Chief national badminton coach Pullela Gopichand expects Indian athletes to claim an unparalleled double digit medal haul at the Olympics and has declared world champion P V Sindhu as one of the favourites to win a Gold.
“I do believe that this time around, we would have, hopefully, India’s biggest medal tally till now. We could surpass what the Indian team did in London which is six medals and hopefully get to double digit is what I am hoping for,” Gopichand said.
“Whether it is shooting, wrestling, boxing or Mirabai Chanu in weightlifting, I think they have a lot of chances,” he said.
Gopichand, who had guided Saina Nehwal and Sindhu to a Bronze and Silver respectively in the last two Olympics, believes Indian badminton players have a good opportunity to better their performance.
“In badminton, we have chances, definitely to better what we did in Rio and London. So I am hoping that Sindhu can pull off, she is definitely going to be one of the favourites in the Olympics with the venue as well,” he said.
“And also Chirag and Satwik, although, have a tough draw but I do see them as potential hopefuls for a medal. For Sai Praneeth, it is going to be tough. But he has done well at the World Championships and I hope he can repeat that performance.