V. Sindhu, the Indian badminton player and double Olympic medalist, has announced her new coach, Malaysian Mohammad Hafiz Hashim. Sindhu stated that Hafiz possesses the qualities she was seeking for her preparations for the upcoming Olympics in Paris, including a strong pedigree and attacking instinct.
Hafiz Hashim, 40, was a member of the Malaysian team that won silver at the 2002 Thomas Cup, bronze at the 2002 and 2006 Asian Games, and gold at the 2010 Commonwealth Games. In 2010, he also emerged victorious in the men’s singles final in Delhi.
She noted as a caption to her photo with Hashim, “After a long, drawn-out process, I am ecstatic to declare that I have chosen the incredible Hafiz Hashim as my coach.”
“Hafiz possesses all the traits I was seeking in a coach, including height, speed, and an attacking instinct. As a former all-England champion in 2003, he sure has the pedigree as well. Having coach Sidek as his old coach, just add this aura to him.”
“I extend a warm welcome aboard, Coach Hashim. Buckle up folks, it’s going to be a hell of a journey with captain Hafiz at the helm!” Sindhu added.
Earlier this year, Sindhu parted ways with her Korean coach Park Tae-Sang, who had helped her secure a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics. During the season, Sindhu achieved notable results, including a runner-up finish at the Madrid Spain Masters Super 300 and semifinal finishes at the Malaysia Masters Super 500 and Canada Open Super 500. However, she faced some setbacks and withdrew from several events at the beginning of the year. Consequently, Sindhu dropped out of the top ten rankings in April for the first time since 2016, and in the latest BWF rankings, she currently holds the 17th position.
Sindhu had been working with SAI coach Vidhi Chaudhary after receiving approval from the Mission Olympic Cell (MOC) to fund his travel to the All-England Championships, Swiss Open, and Spain Masters. Additionally, Sindhu had previously trained with Hafiz at the Suchitra Badminton Academy in preparation for the Canada Open.
While Pullela Gopichand has been Sindhu’s mentor as the national head coach, she had a brief collaboration with Kim Ju Hyun on her way to winning the World Championships gold in Basel. Following Kim’s departure, Sindhu had been training with Park before their separation earlier this year.
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