Pullela Gopichand underscores importance of blocking 'outside noise' for athletes

With the rise of social media, fans have become more vocal about their views on the performance and results of players across all sports disciplines. India shuttlers have been at the receiving end of criticism since returning empty-handed from the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Recently, India stalwart Virat Kohli underscored the importance of keeping outside noise away after blazing his way to a record-extending 51st ODI century against arch-rival Pakistan in the ongoing Champions Trophy.

In a scenario where players are exposed to criticism for each performance and result, Gopichand emphasized the importance of blocking out the outside noise and having self-belief.

"It's very important. For me, I don't have Instagram or Twitter or any of those on my phone.. So even I get affected by it and I don't want negativity. I just want to focus on the things which I'm doing. So even I don't want. And when I was a player, I was supremely vigilant about having negative thoughts around me. I would block people off because I think you have to believe that you're going to do it. Even if the whole world thinks that you're not going to make it, you have to not believe, you have to know that you're going to do it. And that's the entire story about it. And nobody is going to believe it, but you have to believe it," Gopichand said in an exclusive interview with ANI.

Gopichand took a trip down memory lane and reminisced how he used to let his racket silence his critics instead of using his words.

"It's very important that you cut out all the noises. You might be lucky with a few players who can manage the noise, but I am not one of them and I would completely block it and I'm saying 'I don't care'. My racket will do the talking and I will not...So I have followed that in my journey as a player and as a coach and so you would rarely see me make a statement and this is probably the first time in 20 years that I've," he added.

Notably, Gopichand is the second Indian to win the All England Open Badminton Championships. After the end of his playing days ended, he coached Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu to their Olympic medals.

Gopichand, who won five Indian national championships in a row, also went on to talk about his diet and the training routine he followed during his playing days.

"Well, I've been crazy. I've tried every possible thing in terms of training and diet. And if I knew something, I would always try it and then follow it. So initially, when we were playing, it was about good food and enough food. That is what the '90s was about. But what it actually did is when I stopped playing, I was allergic. I had inflammation. I had lots of issues with my health. So I had to back down. My sugars were starting to get high. And so I had to try out different things. Because back in the day, carb loading was the thing. And we just would load ourselves before matches with carbohydrates and sugars. And that was not the healthiest way," he said.

"But back in the day, that is what was thought about. But later, I had athletes who were struggling. So for them, I tried different things. I was keto. I was paleo. I was a vegetarian. I was lactate, non-lactate. All of that stuff I've done. I've been... Intermittent fasting, if that's the word, has been a lifestyle from almost 2011 onwards. Okay. And I like to eat, when I'm eating, I want to eat a full meal and I'm happy. So, I go back and do a normal good Indian meal with, I have two lovely cows. I think A2 milk is great, A2 curds are good and our Indian desi cows are fantastic. So I really love them. And I have them and luckily for me over time. Keto worked. Initially, it worked. But to sustain a keto diet, when you're not the most important person of the family, because kids are growing up and their demands or their diet is important. So I just do a normal. I'm not so fussy about it," he added. (ANI)