‘IBL will benefit Indian players’
Two-time Olympian Aparna Popat is excited about her new role as coach of the Indian Badminton League franchise Mumbai Masters and confident that the initiative will benefit the country’s players.
“I think it’s a huge opportunity. There are a few top 10 players, who are playing the IBL and giving our players a chance to play against them in a span of three weeks, I think is going to be very useful and fruitful for them,” Aparna was quoted as saying.
The 16-day event will be held in six cities.
“I haven’t coached too much, but I have been following the game keenly. It is going to be a big challenge for me and I am very excited,” Aparna said.
“It’s a team event. There will be considerable amount of strategy involved. Each player has his/her own playing style, so we just have to see how our opponents play and who are our respective opponents,” she added.
Asked about the chances of her team that include men’s world number one Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia, she said, “We wouldn’t like to speculate at this stage. Given this kind of format of a game, unexpected results happen.
“So it is going to be tricky and since we need five matches to win, I don’t think we can solely rely on one player. We will play as a team.”
“I am tremendously excited. They (Lee Chong Wei and Tine Baun) are great champions and it is brilliant to have them as part of our team,” she said.
“We have a few top Indian players in the doubles side as well. Marc Zweibler is the European champion. (Vladimir) Ivanov, the Russian, is good to play all the events — singles, doubles and mixed doubles. I think we are okay with our team composition,” Aparna quipped.
The IBL commences soon after the world championships that will be held from August 5 to August 11 in Guangzhou, China, and the former India number one defended the timing of the event.
“The international badminton calendar is very full. At this stage having the tournament at any given date that is available, is the right thing to do.”
The Chinese players are not participating in the inaugural edition of the tournament and Aparna is hopeful of seeing them in the next one.
“Having them around would have been brilliant. They have a genuine reason not to be here and play this tournament since they have their national games at the end of August. The IBL is going to happen and hopefully we can see Chinese participation next time around,” Aparna said.
Aparna said she was also optimistic about the chances of Indian players winning in the world championships.
“Saina (Nehwal) is our front runner. And she has got a good draw. The Indians have been playing really well over the last year, especially since the Olympics. I am just hoping that they come up with some big performances.
“P.V. Sindhu also has a good chance. She has been playing well and is a dangerous player. Let’s hope she can play to her potential and do really well,” she said.
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