WE DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE ANYONE: DOUBLES BADMINTON COACH MATHIAS BOE

The dynamic men’s doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty will be the cynosure of all eyes in the badminton event and will be expected to deliver the goods for India at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games that gets underway from tomorrow.

The talented pair have seen their stock rise consistently and played a pivotal role in India’s first ever triumph at the Thomas Cup in May in Thailand.

They had created history in the last edition of the showpiece event by winning silver in the men’s doubles competition; the first ever for India and Mathias Boe, specialist doubles coach of India feels that they have a great chance of coming out on top in the men’s double encounter.

“We have had practice slots spread properly and we had a great session yesterday as well. The players have attended the fitness session in the hotel. They are in great shape and could go all the way,” the Danish legend told Daily Guardian in an exclusive chat.

Talking about the biggest threat for India in the upcoming games, Boe said, “For me the biggest threat will be Malaysia, Canada, Singapore & UK. We five are the strongest teams on paper but again I do not look at what experts have to say. If I give importance to these, then there is absolutely no point playing. We do not underestimate anyone and we are here to do our job. My job is to prepare my players for the challenge and carry it out on court,” Boe added.

The Dane who played a stellar role in India’s meteoric rise in the doubles category also spoke about Neeraj Chopra’s absence and feels that it would be a great loss for India at the CWG.

“Obviously, it is a huge loss for India as he was a strong contender for the gold medal and everyone was looking forward to seeing him perform in Birmingham. But that is how athletes’ life is and injury is part and parcel of our life,” he further said.