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After a record haul of six medals at the London Olympics, it was a year of reasonable success and optimism for Indian sport.
As the New Year opened with the Indian cricket team getting thrashed by Pakistan in the One-Day Internationals, it will be interesting to discuss the future stars who will keep the Indian flag flying.
Topping the chart of young achievers is Saina Nehwal, the first-ever Olympic bronze medallist from badminton. At 26, Saina is at her best, both in terms of playing ability and physical capability.
Feared even by the Chinese due to her fighting spirit, Saina has to prioritise her commitments judiciously to remain fresh throughout the year. The biggest challenge for the P. Gopi Chand trainee is to keep herself injury-free. India is going to hear more about her in the days to come.
Following in Saina’s footsteps are two more outstanding individuals in the same sport: Parupalli Kashyap and Pusarla Venkata Sindhu.
Kashyap has already proved his mettle by emerging as the first Indian male to play in the quarterfinals of the Olympics. The slightly built 26-year-old is expected to carry the confidence gained from his Olympic success into his future performances.
Sindhu, another Gopi Chand ward, has the right physical attributes to succeed in one of the most demanding sports in the world. Her exploits as a junior and the impact she has made in tournaments meant for seniors marks her out as one who will succeed Saina and perhaps carry forward her legacy as well!
Somdev Devvarman leads a group of three who will put Indian tennis on the world map. Apart from the highly successful Rohan Bopanna in men’s doubles, one is going to hear more about the youthful exploits of Yuki Bhambri. It is time the All India Tennis Association stopped running after Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes and started encouraging the young brigade to take up the mantle .
Squash is not as popular as tennis or badminton in India but recently, two Indians have made terrific impact internationally.
Dipika Pallikal, the pin-up girl of the sport, ended the year by finishing 10th in the World rankings, thus becoming the first Indian to achieve the feat. There has been a remarkable improvement in her approach to the game since she shifted out of India for training . The 21-year-old was conferred with the Arjuna Award last year in recognition of her contribution to the sport.
Kolkata’s pride
Saurav Ghosal, 21st in the PSA world rankings , is on way to becoming one of the greatest in India. The 26-year-old won his eighth National title recently. He moved to Leeds in England last year. Since then, this Kolkatan has beaten some of the top five players in the world.
His bronze medal at the Doha Asian Games in 2006 is the high point of his career that is beginning to bloom.
Archery is one sport that has made rapid strides in the last few years. And the torch-bearer of the discipline is undoubtedly the 18-year-old prodigy Deepika Kumari. The two-time world champion (cadet 2009) and (junior 2011) was one of the favourites at the Olympics, but owing to lack of experience, she failed to make an impact.
Ranked World No. 2, Deepika will be a much stronger archer in the days to come.
Suranjoy Singh and Shiva Thapa are the two young boxers who failed to perform at the Olympics. Fear of the big stage could have been one of the main reasons for their failure. The duo has the talent to excel in future.
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