India will look to lift their weight again when they take on 14-time winners Indonesia in the final of the Thomas Cup
India will look to lift their weight again when they take on 14-time winners Indonesia in the final of the Thomas Cup
Confident India will take on 14-time winners Indonesia in the final of the Thomas Cup in Bangkok on Sunday and look to create history once again.
Given their formidable record, defending champions Indonesia has been the team to beat in the competition, but the Indian men’s team showed their mettle by defeating the mighty Malaysia and Denmark to make their maiden final in the prestigious tournament.
It was a historic moment for the unheralded Indian team as despite the odds, it never lacked confidence and displayed exemplary mental toughness to overcome twice the initial upsets to come out on top of its opponents.
Going into the final, India would like to prove that they have the means to pull rugs from under the feet of their arch-rivals.
While Indonesia has been relentless with an unbeaten record, India have lost just one match in the competition so far – in the group stage against Chinese Taipei.
If Indonesia beat China and Japan in the knockout stage, India went past five-time former champions Malaysia and 2016 winners Denmark.
Indian men’s badminton poster boys – Kidambi Srikanth and HS Prannoy – took the responsibility with an unbeatable record of five wins, while the country’s best doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty raised their hands whenever the chips were down.
The young combination of Krishna Prasad Garga and Vishnuvardhan Goud Panjala proved to be the weak link but they accounted for themselves well during the defeats against Malaysia and Denmark.
The Indian think-tank is likely to bring back MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila as the second doubles pair for the final.
Both have played two matches in the round robin with one win and one loss.
World No. 9 Lakshya Sen, who was dropped due to food poisoning at the start of the tournament, did well in the patch but could not get off to a positive start in the last two matches.
On Sunday, Sen is likely to go up against world number four Anthony Sinisuka Ginting and the Indian will draw inspiration from his last performance against the Indonesian, which he finished in straight games at the German Open in March.
Srikanth is expected to face world No. 8 Jonathan Christie, who has been in red-hot form with a title win at the Swiss Open and runner-up at the Korea Open and Badminton Asia Championships.
The Indian has a 4-5 record against Christie, but he comes into the match after losing two close matches against the Indonesian this year and will be itching to set the record straight this time.
If the match goes awry, Prannoy, who struggled with pain after spraining his ankle to take the team home, will be recalled and his swordsmanship with world number 24 Shesar Hiren Rustavito. likely to cross.
Prannoy, currently ranked 23rd in the world, has a 2-0 record against the Indonesian, but hasn’t played the role of a youngster in the last five years.
Former India coach Vimal Kumar said, “We have a very balanced team, the doubles are contributing a lot. All the players have played exceptionally well and have pulled out matches from close conditions. So I think we have Indonesian players.” There is a 50-50 chance against.” is with the team, told PTI.
“The playing conditions are very different here, there is a lot of drift in the hall, so players who adjust well will have a better chance of finding success. That’s the key.
“Indonesia also has additional pressure, which is an advantage for us because we have nothing to lose. We are not under pressure like the Chinese, Indonesians or Danish and that helps,” he said.
Indonesia has some of the best doubles shuttlers in its ranks in this competition with three players from the world’s top two pairs – Kevin Sanjay Sukamuljo, Mohamed Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan.
They also have the world No 7 combination of Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Riyan Ardianto and it will be an uphill task for India to take the doubles match.
Chirag and Satwik, however, had beaten Sukamuljo and Ahsan in the 2018 Asia Team Championships and along with Danish legend Mathias Bo, they would be imagining their chances.
“Indonesia have a lot of options in doubles, with a lot of players of the same level, so they can try different combinations. They are all experienced players and they have done well, but I am hopeful,” Vimal said.