Offering a series of solid performance since their partnership after the Paris Olympic Games, the amount of Tanisha Crasto and DHRUV Kapila savor each piece of their trip together in a mixed double, sparkling renewed hope for the future of India in the discipline. Jwala Gutta and V Diju were the best pairs of mixed doubles from India, reaching a global career ranking of six. After their retirement, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Ashwini Ponnappa made significant progress before separating, the first focusing on double men alongside Chirag Shetty.
“We played a few tournaments before the Olympic Games and saw a lot of potential in this partnership. I think it was a good decision for both of us to start this trip together,” Tanisha told PTI.
“Dhruv is a very talented mixed double player. He has a great understanding of the game, and I like to play in advance. It is a combination that works well and makes us a dangerous pair.” Tanisha and Dhruv progressed on Tuesday in the second round of Open Super 750 India with an 8-21 21-19 21-17 victory over Chen Cheng Kuan from Taipei and Hsu Yin-Hui in their first match.
Interestingly, Tanisha, alongside Ishaan Bhatnagar, had a serious push for the Paris Olympic Games before an unhappy injury derailed their plans.
“Sometimes the setbacks lead to better opportunities. Mixed doubles are my main goal now. I don’t know how long Ashwini will continue to play, so I am fully focused on this event,” said Tanisha, who participated in the Paris Olympic Games.
Tanisha and DHRUV are both experienced players with notable success at the highest level, although with different female and male double partners.
Dhruv, known for his mixed double style even in his junior days, initially played the male double with Mr. Arjun, with some success.
However, an injury to Arjun led Dhruv to refocus on mixed doubles.
“I was not entirely mixed double at the start because I did not have a partner, and everyone was already twinned. Arjun and I played well, but finally, I decided to focus on a discipline,” said Dhruv. “Unfortunately, Arjun was injured, but he’s going well now and plays with Vishnu.” The return of the renowned Malaysian coach Tan Kim Her further strengthened their confidence.
“He was of great help to Dhruv and me,” said Tanisha. “He understands our weaknesses and helps us to work together. It is very comfortable talking to him, and he helps us to refine our game, both individually and in pair. It was really beneficial for us.” As for filling the void left by Jwala-Diji, Tanisha and Dhruv are prudent but optimistic.
“Yes, but we have to improve more. We cannot yet set too high expectations,” said Dhruv.
“We are focusing on this year. We are doing it step by step – starting to perform well in super 500 and 700 events. We aim to reach the quarter -finals and semi -finals. We are not yet there, but we learn from each tournament, and our short -term goal is a continuous improvement in the coming months.”
(With the exception of the title, this story has not been published by NDTV staff and is published from a unionized flow.)
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