HYDERABAD: It is badminton singles that always hogs the limelight in India, but surprisingly it was doubles that made its presence felt at the recently concluded Premier Badminton League 2. Be it Sumeeth Reddy or Manu Attri, all displayed great skills and showed the world how India is rising the ranks in doubles department. But it was the 16-yr-old Satwik Sairaj who was the cynosure of all eyes.
Satwik, who played for Hyderabad Hunters in the league, was rubbing shoulders with the top shuttlers for the first time, and seemed to be at ease against them. Partnering Hong Kong's Chau Hoi Wah in the mixed doubles, Satwik won just one game, but showed a lot of character playing against the best in the business. Even National head coach P Gopichand has shown a lot of faith in him and considers Satwik the future of doubles badminton in India.
"Satwik is doubles badminton future. You should have seen how dominant he was on the court against all his opponents. Though he could manage one win only, he has shown a lot of maturity for his age. He has a bright future and so do some of the other doubles players in the country," said Gopichand.
Former world no 1 Carolina Marin had talked about the talent that Satwik possesses. It was their clash against Bengaluru Blasters' Ko Sung Hyun and N Sikki Reddy. Though Marin and Satwik lost the match 7-11, 9-11, the Spainiard was all praise for her partner.
Now, the biggest hindrance that youngsters like Satwik encounter is the lack of tournaments and match practice. Satwik hopes there is a second tier tournament so as to get optimum exposure.
"It will be a great platform for young players. Here we will get an opportunity to maintain that right amount of match practice, because due to our rankings it is not always possible to play major tournaments," Satwik said.
"Now I just want to focus on my strengths and become the best that I can. I want to build up on my strengths and concentrate on winning a lot of tournaments for the country," he concluded.