Pullela Gopichand reveals reasons behind Southeast Asia outdoing Europe in badminton

Pullela spoke to ANI in an exclusive interview. A Commonwealth Games and Asian Championships medalist and winner of the prestigious All England Open, he is one of the most decorated Indian shuttlers ever. As a coach, he is also a Dronacharya awardee for contributing to rise of star players like PV Sindhu, Saina Nehwal, Parupalli Kashyap, Kidambi Srikanth among others.

Speaking during the interview, Gopichand said, "Culture is there. Physicalities matter. In tennis, if you're big, if you look at the top guys in tennis, you actually have them very tall, 6'3", 6'4". So luckily for us in badminton, we in this room, both of us or the 10 people outside, most of us can be decent badminton players. Because the physicalities of Indian, Indian physicalities in general fit into a badminton frame. So, we can do well."

"Likewise, the Southeast Asian nations also have a physicality which is pretty okay for badminton. But they not be the best physicalities for a basketball or a sprinter or a javelin thrower or whatever that is. So I think physicalities make a difference and these countries have the physicalities and also the culture of the sport. And they have systems in place," he added.

Speaking on what culture of the sport truly means, Gopichand said that it is about having the right inspirations and systems.

"As a kid, you grow up and say, I aspire to be like a Prakash sir. I aspire to be a Saina Newal. I want to be like a Sindhu. I want to be like Satvik and Chirag. I think that is the culture, the inspiration which comes in, the systems which are there," he said.

"Like I have an academy which is close to my house. I have a coach who is actually there. And if I win, I go to the national team. And if I win, I go internationally and make a move. The pathways are defined. But if you have a sport which is very new, we don't know how to do it, then the guy is not inspired. He might have the talent, the gene, but he is not inspired. We do not have any champions to refer to. That would be the challenge," he concluded.

Coming to the Southeast Asia domination in badminton, in men's singles world rankings, there are three Southeast Asian players, Jonathan Christie (Indonesia), Kunlavut Vitidsarn (Thailand) and Lee Zii Jia (Malaysia) as compared to only two Europeans, Anders Antonsen and Viktor Axelsen (Denmark) in the men's singles top 10. Players from China, Japan, India and Chinese Taipei make the top 10, which are all situated in Asia.

In the women's singles, there are five players from Southeast Asia in the top 10, with no European presence at all. Gregoria Tunjung (Indonesia), Pornpawee Chochuwong, Supanida Katethong, Ratchanok Intanon and Busanan Ongbamrungphan (all Thailand) are the Southeast Asian stars. Rest of the top 10 is made by players from China, Japan and South Korea.

Indonesia is the most successful team in Thomas Cup history, a top men's team badminton championship, with 14 titles. It has also captured three Uber Cup titles, which is a top women's team championship played alongside Thomas Cup, but their success is not much in comparison to China (16 titles) and Japan (six titles).

Indonesia is also having second-highest number of gold medals at BWF World Championships (23), with China (70) at the top. With overall 80 medals, Indonesia is the second-most successful team in BWF World Championships history, followed by China (202).

Indonesia is also a one-time Sudiram Cup winner in 1989, which is a mixed team championship. Southeast Asia nations like Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, along with other countries of Asia, have also been a big part of medal tally at the recent 2023 BWF World Championships and Paris Olympics 2024, with only Denmark (World C'ships silver and bronze, and an Olympics gold) and Spain (one World Championship silver) being able to make an impact as far as European countries are concerned. (ANI)