Prakash Padukone thread

[rajitghosh]

Friends let us start a thread on India's greatest badminton player Prakash Padukone. You are welcome to send your replies.

[PKBasu]

Prakash Padukone is the greatest badminton player India has produced. In the era when players from Indonesia dominated the game, Prakash made a glorious breakthrough in 1980, when he beat reigning champion Liem Swie King to win the All-England Badminton championships (the Wimbledon of badminton). He also won the Danish and Swedish Opens that year -- to complete what was then known as the Grand Slam of badminton (in an era when European tournaments were still the most important ones in the sport). He had undoubtedly reached the pinnacle of his sport and was ranked world #1 that year. The following year, in 1981, Prakash won the World Cup of badminton in Kuala Lumpur -- a performance that is still remembered fondly by aficionados of the game in south-east Asia.
Prakash won the national title when he was 16, and retained it for nine consecutive years. In 1979, he won the Commonwealth Games gold medal (at a time when Britain was still a major badminton power), and won the English Masters title later that year, beating all the world's best players. And of course he reached the sport's pinnacle in 1980 and stayed close to it in 1981 (when he won the World Cup but lost the All-England final to Liem Swie King).
Thereafter Prakash moved to Denmark to train. His fitness level improved, but Morten Frost -- whom he beat regularly in 1980 and 1981 -- completely mastered Prakash, figuring out the subtleties of his game, and beating him (more easily over time) thereafter. Prakash was ranked in the top-4 in the world for at least 5 years (and won the bronze in the 1983 world championship, for instance) but Morten Frost became his nemesis for the rest of his career.

[rajitghosh]

Here's a list of his greatest achievements:

1978 Commonwealth 1
1979 London Masters 1
1980 Swedish 1
1980 All England 1
1980 Danish 1
1981 All England 2
1981 World Cup 1
1981 Indian Masters 1
1981 World Games 3
1981 Scandinavian Masters 2
1981 Danish 2
1982 Hong Kong 1
1982 Dutch 1
1982 All England 3
1982 Word Cup 3
1982 Scandinavian Masters 2
1983 World Championship 3
1983 Japan 2
1984 Thailand 2
1983 Indian Masters 2

[jayakris]

Wow, thanks for pulling out all these nice old records, rajitghosh. May be we will start a Golden oldies thread in badminton, and I can move some of these posts out there. Jay

[rajitghosh]

A more updated Prakash Padukone records list:

1976 Asian 3
1978 Commonwealth 1
1979 London Masters 1
1979 Indian Masters 2
1980 Swedish 1
1980 All England 1
1980 Danish 1
1980 Copenhagen Cup 2
1981 All England 2
1981 World Cup 1
1981 Indian Masters 1
1981 World Games 3
1981 English Masters 2
1981 Scandinavian Masters 2
1981 Danish 2
1982 Hong Kong 1
1982 Dutch 1
1982 Danish 2
1982 All England 3
1982 Word Cup 3
1982 Scandinavian Masters 2
1983 World Championship 3
1983 Japan 2
1983 Indian Masters 2
1983 Chinese Taipei 2
1983 Dutch 2
1983 Scandinavian Masters 2
1983 World Grand Prix Final 4
1984 Thailand 2
1985 Chinese Taipei 2

We should start a Badminton Golden Oldies also.

[mann]

Great Player.....