<p>She played second fiddle to senior partner Jwala Gutta during their successful combination, but shuttler Ashwini Ponnappa now has a role reversal to enact in her fledgling women’s doubles partnership with the inexperienced Pradnya Gadre.<br /><br /></p>.<p>“Jwala is a very confident player, a very good player at the net. She was the dominant player and the guiding force in our partnership. Pradnya too is a fine player at the net but she is inexperienced. Its my duty to take the initiative and guide her,” said the 23-year-old Ashwini.<br /><br />The doubles specialist from Bangalore was here to conduct a clinic at the Jamnabai Narsee School in Vile Parle in connection with the ‘Shuttle Experess’ initiative of the upcoming Indian Badminton League (IBL).<br /><br />Ashwini said her immediate focus is to improve her rankings in both women’s doubles and mixed doubles, where she teams up with Tarun Kona.<br /><br />“My partnership with Tarun and Pradnya is growing and we are getting better with every event. With the World Championship coming up, our aim is to improve our rankings,” she said. <br /><br />Asked about the scheduled IBL, which is to kick off on August 14 after the player auctions this week in Delhi, Ashwini said: “So far so good. I am waiting for it to start and wish it all the success.”</p>
<p>She played second fiddle to senior partner Jwala Gutta during their successful combination, but shuttler Ashwini Ponnappa now has a role reversal to enact in her fledgling women’s doubles partnership with the inexperienced Pradnya Gadre.<br /><br /></p>.<p>“Jwala is a very confident player, a very good player at the net. She was the dominant player and the guiding force in our partnership. Pradnya too is a fine player at the net but she is inexperienced. Its my duty to take the initiative and guide her,” said the 23-year-old Ashwini.<br /><br />The doubles specialist from Bangalore was here to conduct a clinic at the Jamnabai Narsee School in Vile Parle in connection with the ‘Shuttle Experess’ initiative of the upcoming Indian Badminton League (IBL).<br /><br />Ashwini said her immediate focus is to improve her rankings in both women’s doubles and mixed doubles, where she teams up with Tarun Kona.<br /><br />“My partnership with Tarun and Pradnya is growing and we are getting better with every event. With the World Championship coming up, our aim is to improve our rankings,” she said. <br /><br />Asked about the scheduled IBL, which is to kick off on August 14 after the player auctions this week in Delhi, Ashwini said: “So far so good. I am waiting for it to start and wish it all the success.”</p>