Ashwini exudes confidence of winning medal

New Delhi: From being an unknown junior to representing India at the Olympics, Ashwini Ponnappa has come a long way in the last four years and the ace shuttler believes she and her partner Jwala Gutta have a bright chance of winning a medal at London Games.

Ashwini started playing with Jwala only in 2009 but the pair soon achieved success, winning the Commonwealth Games gold and bronze in World Championship at Wimbley arena in London, the same venue where badminton events will be held during the London Olympics. "We have been practicing hard every morning and evening under (Syed Mohammed) Arif sir at the Lal Bahadur Shastri Indoor Stadium and Edwin (Iriawan) at Gachibowli and I think we have a good chance of winning a medal," she said. "Arif sir is very patient and Edwin has also been pushing us hard and we believe we have the capability to win a medal at the Games. We know we can do it and we are focussing on the job but it is a process and we have to go through that, we really want to come back with a medal," she added. Asked about the areas they are working on, Ashwini said: "I am working on my drops and strokes from the back and court movement, while Jwala has been putting a lot of hard work on her fitness. She has been dieting and lost a lot of wait." It is just 17 days to go for the London Games and Ashwini said she is excited to be a part of the quadrennial sporting extravaganza. "I`m looking forward to it. It would be a great experience with all the athletes at a place and the world watching you," said Ashwini. Asked whom she is looking forward to meeting, the 24-year-old from Bangalore said: "Though I would want to meet all of them but it won`t be possible. So may be Roger Federer, especially after his Wimbledon triumph and Usian Bolt." PTI