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India’s shuttlers have been handed a tough draw at the upcoming Badminton Asia Championships, where the competition is set to be fierce with top international players participating. The tournament, which carries a substantial prize pool of USD 500,000, will take place from April 8 to 13. Here are the Key Highlights :-
Men’s Singles:
Lakshya-Sen
Lakshya Sen, the 2021 World Championships bronze medalist, will have to bring his best form as he faces Lee Chia-Hao from Chinese Taipei, a finalist at the recent All England Championships.Â
S Prannoy, still recovering from a bout of chikungunya, faces a daunting task in his opening match against China’s Guang Zu Lu.
Priyanshu Rajawat has a challenging encounter lined up against Thailand’s Kantaphon Wangcharoen, while Kiran George is slated to face a qualifier.
Women’s Singles:
PV-Sindhu
PV Sindhu, the two-time Olympic medalist, is set to open against Indonesia’s Ester Nurumi Tri Wardoyo, currently ranked world No. 34. Sindhu, who has a wealth of experience, will be keen to start strong.
India’s young star Anupama Upadhyaya faces a very tough opponent in Ratchanok Intanon, Thailand’s former world champion and the 8th seed in the tournament.
Malvika Bansod has drawn China’s Fang Jie Gao, while Aakarshi Kashyap has a particularly difficult first-round match against China’s Yue Han, the second seed.
Double Trouble:
Ashith-Surya-and-Amrutha-Pramuthesh
In women’s doubles, India’s pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, currently ranked 9th, will face a qualifier in their first match.
Priya Konjengbam and Shruti Mishra will also compete, although their initial opponents are not as daunting.
In men’s doubles, lesser-known duos, Hariharan Amsakarunan/Ruban Kumar Rethinasabapathi and Pruthvi Krishnamurthy Roy/Sai Pratheek K, will represent India in their respective matchups.
In mixed doubles, four Indian pairs will take part, including Rohan Kapoor/Ruthvika Shivani Gadde, Sathish Karunakaran/Aadya Variyath, Dhruv Kapila/Tanisha Crasto, and Ashith Surya/Amrutha Pramuthesh.
Analysis And Epilogue:
Treesa-Jolly-and-Gayatri-Gopichand
The Indian contingent is facing stiff competition, especially in the singles events. For stars like PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen, experience and past performances will be critical to navigating tough early-round opponents. The draws for younger talents like Anupama Upadhyaya and Priyanshu Rajawat are particularly challenging, as they face higher-ranked and seasoned players.
The doubles events also present a mix of opportunities and challenges. While the women’s doubles pair of Jolly and Gopichand will aim to capitalize on their ranking advantage, the men’s doubles and mixed doubles teams, featuring relatively new combinations, will need to bring their A-game to advance.
India’s prospects in the championship will depend largely on overcoming these challenging early matchups, with several players needing to pull off upsets to move forward in the tournament.
Written by Dhyey Parekh
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