Consistency now his ally, Prannoy makes Oz final

HS Prannoy has always had the game, talent and weapons to succeed amid the intense competition in world badminton. He would beat Lin Dan, Lee Chong Wei and Chen Long to earn the title of giant-killer, yet if you look at his career highlights, it is dotted with few finals and even fewer titles.

- Sandip Sikdar

But the seasoned player is ageing like fine wine. “Not like, but I am (fine wine),” laughed the 31-year-old. At an age where several shuttlers reach the twilight of their careers, the world No.9 is scaling the heights of success. Having reached the Swiss Open final and driven India to their biggest success in the sport with the Thomas Cup crown last year, Prannoy ended a six-year wait in May when he won the Malaysia Masters. On Saturday, he entered his second final of 2023 after beating fellow Thomas Cup champion Priyanshu Rajawat 21-18, 21-12 in 43 minutes in the semifinals of the $420,000 Australian Open.

While he had all the tools in his bag, consistency eluded him almost forever, something Prannoy has stitched together regularly of late. “It is very satisfying. It is always tough to be playing at the top, continuously beating top 10 players. Not just the top 10, in men's singles even somebody from No.35-40 is also very tough. Considering that, the last two years have been really good for me. I have consistently been able to pull through and win matches. That has given me a lot of confidence. This year has been special," said Prannoy.