BAI shortlists top former players for coaching roles

Clamour around having former players in the national coaching set-up is common across Indian sports and the Badminton Association of India, for one, is hoping to solve a multitude of issues by bringing them formally into the system.

The BAI has shortlisted 10-11 top players interested in coaching and sent their names for approval to the Sports Authority of India, likely to be finalised over the next fortnight. Once cleared, the players – some of whom are already coaching in their personal capacities – will be associated with the foreign coaches for a minimum of three-four years.

“We received around 50 applications which shows interest in coaching. Once SAI approves, they will be attached to our top foreign coaches across categories – Tan Kim Her, Irwansyah Adi Pratama, Dwi Kristiawan among others – to get a better understanding. It is important to not only develop a pool of good Indian coaches but also to incentivise players to get into coaching as a career,” BAI general secretary Sanjay Mishra said during an interaction with select media here on Tuesday.

Getting them formally on board will also ensure competitive remuneration, a recurring complaint among Indian coaches. At the same time, the BAI is hoping it will encourage youngsters to join its group training programme instead of working individually.

“To be honest, a lot of youngsters felt that a top coach was more focused on the star players and felt ignored or left out, making them return to their bases. Having top Indian coaches around will hopefully ensure that doesn’t happen. At the same time, the final decision will be with the players, we cannot force anyone,” Mishra admitted.

The federation is also hoping that having top former players around will help the Indians get better with their skills. “Nothing against anyone but a lot of foreign coaches come from systems that encourage physical play and endurance. The Indian skills of deception and stroke play that players like Prakash sir had is slowly dying out. We hope to revive them,” Mishra added.

IG Stadium to host World Championships?

He also revealed that the Indira Gandhi indoor stadium will host the prestigious badminton World Championships in August next year subject to clearance from the World Body when its representatives come visiting in June.

While an official decision will be made later, the BWF officials will be visiting the National Centre of Excellence in Guwahati on June 9-10 to assess preparations for the upcoming World Junior Championships before travelling to Delhi for the next two days. The city hosted the India Open earlier this year but questions were raised on the conditions and facilities at the KD Jadhav Hall inside the IG Complex.

“We are aware of the challenges but the sports ministry and SAI have promised complete support. We also believe that the IGI stadium is in a better shape than the KDJ Hall. As for the pollution part, the event is in August which makes it easier. But of course, everything depends on the BWF report but we are optimistic,” Mishra hoped.