Thomas Cup Triumph: A Collective Show Made Up Of Individual Brilliance

For years India would turn up at the Thomas Cup, make up the numbers and watch from afar powerhouses like China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia and Denmark walk away with all the glory. This time too, nobody gave them a chance but self-belief of the players translated into unprecedented success, putting Indian badminton alongside the sport's elites. The country's badminton has been synonymous with Prakash Padukone, Pullela Gopichand, Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu, but this Thomas Cup triumph could redefine the sport from the Indian perspective.

Collective show made up of individual brilliance

Being a team event, it's a collective show but it is also a result of individual brilliance of the singles players and the transformation of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty into one of the fiercest doubles teams.

Whether it is Kidambi Srikanth, HS Prannoy or Lakshya Sen, they have all proved their mettle on the world badminton circuit. Their rise has been noticed.

The Indian players have showed their preparedness in taking on the best and found the biggest stage to fire in unison.

What has worked for India is the fact that all three singles players have been in sensational form in the last six months.

While the singles players have been making waves for some time what has made a huge difference this time is the phenomenal rise of Satwiksairaj and Chirag.

Doubles has been the weakest link for Indian badminton in team events for years.

In Davis Cup, the presence of the legendary Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi as a team meant that India always fancied winning the doubles rubber. In badminton, the assuring presence of Satwiksairaj and Chirag means that the rivals won't get a free point.

They were paired together by a certain