Had self doubts after Rio Olympics: Ashwini

She is enjoying every bit of adulation that has come her way after playing a pivotal role in Indian badmionton team's first ever gold medal in a mixed team event at Commonwealth Games but doubles specialist Ashwin Ponappa had serious "self doubts" about being able to make a comeback post 2016 Rio Olympics.

Everything now seems to be falling in place for Ashwini but it wasn't so two years back when she and Jwala failed to win a single match at the Rio Olympics and decided to end their seven-year old association. She was down with dengue ahead of the Games and it plagued her performance ever since.

"It is nice to get all the acknowledgement now but it has not been easy. After 2016 Rio Games, I started doubting myself. There was no power in my smashes, I couldn't hit as harder I did earlier, it was just not working. Though I had recovered from dengue and physically I looked okay, but internally I was struggling to get back to my best. So there were moments when I thought will I ever be able to make a comeback?," she told PTI during an interview.

She kept juggling between Bangalore and Hyderabad. Struggling with her fitness, she found solace at home but this year she shifted base to Hyderabad after getting married to businessman and model Karan Medappa.

Having the comfort of family helped as she could focus on training more and it worked.

"I started training with a sport strength and conditioning coach in Bangalore in December, 2016. I felt better and played well in PBL. It was that time I was playing the singles, I played at Syed Modi. But again my physically strength came down. So I was crashing again and again and it was distheartening," she said.

"Luckily, I started feeling better this year and we focused on training and not playing tournaments."
"So this time it was different, I was playing with different partners and from being a young player in 2010, I had become a veteran now. Me and Satwik started in June and we won the first match in mixed team final. Sikki and me also worked hard and we did well. If I would have lost that doubles bronze medal match, it would have been devasting for me."
And what about the 2020 Olympics?