India’s ace shuttler Kidambi Srikanth feels the Swiss Open win has put him on course for a first-ever Olympic qualification but says he needs maintain consistency to make the cut for the 2016 Rio Games and achieve World No. 1 ranking.
At 22, Srikanth is the best Indian male shuttler at World No. 4, courtesy his consistent performances over the last six months, where he reached the semi-finals of a few Super Series event, besides clinching the first-ever China Open Super Series Premier title.
On Sunday, Srikanth added yet another title to his closet, winning the $120,000 Swiss Open in Basel after defeating defending champion and World No 6 Danish Viktor Alexson 21-15, 12-21,
21-14 in a thrilling 47-minute summit clash.
"It was a difficult match but I didn't think anything like playing defending champion. I only played it as a final in which I wanted to win," Srikanth said.
"In the second game it was like I did few simple mistakes and gave away the lead, which I shouldn't have been done but in the third I started playing a little more aggressively and it worked for me," he added.
Srikanth is the best Indian male shuttler in BWF ranking, followed by Parupalli Kashyap (12th) and H S Prannoy (17th), and to qualify for the Olympics, an shuttler has to be inside top 16 on the cut-off date.
Talking about the Olympics, Srikanth said: "Maybe it will be my first Olympics but still I have one year left, so have to be consistent. If you can plan from now, then there won't be anything like that."
Asked about his targets this year, Srikanth said: "By training, I want to improve in every aspect of my game and keep winning as many matches and tournaments.
"Winning a World Championship medal is something I want this year but still winning any tournament gives you confidence.
"I want to improve my ranking and becoming number one is a dream," he added.
Once a doubles player, Srikanth developed variation in his strokes, including the backhand tosses, deep smashes and deceptive cross court net play, that helped him dominate his opponents.
Srikanth revealed that the use of unconventional shots ensured his victory.
Srikanth has shown amazing mental fortitude, finding ways to wriggle out of tricky match situations. He was lagging 4-7 in the decider, on Sunday, but managed a miraculous turnaround.
Even against five-time World champion and two-time Olympic gold medallist Lin Dan in the finals of the China Open last November, Srikanth was lagging 17-19 and 12-14 in the first and second games, respectively.
"I am very satisfied with my mental aspect of the game and I am happy to do it," he signed off.
