A couple of years ago, as the country celebrated PV Sindhu's triumph at the World Badminton Championships, PT Usha tweeted a picture that made us go:Awwwww.The image was from 2001. Sindhu was six. She sat in the legendary athlete's lap, who had her clasped in a motherly grip. Sindhu, likely completely oblivious to the eminence of the other subject in the picture, smiled like any kid her age would. Eyes innocent, loving the attention, perhaps waiting to hop off and head towards her next adventure.Usha, grinning from ear to ear herself in the image, later revealed that Sindhu's father Ramana and she were colleagues at Railways, and she had decided to stay with the family while in Hyderabad for a few days for an All India Railways meet."At that time, all I saw was this innocent, bubbly kid who was happy to play on my lap. When I left, I wished her the best," Usha told the Times of India. When that picture was taken, it had been 17 years since the most crushing moment of Usha's otherwise decorated athletics career. At the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984, Usha missed a bronze medal by one-hundredth of a second in the 400 meter hurdles. Little did she know that the cherubic kid sitting in her lap, would twenty years later be in her own battle to return from an Olympics empty handed. Or with a medal.The passion and dedication for the sport will always be rewarded when hardwork comes into play. @Pvsindhu1 success will inspire generations to come!Hefty congratulations on winning the Gold at #BWFWorldChampionships2019 🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/xBP7RgOHnt— P.T. USHA (@PTUshaOfficial) August 25, 2019 Yes, five years ago PV Sindhu had become India's first female athlete to win an Olympic silver medal at Rio. However, a Gold medal contest carries with it the assurance of a silver. A play-off for bronze, follows as it does with the gut-wrenching disappointment of a defeat to contend for Gold, also burdens an athlete with the demon of a stark realisation. Victory will ensure plaudits. Defeat will unleash a wave of criticism.Also Read:PV Sindhu shows true sportsmanship, consoles silver medallist Tai Tzu YingIt was the proverbial now or never moment. Much like the friendly lady she took that picture with two decades ago, Sindhu would either return from an Olympics with a ghost that will haunt her. Or a piece of metal she will cherish forever.In that moment, Sindhu wasn't in a very different place to Usha all those years ago – on the starting blocks of among the most significant races of her career.Five years ago in Rio, despite her thrilling run to the final where she beat three higher ranked players and almost a fourth in the summit clash, Sindhu, by her own admission, was still very much a work in progress. Her two World Championship medals had established her credentials as a player of skill and talent, but the journey had only just begun. Rio, she hoped, would catapult her towards building a strong professional career.Since then, the landmarks have been ticked off, one by one. Sindhu has won medals at each of the last three World Championships, including a Gold in 2019, taking her tally to an unprecedented five for an Indian player. She's won Asian and Commonwealth Games medals, Superseries events, reached multiple finals and entrenched herself in the rankings as among the leading players in the world.Amazing performance, @Pvsindhu1!Congratulations on becoming the 1st ever 🇮🇳 to win the BWF World Championships!You have made India proud, yet again.#BWFWorldChampionships2019 pic.twitter.com/sUYPsVlnLT— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) August 25, 2019 Over the course of the week in Tokyo, Sindhu produced a sequence of performances that emphatically established how a fully formed player has emerged from the raw material on show at Rio. She cruised through her first four matches without dropping a game, dispatching, among others, a player who had beaten her in their last meeting and a home town star ranked higher.In these matches, Sindhu revealed a range of stroke-making that has added lustre to her established explosive method of play. Drop shots emerged from the back of the court, her rivals repeatedly flummoxed at her ability to deftly place the shuttle at different angles in the forecourt. The polished deception on her forehand flank produced sublime flicks both cross and across court, leaving opponents unsure of the direction the shuttle was coming in. Power and nuance. Fire and Ice. Madness with method.PV SindhuTrickery is one of the calling cards of the elite practitioners of this sport, and Sindhu repeatedly unveiled an unexpected counter at critical junctures of contests. Her wingspan had always been an inbuilt advantage and in Tokyo, not only did she continue to employ it as an aggressive tool, but also as a defense mechanism. On several occasions, Sindhu extended rallies that appeared settled and earned points that would otherwise fall in favour of her opponent.The shot that scripted history…🏸🥉#PVSindhu | #Tokyo2020 ...
A couple of years ago, as the country celebrated PV Sindhu's triumph at the World Badminton Championships, PT Usha tweeted a picture that made us go:Awwwww.The image was from 2001. Sindhu was six. She sat in the legendary athlete's lap, who had her clasped in a motherly grip. Sindhu, likely completely oblivious to the eminence of the other subject in the picture, smiled like any kid her age would. Eyes innocent, loving the attention, perhaps waiting to hop off and head towards her next adventure.Usha, grinning from ear to ear herself in the image, later revealed that Sindhu's father Ramana and she were colleagues at Railways, and she had decided to stay with the family while in Hyderabad for a few days for an All India Railways meet."At that time, all I saw was this innocent, bubbly kid who was happy to play on my lap. When I left, I wished her the best," Usha told the Times of India. When that picture was taken, it had been 17 years since the most crushing moment of Usha's otherwise decorated athletics career. At the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984, Usha missed a bronze medal by one-hundredth of a second in the 400 meter hurdles. Little did she know that the cherubic kid sitting in her lap, would twenty years later be in her own battle to return from an Olympics empty handed. Or with a medal.The passion and dedication for the sport will always be rewarded when hardwork comes into play. @Pvsindhu1 success will inspire generations to come!Hefty congratulations on winning the Gold at #BWFWorldChampionships2019 🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/xBP7RgOHnt— P.T. USHA (@PTUshaOfficial) August 25, 2019 Yes, five years ago PV Sindhu had become India's first female athlete to win an Olympic silver medal at Rio. However, a Gold medal contest carries with it the assurance of a silver. A play-off for bronze, follows as it does with the gut-wrenching disappointment of a defeat to contend for Gold, also burdens an athlete with the demon of a stark realisation. Victory will ensure plaudits. Defeat will unleash a wave of criticism.Also Read:PV Sindhu shows true sportsmanship, consoles silver medallist Tai Tzu YingIt was the proverbial now or never moment. Much like the friendly lady she took that picture with two decades ago, Sindhu would either return from an Olympics with a ghost that will haunt her. Or a piece of metal she will cherish forever.In that moment, Sindhu wasn't in a very different place to Usha all those years ago – on the starting blocks of among the most significant races of her career.Five years ago in Rio, despite her thrilling run to the final where she beat three higher ranked players and almost a fourth in the summit clash, Sindhu, by her own admission, was still very much a work in progress. Her two World Championship medals had established her credentials as a player of skill and talent, but the journey had only just begun. Rio, she hoped, would catapult her towards building a strong professional career.Since then, the landmarks have been ticked off, one by one. Sindhu has won medals at each of the last three World Championships, including a Gold in 2019, taking her tally to an unprecedented five for an Indian player. She's won Asian and Commonwealth Games medals, Superseries events, reached multiple finals and entrenched herself in the rankings as among the leading players in the world.Amazing performance, @Pvsindhu1!Congratulations on becoming the 1st ever 🇮🇳 to win the BWF World Championships!You have made India proud, yet again.#BWFWorldChampionships2019 pic.twitter.com/sUYPsVlnLT— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) August 25, 2019 Over the course of the week in Tokyo, Sindhu produced a sequence of performances that emphatically established how a fully formed player has emerged from the raw material on show at Rio. She cruised through her first four matches without dropping a game, dispatching, among others, a player who had beaten her in their last meeting and a home town star ranked higher.In these matches, Sindhu revealed a range of stroke-making that has added lustre to her established explosive method of play. Drop shots emerged from the back of the court, her rivals repeatedly flummoxed at her ability to deftly place the shuttle at different angles in the forecourt. The polished deception on her forehand flank produced sublime flicks both cross and across court, leaving opponents unsure of the direction the shuttle was coming in. Power and nuance. Fire and Ice. Madness with method.PV SindhuTrickery is one of the calling cards of the elite practitioners of this sport, and Sindhu repeatedly unveiled an unexpected counter at critical junctures of contests. Her wingspan had always been an inbuilt advantage and in Tokyo, not only did she continue to employ it as an aggressive tool, but also as a defense mechanism. On several occasions, Sindhu extended rallies that appeared settled and earned points that would otherwise fall in favour of her opponent.The shot that scripted history…🏸🥉#PVSindhu | #Tokyo2020 ...