Legendary Prakash Padukone’s criticism of the players’ efforts following Lakshya Sen’s shocking defeat in the badminton bronze medal match at the Paris Olympics has left the badminton fraternity divided. Doubles player Ashwini Ponnappa said his comments amounted to “blaming others to avoid one’s own accountability”. Sen, after winning the opening game on Monday, squandered an 8-3 lead in the second game to lose to Malaysia’s Lee Ji Jia 21-13, 16-21, 11-21, missing out on a bronze medal.
‘Players should be accountable and deliver results’
Shocked by Sen’s pressure, former ace player Prakash Padukone had said on Monday that now is the time for players to learn to face pressure, become accountable and start delivering results after getting full support from the government. Ponnappa, who was eliminated from the group stage of the Olympics with her women’s doubles partner Tanisha Crasto, did not agree with Padukone’s comments. “Disappointing to see this,” he wrote in his Instagram story. If a player wins, everyone is ready to take credit. If they lose, how is it just the player’s fault?
‘When we take credit for victory, we take credit for defeat…’
He said, “Why are the coaches not held responsible for the lack of preparation of the players? They are the first to take credit for victory. Why don’t they even take responsibility for the defeat of their players?” He said, ”Winning requires team effort and defeat is also the responsibility of the team. You can’t suddenly put all the blame on the player.” Veteran Jwala Gutta, who won a World Championship bronze medal with Ponnappa, however, supported Padukone’s words. He wrote on Instagram, “Yes, players can also take responsibility… why not?”
Do they share it with the coach?
He said, “Players, when they win, receive the prize money…do they share it with their coaches or staff? If a coach is saying that players also need to take more responsibility after reaching a certain stage in the tournament, then the player should do so. Star badminton pair of Parupalli Kashyap and Saina Nehwal believe that criticism is important. Yes, but it is not right to question the commitment of the players.
‘Tough questions will be asked from the Indian team’
“After the Games are over in a few days, many tough questions will be asked of our Indian Olympic contingent and rightly so,” he said in a post shared on Instagram. We failed when it mattered most.” Both admitted that ‘too many fingers’ cannot be pointed at national sports federations right now. He said, “It is our right to ask and criticize the players about it, but we cannot question the commitment of all the 117 athletes representing the country. All of them have given their blood, sweat and tears to reach the Olympics.
