For injury-hit R. Satwiksairaj, it has never been easy to stage comebacks given the kind of mental and physical challenges he has had to face.
But, the gifted shuttler believes in one mantra — good tidings are waiting for him despite the bad phases.
“Well, I have always believed in God, especially during those testing times. Fortunately, this Badminton Asia Championships doubles gold (with Chirag Shetty), after coming back from an injury, is special and unforgettable,” Satwik informed The Hindu in a chat from Dubai even as the feeling of being newly-crowned champions hadn’t yet sunk in.
“Definitely, the fatigue factor is a huge one as we have to keep playing tournaments given this being the Olympics qualification year,” said Satwik. “We don’t feel that we are in the safe zone as far as Olympic qualification is concerned. ”Our target is to break into the top four and not be content being in the top 16.”
“But, thanks to the continuous support of our doubles coach, Mathias Boe, we now understand better how to respect the body and the mind. This is something we feel is very important to keep winning major titles,” the doubles specialist said. “We are grateful to the entire support staff, including the physios,” he added.
“Given the nature of our game, more so for me since I play the attacking game with all those jumps, we have realised the importance of recovery,” Satwik explained.
What is the big change in the game now? “We are both mentally much stronger and are no longer in a hurry to finish off the games. Like our coach Boe used to play, we don’t concede easy points and are mastering the art of picking points at critical moments to stay in the contest,” the 22-year-old Satwik said.
“I would certainly rate the Asian Championship doubles gold in the top three, with the Thomas Cup being the best for obvious reasons, The next big targets are to win medals in the Sudirman Cup and the Asian Games. We want to keep the momentum going in the run-up to the 2024 Paris Olympics”, mused a delighted Satwik before signing off.
