After P V Sindhu, who will be the next star in Indian women's badminton?

Women's badminton faces uncertainty due to a shrinking talent pool, lack of quality coaches, and overreliance on Gopichand

Over the past two decades, thousands of parents have embarked on a journey of hope with their daughters. They navigate through the obdurate traffic in Hyderabad’s Gachibowli area, snake past the towering tech hubs in Cyberabad, and finally arrive at the Pullela Gopichand Badminton Academy.

 

This bustling state-of-the-art centre built by Pullela Gopichand, the soft-spoken bona fide Dronacharya of Indian badminton, also fondly known as Gopi sir, is a beacon of aspiration for these parents. This hallowed turf has witnessed the metamorphosis of Saina Nehwal, Jwala Gutta, Ashwini Ponappa, and P V Sindhu from anonymous aspirants into world champions. 

At Gopi’s academy, the dreams and potential of these young girls take flight. This is where the 2001 All England Open Champion has been moulding dreams and giving Indian badminton a steady stream of world-class shuttlers. But, for the first time last year, this supply line of Indian badminton — which has hitherto meticulously engineered champions — is facing a glitch. This disruption is especially glaring among women shuttlers, whose performances and development have faltered in a way that has raised concerns. 

Barren cabinet 

P V Sindhu, Indian women's badminton’s superstar, endured a lacklustre 2024. The 29-year-old lost to Canada’s Michelle Li in the first round of the Arctic Open 2024 BWF Super 500 at Vantaa, Finland. 

At the Paris Olympics in August, she endured her biggest heartbreak of the year when she went down in straight games to China’s He Bing Jiao in the pre-quarterfinals.

 

Nehwal, at 34, has conceded that her career is on its last legs. The 2012 Olympic bronze medallist has been out of mainstream badminton for some time, battling arthritis. “The knee is not very good. I have arthritis. My cartilage has gone to a bad state. It is very difficult to push for eight-nine hours,” Nehwal said on the House of Glory podcast. 

The cabinet in the Indian women shuttlers looks barren. 

Who is the next Sindhu or Saina? 

It is a question that baffles Gopi. There are stars on the horizon, but they appear to be flickering only intermittently. Among them is 23-year-old Malvika Bansod, whose intelligence, nous, and power have heads turning. She was part of the Indian team that won the 2022 Thomas & Uber Cup bronze medal, and her performances at tournaments such as the Spanish Open and Singapore Open show she can compete against top players. 

Complementing Bansod is Aakarshi Kashyap, who has made a steady rise through the ranks through her performances in the BWF World Championships and Asian Games. 

Their talent is evident. But what is missing is the consistency and fitness of Nehwal and Sindhu during their formative years. The world rankings only illustrate the growing cause for concern.  

As of 31 December 2024, there are only two Indian women shuttlers in the world’s top 40: Sindhu (15) and Bansod (32). Japan has eight on this list. 

Finding next Saina, Sindhu 

Finding India’s next Sindhu or Nehwal seems to be an arduous task, far more rigorous than finding the next Indian Idol. And the fault does not lie with Gopi, Prakash Padukone, or Vimal Kumar. 

“For a long time, Indian badminton was centred around Hyderabad and Bengaluru. A talented player from the North-East had little avenues for training. Her parents would be hesitant to send her to Gopi’s academy in Hyderabad or Padukone’s centre in Bengaluru,” a senior sports administrator told Business Standard. 

Last year, the Badminton Association of India (BAI) set up an academy in Guwahati that gave hope to young shuttlers who did not want to leave their homes to train in Bengaluru and Hyderabad. 

But that’s just the start. There is a long way to go to match the aura of Gopi’s nursery. 

Veteran coach Vijaydeep Singh Nita believes a turnaround in women’s badminton is around the corner. “These young girls will need some time to improve their game and inject consistency to close out crucial games,” he explains. 

More importantly, having national camps across the country, and not just in academies run by Gopi or Padukone, will provide an endless supply of talent. Nita concedes that the best way to plug the gap in women’s badminton is by identifying at least 10 players, hone their skills, condition them mentally, and unleash them at major tournaments. 

The future of women’s badminton does not lie in unearthing the next Sindhu, but in creating a pool of talent. By building a squad, India’s chance of medals increases exponentially. This is a sure-shot way to compete against the sport’s superpowers: China, Denmark, Indonesia, and Japan. 

Gaps in coaching 

Though India has witnessed an impressive rise in badminton over the past two decades with the resounding success of Saina, Sindhu, Kidambi Srikanth, Lakshya Sen, and others. thanks to the likes of Gopi and Padukone working indefatigably behind the scenes, the future also lies in unearthing more Gopis and Padukones. 

Parupalli Kashyap, the 2014 Commonwealth Games gold medal winner, who has turned to coaching, bemoans the lack of quality coaches in the country. “Our system of coaching has to develop,” he told Sportskeeda. “We don't have any system for grooming top players and putting them into coaching. So, as a coaching system, we are a failed team, for sure.” 

He however qualified the statement by saying he was trying to be a little harsh there. “But the fact of the matter is that after Gopi Sir, where are the coaches? Who are the coaches? Why haven’t we developed a system? Why are you expecting another coach to be as passionate as Gopi Sir? I am, I know. But one person… the numbers we have in India… one is not enough,” he added. 

In China and Indonesia, top players turn into coaches and pass on their knowledge and expertise to future generations. In India, barring Gopi, Padukone, Vimal, and now Kashyap, few international players take to coaching. 

“We magically want to produce champions with medals around their necks. I have been a national coach for 16 years, and have got little support,” Nita explained. “Indians have this fascination for foreign coaches. They will bring them from abroad and pay lakhs, but will continue to ignore our local coaches.” 

Last month, the BAI made a slew of changes in training methods as India prepares for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. To optimise the performance of players and create a more unified and systematic approach to training, the BAI wants to reduce the culture of personal coaches and shift towards a more centralised training model. The move came in the wake of BAI appointing Malaysian doubles specialist Tan Kim Her to work with the Indian national team. 

Nevertheless, expect more parents to make hopeful journeys with their daughters to Gopi Sir’s academy in the coming year. After all, Gopichand knows a thing or two about the hard work, systematic development, and infra that go into the making of world beaters. 

The ‘next’ tag

Malvika Bansod  The 23-year-old has defeated Sania Nehwal in 2022 and stunned Gregoria Mariska Tunjung in the previous year. The Nagpur girl created buzz after winning the silver medal at the Syed Modi International tournament three seasons ago 

Aakarshi Kashyap  The Bhilai girl won plaudits for her power game. She was selected to be part of the Indian team at the 2018 Asian Games, and then rose through the ranks with her impressive performances in the BWF World Championships and Asian Games 

Tanvi Patri 

Tanvi was introduced to badminton by her father who was working in Shanghai. She was tutored by China’s renowned coach Jiang Yong Yi. The early brush with the Chinese played a significant role in shaping her fortunes