Nagpur: There is a special bond between Arundhati Pantawane and Pullela Gopichand. It was established between the student and coach five years ago when the 17-year-old Arundhati decided to join Gopichand's Badminton Academy in Hyderabad.
During these five years, Gopichand turned from coach to mentor and groomed this talented Nagpur shuttler so well that she is now excelling at the international level.
Having seen Arundhati closely since 2007 and watched his ward's phenomenal rise to become India's best prospect after Saina Nehwal, Gopichand is simply thrilled with the way Arundhati has been performing this year.
"She is doing extraordinary well in the last few months. It is wonderful to see the rise and rise of Arundhati. She has surpassed everyone's expectations. I just hope she continues to do well in the future," Gopichand told TOI on Friday.
According to the latest weekly rankings released by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) on Thursday, Arundhati has now jumped to 72 from 82 in the world, making her India's second best player after Saina Nehwal, who is world No. 4.
Reaching the final of the Czech Open last week, has not only enabled Arundhati gain 10 places in the world rankings but also pip PV Sindhu to the third spot. Hyderabad teenager Sindhu, who briefly overtook Arundhati in the rankings, remained at 76 in the world.
The 22-year-old Arundhati, who lost to No. 4 seed Kristina Gavnholt of Czech Republic in the final last Sunday, has 67,256 points to her credit including the 3,400 points for her dazzling display at Brno, her highest career break so far.
Although, Gopichand is pleased with the way Arundhati's career is shaping up, he believed she has still lot to achieve at the international stage. "This is just the beginning and she has a long way to go. She has lot of potential. She should break into the top-20 in a year's time. I want to see her in top-20 as soon as possible and for that to happen she must participate regularly in the international tournaments," said the former All-England champion.
Arundhati, who was ranked a lowly 302 at the start of the year, has progressed to her career-best ranking in a short span of 9 months, making her India's fastest rising shuttler in any category. However, Gopichand feels the road will be tough from here on.
"As she moves up the ladder, competition will obviously increase. To get better of the quality opponents, she needs overall improvement in her game. She needs to build her strength. From now, consistency will be the key factor. She cannot afford to relax. She should make her good form count to the best of her advantage," said the national chief coach.
Despite being in Sweden as a professional player of Stockholm-based Taby Club, Arundhati gets continuous guidance from her mentor. "I speak to her regularly and get a feedback from her. During Czech Open, I spoke to her after every match," said Gopichand.
TOI