Vol. 2. N

o. 6 April -

May 2010

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April - May 2010GUTS - A Window into World Badminton>2

It might eventually not amount to much, but to those looking for generational change, this years World Junior Championships that concluded at Guadalajara,Mexico in April offered some signs. There were no Chinese in the men’s singles beyond the quarterfinal stage; two Indians – Sai Praneet and HS Prannoy – made the semis, and the title was taken by Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen. This was the first time Europe laid claim to the men’s singles title. In fact, since the World Juniors started in 1992, this was only the second time that a non-Chinese has taken the men’s singles gold!

“Everybody’s now equal,” said Sai Praneet. “I didn’t notice anything special among the Chinese. Huang Yuxiang, the top seed, was a bit different, but he was beaten in the quarterfinals by Viktor Axelsen.”

Praneet was exceptional through the tournament – shouldering singles and doubles responsibilities for the team event and the individual. “There were a lot of matches,” he conceded. “I was quite tired by the time I made the men’s singles semifinals. I’m satisfied with my performance, but I would have been happier if I had won. I beat Axelsen in the team event – he could not catch my strokes, but when we met again in the individual semis, he started catching my strokes early. He’s also tall and has steep smashes. It was close in the third game.”

India might have ended 9th in the team event, but there were within a point or two

Promise aplentyIndia’s exceptional performance in the World Juniors was perhaps an indicator of a generational shift

of finishing much higher. In 20 matches, they lost just four – whipping USA (5-0), Singapore (3-1), Hong Kong (3-0) and England (3-0) – but it was the second tie, against Denmark, that made all the difference. It was an agonisingly close battle. India went 2-0 courtesy Pranav Chopra/ Prajakta Sawant (mixed doubles) and Sai Praneet, who beat Viktor Axelsen 21-15 5-21 21-19. The next three matches too were close – PV Sindhu fell 16-21 21-16 21-16 to Mette Poulsen; Praneet/ Pranav were edged out 23-25 21-17 21-18 by Rasmus Fladberg/ Kim Astrup, and Prajakta/ Sindhu to Line K/ Sandra-Maria Jensen 21-13 17-21 23-21.

India were competitive too in the individual event that followed. Apart from semifinal performances by Praneet and Prannoy, the men’s doubles pair of Praneet/ Pranav Chopra made the quarterfinals, as did PV Sindhu, while Pranav Chopra/ Prajakta Sawant reached the fourth round of the mixed doubles. Sindhu was on top against eventual winner Suo Di, who was so tired in the third game she earned a yellow card for time-wasting (21-13, 17-21, 15-21).

Prannoy put out the second Chinese in the draw, Liu Kai. “It was a long match,” saidPrannoy. “He’s not a typical Chinese. He was quite deceptive, and the match had a lot of half-smashes and rallies. I won because I was fit. But in the semifinals I played the Korean (Kang Ji Wook), who is essentially a doubles player. He was very fast. He didn’t allow me to play my game. He planned it very well. I was playing the dribble very well, but he killed it a couple of times and I couldn’t dominate the net from then.”

What does India’s results mean in the long term? It’s too early to say if the performance in the juniors will automatically translate to excellence in the seniors, but it’s a great start. Several of China’s current champions – Chen Jin, Chen Long, Wang Lin, Wang Yihan, Jiang Yanjiao – were World Junior champions as well. As national coach Gopichand said: “They (India) played exceptionally well. You’re competing against the whole of the Chinese and Indonesian set-up.” One hopes that the next generation of Indian badminton players will not be hampered by the hang-ups that have dogged their predecessors.

Be imaginativeThe excellent performance of the Indians at the World Junior Championships was the outcome of systematic training and exposure, and the BAI and coach Gopichand can justifiably take pride in these results.

The gains no doubt were due to systemic processes. Two years ago, BAI sent a bunch of 10 players (five boys and five girls) to Indonesia for two separate one-month stints. Many of the players who performed in the championships were part of those camps – Sai Praneet, HS Prannoy, Pranav Chopra and Prajakta Sawant.

The last two years saw a lot of Indian players being sent to international tournaments. Junior players were given ample opportunities to compete internationally. The BAI has been criticised in the past – and with good reason – but it can be credited with a few accomplishments, like bringing the World Championships to Hyderabad last year, which have brought top-quality badminton to India. Now, with the India Open becoming a Super Series event, it will further advance the progress of the sport in this country.

Some measures have definitely worked – like the appointment of the two Indonesian coaches with the Indian camps, and the camps for the juniors. This year, BAI is conducting 40-day camps for U-19, U-16 and U-13 players at Lucknow, Pune and Jaipur respectively.

While we acknowledge these efforts, we can see that much more needs to be done to stimulate overall progress. A look at the national team reveals that it has options in the men’s singles – but in the rest of the events, we do not have sufficient back-up. We need breadth and depth. Outside a few urban centres, the game is still in torpor. Top coaches have to be sent to state centres and clinics organised for state coaches and players. Perhaps we can seek the expertise of more Indonesian, Chinese or Danish coaches. The domestic circuit over the last few years has been a mess. While top players were getting plenty of opportunities, second string players had no avenues to prove themselves. We need at least one senior national tournament a month. Many organizers are hesitant to conduct tournaments because top national players are unavailable due to international commitments. Some solution will have to be found to address the concerns of organisers.

Editorial

Sai Praneet

A young prodigy versus an acknowledged great -- the Badminton Asia Championships couldn't have had a more appropriate match-up for the men's singles final. This might be the first of many such encounters, and if Wang Zhengming fulfils his potential as China's next big name after Lin Dan, those who watched the match might well remember they were witnesses to a special moment.

Neither the scorching weather, nor the incomplete stadium, could dampen the appetite of crowd, which turned up in respectable numbers on the last two days. The draw was shorn of several big names, but so what? A new line of Chinese youngsters was up for display, and they're as formidable as everybody feared. Then of course there was Lin Dan, the most accomplished player in history, and so focussed was he that he refused to speak a word to the media until he'd reached the final. The Asian title was the one missing from his crowded cabinet, for he has three World Championships, four All Englands, and an Olympic gold, apart from a vast collection of Super Series titles.

Let us pause to marvel at him. Let us marvel

An event to savourApril - May 2010 GUTS - A Window into World Badminton >3

that such a man should be amongst us, in this era. Much has been said of Roger Federer and Michael Schumacher and Lance Armstrong; little has been said of Lin Dan. He belongs to that very exclusive club, the league of all-time sporting greats. Even Federer had a nemesis for a while, Nadal. Lin Dan has no one in his league in terms of consistency. He won the Asian title with the same ease that he won the Olympics two years ago.

The Asian Championship was once a coveted title, but not so in recent years. Most nations took the opportunity to send in their young players, to prepare them for bigger battles ahead. China sent a bunch of rookies, and so did Korea and Malaysia, to a lesser extent. Only the men's singles had some top players, and it was thus a good opportunity for India to prove themselves in other events. They didn't quite measure up.

Saina Nehwal was undone by the relentless pace of a Chinese youngster who put to use all that has been studied of the Indian's game, while V Diju/ Jwala Gutta and Rupesh Kumar/ Sanave Thomas

were competitive in the early part of their quarterfinals before fading late into the match. Aditi Mutatkar fought intelligently, and with heart, and so did P Kashyap in the singles. The lacklustre results, except for Saina's bronze medal, exposed the lack of depth in the Indian team even in such a weak field.

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Winners: MD Kavyashree; Deepak; Vivek; Sripoorna Purohit

Left: Wang Zhengming and Lin Dan and (above) Li Xuerui, who won the women's singles title

April - May 2010GUTS - A Window into World Badminton

When the draws were out we knew it was going to be tough to qualify for the finals. But then a few of us who had played in the earlier Uber Cup prelims thought if we gave our best it was not impossible, as we were close to qualifying in the last Uber Cup. It was like we were at the border but couldn’t cross it.

All of us were confident when we went to Nakhonratchasima, Thailand, as we didn’t have anything to lose but a lot to gain as we would be qualifying for the first time. Our first win against Hong Kong was very creditable. Saina beat Zhou Mi for the first time. This was a good start for motivating the rest of us. Everyone played with confidence and with the urge to win the tie. After winning this tie we all decided we were not going to look back and started thinking of winning all the ties thereon.

We used to meet up everyday before the tie and discuss and plan the strategies for the matches. There was a lot of unity among the players which helped us to qualify and everybody was ready to help each other in every possible way. We would try having all the meals together and hang around together which really develops team spirit.

We lost the next tie against Japan but everyone did put up a great show. We did have a chance to win this tie.

The most important and the deciding group match was against Chinese Taipei. All of us were really geared up and waiting to

India turned in one of the most memorable team campaigns in its history when the men’s and women’s teams qualified for the Thomas and Uber Cup final rounds, after finishing within the top four at the Asian Zone preliminary round (Feb 22-28) in Nakhonratchasima, Thailand. It was an inspired team effort – and although the principal characters were Chetan Anand and Saina Nehwal, who each led admirably – every other member of the team pulled his or her weight. Both teams showed grit and that enabled them to squeeze out of

The road to Kuala Lumpur

Indians show heart in successful campaign

>4

play them. We knew that this was the best chance we would ever get to qualify for the finals. Everyone played exceptionally well. Saina beat Chen Hsiao Huan, but Shruti and Aparna lost the first doubles. Then Sayali had a good win against Hung Shih Han (15-21, 21-10, 23-21) and that was followed by Jwala/ Ashwini who won their second doubles and ensured a 3-2 win. It was such an amazing moment for the Indian team. We were all happy and excited and ran on the courts after we won the tie. We had been cheering the team members at the top of our voices, but at the same time we still had another two important matches to go as we had entered the knock-out semifinal stage.

We were pitted against the Indonesian team in the semifinals against whom we lost 3-0.

The exciting match was against Japan for the third place. Saina playing Ai Goto as she has always been comfortable and me playing Yu Hirayama. Both of us won our matches, but we eventually lost the tie 2-3 and were the fourth team from the Asian Zone.

We were all excited but at the same time were tense as we had to wait to see if we were better than the fourth team from the European zone as only one team would go ahead for the finals to be held in Malaysia. It was one of our happiest moments team when it was declared that we had qualified for the finals and were going to Malaysia.

TRUPTI MURGUNDE, one of those responsible for guiding India to the Uber Cup final round for the first time, shares her experiences at the Asian Zone preliminaries in Nakhonratchasima, Thailand

tight corners and ensure that, for the first time in the current format, India’s women team will play alongside the men at the final rounds in Kuala Lumpur in May.

Meanwhile, Indonesia (Thomas Cup) and Korea (Uber Cup) won the Asian Zone finals with identical 3-2 margins over Korea and Indonesia respectively.

Results (Asian Zone preliminaries)

Uber Cup: Group Y: India bt Hong Kong 3-2; Japan bt India 4-1; India bt Philippines 5-0; India bt Chinese Taipei 3-2

Thomas Cup: Group C: India bt Sri Lanka 5-0; India bt Cambodia 5-0; India bt Thailand 3-2; India bt Vietnam 3-0

Thomas Cup: Semifinals: Korea bt India 3-1; Indonesia bt Japan 3-0

3rd place: India bt Japan 3-2; 1st place: Indonesia bt Korea 3-2

Uber Cup: Indonesia bt India 3-0; Korea bt Japan 3-1

3rd place: Japan bt India 3-2; 1st place: Korea bt Indonesia 3-2

April - May 2010 GUTS - A Window into World Badminton >5

Kuala Lumpur: With China’s dominance and depth in women’s badminton over the last decade, it is a rarity to see the Uber Cup final going down the wire. Not that it did at the 2010 Uber Cup final either, as Korea turned the tables on the defending champions, but the underdogs did it in just three matches to one.

China had wonderful finesse but Korea had beautiful spirit. The last time such a pulsating affair was witnessed at a Uber Cup final was in 1998 when China edged out defending champions Indonesia. Ever since, China has won six consecutive Uber Cup titles.

So it has come full circle. Korea beat the defending champions against all odds. China’s Uber team has a glittering cast of two world number ones and two world number twos, but as seen in the Thomas Cup semifinal between Malaysia and China, world rankings sometimes mean nothing.

Defying statistics, world no.16 Bae Seung Hee drew first blood for Korea with a well-planned 22-20, 21-10 victory over world no.1 Wang Yihan. Wang, who was defeated by another Bae (Youn Joo) of Korea at the Malaysia Super Series in January, is clearly still under the ‘Bae’ curse.

In fact, the athletic Bae Seung Hee has of late been a threat to the lanky Chinese. Their previous exchanges have always stretched to tiebreakers but the Chinese has always sneaked the win, but in the final, Bae outran Wang Yihan and totally exposed the Chinese ace’s weaknesses in her slow

The Titanic in badminton was sunk. Korea stopped China from claiming their 7th consecutive Uber Cup, creating one of the biggest upsets in history. Badzine's JAN LIN and OOI EE LYN report

sink mightyChinesearmada

reaction time in backhand recovery and awkward movements in collecting forehand pushes.

Bae, who had only made a return to the national team in late 2008, said after the win: “I didn't have any pressure and only played to enjoy the game. Players always have a lot of pressure in big events like this, especially the first singles. I guess I overcame the pressure better than Wang Yihan.”

Korea quickly doubled the lead through the scratch partnership of Lee Hyo Jung /Kim

Min Jung. The last time the two badminton powerhouses met in the Uber Cup final was in 2004 where Korea picked up the sole point through Lee Hyo Jung’s doubles. Lee Hyo Jung, then 23 years old, teamed up with Hwang Yu Mi to defeat China’s top pair Yang Wei / Zhang Jiewen in straight games.

Despite both Lee Hyo Jung and Kim Min Jung’s poor record against Ma Jin /Wang Xiaoli, they defied all odds just as Bae Seung Hee did. Lee /Kim executed a smart game plan that dismantled China’s world no.1 pair Ma Jin /Wang Xiaoli 18-21, 21-12, 21-15.

“We felt comfortable walking into the hall today. China's a good team and we came here to learn,” said Kim, who was obviously not banking on bringing back a point.

Korea continued to provide the thrills and spills as 18-year-old Sung Ji Hyun, daughter of the famous badminton couple Kim Yun Ja and Sung Han Kook, gave Wang Xin a good run for her money. An ever-so-

confident Wang captured the first set 21-14, but a spirited Sung stole the second 21-16 before conceding the tiebreaker 7-21 to an even more spirited Wang.

“Although we were losing, I had no pressure,” said Wang. “I only wanted to do my best and there was only my opponent in my eyes. I believed in myself. I know we were both tired. I just tried to keep on.”

Korea then sealed the deal through the second doubles pair of Lee Kyung Won /Ha Jung Eun, whose gutsy display earned them a deserving 19-21, 21-14, 21-19 victory over China’s reigning Olympic champions Du Jing /Yu Yang. It was sweet revenge for Lee Kyung Won, who had teamed up with former partner Lee Hyo Jung at the 2008 Olympic Games, where they lost the gold to Du/Yu.

Korea’s head coach Kim Joong Soo said: “Our players and coaches got together and said that we should beat China this time. I’m really happy with our performance. We took care of each other and everything went smooth. I know that Li Yongbo has always said that they will beat us and I’m used to it. China underestimated us. I guess we just didn't bother about their comments and did our best.”

Li Yongbo pointed out that this Chinese team was young with most of the cast making their Uber Cup debut. “This defeat will definitely allow us to see more of our weaknesses. We will do better and hope to win the Cup back next time. This is what sport is all about,” he said.

Korea

Uber Cup

‘Saina is an inspiration to all of us’April - May 2010GUTS - A Window into World Badminton>6

PC THULASI, the 18-year-old from Kerala, is one of the most promising prospects in the singles. Her attacking style is unusual for an Indian girl, and she has managed to rise up the ranks in quick time. The 2009 national runner-up tracks her journey so far with TR Balachandran of GUTS

Early badminton memories

I remember hitting the shuttle with my friends in Palakkad (district of Kerala). I was good in sprints and long jump in school. I started playing indoors at the Railway Institute court when I was in the third standard, and came second in the district championships in the under-10 category.

Turning point

Mohanachandran Sir took a 10-day coaching camp in Palakkad. I was eight. He told my father that I had spirit and keenness and would become a good player if trained properly.Then on, my father would take me to either Thrissur to train under Mohanachandran Sir or to Kozhikode to train under Nasser Sir whenever there were holidays. Finally, when I was 12, my father rented out our house in Palakkad to move to Thrissur to train under Mohanachandran Sir.

Training in Thrissur

We trained at the Stadium, with several

older and better boys and girls. Playing against such players helped me a great deal. Systematic physical training also helped me develop my footwork, speed and endurance. On the other hand, the stadium would be closed for several days due to functions, marriages, etc. The lighting was poor, flooring slippery and the number of shuttles limited. Looking back, I feel that all those things helped me adjust to any kind of playing conditions later on.

National experience

Mohanachandran Sir had advised my father to make me participate in as many tournaments as possible. Though finances were a problem, he took me to All India Junior ranking tournaments even when I was in the U-10 category. That year I won the U-10 Kerala State Championship.

I owe a lot to my family, they have sacrificed a great deal so that I could afford a shuttle for my daily practice.

(Thulasi’s father Prashanthan: My job in

Apex Pharmaceuticals gives me limited resources

in funding Thulasi’s career. Here, I got help from

Balettan, Aparna Balan’s father. He would take

Thulasi around along with his daughter. Suresh

Thomas, Daya Elsa Jacob’s father, too helped us

the same way in escorting Thulasi to tournaments.)

First major win at National level

I won my first U-13 national level title in the All India Junior Ranking Tournament in Vadodara. I followed it up by winning a double crown in the Mini Nationals in Chandigarh winning the U-13 singles and doubles. The same year I had won a triple crown in the Kerala State Championships, winning the U-13 singles, doubles and the U-16 singles.

First international trip

I was selected to represent India in the Asian Sub-Junior Championships in China in 2006. Everything was new to me, the foreign travel, passport, foreign

food, players etc. Thanks to coach Vinod Narayan, we did not have a problem. I played a tough three setter against a Malaysian in the first round and lost.

Experience at training camps

In 2005, I spent one month at the Padukone Academy in Bangalore. It gave me an opportunity to train and with some of the top women players of the country. I have been part of the Commonwealth Games 2010 Elite Group since 2007 and have been playing at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium and Gopichand Academy.

I spent a month each, twice in 2008, at the Tangkas Club, Jakarta. Those two stints under former Indonesian international Hendry Saputra improved my strength and speed considerably. Another thing I noted there was the complete commitment of the trainees who would give their all whether the coach was present or not.

High points of my career so far

Winning the Youth Commonwealth Team Gold, the Junior Girls’ doubles gold and the World Junior Team Championship bronze were the high points of my junior career. Reaching the women’s singles final at the Sr. National Badminton Championships in Indore in 2009. I started off without any expectations. But, when I beat top seed Neha in the first round, I slowly started growing in confidence. I won three tough matches against Trupti Lavanya, Sikky and Mudra to reach the final. I think I was a little too satisfied by the time I reached my final against Sayali. I lost in three games.

Most memorable match

The three-setter which I won against Sayali Gokhale in the NAL All India Senior Ranking Tournament in Bangalore in December 2009. The match lasted 1 hour and 20 minutes and both of us were exhausted. Vimal (Kumar) Sir said the pace of the match was very good. Sayali held two match points in the third set but I saved them both to win 24-22 in the end. It gave me a lot of confidence.

Saina Nehwal She is an inspiration to all of us due to her stunning wins at the highest level. Her on-court work ethic and refusal to accept defeat even while playing practice matches are something we youngsters have to imbibe.

Goals I hope to secure a good job soon so that I can take the load off my family as far as my playing and traveling expenses are

concerned. I am currently on a scholarship with ONGC and they have offered me a regular job soon. On court, to win the senior national title and an Olympic medal for India.

Favourite player Zhang Ning of China. This two-time Olympic gold medalist has a great style and I admire her grit in having won her second Olympic gold at the age of 30,

beating many younger players.

Favourite coaches Mohanachandran Sir for having identified my potential at a very young age. He has been my guiding force till date, ironing out flaws in all matters of the game. I’m also thankful to the other coaches I have worked with: Vimal Kumar, Pullela Gopichand, Hadi Idris, Bhaskar Babu and others.

Upcoming Star/ PC Thulasi

April - May 2010 GUTS - A Window into World Badminton >7

Kuala Lumpur: China and Indonesia met at the Thomas Cup final for the fifth time with each team beating the other twice before China’s 3-0 sweep at the 2010 Thomas Cup final. This victory extended China’s cabinet with an eighth Thomas Cup while prolonging Indonesia’s 8-year wait for the elusive Cup number 14.

China’s Beijing Olympic medallists picked up the three consecutive points China needed to capture the 2010 Thomas Cup title. With a former Olympic champion and the reigning Olympic champion as male leads, a showdown between a legend and the current best in the world was to unfold.

Despite the less than flattering score line of 21-7, 21-14, Taufik’s defeat was on the whole a lot more flattering than how Lee Chong Wei collapsed

against Lin Dan in the semifinal. It was apparent that Taufik had all the right ideas

but Lin Dan’s superior finesse

and fitness provided all the answers.

“I'm a little disappointed to lose to Lin Dan,” said Taufik. “His technique and fitness are better than mine, and that made it very difficult for me to get points from him. In the end, I lost and I don't have

any excuse for it. I want to apologise to all Indonesians for my loss but I did try my best and no one wants to lose.

“I think that Lin Dan is at a higher level than other players,” Taufik added. “Maybe Lee Chong Wei

No country could even take a match off China in the Thomas Cup, report Badzine's JAN LIN and SELINA NG

Super Dan leads by example

follows next, then Chen Jin, Bao Chunlai, Peter and me. This has to be Lin Dan's golden era now. Maybe new players will emerge to replace him in the future but we can't see how it will be yet. If he continues his form like this, he can be very dominating in the Olympics in 2012.”

Lin Dan was both gracious and modest in victory: “Winning or losing is not important actually, two top players playing together today is already a responsibility to our country. I do not agree that I'm on a different level compared to other players, I just put in a lot of effort in every game that I play. Taufik and Lee Chong Wei have different styles of playing. I'm very satisfied with my performances against them and I also truly appreciate the opportunity to play against them here.”

When asked about coach Tang Hsien Hu, who had just returned to the team for the Thomas Cup after taking a sabbatical, Lin said: “Tang Hsien Hu is a very dedicated coach in the team and he is like a grandfather to me. I've gained more than badminton skills and techniques from him, but also values of life.”

The Chinese defeat in the Uber Cup final the previous day seemed to have taught the Chinese men several valuable lessons. While China’s women’s doubles Olympic champion pair of Du Jing / Yu Yang lost the

tie for China, the men’s doubles Olympic silver medallists won a vital point for the Thomas team. As it is, both reigning Olympic champion pairs crumbled at the 2010 Thomas and Uber Cup Finals.

In a repeat of the 2008 Olympic men’s doubles final, China’s Cai Yun / Fu Haifeng turned the tables on Markis Kido /Hendra Setiawan with a 25-23, 16-21, 21-12 win to double their team’s lead. Despite a promising start, the Indonesians fell victim to unforced errors allowing the Chinese pair's classy confidence to dominate the match's essence.

With Cup victory in sight, 2008 Olympic men’s singles bronze medallist, Chen Jin, then overcame a nervy first set to retain the Cup for China with a 19-21, 21-17, 21-7 win over Indonesia’s Simon Santoso.

The Indonesian world number 12 had to step up to play in the second singles slot as compatriot Sony Kuncoro had to be benched due to a relapse of an old injury sustained during the round robin.

Even as a Cup defeat looked inevitable, Santoso went for broke to please the partisan Indonesian crowd. Indonesian fans have invaded Malaysia's Putra Stadium and turned it into Jakarta's Senayan Stadium.

“The performance of the China team was absolutely perfect in this tournament,” said China's marshal Li Yongbo. “Conceding one Cup is enough, not both Cups!”

Thomas Cup

April - May 2010GUTS - A Window into World Badminton>8

Printed & Published by Thomas J. Kunnath. P4, KSSIDC Industrial Area, Mahadevapura, Bangalore - 560 048. Printed at National Printing Press, Koramangala, Bangalore-560 095. Email: thomas@kunnath.in, badmintonmania@gmail.com

India Open becomes Super SeriesKorea Open becomes first million-dollar prize money event in badminton

Kuala Lumpur: India will host its first-ever Super Series badminton championship next year. The BWF Council also decided that five Super Series would be upgraded to a ‘Premier Super Series’ status, somehow similar to a ‘Grand Slam’ in tennis. The five events are: Korea Open, All England, Indonesian Open, Denmark Open and China Open. The organizers of Korea Open bid US$1.2 million for its Premier League status, while Indonesia came second with US$600,000 and China, England, Denmark offered US$350,000 to earn places among the top 5 tournaments in the world.

“There is more money in the sport. We have our first ever million-dollar prize money tournament, and above all, the BWF received strong interest from our members to be a part of the Super Series circuit,” said BWF President Kang Young-joong.

NGOs call for badminton reformPetaling Jaya: In the wake of Malaysia’s

disappointing Thomas Cup campaign, a coalition of NGOs turned up at the Juara Stadium, demanding that the BAM’s top management resign and stop blaming others for the association’s failures.

BAM general manager Kenny Goh did not discount the possibility that the matter may be brought up at the next BAM council meeting. A group of 50 people from a coalition of NGOs submitted a memorandum that called on BAM to put their house in order and to sort out their internal problems. - The Star, Malaysia

Li Yongbo’s apprehensions

Beijing: China’s legendary badminton coach Li Yongbo said the country’s professional league would threaten the national team's success. The Chinese Badminton Super League, whose season runs May 22-Aug. 9, was established by the national federation to better market the sport domestically.

Li Yongbo said, “the league's season coincides with a number of international

tournaments, causing his players to miss crucial warm-ups for major competitions."I'm really worried about that." - Taiwan News

Solibad organizes flashmob

Paris: On the famous ‘Champ De Mars’, in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower, French badminton players started a trend which could become famous all over the world -- the first ‘Flashmob’ dedicated to badminton and a charity foundation Solibad - Badminton Without Borders. (A flashmob is a large group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, perform an unusual act for a brief time, then quickly disperse.)

The choreography, which saw some tourists quite stunned on their way to France’s most visited monument, was led by none other than Pi Hongyan, bronze medallist at the last World Championships.

“It’s just amazing to be able to play here, to have fun, and to promote Solibad at the same time," said Hongyan.