Gopichand not fretting over Sindhu's form

PTI

Kolkata, June 7

Two-time Olympics medallist PV Sindhu’s lack of consistency after coming back from an injury should not be a cause of “concern”, feels chief national badminton coach Pullela Gopichand. Sindhu suffered yet another first-round exit on Tuesday when she lost to world No. 1 Akane Yamaguchi at the Singapore Open. “She’s very young in saying that she’s just 26-27. It’s a good age, there is no reason for concern,” Gopichand said.

'It’s the beginning of the season and of the Olympics qualification. The results have been mixed so far. We have to just back them up and hope that they are playing the big tournaments'

Pullela Gopichand, chief national coach

Sindhu suffered an ankle injury in August last year to slip out of the top-10 in the BWF rankings. She remained out of action for four months because of the injury. Sindhu’s final and semifinals finishes at the Spain Masters and Malaysia Masters, respectively, are her best results so far this season. She reached a low with a first-round exit at the Thailand Open when she lost to Canada’s Michelle Li.

But Gopichand, a former All England champion who has guided Sindhu since she was 10, firmly believed she would bounce back stronger.

“She has come out on top in the six-eight months. She is starting to play well. I do expect her to play well in future. She is definitely one of India’s bets for the future,” Gopichand said.

Terming it a mixed season for Sindhu, Gopichand said: “It’s the beginning of the season and beginning of the Olympics qualification. The results have been mixed so far. We have a lot of pressure on players to perform. We have to just back them up and hope that they are playing the big tournaments.”

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