New Delhi: India’s No.1 men shuttler, Parupalli Kashyap, is geared up to utilise home advantage to the hilt in the forthcoming $200,000 Yonex Sunrise India Open 2013.
The world No.8 sounded very optimistic about his chances and sent out an early warning to his competitors in the tournament which starts here from April 23-28. “I have a very good chance of winning the tournament this time and am hoping to become the first Indian to win the Yonex Sunrise India Open and lead the way for my compatriots,” said Kashyap on Saturday.
The 26-year-old Kashyap’s badminton career has changed dramatically since the previous chapter of the Yonex Sunrise India Open. It was here that he qualified for the 2012 Olympics and reached the quarterfinals in the London Games in August.
The winner of the 2012 Syed Modi India Grand Prix Gold said, “I always enter a tournament aiming to win and nothing changes in the Yonex Sunrise India Open. I have lot of points to defend, but my focus will be to win the tournament.” The Hyderabadi has stormed into the Badminton World Federation’s top-10 rankings in the last four months.
“It has not been very long that I broke into the top-10. Things have changed suddenly for me and from being an underdog I have started appearing as a top-seeded player. It proves that anyone can shift gears and be a force to reckon with. I take every match seriously and avoid getting complacent,” conceded Kashyap, who is also an ICON Player for the $1-million Indian Badminton League.
On being billed as one of the contenders for the upcoming Yonex Sunrise India Open, Kashyap said, “The tag of being one of the tournament favourites is actually a good thing and motivating. At no point do I feel any pressure due to the expectations from my fans. It only helps me perform better.”
Kashyap, who was knocked out of the quarterfinals of this year’s All-England Open said the tournament helped him a lot and he has learnt from his mistakes. “I was playing well in the All-England, but made a few errors that cost me the tournament. I have definitely carried a lot of positives from All-England and it will definitely help me in the Yonex Sunrise India Open,” said the 2012 London Olympics quarter-finalist
