Saina Nehwal is mentally and physically stronger than Chinese shuttlers, says Pullela Gopichand
India’s national coach Pullela Gopichand, who won Men’s Singles title at the All England Open in 2001, said that country’s top shuttler Saina Nehwal is mentally and physically stronger than her Chinese opponents.
The World Number Five Saina stands a good chance to grab a medal at upcoming London Olympics as she has attained the highest class skills and is one of the best shuttlers in the world at the moment.
Saina has been delivering consistent performance for the last three years despite facing a bad patch resulting from injuries during this period.
Nonetheless, the spirited Indian always gave up her hundred percent on court which helped her to stand tall as a major threat to the Chinese shuttlers who are considered the best in badminton world.
The consistent hard work and steely determination helped Saina to become India’s first ever female shuttler who has bagged many Super Series title proving that she possesses what it takes to brush aside the top shuttlers in the world.
At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Saina became the first Indian female player who reached at the quarter-final stage.
While talking about her performance in the last edition of Olympics in China, Gopichand said that Saina was not experienced at that time.
However, the coach is now confident that Saina will bring good results considering that she has got experience and has also improved in all aspects of the game.
He stated, “At her first Olympics, she was young, nobody knew her then. She has spent the last three years in the top five, she is consistently playing the top players in big tournaments and in higher rounds, getting podium finishes consistently. She has
become a threat to others.”
He further added, “She is one of the few Indian sportspersons who is mentally very strong. With a little more variety in her game and by moving well on the court, she can outsmart them. Fitness-wise, she has definitely an edge over the Chinese. I would not
say that about the other Indians.”
Saina, who has recently won two back-to-back titles in two consecutive weeks including SCG Thailand Open GP Gold and Indonesia Open Premier Super Series, proved that she is on the right track and will be a tough nut to crack for Chinese shuttlers at London
Olympics.
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