Saina, Carolina frown at calendar
NEWDELHI: Saina Nehwal and Carolina Marin have had an intense rivalry on the badminton court over the years, but the two former top-ranked shuttlers were on the same page on Wednesday, criticising the Badminton World Federation (BWF) for the crammed 2018 calendar. Both Saina and Carolina believe the packed calendar will leave hardly any time for the players to recover from injuries or be at their best in important tournaments.
“The current fixture list is too gruelling for the badminton players. World Championships take half your energy, and if you have a big tournament lined up in just two weeks, you are challenging yourself mentally and physically. If someone is nursing an injury, there is no time for the player to recuperate,” Saina told Hindustan Times on the sidelines of the Premier Badminton League official press conference.
“I believe badminton should follow the tennis model where you have 4-5 Grand Slam-like tournaments in a year with big money and big exposure. That will allow the players to stay fit and give their hundred per cent in every game,” the Awadhe Warriors marquee women’s singles player added.
According to BWF rules, it is mandatory for top shuttlers in all divisions to play at least 12 tournaments in a revamped schedule for 2018. As a result, the gap between top tournaments has shrunk. With the 2018 Commonwealth Games and Asian Games in the mix, most players will hardly get time to recover.
Carolina Marin, the Spanish Olympic champion and former
world No 1, who will play for Hyderabad Hunters in the PBL, echoed Saina’s sentiments. She said no player can maintain her dominance throughout the year because of the sheer number of matches scheduled within a short span of time.
“The schedule next year is going to be crazy. After PBL (Dec 23-Jan 14), we will have three tournaments, and during the season we will have so many tournaments. It would be tough for all and that is why it is really difficult for a player to be at the top consistently,” Marin told Hindustan Times.
The statement accurately reflects the concerns of the players if one goes by the Superseries and Superseries Premier tournaments of 2017. The seven Superseries and six Superseries Premier events produced seven different women’s singles winners with the Taiwanese world No 1 Tai Tzu-ying the only player to win more than two titles.