With the Paris Olympics on the horizon, Indian athletes are relentlessly training for their shot at glory. In an exhilarating interview, we catch up with badminton sensation Ashwini Ponnappa to delve into her intense preparations, challenges, and the exhilarating journey leading up to Paris. Get ready to feel the pulse of anticipation as we witness the passion driving India's Olympic hopefuls!
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00:00 Yeah, Ashwini, first of all, congratulations on the Olympics qualification.
00:04 So, your first thoughts on the Olympics qualification mix-ups with Dhanisha.
00:08 Thank you so much. I'm very happy that Dhanisha and I have qualified for the Olympics.
00:13 Again, we just started a little over a year ago. We started last Jan and at that point in time,
00:18 the Olympics seemed really far away for us. But to have come from starting from scratch to being
00:24 here today, having qualified for the Olympics, it's a pretty special moment for the two of us.
00:29 What sort of preparations went into it? Because there's a big age gap between you and her.
00:34 So, how did you just tie up with her? Because earlier you were also doing, I mean,
00:42 the partners were like, Reddy Sikki was there. Even then there was a big age gap.
00:47 Yes, I think the age gap is really going to be there. But having said that, Dhanisha is an
00:53 up-and-coming youngster. She's very energetic and her game style complements my game style,
00:58 which is one of the reasons why the two of us work well together. She's explosive at the net.
01:02 I am a hard hitter from the back of the court. And together we combine really well. But having
01:08 said that, we still have a relatively new pair and we have a lot to work on. And there's no end
01:13 to working and getting better. Different areas. Because last year we were playing smaller
01:17 tournaments. This year we're playing bigger tournaments. Competition is higher and it's
01:22 definitely tougher. So, we accordingly have to get better and keep working.
01:26 How would you rate your performance this year so far and going into the tournament? Because it
01:31 gets very important to peak at the right time in a competition like the NLF.
01:36 Correct. I'd say we started the year off well, having reached the quarters of the Malaysia Super
01:41 1000. That was a big boost for us because we beat a Japanese pair in the second round, which was
01:47 an important win for us. Definitely gave us a lot of confidence. But having said that, we are
01:52 playing bigger tournaments this year than we did last year. Because last year we played a lot of
01:56 small tournaments. We played challenges and 100s. We never got entries into a Super 1000.
02:01 So, the competition is higher. Our game needs to get better and stronger. So,
02:07 we kind of also know where we stand and how much we need to work now going into the Olympics,
02:11 having played these bigger tournaments the last couple of months.
02:14 You've already been part of two Olympic Games in your environment. So, how does that experience of
02:20 having been there, represented India, is going to help you and also calm the nerves of someone
02:26 like Tanisha who's going to be in the Olympics?
02:29 I mean, this having been, having to be in my third Olympics, I feel like definitely I do have
02:37 experience and I think the way I see the Olympics is different because I'm way older than what I was
02:43 a couple of years ago when I played my first Olympics. And I think that balance would help
02:48 both Tanisha and me and kind of understand how to prepare for the Olympics, what to expect.
02:53 And like you rightly said, I mean, it's so important to peak at the right time and I hope
02:58 that we train really well. We will be looking forward to training really well and working
03:01 towards putting on a good performance at the Olympics.
03:04 Badminton is one of the most sought-after sports in India when it comes to Olympics because it
03:11 has been giving us medals right from when we were two. Does that put an extra pressure on the
03:18 badminton players or shutters?
03:20 I think it would. It would especially because, I mean, right now there are a lot of eyes on
03:26 Indian players because they've done really well. Sathvik and Chirag are world number one. They've
03:30 won a lot of tournaments this year. They've had a fantastic start of the year. So, there is going
03:34 to be a lot of eyes on them, a lot of pressure. Sindhu going into her third Olympics, having won
03:39 two medals at the last two Olympics. There's also that pressure for her to go and perform again.
03:44 But we are all world-class players. Sathvik and Chirag, they're number one and it's not easy
03:50 being there. So, they do know what it takes to be there. They do know how to handle pressure and
03:54 they have dealt with very, like the highest of levels of badminton pressure. So, I'm sure they
03:59 will be, they will have pressure but at the same time, they are, I would say they are ready to like
04:04 take it on and do well.
04:06 We've seen a lot of competition between Chinese players and people used to talk about the aura
04:11 of the Chinese players and people used to chase them on the court. Players used to just be in the
04:18 awe and because of that aura and awe, they would have a good contest back in the days. But do you
04:26 think that perception has changed?
04:28 Most definitely. Most definitely. I think with since Saina's time, the perception has changed
04:33 because she's beaten a lot of Chinese players. So has Sindhu, so have the likes of Frenoy,
04:39 Srikanth, Satvik, Chirag. So, a lot of them have come up, Indian badminton players have come up
04:45 and beaten the Chinese players. So, it's no longer China as like a badminton nation. India is also
04:51 getting strong as a badminton nation and players are also proving to be really tough for the
04:56 Chinese players. So, yeah, it's not the same anymore.
04:59 What are your preparations? Any kind of bigger thing that you are working on,
05:04 going to work on before Paris?
05:06 Yeah, there will be a lot that Tanisha and I would have to work on because like I said,
05:11 last year we were playing a lot more smaller tournaments. This year, we've graduated to
05:14 playing bigger tournaments. That means the competition is higher and it's a lot harder.
05:19 That means we've also got to get our game to a level which is ready to match the top players.
05:24 So, there's a lot of work that the two of us will need to do and we will be doing that along
05:28 with our coaches and preparing in preparation for the Olympics.
05:32 Thanks.
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