"If one guy is injured, it's okay, we have still more players" - Dhruv Kapila on the depth of Indian badminton [Exclusive]
Dhruv Kapila's rise in Indian badminton has propelled him and his partner to become one of the most promising names in men’s doubles in India. The two players stand only behind the current world No. 1 pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty in terms of world rankings.
Dhruv was part of the men’s badminton team that clinched the historic silver medal at the Asian Games in Hangzhou. Speaking exclusively to Sportskeeda, Dhruv Kapila reflected on this achievement and also spoke about how he and his partner pushed through despite an injury to the latter. Dhruv said,
“So basically, I would say it was a great achievement for Indian badminton, and we prepared very well for the Asian Games.” I think while we were playing semi-finals, my partner got injured, Arjun. Still, we managed to just play the match.”
He went on to add that his partner’s unfortunate injury caused them to concede during their first round of the individual event.
“I think individuals, if I say in Asian Games, we had to just concede it because he got a fracture, a hairline fracture on his back. So, we had to withdraw from there.”
The final of the team championship saw M. R. Arjun and HS Prannoy miss out because of injuries, but Kapila spoke about how Prannoy took on the role of being the senior player in the team and motivated them to push on despite the unfortunate situation. He told them to have faith in the rest of the squad and to continue to give their best no matter what.
“It’s obviously difficult for a player to manage, and Prannoy Bhaiya was injured earlier, like before going. So still, he managed very well in the semi-finals, and I think he only made us believe that whenever you are injured, also you have to just keep on pushing. Whatever is happening, it's fine. Whether it's like my partner Arjun, I have to play with someone else;
He went on to add,
"We have to give 100% because we are playing for our country. So, we just thought we have to go for it, no matter what. If one guy is injured, it's okay. We have still more players. Backup is ready. So, we have to just keep on fighting.”
“Whatever happens for a reason, it’s fine, we have to just keep on pushing it” - Dhruv Kapila is talking about their comeback once his partner recovers from his back injury.
Dhruv’s partner Arjun's injury has sidelined the pair for at least the next 4 weeks, but the 23-year-old from Ludhiana is extremely motivated and hopes his partner will return to court soon.
“See, so basically, it's like it can happen to anyone. And in this moment, I have to motivate him and myself too, because he has been injured for a while now. Because before the Asian Games, he was not in his best; he was getting injured. I think this whole year went through injury. He was getting injured again and again. But whatever happens for a reason, it’s fine. We have to just keep on pushing it. And I hope he's coming back soon now. In four or five weeks, he'll be fine, I think.”
The shuttler also spoke about how Arjun has been facing a lot of injuries throughout the year, and the injury his partner suffered in Hangzhou was unexpected and sudden, but he went on to add that the last month before the Asian Games seemed to be a big positive.
“So basically, before the Asian Games, I think one month went pretty well. We trained very well with Satwik, Chirag, Mathias, and Gopi sir. So, it was really good. But suddenly, I don't know, like, we didn't know how he got injured at the Asian Games. Suddenly, he started getting pain when we went there. After two, three days, he got that pain. So, we had no clue, like, what happened suddenly.”
Reflecting on his chances of qualifying for the Paris Olympics, Kapila says he will continue to push despite the challenges.
“We haven't been playing many tournaments this year. And I think the Olympic period started in May. So, we haven't played so many tournaments earlier also. And now he's injured, and we have missed already the European circuit. It's going to be really difficult now. But we'll just keep on pushing once Arjun is back and see how it goes.”