Sameer Verma: The giant-killer beneath the radar

There’s a Cheteshwar Pujara in Indian badminton: his protection is watchable and he’s finished properly in his profession with out shuttle’s energy weapon, the large smash. Nobody fairly launches into him like they do the cricketer, low-key sport, soft-spoken barely audible shuttler and all, that Sameer Verma is.
But it’s simple for followers to remain detached to his losses and mood expectations, as a result of when he wins he gives the look that he merely will get by. Unless, he fetches up and scalps a biggie – on Tuesday at Thailand, it was World No 10, Malaysian Lee Zii Jia, profitable 18-21, 27-25, 21-19.
Right in regards to the time Rishabh Pant was switching gears from draw to win in Brisbane, Verma was a set and 17-6 down in Bangkok. This after he’d led 14-7 within the opener, to flatline and lose the set. Trailing 3-11 within the second, Verma would begin the turnaround after one thing coach Agus Dwi Santoso repeated: “keep playing your style.”

PLAY OF THE DAY | @sameerv2210 was a person on a mission at the moment 🔥 💪#HSBCbadminton #BWFWorldTour #ToyotaThailandOpen @HSBC_Sport pic.twitter.com/z1KWDFBj4E
— BWF (@bwfmedia) January 19, 2021
National coach, P Gopichand, watching from Hyderabad was glued to the badminton, figuring out cricket was on the verge of historical past, however unable to flip channels whereas Sameer charted his personal quiet comeback, whereas backing his fashion.For the uninitiated, Sameer is shorter than your ordinary males’s singles participant: like Antony Ginting, however minus that soar and that smash. He has a hypnotic slingy web recreation although – that may hold you away from a TV distant – and a protection that may’t be known as dour, however which is the bedrock of his recreation. He cleverly defends cross along with his snappy hand-speed, an excellent quantity of deception, and a reliable overhead cross-court. But no large smash.
On Tuesday, staring down the barrel, phrases of his coaches boomed again from the depths within the second set. “Emotionally, I was thinking how to win the second game. I was down after losing the first game, mentally it was tough to lose after having such a big lead….But after the break my coach said, keep playing your style. I followed his advice,” Verma instructed BWF.
Lee would sense it too – the sudden strategic swap. It was like gentle breaking by way of the cracks sharply, as Verma would begin exploiting the angles and dealing the large rallies. Not many like getting dragged into lengthy rallies with Sameer Verma. The 26-year-old sniffs weaknesses like an professional canine, and has the chunk in pinpoint placement of photographs to go for a kill. Who wants the large jaws roaring smash, when pincer cuts can obtain the identical impact?
Backing his personal artistic protection and snapping shut all errors with self-discipline in opposition to seven match factors, he would lastly stage at 27-25. Verma doesn’t get credit score for the errors he attracts out, however there’s loads that may fall within the compelled bracket.
“From the start I made a lot of mistakes. Luckily I overcame and won that,” Lee would say, including, “Second set I used to be main by so much.. But Sameer Verma’s technique modified.Tough recreation. Third Sameer led all the best way.
He did properly from the second set. Also Sameer performed higher than me at the moment.”

Give it up for the hero of the day❗️ 👏👏
What a efficiency 🇮🇳 @sameerv2210‼️#HSBCbadminton #BWFWorldTour #ToyotaThailandOpen
📸 @Badmintonphoto pic.twitter.com/7rZgnrMkBS
— BWF (@bwfmedia) January 19, 2021
Verma has the sport to beat the highest names – he’s crushed Kento Momota, the final Indian to handle that. But wants an injection of confidence to remain satisfied about his personal capability.
Bouts of doubts can unfold like a rash by way of his thoughts when his leads are snatched away, like within the opener. “I played my game, my style. Good win for me. Much more confident in the second round,” he’d say.
Equipped with maybe the least weapons amongst India’s males’s singles crop – his limitations are obtrusive: the physicality for the kill smash. But this additionally makes him probably the most disciplined of the lot on the court docket, and extra acutely aware of not getting too fancy and frittering in errors. His precision because the tide turned in opposition to Lee was proof of that self-awareness – of the lacking smash from his arsenal. Knowing absolutely properly he’ll want these 2-3 strokes additional to complete off the rally.
“For Sameer to excel since he won’t power through opposition, he needs to be maneuvering opponents and finding an opening and finishing it. He needs to have a level of confidence and needs to get into the match. And be fully fit,” Gopichand says. “What he played today was very precise. And it is very refreshing to see this style of badminton win against top players. Overall very good win. This is one of the better matches I’ve seen Sameer play. Some of the rallies were really top notch, best I’ve seen him play.”
He could be troubled by an ankle and hadn’t fairly landed in Bangkok brimming with confidence. Ranked 32 – seventh amongst Indians – India’s males’s singles shuttlers, Sameer, brother Sourabh, HS Prannoy and P Kashyap kind a formidable pack – however shouldn’t be entitled to funding, reserved for Top 25.
Which additionally implies that Sameer hasn’t travelled to Bangkok with a devoted physio. Indonesian coach Agus sits for his matches, however isn’t obliged to, since he’s not within the camp. Verma has by no means complained, however it additionally means he’s left to fend for himself, particularly since his fashion of play (compensating with velocity and nous for energy) makes tough calls for on his physique.
So when he wins, he’s trampolining over adversity always.
“If he manages to be in the striking zone of rankings, and the moment he gets good conditions, he should be able to get big wins,” Gopichand says. “He may not be the most consistent player on the circuit but he can still get consistently good results against big names. He will have to accept some losses as it’s okay and move on rather than harp on bad results,” the coach provides.
On a day of ‘nice guys winning’, Sameer stayed good and nicked one other Top Ten. It’s on days he loses that help might want to circulate his approach, as a result of he’s too good to even complain.