New Coach Irwansyah Sets Target for PV Sindhu's Aggression

At 29, India's Olympic medalist and badminton star PV Sindhu is embarking on a new phase in her remarkable career. With the appointment of Irwansyah Adi Pratama as her new coach in January 2025 by the Badminton Association of India (BAI), Sindhu aims to elevate her game. The Indonesian coach has already outlined bold objectives to help Sindhu become a more aggressive and consistent player.

The previous season was very difficult for Sindhu, marked with inconsistent performances and hard-fought battles. But her quarterfinal run at the India Open suggested a good development in her game. Despite losing a closely contested match against Gregoria Mariska Tunjung, Sindhu showed clear signs of improvements in movement and variation in attacks. Irwansyah is impressed with her adaptability and believes Sindhu has much more potential, even at this stage of her career in enhancing her attacking abilities.

Irwansyah stated, "My goal when I came to India was of course to get Sindhu and the others I work with to achieve a very high level...I do believe, and Sindhu also, does that she can do it. Of course, we have only been together for less than one week. But I want to change her game, she already can do it. Of course, it will take time. Give us some time. In this match also she can play the way I want her to."

Further, "I don't want to slow down her play. I want her to play with much more speed and power. She is an attacking player. She needs to be more powerful and aggressive," he added.

Irwansyah has vast experience under his belt as he has earlier coached Indonesia's top men's singles players such as Anthony Ginting and Jonatan Christie. It will be a great challenge for him to take over women's singles coaching. Making it known that men and women's badminton styles are different, Irwansyah says he is willing to adopt a similar approach in improving Sindhu. He does this by improving Sindhu's consistency and aggression through advanced tactics as demanded by the changing nature of elite international competition.

"It won't be easy trying to mould her into playing like a men's singles player, but that is the direction I want to work towards. Sindhu can achieve it because she is extremely disciplined and a very hard-working player. I hope our plans start to come together for the All England and other major competitions," he added.

Two-time Olympic medallist and former World Champion Sindhu remains resolute to reclaim her top position on the court. She has her eyes fixed on a successful 2025 season, and she feels that she should be producing performances that are commensurate with being one of India's greatest athletes. The Indonesian Open is going to be the first significant test for the Sindhu-Irwansyah partnership, as the shuttler prepares to face Taiwan's Shuo Yun Sung in the Round of 32. Both player and coach will look to secure a good start and momentum to build into the challenges ahead.

As the season advances, the whole badminton world will watch Sindhu's journey with Irwansyah as her coach. And with experience and determination combined with his strategic expertise, this collaboration has the potential to redefine her career and further cement her legacy in the sport.