PBL: Sridhar to make coaching debut with Awadhe Warriors

Shuttler Anup Sridhar will be making his coaching debut at the Premier Badminton League (PBL) starting on January 2 when he will be in charge of the Awadhe Warriors, it was announced on Wednesday.

"I am honoured to be part of the Awadhe Warriors team and look forward to coach players like Saina Nehwal and the rest. This is my first stint as a coach and I am excited on how things turn out for me. This will be a good platform for me to prove myself as an International coach," 32-year-old Sridhar said in a release.

Known for captaining the Thomas Cup he ended the year 2007 at a rank of 25 and which was followed by rank 24 in 2008, Sridhar is also remembered for his historic win over former World No.1 Taufiq Hidayat.

"Anup has proved himself on the badminton arena as a brilliant player and is known as an extremely versatile player. Hence, getting him on board as a coach was an easy decision because we are looking up to him to showcase the same versatility as a coach as well," Awadhe Warriors director Abhijit Sarkar said.

"We are confident that he will be a huge boost to the entire team and will guide them to the path of victories."

Speaking on this occasion, Badminton Association of India (BAI) president and PBL chairman Akhilesh Das Gupta said: "We are happy for Anup Sridhar and wish him luck for being a successful coach. He has proved himself to be a great player and Awadhe Warriors can learn from his huge experience and put it to play during the League."