Vimal Kumar disapproves of playing conditions in Singapore Open Super Series – Badminton news
The former badminton coach and current selector of India’s national team, U Vimal Kumar, criticised the playing conditions in last week’s Singapore Open Super Series 2013, in which all Indian players failed to deliver and their rankings went down.
The huge indoor arena in Singapore, where this Super Series event took place, was fully air-conditioned, the blowers were also running at their full speed that created a considerable drift in air, and it disturbed the play.
The drift was quite fast that affected the flight of the shuttle c**k and made it very fast. Many players only relied on rallies because they could not control the pace of the bird, which is something concerning because one cannot expect a match without
smashes and lobs.
While talking about the playing conditions, Kumar said that these were not appropriate for the players. He also blamed the Badminton World Federation, which is the official governing body for badminton in the world, for not providing reasonable conditions
to players.
Kumar said, “There is so much of AC in the hall that it doesn’t allow players to play their shots. It affects their game a lot. I’d blame BWF for such playing conditions. With the ACs and blowers in full blast and the feathers being very light, the shuttles
are so fast that players cannot control them.”
He further added, “As it is, the scoring pattern is such that it puts players under pressure. One error and they lose a point. If a match is played without a drop, smash or net play, then what is badminton?”
Kumar also stated that BWF showed no concern for the players who are suffering with these problems. He also expressed that one cannot expect a badminton match at top level without smashes that are considered as the most effective weapon of players.
However, Parupalli Kashyap, who is India’s top player and World Number 13 in Men’s Singles category, did not blame the playing conditions that much. He said that the hall was too humid and the crowd cannot sit without ACs. He also put emphasis on the point
that the players need to adjust with such playing conditions.
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