‘WON’T LET SAINA REGAIN NO 1 RANKING’
SAYS REIGNING OLYMPIC CHAMPION CAROLINA MARIN
NEW DELHI: Carolina Marin has had a tough few months since winning gold at the Rio Games in 2016. Injuries saw her form tail off towards the end of 2016, and earlier this month, her campaign at the All England Championships came to a disappointing end after she lost to Thailand’s Ratchanok Intanon in the quarterfinals.
Marin, however, is eager to put her recent struggles behind her. With the Indian Open starting from Wednesday in New Delhi, and having now recovered from her injuries, the reigning world and Olympic champion is committed to regaining her world number one ranking.
In her quest for the same, Marin is willing to prevent her Indian rival Saina Nehwal from reaching the top spot.
Speaking to HT at a promotional event for La Liga, Marin, who is an ambassador of the Spanish top-division football league, offered her take on Saina’s comeback from a serious knee injury she had sustained at the Rio Games. “We will have to wait and see (whether she can challenge for major titles again),” Marin said, referring to Saina’s comeback and the challenge of returning from a major injury.
“But, of course, I will not allow her to reach the No 1 ranking because I will be fighting for the same,” she added with a smile.
Speaking about her own injuries, Marin said, “It’s hard to be always at the top level. My condition was perfect until the Olympics. After that, I suffered some serious injuries, because of which I couldn’t play many tournaments. Now I am getting better from those injuries. But, of course, when you are playing at the top level, you will have to bear some pain. So you have to take care of your body a lot.”
POPULARITY GROWING
For a long time, badminton had been dominated by players from China. Marin, along with players from India, Japan, Korea, Thailand and other countries have succeeded in ending the Chinese hegemony in recent years. She says it is healthy for badminton.
“I think it’s really important because these players have helped in making badminton more popular around the world.”
Her own achievements, she admitted, have helped in the sport’s growth in Spain. “Football is the most popular sport in Spain, but badminton is now growing in terms of popularity. After I won some titles, everyone knows about badminton in Spain.”
Terming Saina and PV Sindhu as ‘very tough opponents’, Marin said she is happy that badminton at the top level is extremely competitive these days. “The top 10 (in rankings) has players from India as well as other countries from Asia, and I feel all these players are almost at the same level. The gap among the top players is too little,” the Spaniard stated.
The focus will now shift to the Indian Open in New Delhi. Marin, who enjoys significant popularity in India, having played in the Premier Badminton League earlier, said she will be banking on some support from local fans.
“Every tournament is very important for me. The Indian Open is one of them. I want to do my best. I just want to enjoy out there, and I will hopefully have the fans behind me,” she said.