Usually, PV Sindhu gives little away in an interview. She'll smile, she'll laugh but she'll say nothing out of the ordinary, no 'quotable' quotes so to say. One might argue that she doesn't need to because over the course of a long and storied career, she has done all her talking on the court.Her trophy cabinet houses medals from the Olympics (a silver and a bronze), the World Championships (a gold, two silver, two bronze), Uber Cup (two bronze), the Commonwealth Games (two gold, two silver and a bronze), Asian Games (silver and bronze). It is enough to make her sporting royalty. Not just in India but anywhere around the world as well.Her success has also made her very rich. She made it into the list of 2023's highest paid women athletes by Forbes where she finished at the 16th spot alongside gymnast Simone Biles with her $7.1 million earnings. Suffice to say that she has done it all and won it all.She could put her feet up and rest easy if she wanted to and no one would say anything.

But the top athletes, very often, have a competitive itch they need to scratch. Something that pushes them to get back on the court; something that makes them want to defy the odds; something that makes them want to show that they have still got it.The internal dialogue might seem stupefying to some but it is usually a critical component of their success. You don't just turn up and play. Rather, you question your every move and the answers that emerge play a big role in helping you move forward. The belief and attitudes play a big role in their performances over the years and it is never easy to just discard all of that and move on. But the most important component of this conversation is always honesty. After all, you can fool the world but can you fool yourself?And perhaps only that will explain the grind that the Indian superstar, who is now world No.13, has been putting herself through over the last year or so. Break it down, so that you can build it up again. Only, it isn't an exact science. Will it ever come together in quite the same way or will the cracks remain?The younger stars on the circuit have started dominating the 29-year-old, who took her first steps on the senior circuit when she competed in the Syed Modi memorial in 2009. But it always felt like there was a niggle or two holding Sindhu back. In those niggles rested hope too. If she was fit, would she beat them? If she finds her rhythm, could she rise to the top again?All great athletes, especially those who have been around for as long as Sindhu, know that genetics may determine the starting line but it is hard work that determines the finish line. So she - great and mighty - went back to the basics.

Amidst all the talk of the arrogance of champions, this was a humbling acknowledgement of the need to set things right.She has changed coaching teams, jumped to a different city to train, roped in Prakash Padukone (who according to Sindhu has a knack for teaching or pushing a player) and taken tentative steps back on the circuit hoping to find the spark that once made her a feared opponent in big tournaments.It has been slow going though. The results haven't been what she wanted but she seems to be on the right track. The training sessions have been good but as coach Vimal Kumar, head coach of the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy, told HT in June, "From what I've been seeing of her, she's putting in a lot of hard work. But it will matter little unless she applies herself on court."One would imagine the application part could come easier to her. She has been around for so many years and over time, the athlete gains an understanding of what it takes. But it never really does. She herself confesses the game itself has changed."I feel like (I'm) getting there. (I am) not overconfident, but definitely wiser and smarter and hoping to win another medal," Sindhu had said during a recent media interaction. "The game has changed a lot now. (There are) more rallies now with emphasis on strong defence. Every player is very strong, mentally and physically prepared for those long matches."But the court is a neutral space where the mind empties itself out and concentrates on just the moment. You don't have the chance to think about glory or what it has taken to get there. Sometimes, you don't even hear the crowd. All that matters is the shuttle, the racquet and the opponent. A bubble inside which you are freed of expectations and prejudice.She'll plan for her opponents after the group stage - she might run into He Bing Jiao, Chen Yu Fei and Carolina Marin - on her way to the final, but most of all she'll hope that all the hard work amounts to something.If it does, and to be fair, that is a big if to most on the outside, it'll only be because she is PV Sindhu, a player who has learned to own the big stage. Maybe she makes the stage or perhaps the stage makes her.

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