<p>Kidambi Srikanth achieved a historic feat of being the first Indian to clinch consecutive Super Series titles after lifting the Australian Open on Sunday.<br /><br />Adulations poured in from near and far for the 24-year-old with former All England champion Prakash Padukone labelling his performance creditable.<br /><br />“He’s really in great form. And in the present format of the game, an achievement like this is very creditable. Reaching three finals and winning two while playing against the best players in the world is not easy,” he said.<br /><br />It has been a great run for the Indian men’s singles players who have emerged victorious in the last three Super Series events -- Singapore, Indonesia and Australia -- with B Sai Praneeth winning one and Srikanth bagging the other two.<br /><br />Lauding the fitness levels of the two and heaping praise on Indonesian coach Mulyo Handoyo, Padukone said that it was now imperative that the players plan their calender well in order to remain at the top for a sustained period.<br /><br />“You shouldn’t overdo anything. My advice to the players would be to plan, identify important tournaments and not play every tournament.<br /><br />“The main focus should be to prioritise and win the big events like the All England, Super Series events or World Championships. Winning tournaments like these will be a landmark event and people will sit up and take notice,” he added.<br /><br />Former National coach U Vimal Kumar was impressed with how Srikanth has bounced back from injuries and upped his game.<br /><br />“It looks like he wasn’t able to cope well with all the attention he received since 2014. In addition, he was also let down by injuries but he has bounced back well now.<br /><br />“But the most important thing I have noticed in his game is that he has developed patience. He’s more constructive and waiting for the right opportunities,” he observed.<br /><br />Vimal also had a word of caution, saying the players must learn to deal with adulation better if they are to make a mark in the badminton world.<br /><br />“In India, the adulation you receive when you come back victorious is something they need to handle better. We are really poor at doing that,” he opined.<br /><br /></p>
<p>Kidambi Srikanth achieved a historic feat of being the first Indian to clinch consecutive Super Series titles after lifting the Australian Open on Sunday.<br /><br />Adulations poured in from near and far for the 24-year-old with former All England champion Prakash Padukone labelling his performance creditable.<br /><br />“He’s really in great form. And in the present format of the game, an achievement like this is very creditable. Reaching three finals and winning two while playing against the best players in the world is not easy,” he said.<br /><br />It has been a great run for the Indian men’s singles players who have emerged victorious in the last three Super Series events -- Singapore, Indonesia and Australia -- with B Sai Praneeth winning one and Srikanth bagging the other two.<br /><br />Lauding the fitness levels of the two and heaping praise on Indonesian coach Mulyo Handoyo, Padukone said that it was now imperative that the players plan their calender well in order to remain at the top for a sustained period.<br /><br />“You shouldn’t overdo anything. My advice to the players would be to plan, identify important tournaments and not play every tournament.<br /><br />“The main focus should be to prioritise and win the big events like the All England, Super Series events or World Championships. Winning tournaments like these will be a landmark event and people will sit up and take notice,” he added.<br /><br />Former National coach U Vimal Kumar was impressed with how Srikanth has bounced back from injuries and upped his game.<br /><br />“It looks like he wasn’t able to cope well with all the attention he received since 2014. In addition, he was also let down by injuries but he has bounced back well now.<br /><br />“But the most important thing I have noticed in his game is that he has developed patience. He’s more constructive and waiting for the right opportunities,” he observed.<br /><br />Vimal also had a word of caution, saying the players must learn to deal with adulation better if they are to make a mark in the badminton world.<br /><br />“In India, the adulation you receive when you come back victorious is something they need to handle better. We are really poor at doing that,” he opined.<br /><br /></p>
