Final hurdle before the deadline; shuttlers gear up for BAC challenge in China
SHUTTLERS HEAD TO CHINA for the last tournament that leads up to the Rio Olympics qualification. Badminton Asia Championships begins from tomorrow in Wuhan, China. This is the last hurdle that the shuttlers have to pass as come May 5th, based on the rankings, players will earn a spot in the Olympics.
Among the Indian contingent in the men's singles category, only Kidambi Srikanth will be participating and he is seeded eighth. His first round opponent is Lee Dong Keun of Korea, this will be their first meeting. Ranked No. 13th, the Indian hasn't been performing as expected. Lately, he suffered early exits from tournaments which has cost him valuable ranking points. Srikanth will be hoping to give his best in China.
In the women's singles contest, the usual candidates, Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu will be seen in action. Saina is seeded fifth. Her first round opponent is yet to be decided. Sindhu dominates in the head-to-head count 3-1 against her opponent in the opening round from Indonesia, Maria Febe Kusumastuti.
Manu Attri/Sumeeth Reddy and Akshay Dewalkar/Pranaav Jerry Chopra will compete in the men's doubles. Attri/Reddy take on fifth seeds Hiroyuki Endo/Kenichi Hayakawa of Japan while Akshay/Pranaav will be up against Hong Kong's Or Chin Chung/Tang Chun Man
In the women's doubles category Jwala Gutta/Ashwini Ponnappa will take on Koreans Chang Ye Na/Lee So Hee.
Finally in the mixed doubles contest, Aparna Balan/Arun Vishnu will face Puavaranukroh Dechapol/Sapsiree Taerattanachai from Thailand in the first round.
