On the 2nd day of the Tokyo 2021 Olympics,25th of July, stunning Indian badminton player PV Sindhu commences her journey with a victory over the 58th ranked player Ksenia Polikarpova of Israel, in women’s singles.
PV Sindhu led the whole match with style.
In the first game, Polikarpova gave her a tough fight at the beginning. Sindhu was found lagging briefly at 3-4. Both the players kept it tight till 5-5. From there PV Sindhu played fiercely making it 11-5 taking the lead. Polikarpova won her next point only when PV Sindhu had reached 19, making it 19-6.
Still, Polikarpova could not reach even close to Sindhu when it was 21-7 when the game ended Sindhu winning it.
In the second game, Sindhu gained 2 when Polikarpova was still 0. From there they took it to 11-4. Sindhu stayed steady the whole time making a win against 21-10 comfortably.
Polikarpova of Israel deserves appreciation and respect, as she decided and continued to play in spite of having a strapped injured leg.
“Even though it was an easy first match I didn’t take it in an easy way. It wasn’t like I wasn’t prepared. Every time, it is very important to be focused and be prepared for every single point in every single match,” Sindhu said after the match.
PV Sindhu, world number 7 will be playing next with Hong Kong’s world number 34 Cheung Ngan Yi.
The Olympics is not being held the usual way due to the pandemic, there is no crowd, no audience to cheer. Like every other player, Sindhu misses the crowd too.
“I’m sure I’m going to miss the crowd and spectators but I’m sure everybody (back home) is giving me that support and showing me their love and hoping for the best to happen,” says Sindhu.
Being 26 years old she is the first Indian to become the badminton world champion and the first Indian woman to earn an Olympic silver medal, she is an asset to the nation.
She was awarded the sports honor- Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, India’s 4th highest civilian award-Padma Shri, also with the third-highest civilian award in India, Padma Bhushan.
“I know that I have worked hard and given all my heart all of these years and I think it’s time to show now. I’ve been working on my aggression and my technique and you will definitely see a different Sindhu,” says Sindhu.
Being able to achieve such heights at 26 is a motivation to all youngsters of our country. She gives short and motivations sentences, like once she said
“We just need to focus on what will help us to rise up after every pause or setback. Take a moment, just pause, reset, and bounce back stronger”.
While waiting for the upcoming games, let’s hope that Sindhu will continue to make us proud.