Prannoy’s career has largely remained unfulfilled despite winning three BWF titles and a Youth Olympic medal in the same year. Take a look at his stats: ever since he joined the seniors, he’s been one of those one-match wonders who mostly gives in to pressure.
Let’s start with 2015: He won his first match at the India Open against Israel’s Mischa Zilberman after a string of solid performances.
After that, he stunned then-world number two Jan o Jorgensen in the pre-quarters, but in the quarters, he lost to unknown Viktor Axelsen.
His loss to the unknown Kazumasa Sakai of Japan in 2017 despite victories over Anthony Ginting, Lee Chong Wei, and Chen Long in the previous round demonstrates his reputation as a blow hot and cold player.
And that was just the beginning. At the Indonesia Masters in 2021, he defeated Axelsen in the Round of 16 but lost in the quarterfinals to Kidambi Srikanth, a fellow Indonesian. He defeated Axelsen once more at the BWF World Tour Finals, but only after losing the first two bouts to Kodai Naraoka and Lu Guangzu. Nevertheless, Axelsen won the final tournament of the year.
As a result, his lack of consistency and propensity to give in to pressure—or whatever—are just plain annoying.
The numerous injuries he has sustained throughout his career could also play a significant role in this. Even Prannoy’s doctors would have trouble keeping track of them because it would be impossible; However, issues with his fitness have occasionally caused his game to suffer significantly.
He injured his knee in 2011, just before the nationals; in 2012, I had another one. That very year he harmed his back and took north of a half year to get back on the court. He also missed a lot of 2015 because of injuries, and in 2016, he hurt his toe at the Singapore Open. He suffered from toe and knee injuries once more in the same year during the PBL.
During the 2018 World Championship, he was given a diagnosis of gastroesophageal reflux, which required a long recovery period.
The former world number eight then experienced the effects of Covid-19, which caused his lungs to become inflamed. He also had a bad back in 2021, just before the European circuit, and fought it for weeks.
Prannoy stated, “It’s really disappointing that I’m not able to get consistent wins across tournaments” in an interview with ESPN the previous year.
In addition to numerous health issues, I have experienced numerous career breaks and gaps. I move on to the next after sorting one.
I’ve just been running around with every part of my body for the past four or five years, plus COVID happened, which has been really draining. It can be difficult to handle everything on your own, strike a balance, and continue training and competing at this level.
Since a few years ago, it has been a consistent theme. No one is to blame for me. I simply need to concentrate on what can be done and play as well as I can.”
However, there is more to the story than just this. It’s possible that the story has not yet come to an end for the
Lad from Trivandrum Despite going through so much throughout his rather lengthy career, he has somehow managed to remain relevant. Imagine a player who entered the senior circuit 12 or more years ago and managed to remain in the top 20 for the majority of that time. 8 in 2018, dropped to 33 the following year, and is currently ranked 12th. He has been, in some ways, similar to Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Akhtar. Bring your A-game, perform your duties as if there were no tomorrow, and wreak havoc on your rivals. There will be ups and downs along the way, but there will always be a question mark about what your limit is and where you can get there.
Take a look at how the Indians fared in 2022. He might get a full season after a while, and the results will be public knowledge.
Despite Kidambi Srikanth and Lakshya Sen’s presence, he is regarded as the architect of India’s Thomas Cup victory. He finished in second place at the Swiss Open, reached the semifinals in Indonesia and Malaysia, and made seven appearances in the quarterfinals.
That without a doubt makes him the most predictable player in India for 2022.
Prannoy has a strong all-around game that may even be better than Srikanth’s. One can only wonder what this boy can accomplish if he stays injury-free for two years.
Despite the fact that the bronze medalist from the Asian Championships is known for his abilities, his unpredictability only encourages them to keep their fingers crossed and hope for the best.
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