Don't worry coach, I'll forget my pain: Saina Nehwal

Vimal Kumar is known to speak his mind and has always done so with authority mdash as a player chief national coach and later cofounder and director of the Prakash Padukone badminton academy in Bangalore So when he says that Indias badminton ace Saina Nehwal his latest high profile ward can become World No 1 soon one must take him seriouslySaina Nehwal after winning the China Open on Sunday PicAFPWhen Nehwal decided to move away from her longtime coach and former allEngland champion Pullela Gopichand just before the Incheon Asian Games and chose Vimal it raised eyebrowsFor twotime former national champ Vimal however ldquoit was a simple change just like a move in the corporate worldrdquo Change is the key word to Sainas success under Vimal that saw her recently conquer the mighty Chinese in their own den by winning the China Open Super Series In an interview with midday Vimal highlights the significant changes in Sainas approach that can take the World No 5 to the top of the worldExcerptsOn Sainas China Open winIts very creditable and is bound to give Saina confidence because she has been faltering against the Chinese In earlier tournaments in France and Denmark she came very close to beating the Chinese players and had even taken a good lead against them but later lost Physically she is at par with them but tactically the Chinese players hold a slight edge over Saina Its this tactical aspect of her game that we have been trying to improveOn the tactical changesSaina simply needs to outsmart the Chinese players We have been working on some different deceptive shots and shes been encouraged to execute them more often mdash shots from both the net area as well as from the back of the court Saina has a very powerful game and if she can bring in deception more often shell be very tough to beat Secondly Saina likes to play at one pace So we discussed the need for a change in pace And she executed both these tactics beautifully at the China OpenVimal KumarOn the expectations going into the China OpenWhen Saina came down from France I asked her if she wants to go to China straightaway or work a bit more We thought that maybe she could play in tournaments in Hong Kong and Macau But Saina said she was feeling good and said I want to play the Chinese in China But unfortunately on the morning she was leaving for China she had a problem with her toe Her skin had peeled off The physio taped it but it was burning her terribly I was worried but she simply turned around and said dont worry coach When the match begins I will forget all about the pain With that sort of confidence I had no doubt that she would do wellOn Sainas move from Hyderabad to BangaloreIts a slightly different environment here in Bangalore But I think we can proudly say that its had a positive impact on Saina though I would not like to take any credit for her success The one thing that Ive tried to inculcate in Saina is the need to be independent I dont like her to be dependent on anybody for too long Badminton has changed over the last five to six years with coaches shouting instructions from courtside sitting right behind the player I believe this is terribly distraction and have even taken it up with the international federation BWF On court you have to make your own decisions and cannot be looking for outside help The ability to wriggle out of tough situations is the hallmark of a great champion Thats why I want Saina to be independent and even try to avoid traveling with her to tournaments Heres where a player can improve tacticallyOn the elusive World No 1 rankingThe No 1 ranking is a big possibility Currently there are about eight to 10 girls at the highest level who can run Saina very close Its all about playing well on the day Saina is a very demanding girl If she has come here to Bangalore it is with a purpose Currently she is lacking a bit of consistency and needs to maintain her winning ways Im not saying that she will win every tournament she participates in but she is determined to do well and thats why I believe she can be World No 1 in as early as six months from now