P.V. Sindhu hopes to channel fresh optimism, vintage dominance as she begins season at India Open

NEW DELHI

There was something different about PV Sindhu. While the rest of her compatriots at the pre-tournament press conference of the India Open World tour 750 on Monday came in regulation track suits and pants, the double Olympic medallist came in a glossy black faux leather kit with the words PVMA in striking red and white piping. Even her sneakers had a unique touch – the aglets of her laces tipped with a tiny metallic racquet.

All of this was part of a makeover for Sindhu who joined sporting good giant Puma on Monday. The brand even tweaked its iconic logo with Sindhu’s initials to announce her signing. While this new-look Sindhu caught everyone’s attention, fans of the sport will hope for a vintage Sindhu performance when she kicks off her 2025 season at the India Open in Delhi this week.

While she might still have the big endorsements, 2024 was a sign that the powers that made her a two time Olympic medallist and a world champion were slowly but surely on the wane. The final year of her third Olympic cycle was the weakest of her career as a win loss record of 26-15 would suggest. For only the second time since 2015 she would fail to medal at the world level — losing in the quarterfinals of the Olympics — and would only win the one tournament, at the relatively weakly contested Syed Modi competition. She’s fallen outside the top 10 and enters the India Open ranked 14th in the world.

ALSO READ | Satwik-Chirag working on defence after reuniting with coach Tan Kim Her

2024 has been a churn in more ways than one. She’s gone through a revolving door line up of coaches. She started off the year with coach Park Tae Sung in her corner. He was replaced by Malaysia’s Hafiz Hashim. He then made way for Indonesia’s Agus Dwi Santoso who in turn was followed by Anup Sridhar and Lee Hyun-il of South Korea. After the Syed Modi competition in November, Sindhu got married and took a break from the circuit.

Now she’s back and with a new coach in tow.

Sindhu has enlisted the services of seasoned badminton coach Irwansyah, but there’s a slight difference from her previous engagements. The Indonesian, who has previously coached Olympic bronze medallist Anthony Ginting and Asian Games gold medallist Jonatan Christie, isn’t going to be working exclusively with Sindhu. He will be working with the Indian women’s players as part of the national camp in Bengaluru – one that Sindhu will be a part of.

Sindhu is excited about taking on the relative unknowns.

“I think it will be good for both me and the group. At the same time there are a lot of young men’s players at the national camp so I will be getting good sparring practice with them as well,” she said.

ALSO READ | India Open 2025: Preview, Indians in action, live streaming info, when and where to watch

“It’s very important to have the right bond between the coach and athlete and although it’s only been two weeks that I have been training with him, I am looking forward to making that bond,” she said of Irwansyah. “I’ve only heard good things about him and I think he is the right coach for me. The way he thinks and approaches opponents is really good. We haven’t spoken that much. But we will be talking much more in the future,” she added.

Sindhu is in no rush to see results. Her slow start to the year where she skipped the Malaysia Open only underlines that sentiment.

“After the Syed Modi competition, I took a break because I got married. And I didn’t want to take part in the Malaysia Open right away. I wanted to be 100 percent ready when I got back on the court. There’s no point in returning when I was only 50 percent ready,” she explained.

If Sindhu could take her time to decide when to come back, it’s because she’s earned that right. “(The next Olympics) are a long time from now. My most important goal is to stay injury free. I have to be at my 100 percent. I think this season I will have to choose where I want to play. I know that there are back-to-back tournaments (on the BWF calendar) but I can’t play when I am at 50 percent. My coach and I are on the same page about this,” she said.

“I am completely fine and feeling good. It is the start of a new year and that means new goals. I hope this year will be good and injury free for me.”

Sindhu has her task cut out for her. Once one of the youngest players on the international circuit, she’s now one of the most senior. That comes with its own challenges.

“There’s going to be a new set of players. They have very new skill sets. I’ve played (for) so many years that they all know my game and (can) anticipate what I’m going to do. It’s important for me to strategise. I need to find a way to maintain my speed and power,” she told reporters in the national capital.

While the past year hasn’t been very encouraging and things will only get harder in a fourth Olympic cycle, the Indian isn’t planning on giving up any time soon.

“I might have medalled at every tournament but there are still goals that I want to accomplish. I definitely want another medal at the world championships. I also have medals at the World Tour finals but every time I go on court, I want to win those tournaments again. I feel I have a lot more to achieve. I have that fire in me. I know I can achieve it. It’s a matter of time and about getting back into rhythm,” Sindhu declared.