2016 Olympic medal winner PV Sindhu hasn't won a championship since 2019, and hasn't had the perfect run-up to the Games, but don't dismiss her just yet
PV Sindhu is a strong medal contender at the Tokyo Olympics
Image: Naomi Baker / Getty Images
Every time PV Sindhu has stepped on to the court since her silver-winning feat in Rio in 2016, she’s carried the burden of a billion expectations. The Tokyo Games, where she will be the solitary Indian representative in the women’s singles category, will be no different.
Since her Olympics exploits, Sindhu has had a rollercoaster ride: She lost an epochal World Championships final to Nozomi Okuhara in 2017, before winning the tournament in August 2019; but that was also the last tournament she’s won since. Meanwhile, the 25-year-old has parted ways with her coach Pullela Gopichand, who’s trained her since she was 10, and high-profile foreign coaches Mulyo Handoyo and Kim Ji Hyun. Sindhu now trains with South Korean Park Tae Sang and has opted to stick with him post the Olympics.
2021 didn't start off well, but results at the Swiss Open and the All England Badminton Championships were good. I'm happy with my performance.
(This story appears in the 16 July, 2021 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)