The last time an Indian shuttler won the India Open, it was a Level 3 Super 500 event, played behind closed doors as the world struggled with COVID fallout and the likes of Ajay Jayaram and Parupalli Kashyap were still active on the professional circuit.
It was only three years ago but 2022 feels like a lifetime as Lakshya Sen — who won back then — and P.V. Sindhu look to leave a forgetful 2024 behind and make new beginnings, starting their season with a fruitful opening on home ground beginning Tuesday.
Now a Super 750 event, the 3rd Yonex-Sunrise India Open at the Indira Gandhi Stadium will have the cream of world badminton in attendance.
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While Lakshya continued to struggle for form with a first-round exit at the Malaysia Open last week, this will be Sindhu’s first competition of the season, returning to action after getting married recently. “I won in 2022 but that was not in front of fans so I hope to do it again, this time in front of fans. Last year was tough for me and it was not an ideal start at the Malaysia Open but the fire continues to burn inside and I hope to come back stronger, starting here and leading up to the next Olympics. I know it will be a tough season ahead but looking forward to it,” the top-ranked Indian said on the eve of the tournament.
Sindhu, who was the last Indian woman to win the title here way back in 2017, was also optimistic. “This one is definitely special because I didn’t play the last two editions because of injuries. I took a break for a couple of months after Paris but am mentally and physically now all set and ready to give my best,” Sindhu, who has started training under new women’s singles coach Irwansyah Adi Pratama of Indonesia, said.
A change of coaching staff in doubles has also brought back Malaysian Tan Kim Her, the man who first paired up Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy in 2016. Although the first outing for the World No. 9 duo under Her ended in the semifinals at the Malaysia Open, it’s been an encouraging start for the men with the highest hopes of ending the host’s title drought in the competition, having won it in 2022 and reaching the final last year.
“Last year we reached the final and to play in front of that kind of crowd was incredible. As athletes, you always want to play in those stadiums where massive crowds turn out. We try to go as deep as possible in every tournament and hopefully will go one better than last year,” Shetty hoped. And Rankireddy, struggling with a persistent shoulder niggle, admitted it was tough but insisted it had been taken care of. “It’s tough and it’s getting tougher with every match, playing back-to-back and taking care of your body. It’s been a very on and off injury but we have figured it out after the Olympics. Right now, things have settled down and we are ready,” he said.
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A series of last-minute withdrawals, however, have forced the organisers to shuffle the draw. Kiran George and Srikanth Kidambi come in from the reserves after top-seed Shi Yu Qi, who won the Malaysia Open on Sunday, and Indonesian Anthony Ginting withdrew late on Monday evening. Lakshya will now face World No. 14 Lin Chun-Yi of Chinese Taipei in his opening match.
Among the women, Thailand’s Busanan Ongbamrungphan’s withdrawal has brought in Rakshitha Sree Santosh Ramraj, who takes Sindhu’s spot while the latter moves to Busanan’s place in the draw against Shuo Yun Sung of Taipei.
In the women’s doubles, Kokona Ishikawa and Mio Konegawa of Japan have pulled out, as have Chloe Coney and Estelle van Leeuwen of England and Chun Hsun Teng and Chun Yun Yang of Taipei, giving the Indian pairs of Kavya Gupta-Radhika Sharma and Amrutha Pramuthesh-Sonali Singh a chance in the main draw. Phattharin Aiamvareesrisakul and Sarisa Janpeng of Thailand take the 3rd vacant spot.
In the mixed doubles, the top-seed Chinese pair of Yan Zhe Feng and Dong Ping Huang’s withdrawal has brought in Tarun Kona and Srikrishna Priya Kudaravalli. Hsuan-Yi Wu and Chu Yun Yang of Taipei are also out while Yuta Watanabe and Maya Taguchi of Japan are in.
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