It is the effort of the 41-year-old Danish shuttler Mathias Boe who has made the duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty a force to reckon with.
The pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty has been touted as the premier badminton duo in the doubles category. According to Indian badminton legend Prakash Padukone, the Indian duo has been referred to as the “most valuable players” in the history of the Indian badminton fraternity. This comes at the back of notable performances in the Thomas Cup that put the Indian pair at the pinnacle of the shuttling world. Everyone remembers the game that the duo played against Mohammad Ahsan and Kevin Sanjaya Sukalmujo in game 2 of the Thomas Cup tie. Satwik and Chirag were fighting match points twice, 20-20 and 21-21 in the second game against Sanjaya and Md Ahsan in the final before winning the match 18-21 23-21 21-19 to give India a 2-0 lead. The game was a tightly contested match which had the fans on their toes.
The Indian duo have come up the ranks brilliantly in recent years, post the Thomas Cup as well. A lot of this credit has been given to the efforts of Malaysian coach Tan Kim Her yet the ace in the kitty has been someone else who has created that thirst and hunger within the duo. It is the effort of the 41-year-old Danish shuttler Mathias Boe who has made the duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty a force to reckon with.
Mathias Boe had been a doubles legend in badminton history and is familiar with the complexities and requirements of the modern-day game. He has climbed to the top of the world rankings along with his partner Carsten Morgensen when the pair became world no. 1. Boe and Mogensen have won the All England Gold twice (in 2011 and 2015), a silver Olympic medal (in 2012), a gold Thomas Cup medal (2016), and a silver and a bronze medal at the World Championships (2013). The appointment of Mathias Boe which as of now is not a long-term contract is the finest thing that has occurred to Indian badminton recently according to Kashyap. Boe’s presence during the Thomas Cup in Thailand assisted Chirag and Satwik in overcoming challenges that weren’t always obvious to the naked eye.
Mathias Boe is not been new to the Indian badminton circuit. The Danish has played in the Indian Badminton League from its inception itself. One of the most important factors that has brought by Boe is a calming effect on the boys which has made them match-ready for the biggest stage. This is for the first time that a European coach has been invited to train Indian shuttlers. Last time, the PPBA invited the legendary Denmark player Morten Frost for a short duration in its academy. Otherwise, the coaching circuit has been largely limited to South Asians only i.e. Indonesians, Malaysians, Singaporeans etc.
One of the key factors in Mathias Boe’s training is that he is not only focused on the first-choice badminton duo of Satwik and Chirag. He is also giving equal efforts behind the second doubles pair of Arjun and Dhruv as well. This is because in his own words, ‘for better players, you need to have better practice partners’ which is detrimental to the success of the team holistically. Arjun and Dhruv have also reaped the confidence that has been bestowed on them. India has already achieved so much under the aegis of Boe’s guidance and the Dane can certainly feel pleased with the work that he has done so far.
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