Sameer Verma: New Star On The Rise
India had its eyes on the professional players, and a new star was born. Sameer Verma, 22, has a story to tell. Verma moved out of his house in Madhya Pradesh at a very young age. He later moved to Hyderabad to receive training from his dream mentor, Pullela Gopichand. He set himself on a magical one, considering his winning streaks at the sub-junior and junior level championships.
The 22-year-old prefigured his entrance into the BWF scene by winning the national U-19 singles title. The current India No. 3 had fallen prey to multiple injuries in 2012, which almost put an end to his career. But gradually and reticently, he made his way into the scene by clinching a silver in the Hong Kong Superseries.
An assiduous achiever
Sameer Verma entered the big league as an outsider. Nobody knew he was playing solely because the audience was more focused on cheering for the Olympic medallists, PV Sindhu and Saina Nehwal. But as he moved ahead, the attention shifted toward him as the big stars were eliminated.
His first match against Japan’s Takuma Ueda. A very nervous Verma started the game on a pretty good note. Although he made plenty of unforced errors, he bagged the first game with a close 22-20. The second game was also quite a nerve wrecking one. But after a few errors and leads from both sides, the game, and the match ended in Verma’s favour at 21-18.
His second match against the feisty Kazumasa Sakai. The match started off on a pretty bad note for the 22-year-old. Though the game was quite an interesting one, it ended in favour of the Japanese at 19-21. The second game was where Verma gained momentum and graced the court with some glorious smashes. The game ended 21-15 in favour of the Indian. In the third game, Sakai seemed to have lost stamina and had already given up. The game went on for a good 15 minutes, and Verma made it to the quarters.
Overcoming the Danish challenge
The quarterfinal seemed to have grabbed everyone’s attention, as a rookie had set the bar rather high for the professionals to reach for. Verma now had to square off against Malaysian superstar Wei Feng Chong. The first game seemed to be quite a walk in the park for the 22-year-old. A few analytic strokes and some backhand smashes proclaimed Verma the winner of the game 21-17. The second game was quite a nerve-wrecking one, though. The lead changed hands many a time and the game was a hard one to decide on. Finally, after an extension to 23, Verma clinched the game and the match at 23-21.
The semifinal was to be strenuous of them all, as the Indian shuttler was to square off against world No. 3 Jan O Jorgensen. Verma punched way above his weight as he opened up a massive 12-7 lead early on in the opening game. However, Jorgensen made sure he was not too far behind, as he quickly bridged the gap by taking 3 consecutive points. The Indian fell short on pace and stamina, which the Danish shuttler put to use. A deliberating rally emanated with Jorgensen focusing more on his drops and his forehand shots, which lead to the game being pocketed by Verma 21-19.
The second game was the real nail biter. This game revealed a whole new side of the Indian shuttler, as he engaged himself in intense rallies, jostling Jorgensen to commit several unforced errors. After a few close leads, the game was extended to 24, which finally had Verma clinching the semifinal with tears rolling down his cheeks.
Sameer Verma: No regrets having lost the final
The final had Verma battle it off against Ng Ka Long Angus, a crowd favourite. The first game was a very close one. The lead changed hand in the span of a blink. However, Verma’s unforced errors let Angus bag the first game comfortably. The second game started off on a very bad note for Verma. He seemed to have lost complete momentum. But it did not take long before Verma’s quick smashes and backhand shots bridged the gap and tied the match forcing a decider in the final game. However, the Indian could not continue his prime form in the decider and lost the match settling for the silver medal as the final score read 14-21, 21-10, 11-21.
“Happy to reach final, didn’t expect to. I got a bit tired in the third game after 11 points. Before the final, I was a bit nervous. I felt a bit of pressure today, but I’m confident of making the top ten” articulated the 22-year-old on bagging the silver in his first ever Superseries. Considering his technique and his capabilities, one can definitely bet on him as one of the major prospects from the country.
Image Courtesy: Indian Express