Analysing the Indian badminton contingent and their chances at Rio 2016

In just under a month’s time, eight Indian shuttlers will take to the courts of Rio De Janeiro in their quest to stand on the podium in the biggest stage of them all. Few will emerge triumphant while others won’t, but that doesn;t take away the sweat that each one of them put to reach that far.

Here’s an analysis of the contingent that will be travelling to Rio next month:

5. Manu Attri and Sumeeth Reddy

A surprise inclusion into the badminton contingent for Rio 2016, the duo of Manu Attri and Sumeeth Reddy will surely have their task cut out next month when they face up to some of the best doubles duos in the world.

Attri and Reddy have been competing together for just under 3 years now and have tasted success on the international front more regularly in the past 12-18 months with victories in Mexico, Canada and runners-up finish in the USA.

But the Olympics will be a different ball altogether and Attri and Reddy will be well aware that one slip and they would be gone in no time.

It would be interesting to see if they can punch above their weights and perform and if they do that, then we certainly would have had quite a story to tell everybody.

Prediction: Round of 16

4. Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa

For the second Olympics in a row, the Doubles hopes will rest on the shoulders of Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa, who will look to go the further mile after faltering in the quarterfinals at Great Britain 4 years ago.

In the 4 years between London and Rio, Jwala and Ashwini have tasted success at the Commonwealth and Asian Games as well as at the Uber Cup, but in other international events, the duo have been inconsistent, swinging between opening round losses to reaching to the end.

The early matches at Rio will be crucial to gather some momentum and if they do get their act together , then we could see India’s first ever Olympics doubles medal in badminton in Brazil.

Prediction: Quarterfinals

3. Kidambi Srikanth

In the absence of the more experienced Parupalli Kashyap, the Men’s Singles hopes will rest on the young shoulders of Kidambi Srikanth, who will be competing in his maiden Olympic Games in Rio.

The Guntur-born shuttler had a fine 2014, when he won the China Open Superseries Premier, but ever since that triumph, the youngster has been inconsistent, which has seen a dip in his rankings.

Srikanth will hope to get a good draw in order to ease off some nerves that he would carry to Brazil and hope that come, the knockout stages, he can raise his game and give the rest a run for their money.

Prediction: Quarterfinal

2. PV Sindhu

Like Srikanth, PV Sindhu will also be competing in her maiden Olympics and will look to leave an impression on the biggest stage of them all. The 20-year-old has shown potential to do well on the global stage.

The 21-year-old has to her credit two World Championships medals and two Uber Cup medals, but lie Jwala and Ashwini have in doubles, has shown inconsistency in her Singles game, swinging between very good to mediocre.

What will work in her favour is her ability to raise in the crunch moment and she will need to do that in Rio in order to succeed in her maiden Games.

Prediction:Semifinals

1. Saina Nehwal

That then leaves us with the top contender for a medal- Saina Nehwal.The 26-yer-old didn’t have the greatest start to the season, where she didn’t participate in any events until the All England Championships in March, but ever since then has shown gradual and steady improvement in her game, reaching 6 consecutive semifinals and then finally managing to take the monkey off her back by clinching the Australian Open Superseries last month.

The shuttler has begun training for Rio and is excited to win her second Olympic medal, but the question is: Can she do it? A lot will depend on the draw she gets and it will be interesting to see whether she can hold her nerve and get the job done when the crunch moment arrives.

Prediction: Finals