‘Not well organised’: Sindhu criticises Asian Games scheduling

Indian badminton star P V Sindhu expressed her disappointment with the scheduling at the Asian Games on Sunday, saying playing three singles matches within 24 hours left little time for recovery.

Sindhu was scheduled to play twice on Saturday, with her third-round match finishing shortly after midnight. She returned to the court on Sunday afternoon for her quarter-final against China’s Chen Yufei, which she lost.

Asked if she had ever experienced such a demanding schedule at a major championship, Sindhu said the arrangement was not ideal.

“Not really, because the scheduling was not really well organised is what I feel,” she said.

“We literally slept really late and then came back in the morning, playing two matches in a day. Recovery is the most important priority.”

Sindhu said that recovering physically was more important than simply preparing mentally for another match so soon.

“It’s more than mentally preparing, you need to recover. Even though you think you are doing good, physically you might not be able to go there or you might not be able to play,” she said.

“When there are long rallies, definitely yes, recovery. When you had a good thing, you would automatically (go) but your legs don’t move.”

Packed schedule

Another Indian shuttler, Unnati Hooda, also voiced concerns about the packed schedule, with several players required to compete more than once in a day.

“I will not blame my loss (in the quarter-finals) to that but the scheduling could have been managed better,” Hooda said.

Asked whether she would compete at the next Asian Games, Sindhu did not commit to a decision, saying she would take her career one step at a time.

“If I have it in me, definitely yes. I just need to stay injury-free. It’s just, what’s next? That’s very important. Step-by-step is important,” she said.

“Yeah, definitely one year at a time. It’s important that I just focus on what’s next. Because you’re not 20 anymore, right? You need to take care of your body, take care of everything.”