Olympics 2012: Saina Nehwal plucky, not just lucky
It may not be the best way to win an Olympic medal but then, thats what
sport is all about. Indian badminton ace Saina Nehwal was taking control of the situation on Centre Court when she heard Wang Xin, her Chinese opponent, crying inconsolably
. The world
No 2 was shaking her head, signalling she
couldnt continue any longer. A minute later, Saina was declared winner by the chair umpire, with score line reading 18-21 0-1
.
The next few minutes saw
some good sportsmanship on the court, with the Indian shuttler giving a big hug to her opponent, before appreciating the huge applause at the Wembley Arena.
The scorecard may not tell the real story because Saina
realised her opponents condition well in the middle of the first set and started
pressing for long rallies. When the score was
11-6 (in Xins favour), I realised she was tired and in pain. So I tried to play long rallies in order to slow down the pace of the game, Saina said.
Saina started in blistering fashion, taking an early lead. But Xin
suddenly upped the pace of the match and forced Saina into a few errors. The result: she was up 14-6 in no time. This was the most crucial phase of the match and Saina,
knowing well that her opponent wasnt in
prime shape, started playing long rallies in her bid to make a comeback. And she
succeeded to an extent.
Even coach P Gopichand admitted that it was
part of the gameplan. It was important for Saina to play
her style of game, which is to play long rallies. The
loss in the semifinal was mainly due to the fact that Saina played
too fast and failed to force the rallies, Gopichand told DNA.
Saina fought back from 9-16 to make it 16-19. And when
she made it 18-20, Xin was
down in pain, clutching her left knee. The
five-minute injury break was just too frustrating for Saina and she lost her momentum by losing the point, and the game
18-21.
Well done Saina & well done Wang Xin. Both deserve hands up.
I have 1 problem from some chinese posters(
some are good). Why they discourage sportsmanship here.