PV Sindhu has resumed her drills slowly on the badminton courts in Hyderabad. After two months of complete rest on the advice of doctors, following an MCL (medial collateral inflammation) injury, she’s finally ready to embark on the road back.
Speaking to RevSportz on Sunday, PV Ramana, her father, said: “Sindhu is back to get a feel of the courts after a break which was taken to ensure she is fully fit. The focus is on strengthening right now and also getting her movements back.”
A former volleyball player himself, Ramana has taken painstaking efforts to ensure Sindhu did not rush back. “We followed the full protocol as advised by the orthopaedic surgeon,” he said. “I am glad she is now in the strengthening phase and able to execute her strokes. Sindhu is training at the Film City Club in Hyderabad for about 45 minutes daily. There is no rush, though I will add she is not attempting to play points at this point of time.”
On Saturday, Sindhu and her father had paid a courtesy call to Revanth Reddy, the new Telangana Chief Minister. “It was just a courtesy visit, nothing else,” said Ramana.
The plan ahead for Sindhu is well laid out. “Sindhu will be flying out to Bengaluru on January 2,” said Ramana. “She will be training under Prakash Padukone. The next one month as well, the focus will be on strength training and hitting the shuttle for about 45 minutes twice a day. I am sure she will be at her fittest by February.”
When Sindhu got injured during the Commonwealth Games in 2022, and continued to play for the sake of winning a medal for the country, it was bravado. At that time, Ramana had told this writer that had Sindhu pulled out just after the ankle injury in Birmingham, 2022, it might have been prudent.
“Even now, the MCL on the left knee was just an inflammation but Sindhu and I decided with the doctors that complete rest for two months would be ideal,” he said. “The plan is she is ready for the Badminton Asian Team Championship.”
Ramana was hopeful that she would be fit and ready to resume her campaign in the event to be held in Shah Alam, Malaysia, from February 13 to 18.
On November 18, Sindhu had posted on X that her new journey would be under Padukone, All England champion in 1980. “That cat is finally out of the bag” said her post.
“Prakash Sir is assuming the role of the mentor in my setup. I started training with him at the end of August and it has been uphill ever since. He’s more than a mentor, he’s my guide, my guru and above all a true friend.”