Russian Ivan Sozonov likely to be India’s badminton doubles coach at national camp

Russian former All England doubles champion Ivan Sozonov is under consideration for India’s badminton doubles foreign coach appointment at the national camp. The 33-year-old is likely to join at the start of the next financial year, and will mostly be responsible for the next rung and the development squad of juniors, beyond Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty.
India’s newest entrants into Top 5, Satwik – Chirag, however will continue to be coached Danish Mathias Boe, who has steered them to a World Championship medal in what has been their best season up until now.
Sozonov, who reached out to BAI applying for the India job, will assume responsibility for the next pairings like Dhruv Kapila – MR Arjun and Krishna Prasad – Vishnuvardhan, as well as the crop of juniors bursting through the wings.
“He will be 24*7 rooted into the system, and given his good equation with Boe, will also coordinate to bring about uniformity in the program for the second rung plus juniors. Formalities will take some time, but we are positive about this working out and Sports Authority of India have given their go-ahead crucially,” a source said.
Boe has done a tremendous job, taking Satwik-Chirag to title wins this year and helping India win the Thomas Cup. However he cannot commit full-time to being around the next rung who needs dedicated and specific attention. It’s where Sozonov’s appointment can fill the missing link.
The Russian won the 2016 All England with partner Vladimir Ivanov, and the duo have been known for their flair, intensity and adaptable variety in their games. The duo have turned out for various teams in the Premier Badminton League, and share a good rapport with the Indian juniors.
While Mathias Boe has set the broad contours for elite training and sat for matches beyond Satwik-Chirag, it has become necessary to bring in more expertise with the burgeoning numbers. Both Dhruv-Arjun and Treesa Jolly – Gayatri Gopichand pairings are on the cusp of big Olympic qualification seasons where India would want two combinations to crack the Top 16 in men’s and women’s doubles to max out qualifications. Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto, plus Krishna Prasad-Vishnuvardhan are also in the mix.
India’s rejigged mixed doubles pairs are still in nascent stages, and the likes of Sikki Reddy, Sai Prateek and Ishan Bhatnagar, will also need tactical shepherding. Sozonov is expected to help out with these burgeoning numbers.
Sozonov-Ivanov were European champions in 2014 as well as at Kyiv in 2021 albeit from a German walkover. He also was runners up at the Denmark Open in 2020.
Predominantly a net player setting up the attack for gigantic 6 foot 6 Ivanov, Sozonov, himself a 6 footer, was known for his variations and tactical acumen. Together the Russians reached a career-high of World No 7 in 2017.
India has had a series of effective foreign coaches from Malaysian Tan Kim Her to Indonesian Flandy Limpele, before Mathias Boe, more hands-on, opened up the possibility of a recently-retired international taking up a coaching job. While each coach contributed to India gaining in confidence in doubles, there was also a simultaneous acknowledgement that Indian coaches – Vijaydeep Singh and Arun Vishnu, were doing a fine job on the ground alongside Indonesian ace sparrers like Dwi.
“As such there was no urgency to bring in a foreign coach because the system was working well. But now Mathias will need to focus on Satwik-Chirag in a crucial qualification year, and we were also open to looking beyond Indonesians and Malaysians. But Sozonov should be a good addition,” the source said. Paperwork and permissions though might take a while, and given India’s past experiences, Sozonov can be said to be a done deal only after he actually lands here and begins work.