PV Sindhu: The aim is to win a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics

The 25-year-old is currently training in England for the upcoming tournaments.

World Champion PV Sindhu admitted that winning a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics would not be easy as her rivals Carolina Marin and Nozomi Okuhara are doing really well following their successful Denmark Open campaign in October.

"The aim and goal is gold at the Tokyo Olympics. Being the first Indian woman to win silver at the Olympic Games was definitely a proud moment for me, very exciting. I wasn’t too well-known going into the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, so it was like ‘ok, let’s see what she does. I’ll give it my absolute best. My 100 per cent and hope for that gold medal,” PV Sindhu said to BWF.

The Rio Olympics silver medallist is in the best shape of her life before the YONEX Thailand Open in January and is very happy that the action will resume soon. Usually, the schedule for badminton players are packed with action throughout the year but with the pandemic stopping sporting activities, PV Sindhu feels that it has had a positive impact on her.

She stated, "I feel 100 per cent, because of the training and the practising. I’ve got the time without back-to-back tournaments to improve on a few things like my strokes and fitness level. I’m mentally and physically stronger because of the break. I’m fit and fine and really looking forward to Thailand.”

"I’ve been a part of the Gatorade Sports Science Institute (GSSI) for four years. Each time I come to England, my schedule is really, really packed and sometimes it’s just not possible to meet the nutrition team, so that’s why I am here. I think this is a good time for me and I’ve now taken the time out to look after my nutrition and work with the team on body analysis too. I do not want to stop my training. Badminton is restarting for me in January and hopefully, everything will be fine and I shouldn’t stop my training while I’m in England."

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PV Sindhu's training included drills with likes of Badminton England’s Rajiv Ouseph and Toby Penty at the National Training Centre.

"It’s a different kind of feeling here. Different places to train, it’s something new and I am learning new things. Every player has a different game. They have different mindsets and I take different approaches from coaches and players. One player might say my defence is weak and Raj would say 'Ok, this is what you need to do,' so it’s really good to get that perspective,” she concluded.