Hyderabad:
Having bagged a bronze medalin the Commonwealth Games, Indian shuttler Parupalli Kashyap has now set his sights on a medal in the 2012 Olympics in London.
"After the experience in the Commonwealth Games, I want to qualify for the London Olympics (in 2012). I want to win a medal in the Olympics. That is the main goal right now. But, in a month's time, we have the Asian Games, that is the next target, to do well there," he told PTI.
He credited chief national coach Pullela Gopichand and another coach Bhaskar Babu for his improved game which fetched him a CWG medal.
"I am very happy to have won the bronze medal. I was disappointed with the semifinal match. I wanted to be in the final. Next day, I came back and won the bronze medal. I was very happy," he said.
Kashyap, who beat Chetan Anand in the bronze medal play-off, said he has been consistently putting up a good performance against him.
"Since 2005-06, I have been beating Chetan. In the National Games final at Guwahati, I have defeated him. I am the only guy who beaten him consistently. He has also beaten me a few times. But this year, I really worked hard.
"My performance in the international games was better than ever. So I had that confidence. My coaches Gopichand sir, Bhaskar Babu sir trained really hard which has helped me achieve this medal," the Hyderabad player said.
Kashyap expressed confidence that his bronze-winning performance in the Commonwealth Games would ensure a slot among the top-10 of the world.
"I think few performances of mine this year, I thought, have pushed me into the next phase and I think I am very close to reaching the top 10. It is just a matter of time. I think I need to work the same way I am doing," he said.