BWF World Championships LIVE – No Coach for Srikanth, Prannoy? India’s national coach Pullela Gopichand already had decided to skip the travel to World Badminton Championships. InsideSport has now learnt that the other designated singles coach Mohammed Siyadath Ullah will also not make it to the World Championships. Reason, the Badminton Association of India (BAI) could not ensure visas for the coach – Follow BWF World Championships Live Updates on InsideSport.IN
“I found out on Friday that I will not be getting the visa on time. The Spanish Embassy have said I need to submit all my documents again and the earliest I can get the process done is by Tuesday and travel only on Wednesday,” Mohammed Siyadath Ullah told InsideSport from Hyderabad.
This means now the singles players like Kidambi Srikanth, HS Prannoy will have to play either without a coach or will have to request Sindhu’s coach Park Tae Sang to be their side.
Also read: BWF World Championships LIVE: Sai Praneeth ousted in opening round, Srikanth advances to Round 2
BWF World Championships LIVE: Coach Mohammed Siyadath Ullah unable to travel due to visa issues, no singles coach for India, check details
Sources in the Badminton Association of India intimated that they had been trying for a long time and the earliest the issue could be resolved was in the middle of this week, which leaves very little time for the coach to reach Huelva and begin training the players.
The process was further complicated due to the COVID-19 protocols which state that one has to get RTPCR-tested after reaching and then quarantine for 24 hours before being allowed to begin training.
“I would have reached earliest by Wednesday, followed by quarantine. That means Friday will be the first time I get to train and talk to the group. That would leave very little time and it would not serve any purpose,” Siyadath added.
BWF World Championships: Coach Mohammed Siyadath Ullah unable to travel due to visa issues, no singles coach for India, check details
Doubles coach Arun Vishnu had reached Spain without issues. Even Kidambi Srikanth had got his visa late but managed to reach on time. PV Sindhu had flown directly to Spain from Bali after the conclusion of the BWF World Tour Finals.
Park has trained the Indian singles contingent back in 2019 when PV Sindhu used to train under Korean Kim Ji-Hyun.
“Park knows the players as he has trained them before. It will not be a problem. Even DK Sen (Lakshya Sen’s father) will be helping,” BAI sources indicated.
BWF World Championships: Coach Mohammed Siyadath Ullah unable to travel due to visa issues, no singles coach for India, check details
As for Siyadat, he has already spoken to the group and will be helping by communicating either via zoom calls or WhatsApp calls.
“I have already informed the players of my inability to travel. Tactically, if there are any tips to be shared I will do so via Zoom or WhatsApp. They are experienced players and I’m sure they will do well in Spain,” Siyadat said.
DAY 1 RESULTS 📝
Solid start for @srikidambi at #BWFWorldChampionships2021 as he registered win & moved into the second round 💪
Checkout all the results ⬇️#WorldChampionships2021#Huelva2021#Badminton pic.twitter.com/hCA9Lzo5kN
— BAI Media (@BAI_Media) December 13, 2021
Former World No 1 shuttler Kidambi Srikanth began his 2021 BWF World Championships campaign with a 21-12, 21-16 win over Pablo Abian of Spain on the opening day of the competition on Sunday. India’s Lakshya Sen also advanced to the second round after getting a walkover from Max Weisskirchen of Germany.
BWF World Championships: Coach Mohammed Siyadath Ullah unable to travel due to visa issues, no singles coach for India, check details
However, it was curtains for B Sai Praneeth who lost to Mark Caljouw 21-17, 7-21, 18-21. Praneeth had lost to Caljouw at the Tokyo Olympics as well.
The Indian men’s doubles pair of Manu Attri and B Sumeeth Reddy lost in straight games to Joel Elpe and Rasmus Kjaer of Denmark 16-21 15-21 in a 32-minute clash to exit the tournament.
Earlier in the day, the women’s doubles pair of Pooja Dandu and Sanjana Santosh retired after losing the first game 12-21 to the Dutch duo of Alyssa Tirtosentono and Imke van der Aar.
BWF World Championships: Coach Mohammed Siyadath Ullah unable to travel due to visa issues, no singles coach for India, check details
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