A former world top 25 player, Wiempie Mahardi has more than 10 years of coaching experience, having trained players in different clubs across countries.
New Delhi: Star Indian badminton player Kidambi Srikanth has hired Indonesian coach Wiempie Mahardi keeping next year’s Paris Olympics in mind. The qualification period for the 2024 Olympics began from May 1.
Srikanth has been struggling with form and his association with Mahardi will help him regain the lost form. “I have been trying to get a coach since December 2021, when Agus left. Now I have an Indonesian coach Wiempie Nahardi.
“I met him when I went to Indonesia to train for three weeks. He came to India in last week of April,” former world number one Srikanth told PTI. India are yet to appoint a foreign coach for men’s singles players since the abrupt departure of Indonesia’s Agus Dwi Santoso in December 2021.
After PV Sindhu parted ways with Park Tae Sang in February, the Korean has been helping out the men’s singles players. “I was trying to get a coach through TOPS but somehow, it didn’t work out. In January, I had sent SAI the proposal and since then it has been on hold.
“Since the Olympic qualification period was also starting in May, I couldn’t hold any longer, so I decided to do it myself,” Srikanth said. A former world top 25 player, Mahardi has more than 10 years of coaching experience, having trained players in different clubs across countries.
Srikanth is yet to train with his new coach as he participated in the selection trials for the Asian Games. He finished at the top with six wins in as many matches to qualify for the individual events.
Srikanth has endured a tough 2023, managing one quarterfinal finish in seven tournaments, which saw his ranking slip from world number 13 to 22. Srikanth had won a world championships silver in 2021 before guiding India to a historic Thomas Cup win last year.
With only the top 20 players handed direct entry into the Asian Games, the 30-year-old from Guntur, ranked 22nd, had to participate in the selection trials for the first time. Next up for Srikanth is the Sudirman Cup, a mixed team championships beginning in China from May 14.
India have been drawn with Malaysia, Chinese Taipei, Australia in Group C.