Tan Kim Her returns to guide India's badminton stars

Malaysian doubles specialist Tan Kim Her has reunited with star pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, starting his second stint at the Indian badminton landscape.

The 53-year-old has been roped in by the Badminton Association of India (BAI) for a four-year term till the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

"I am very happy to be back in India and get a chance to work with Satwik-Chirag and also the young and talented group of doubles players who have the potential to follow on the path of Satwik-Chirag," Tan said in a release.

"I am looking forward to creating a bigger group of doubles combinations who can win tournaments at the world stage.”

Tan, who arrived in Hyderabad on Sunday, was India's doubles coach from 2015 to 2019 and was instrumental in bringing Satwik and Chirag together before the 2016 Olympics.

He will take over the reins from Denmark's Mathias Boe, who guided Satwik and Chirag to many highs, including attaining the world number 1 status, winning an Asian Games gold, and securing a World Championships bronze.

However, the pair faced heartbreaks in two Olympics — Tokyo and Paris.

In his second stint, Tan, who had taken up an offer from Japan's badminton association in 2019, will "focus on developing strong doubles partnerships and bench strength ahead of the 2026 Asian Games and 2028 Los Angeles Olympics."

"We had been looking for quality foreign coaches who could work with our current top players and also guide our next-generation players as we prepare for the 2028 Olympics," said BAI Secretary General Sanjay Mishra.

"Finding the right coach took time, but we were determined to bring in those who can continue the development of our badminton stars and also work with a bigger group of players and help build a strong pipeline of talent for the future," he said.

News of Tan's return has been doing the rounds since last month, but BAI had termed it "premature," saying nothing was concrete and the Malaysian was yet to accept the contract.
In 2022, Tan was tipped to take over as doubles coach, but it didn't materialise.