Bangalore boy Anup Sridhar has certainly created big news. His win over Olympic champion Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia in the second round of the World Badminton Championships proves that he is capable of bigger deeds.
Though delighted after the win over the eighth-seeded Indonesi-an, the two-time National champion is wary that the subsequent rounds could be tougher. "I am happy but nothing much really. I have a match tomorrow too and that is why I am not very excited," Sridhar told Deccan Herald after entering the pre-quarterfinals.

The 41st-ranked Indian next faces 13th-seeded Malaysian Muhammad Hafiz Hashim, who beat Irishman Scott Evans 21-19, 14-21, 21-11. Asked about the prospect of playing Hafiz and the tremendous home support the Malaysian would get, Sridhar said: "At this level, one can't really say how things will go. I will concentrate on the match but it is going to be tough."

Speaking about the match, Sridhar said: "I began on an attacking note in the first game. I was playing at the fast end of the court. There was a lot of wind and it really helped me. I won the first 21-14.

"In the second, I had to flex a little since I was on the slower end. It went really close but Taufik managed to win.
"The third game was just like the first and I attacked more. We changed sides at 11-8. Later, I just calmed down a bit and did not bring any pressure on myself. Even when I was down 13-18, I just did what I wanted to and played my game," Sridhar observed.

Asked what he felt about Hidayat's game, the trainee of Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy here, said: "I don't know if he played his best game or not. But I can say that he played really well."

A few words of advice from National coach and the 2001 All-England champion Pullela Gopichand certainly seemed to have helped Sridhar. "Before the match, Gopichand and I had a talk. He told me to be calm when things get close. He also told me not to try and take quick points. I did that and things worked."

Another thing which helped the Bangalorean was the training stint in Kuala Lumpur before the event. "The training in Malaysia certainly help-ed. It mainly helped me get used to the hot and humid climate in Kuala Lumpur," Sridhar said.

This was the third meeting between Sridhar and Hidayat. Sridhar had lost to Hidayat 24-26, 16-21 at the Doha Asian Games and 19-21, 14-21 in the Asian Badminton Championships in Johor Bahru.