Badminton uber cup 2024 :Isharani Barua, who won gold at the National Games with Assam in 2023, will represent India in singles matches at the Uber Cup starting April 27.
‘My focus is to give my best and make India proud’: Isarani ahead of badminton uber cup 2024
Guwahati: As the Indian women’s badminton team gears up for the Badminton Uber Cup 2024, scheduled for April 27-May 5 in Chengdu, China, 20-year-old Isharani Barua is leaving no stone unturned to make a mark at the World Women’s Team Championship. Isharani, who hails from Dibrugarh in Assam, knows she will get a chance to showcase her game as India’s senior players, including PV Sindhu, withdraw from the Badminton Uber Cup 2024 . The Assamese shuttler is currently training with her teammate Asmita Chaliha at the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy in Bangalore. They won the gold medal together in the team event for Assam at the National Games in Goa last year. “Winning a gold medal for my state at the National Games is my biggest achievement so far. This tournament, a high-level competition, has given me much-needed experience,” Isharani told The Bridge. Assam beat Maharashtra Women’s team 3-0 in the final. Isharani, who reached the semi-finals of the 85th Senior National Badminton Championship last year, will compete in singles. “It is a team competition, our trick will be decided when we come together while other players are training in their respective academies. As an individual, my main focus is to give my best on the court and make the nation proud,” said Isharani.
Isarani ahead of badminton uber cup 2024
24-year-old left-hander Asmita is a role model for Isharani. Now they train together at the same academy, helping each other perfect their game “When I was 15, I saw Asmita play in an all-India level tournament. I loved the way she played. Then then she became my idol and inspiration. I grew up watching him, and now he and I practice together whenever I make a mistake or feel confused, he corrects me and helps me, and we both try to support each other.
Now, as he trains at the PPBA, he is keeping a close eye on the legendary PV Sindhu, who started training at the academy this year, to improve his game.
Isarani ahead of badminton uber cup 2024
“I saw Saina Nehwal from away but never met her. PV Sindhu from our academy; He is very hardworking and mentally strong. We get to practice with him. His dedication and mindset inspires us. Also, my coaches, Bimal sir and Rana sir, advised us to look at her as an inspiration.” Badminton as a career It was in 2012 when Saina won the bronze medal at the London Olympics that eight-year-old Isharani took up badminton. sparked my interest, and my parents took me to Nurul Hussain sir for badminton training at DDSA,” said Isharani.
Akhtar Hussain known as Narul Sir in Dibrugarh district is senior coach of the area. “I have trained two of Dr. Trideep Chetia’s sons, Ayan and Angad Borchettia, both of whom have played internationally under my tutelage. One day Dr. Trideep Chetia suggested me to take a little girl named Isharani under my tutelage. He told me that he has potential and will definitely give results. Due to her dedication and desire to gain knowledge, she emerged as a good player,” said the coach. Under coach Nurul, Isharani made waves in all age-group competitions. Struggle for sponsorship Though Isharani has a promising career, it is a struggle for her. Arranging sponsorship. His father Muleshwar is an LIC agent in Dibrugarh. I used to play it, and a racket cost around Rs 40 to 50, which is very expensive,” said Muleshwar. “People generally think that sports people get a lot of money these days.” When news of Isharani appeared in the newspapers, people assumed that she had received a lot of money. When we clarified that he didn’t get anything significant, they questioned why we invested the money. We never imagined that badminton could be such an expensive sport,” adds Baba. “We once received Rs 1 lakh from the sports director from Assam, and the BCPL helped us with Rs 2 lakh. For this former DC of Dibrugarh, Biswajit. Pegu, IAS, sir helped us a lot. “I am a scholar-athlete of Oil India Limited, but I don’t have personal sponsorship.
Badminton uber cup 2024
Second year as a senior badminton player, I’ll need to compete in more international tournaments. Because of that, if I got a sponsorship, that could help me for sure,” said Isharani. After winning the gold medal at the National Games, Isharani got a job offer, but she remained focused on badminton and did not accept the job offer. In 2023, Isharani won the India International Challenge and also became the champion of the Srilanka International Challenge. This year, she won the Dutch International Challenge and was the runner-up at the Kazakhstan International Challenge. While Badminton Uber Cup 2024 will be her first big international tournament, her ultimate dream in life is to win a medal at the World Championship and to qualify for the 2018 Los Angeles Olympics. “I still have a lot to learn and a lot of hard work needs to be done. Now, badminton is my life,” said the youngster. Indian women’s team will start their Badminton Uber Cup 2024 journey, on April 27 against Canada. After that, they will face Singapore on April 28 and host China on April 30. India’s Badminton Uber Cup 2024 squad: Singles: Anmol Kharb, Tanvi Sharma, Ashmita Chaliha, and Isharani Baruah Doubles: Shruti Mishra, Priya Konjengbam, Simran Singhi and Ritika Thaker