India’s ace badminton player PV Sindhu today announced that former Malaysian shuttler Muhammad Hafiz Hashim will be her new coach.
PV Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medallist, parted ways with her former coach, the Republic of Korea’s Park Tae-Sang, in February 2023.
Sindhu had been training on and off with Hafiz Hashim at Hyderabad’s Suchitra Badminton Academy (SBA) since her split with the South Korean but only announced him officially as her coach on Tuesday.
Hafiz Hashim arrives as a full-time coach when PV Sindhu has slipped to world No. 17 in the latest badminton world rankings. It is her worst since January 2013.
HERE WE GO!!
In typical Fabrizio style, I am thrilled to announce Hafiz Hashim as my new coach!!
After a long, drawn-out process, I am ecstatic to declare that I have chosen the incredible Hafiz Hashim as my coach. Hafiz possesses all the traits I was seeking in a coach,… pic.twitter.com/BZj7YHFtyc
— Pvsindhu (@Pvsindhu1) July 18, 2023
According to reports, PV Sindhu formally requested the Sports Authority of India (SAI) to approve Hafiz Hashim as her coach last month. The proposal to appoint Hashim as PV Sindhu’s coach till the Paris 2024 Olympics was accepted last Thursday.
Hashim has already flown from New Delhi to Yeosu, where PV Sindhu is playing in the Korea Open. He will also be travelling with the Indian star for the Japan Open, Australian Open and the Asian Games.
As a player, Muhammad Hafiz Hashim boasts several medals at the Asian Games, Thomas Cup and Sudirman Cup with Team Malaysia. His individual successes include a singles title at the 2003 All England Open and a Commonwealth Games singles gold medal at Manchester 2002.
After retiring from the sport, Hafiz Hashim took up coaching with the Academy Badminton Malaysia in December last year before moving to Hyderabad in February this year.
The first item on Hafiz’s itinerary will be to get PV Sindhu back in form. The Indian shuttler has endured a poor season so far, failing to win a single title on the BWF World Tour. She did make the Madrid Masters final but faced early exits in most tournaments she has played in.
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