Saina breaks into the top 10

Quietly she has made her way to the top 10. At the start of the year, I did not know who Saina was, but have since then followed her tournaments online. The road will be tougher from here on it but she is aiming for the top 5 and then even the number one. Well done!. And in the news reports and the interviews I have seen, she seems to be dignified about her success and celebrations. Hope endorsements come her way! Perhaps also the Indian sports channels will showcase more of the badminton tournaments featuring her.

Saina Nehwal wins junior title

Seriously, she is young enough to compete in the junior scene! After her excellent performance in the Olympics and other recent tournaments, it is indeed not a surprise to see her excel at this level. Congrats, Saina!.

India Olympics: the racket sports

Badminton:
Did you see Deepika and Prakash Padukone play in a recent match? They seemed to glide across the court. Well I have recently resumed badminton for fun. And I don't seem to glide at all - far from it... ( the court seems so small, but when you play it is exhausting!) But anyway it is good to watch Badminton when the players are good :-) Here are the duo of badminton olympians from India.

Anup Sridhar: Anup is a 25 year old player from Bangalore with a career best rank of 24. Anup has his website, and trains at Tata Padukone academy. And he blogs as well. He has beaten the world number one and gold medalist at previous Olympics, so don't rule out a surprise showing.

Saina Nehwal: At 18, she is one of the bright starts of the future, and comes from a family where both parents are state champions. A Mittal trust athlete, she has recently broken into the top 20 in world rankings. She is also the brand ambassador for the Save the Girl Child campaign, - thats the way it should be!


Tennis:
My tennis stints, once every 5 years or so, are worse than badminton - It seems a futile attempt with me spending more time picking up the balls rather than playing. Anyways, our tennis stars need no introduction, so will just link to their wiki pages. While you are watching the "must see" Nadal - Federer match, don't forget to root for your bronze medalist, and grand slam doubles champions. Surprises are possible!

Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes: Doubles
Sania Mirza and Sunita Rao: Doubles
Sania Mirza: Singles


Table Tennis:
Love this fast paced game - and you guessed right - below average in this as well. India is going to be represented by these two stars.

Achanta Sharath Kamal: Singles - 26 year old from Tamil Nadu is an Arjuna award winner and a commonwealth gold medalist. He resides in Chennai and for the info of fellow chennaites, he is an alumni of PSBB and Loyola. And an A.R. Rehman fan who plays the guitar, his target is 2012 Olympics. Currently ranked 79, it may be tough to expect a medal, but you never know.


Neha Agarwal: Neha is a Delhi girl, is a newcomer, who’s surprised one and all with her unexpected qualification according to this report. Barely 18, from DPS, she probably hopes to win a match or two. Another bright star for the future perhaps?

BTW, if you find any press article in the next day or so with the player profiles, let me know - as I am running out of patience, and would just love to read and link it:-)

Saina Nehwal - Badminton

Another Olympic prospect to keep in mind and root for. I am dismayed at my own lack of awareness of Indian sports stars in other fields - but it is easy to miss a 2 line bulletin in the newspaper. So yours truly is highlighting another star who is now world number 18 in badminton. Saina, like Sania also trains in Hyderabad and is only 18. So here is another badminton star to support after Prakash Padukone (now better known as Deepika's father).