Intent and aggression was evident on Saina Nehwal’s face when the queen of Indian badminton faced rising star P.V. Sindhu on Independence Day in New Delhi. Their first-ever televised faceoff provided a much-needed push to the Indian Badminton League and a merciless Saina stamped her authority over her younger opponent with little fuss.
The fledging rivalry will be rekindled once again when Hyderabad Hotshots take on Awadhe Warriors in the tournament finale at the NSCI complex here on Saturday.
At stake is the whopping $1 million prize pot and bragging rights of being regarded as inaugural IBL champions.
The Hotshots — led by Saina, who has won her all six matches — do not start as overwhelming favourites but are slightly ahead than Warriors. They advanced to the final with a thumping 3-0 win over Pune Pistons on Wednesday and also finished on top after the league stage.
On the other hand, the Warriors huffed and puffed their way into the semis with a 3-2 win over Mumbai Masters on Thursday night in Bengaluru. The hard-earned victory will have sapped their energy levels, but the Warriors’ challenge lies in staying fit and fresh to counter the mighty Hotshots.
After a slow start where she lost two matches, Sindhu came back strongly with four straight victories. If she is able to tame Saina, the win will not only result in a point but will provide massive confidence to others in the team.
Warriors’ singles player R.M.V. Gurusaidutt will be required to share Sindhu’s burden.
The world no. 20 has provided important wins for them including the one over Hyderabad’s world no. 19. S. Tanongsak.
The men’s singles is expected to be a close affair with Hyderabad’s Ajay Jayaram showing good form. Jayaram, world ranked 24 shocked Pune Piston’s fifth ranked Tien Minh Nguyen.
A similar battle will unfold in the men’s doubles game where Hostshots’ Malaysian duo of Shem Goh and Khim Wah Lim, are ranked 16 in the world, take on the Danish-Indonesian pair of Mathias Boe and Markis Kido. Both pairs were victorious in the semi-finals.
Kido has also been gelling with his sister in the mixed doubles and the duo showed they can fire under pressure by winning the deciding tie in the semi-final against Mumbai.