With some sensational wins under his belt, Kidambi Srikanth has rapidly caught the attention of the badminton world. His young age of 22, his attacking game and quiet confidence makes him an exciting package.
He lived true to his early promise by soaring to World No 3 in the rankings, which he held for 11 weeks last year, before the inconsistency in his performances pulled him down.
Srikanth ended the year as World No 9, still a remarkable achievement for someone so young, but with a new found awareness about his shortcomings. With this being an Olympic year, Srikanth knows he cannot afford to repeat his mistakes. He had enjoyed the highs of winning the Swiss Open and the India Open Super Series last year before losing some close matches.
“I was happy with the way I played last year. I didn’t lose any match easily, but yes, I lost after winning a game point or match point. They were very close matches. So this year I am trying to figure out a way how to convert those close games in my favour. If I could just find out a way, it would really help me,” Srikanth told Deccan Herald.
“What I feel is the need to do something little different. I think it comes with experience. I feel after experiencing such close losses, I will now know how to turn them around. It is good I faced it in the pre-Olympic year.”
In the run up to the Games, Srikanth plans to balance his tournaments with training.
“Based on the rankings, I feel I can play all the Superseries. There are four Superseries tournaments besides a few more before the qualification to Olympics ends. I don’t want to rush and play. I would be balancing my tournaments with training,” he said.
“I really feel I am there with the top players. Last year I reached up to a certain stage, the No 3 rankings and beaten almost all the top players. I need more consistency and that is one aspect I would love to correct. I would be training harder and hope the rest will fall in place.”
On his PBL experiences, the Bengaluru Topgun player said he was enjoying picking the brains of the top foreign exports. “It is great to share your dug-outs with some of the best foreign players, which our team has, and share your experience with them. You learn so much, like how they face their challenges on court and turn them around.”