Sindhu has benefitted from their eye-to-eye language.
At the ongoing Tokyo Olympics 2021, as Sindhu enters the semifinals, half of the credit must also go to Park Tae-Sang.
The South Korean is a constant source of motivation. Sindhu, in an earlier interview with Sportskeeda after her win over Mia Blichfeldt, said Park Tae-Sang advised her midgame that her strategy in rushing in her defense was wrong, which led to the shuttler losing a couple of points on the trot. Sindhu immediately corrected those and benefitted from the timely advice.
Sindhu has also expressed a keen interest in continuing with Park Tae-Sang even after the Tokyo Olympics 2021.
