India’s premier doubles shuttler R. Satwiksairaj, fresh from his title-triumph partnering Chirag Shetty in the India Open last Sunday, said that they were glad to be back on track.
The 21-year-old Satwik, now taking a break staying with his parents in his hometown Amalapuram (Andhra Pradesh), said they were desperate to win a title after a disappointing 2021.
“Honestly, we were at our best in terms of training, mental preparations three months before the 2020 Tokyo Games. Then came the setbacks in the Olympics and the World championships. You won’t believe me. I was crying for more than one hour after the loss in the Worlds,” the champion doubles specialist informed The Hindu.
“Everything looked so uncertain. Suddenly, I was asking myself ‘what kind of game I was playing. Where had that aggression gone? Why so much negativity?’ There was so much confusion,” recalled Satwik, who, with Chirag, is now ranked World No. 8 in men’s doubles. “But, once I was there in the stands cheering up Lakshya (Sen) in the World championships semifinal and saw how Srikanth anna [Kidambi] fought back from a recent low to be the silver medallist, I felt why can’t I do that,” Satwik said. “I felt a lot more positive after watching them,” he added.
“Thankfully, Gopi sir [chief national coach P. Gopi Chand] saw to it that there was proper training with Vijaydeep Singh and Arun Vishnu taking charge of us. Somehow, there is a more comfortable feeling with them around,” he said.
“They keep things simple, are very positive, motivate us in typical, easy-going Indian style — never putting pressure. Because, we got back the confidence to bounce back the few times we were down in the India Open,” said Satwik.
“The Delhi win is definitely a morale-booster as we prepare for the German Open and the All England championships later this year,” Satwik said.
