IBL will help Indian players: Aparna Popat

BADMINTON: Former Indian National champion Aparna Popat, is all set to play her new role of a coach, after being appointed by the Mumbai Masters, an Indian Badminton League (IBL) franchise. “I think it’s a huge opportunity. There are a few top 10 players, who are playing the IBL and giving our players a chance to play against these players in a span of three weeks, I think is going to be very useful and fruitful for them,” the Mumbai-based shuttler stated.

“I haven’t coached too much, but I have been following the game keenly. It is going to be a big challenge for me and I am very excited,” Aparna said. It’s a team event. There is going to be a considerable amount of strategy involved. Each player has his/her own playing style, so we just have to see how our opponents play and who are our respective opponents. “So it is going to be tricky and since we need five matches to win, I don’t think we can solely rely on one player. We are going to have to play as a team.

Considering that we have only a limited kitty, all the teams have a couple of non-players on their side, but having said that Pranav Chopra is number one in doubles in our country. We have Siki Reddy who, I think, is number two in women’s doubles in the country. “I am tremendously excited. They (world #1 Lee Chong Wei and European legend Tine Baun) are great champions and it is brilliant to have them as part of our team. We have a few top Indian players in the doubles side as well. Marc Zweibler is the European champion. Ivanov, the Russian, is good to play all the events - singles, doubles and mixed doubles. I think we are okay with our team composition.” The inaugural IBL will be held across the country in six cities, from August 14-31.