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2022-01-17 15:54

Lakshya withdraws from Syed Modi International citing exhaustion

New Delhi, Jan 17 (Badminton News) Newly-crowned India Open champion Lakshya Sen on Monday pulled out of the Syed Modi International Super 300 tournament after feeling "exhausted" following his participation in back-to-back tournaments since October last year.

The 20-year-old from Uttarakhand had stunned world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore in the finals to clinch his maiden Super 500 crown at the season-opening India Open on Sunday.

"Since completing the India Open 2022 tournament in Delhi last night, I am feeling very exhausted and suffering from tiredness. In these circumstances, I am afraid I will not be able to do justice to my participation in the event," Sen said in his letter to the organisers.

"Therefore, after consulting my coaches, my physios and family, I have decided it would be best for me to withdraw from the Syed Modi International 2022 tournament so that I can take some much needed rest and recuperate, before I start training in earnest for the upcoming events from March onwards,” he added.

The youngster has competed in nine tournaments since October last year.

He entered the finals of the Dutch Open, reached the semifinals at Hylo and entered the knockout stage at World Tour Finals on debut before sizzling at the World Championships with a bronze last year.

"My sincere apologies for the short notice to withdraw from the event. I trust you will understand my position and appreciate your support in this matter. I hope the tournament goes off smoothly, and I wish all participants, especially my fellow participants from India, all the very best in the event,” Sen added.

A hectic season awaits Indian shuttlers with big-ticket events such as Commonwealth Games, Asian Games lined-up this year apart from the regular BWF World Tour events, including the World Championships and All England Championships Sen, who had emulated his mentor Prakash Padukone by winning the World championship bronze in Huelva, Spain last month, will now look to claim the All England Championships in March.

Top men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty also decided to give the Super 300 tournament a miss after becoming the first team from the country to win the India Open crown.

Among other Indians, top seed Kidambi Srikanth, top women's doubles player Ashwini Ponnappa and men's doubles player Manu Attri have confirmed to PTI their withdrawal from the tournament.

Srikanth, Ashwini and Attri were withdrawn from the India Open after testing positive for COVID-19 last week.

Also Read : Sen now needs to work on tactical acumen and endurance for consistent run: Vimal

News Source : PTI

2022-01-17 15:28

Sen now needs to work on tactical acumen and endurance for consistent run: Vimal

New Delhi, Jan 17 (Badminton News) Former India coach Vimal Kumar is impressed with the title-winning performance of Lakshya Sen at the India Open but said the young shuttler still needs to work on his endurance and tactical acumen to have a consistent run in the international circuit.

The 20-year-old from Uttarakhand stunned world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore 24-22 21-17 in men's singles final to clinch his maiden Super 500 crown at the season-opening India Open here on Sunday.

"Lakshya was tactically much better, he was in control of the match, never allowed Loh to attack. His counter attack was very good. His net dribbles were excellent and with the same action he was flicking the shuttle to the back of the court. Overall, he played a very mature game," Vimal told PTI.

"He is at par with anybody, but he still needs to work on his tactical side, strength and conditioning. He can work on stability around the net areas, his endurance can be better. So, technically there are all the areas where he can work on.

"There are many youngsters from Europe, Thailand and Japan, who will be gunning for him now. It will be tough ahead. I don't want to put pressure on him by talking about the 2024 Olympics, it's all about how best he can play, how best he can take care of his body," he added.

Sen was not selected to represent India at the Sudirman Cup mixed team competition in Finland and Thomas Cup Finals in Aarhus, Denmark after he lost his first match to Sai Charan Koya at the round-robin group stage during the selection trials.

But a training stint with Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen and Loh Kean Yew in Dubai rejuvenated him.

"He was shattered after missing the Sudirman Cup and Thomas cup," said Vimal, who has guided Sen since his young age as part of the Padukone Dravid Centre for Excellence (PDCE) in Bengaluru.

"But then (Viktor) Axelsen phoned him and invited him for a two week training stint in Dubai. Loh was also there. So he stayed there and trained. That stint helped him to brush aside the disappointment," he said.

A rejuvenated Sen entered the final at the Dutch Open, played some close matches against Japan's Kento Momota, reached the semifinals at Hylo, reached the knockout stage at World Tour Finals on debut before sizzling at the World Championships with a bronze.

"Right from Europe circuit, he has been consistent in last three months. It is very important that he plays consistently well from now on. This performance will give him a clear understanding where he stands." Vimal, a former Olympian, said Sen is known for his attacking game but in the last few months he has shown that he can also outlast his opponents in gruelling three-game matches.

"There has been criticism in the past that once his attack doesn't work, he runs out of ideas. But in World Championships, he played some tremendous rallies, and long exhausting matches and prevailed in those long matches and that gave him the confidence," he said.

"He is playing better badminton overall and he is grabbing the opportunities. In the semifinals, it was tough against the Malaysian but he pulled through, he employed his smashes well. Also against HS Prannoy he had a long match, winning these matches shows his maturity." "Many players can't get that breakthrough, can't convert opportunities. But Lakshya has the ability to beat good players." Sen was in rampaging form three years back, winning five titles including two Super 100 tournaments but then the COVID-19 pandemic forced the suspension of the BWF circuit.

"He was in good rhythm in 2019 but the pandemic was a damper. If he could have had that opportunity, I was confident that he could have qualified for Tokyo," Vimal said.

"Many players suffered due to the pandemic, sometimes it kills the spirit of youngsters when you are not able to compete. I am glad he survived that phase and found the enthusiasm to play."

Also Read : Sindhu looks to end title drought at Syed Modi International

News Source : PTI

2022-01-17 15:08

Sindhu looks to end title drought at Syed Modi International

Lucknow, Jan 17 (Badminton News) Two-time Olympic medallist P V Sindhu will look to recover from her unexpected semifinal loss at the India Open and end her title drought at the Syed Modi International, which begins here on Tuesday.

The 26-year-old from Hyderabad was well on course to win her first title since the 2019 World Championship triumph last week before left-hander Supanida Katethong of Thailand shattered her hopes with a three-game win at the India Open.

Sindhu, who had finished runner-up at Swiss Open and World Tour Finals last year, will hope to turn things around this week when she begins her campaign against compatriot Tanya Hemanth.

The Indian will be itching to settle scores against Supanida, whom she is likely to face again at the semifinals at the Babu Banarasi Das Indoor Stadium here.

Second seeded Canadian Michelle Li, a Commonwealth Games silver medallist, will be one of the strong contenders for the title in women's singles, which also has Polish eighth seed Jordan Hart, second seed Iris Wang of USA and Russia's fifth seed Evgeniya Kosetskaya.

Men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty has decided to give the Super 300 tournament a miss after claiming their maiden India Open Super 500 crown.

Lakshya Sen, who secured his maiden Super 500 title at New Delhi on Sunday, also is likely to follow suit after playing continuously since October last year.

Among others, World Championships silver medallist and top seed Kidambi Srikanth also is unlikely to compete this week as he is undergoing seven-day mandatory quarantine after withdrawing from the main draw last week following a positive COVID-19 result.

Third seed B Sai Praneeth, who had pulled out of India Open after testing positive, is also awaiting a RT-PCR test result, while Ashwini Ponnappa and Manu Attri are yet to recover from the virus and will miss the tournament.

Ashwini is part of the top seeded women's doubles pairing, while Manu and B Sumeeth Reddy are seeded third in the men's doubles event. On a comeback trail, former top-10 player H S Prannoy gave a good account of himself before being stopped by 20-year-old Sen in the quarterfinals last week.

Fifth seed Prannoy will hope to go deep in the draw this week when he opens his campaign against Ukraine's Danylo Bosniuk.

London Olympics bronze medallist Saina Nehwal, seeded fourth, too will test her fitness when she takes on Czech Republic's Tereza Švábíková in the opening round. She had lost in the second round last week.

There are a host of other Indians in men's singles, such as seventh seed Sourabh Verma, fourth seed Sameer Verma -- who he is still recovering from a calf muscle injury -- Subhankar Dey and youngsters like Kiran George, Mithun Manjunath and Priyanshu Rajawat.

In women's singles too, Aakarshi Kashyap, who had reached the quarterfinals last week, will look to continue her good run when she faces fellow Indian Mugdha Agrey in opening round.

Malvika Bansod and Ashmita Chaliha will be tied in a battle of supremacy in the opening round, while Samiya Imad Farooqui, Ira Sharma and Sri Krishna Priya Kudaravalli will be the other prominent Indians in action.

Fourth seeded Ashwini Bhat K and Shikha Gautam will look to put up a good show in women's doubles.

There are likely to be more withdrawals and a clearer picture will emerge only after the manager's meeting later in the day.

Also read : We played one of the best matches ever: Satwik

News Source : PTI

2022-01-17 11:04

We played one of the best matches ever: Satwik

New Delhi, Jan 16 (Badminton News) India's top doubles player Satwiksairaj Rankireddy says they were desperate for a podium finish after a mixed 2021 season and described their performance at the India Open finals as "one of the best ever" in their career.

Satwik and Chirag Shetty became the first team from the country to win India's flagship tournament after registering a 21-16 26-24 result over three-time world champions Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan.

"It was a dream match for us, we still can't believe it. We had a clear plan and we wanted to implement that and give 100 percent. I feel we played one of the best matches ever," Satwik said during a virtual press conference. "We stayed calm. I could see they were under pressure. So happy with the win." The Indian pair had lost thrice to the world number 2 Indonesian pair in four meetings but they came up with a plan to extend the rallies and play a more defensive game against the experienced pair.

"We know how to play them, we played against them in Thailand Open last year. We wanted to stay neck to neck, we wanted to keep them under pressure. We thought let them make mistakes and let's not give easy points.

"They are best in taking quick points but we kept calm and played big rallies, that was the positive point. Even when we were 24-24, we wanted to play big rallies. I kept telling Chirag that we should just try to keep the shuttle inside." Satwik and Chirag had failed to cross the group stages at their maiden Olympics despite notching up stunning wins in two of the three matches.

They ended the World Championships in Spain with a pre-quarterfinal loss, last month.

"Yeah, 2021 was a mixed feeling for us. We wanted to win a tournament, wanted to play a final. After world championships, I cried a lot, I wanted to win a medal," Satwik said.

"I was crying literally, I had a fire that I wanted to finish at the podium as much as possible, so that hunger was there and luckily we could win here, hopefully we will continue this form." His partner Chirag had expressed their target of reaching the world's top five this season.

After stunning Ahsan and Setiawan, Chirag said it was a performance worthy of being in top 5. "We usually don't play this kind of a game, it is a new thing for us and it is working well and it shows that we can get points and win matches while defending, so I think we definitely played like a top 5 pair today," he said.

"That is one thing which kinds of differentiates the top five pair and top 10 because things go your way, you try to change and play a plan 'B' kind of game, that in something that worked really well." World Championships bronze medallist Lakshya Sen then made it a double delight, securing his maiden Super 500 title with a stunning 24-22 21-17 victory over world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore.

"This is the biggest world tour tournament I won. Winning feels good. In the match, in the closing stages I was nervous and anxious to finish it off as it was a big tournament but I am happy I could pull it off," Sen said.

"I think I played some good physical matches since quarterfinals. It will give me a lot of confidence to go ahead and play the whole season. Winning a world tour 500 event is a big thing for me." Talking about the final, Sen said he was anxious in the closing stages.

"I gave couple of easy points towards the end but after being a match point down, I played calmly. I took a break and it helped me to think better and play calmly." Sen and Loh have trained together in Dubai last year and so far have played each other four times in the international circuit with each winning two matches each.

"We know each other's game well, what to expect. I had beaten him last few months ago, I was confident and had a game plan and it worked well. I am happy I won today and again it was a close game," Sen said.

Also Read : Satwik-Chirag pair claims maiden India Open title

News Source : PTI

2022-01-16 19:22

Satwik-Chirag pair claims maiden India Open title

New Delhi, Jan 16 (Badminton News) Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty on Sunday became the first team from country to win the Yonex-Sunrise India Open after toppling three-time world champions Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan, here.

The world number 10 Indian pair, which had won its first Super 500 tournament in Thailand in 2019, upset the top seeded Indonesian pair 21-16 26-24 in 43 minutes to make a rampaging start to the new season.

Coming into the match with a 1-3 head-to-head record, Satwik and Chirag dished out a brave effort as they staved off a fightback to reign supreme in the final.

From almost missing the tournament following a false COVID positive result to winning the title, it turned out to be an incredible start to 2022 for the Indian pair, which accumulated valuable ranking points ahead of a busy season, which comprises some big-ticket events such as the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.

The Indian pair started on a positive note and even through the Indonesian combination clawed back, Satwik and Chirag ensured they are two points ahead at the first interval.

The Indians tried to engage their rivals in rallies and led 18-13 but the Indonesians reduced the deficit to 16-18 before Satwik and Chirag prevailed in the opening game.

Fast-paced but short rallies were the norm in the second game as well as Ahsan and Satiawan grabbed a three-point lead at 9-6 early in the second game.

But the Indian pair again ensured they have the advantage at the break, grabbing a slender 11-10 lead. Sawtik and Chirag maintained the intensity in the rallies after the break to lead 15-13.

The world number two again drew parity at 17-17 but Satwik and Chirag moved to 19-17 when Ahsan erred at net. But Chirag went long next as it was 19-19. Indonesian managed to move to a game point with a tap by Ahsan.

What followed next was frequent exchange of points as both India and Indonesia earned and squandered their advantage positions in equal measure.

After a fierce battle, it was the Indian pair who showed better nerves to emerge victories with the Indonesia squandering five game points.

Satwik and Chirag had won the Thailand Open Super 500 title in 2019, besides reaching the finals at French Open Super 750 the same year.

The duo also claimed the silver medal at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, besides winning the Hyderabad Open Super 100 and finishing runners-up at Syed Modi International in 2018.

Satwik and Chirag also played a crucial role in India earning the historic mixed team gold medal in the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

The Indian pair also had qualified for the Tokyo Olympics last year but couldn't cross the group stage despite winning two out of three games.

Also Read : Want to improve my senior ranking, qualify for Olympics: Tasnim Mir

News Source : PTI

2022-01-16 17:08

Want to improve my senior ranking, qualify for Olympics: Tasnim Mir

New Delhi, Jan 16 (Badminton News) Newly-crowned junior world No. 1, Tasnim Mir knows she has to take defeats in her strides on the senior circuit, which is full of challenges, as she is determined to realise her long term goal of representing India at the Olympics.

On Wednesday, the 16-year-old from Gujarat had become the first Indian to grab the top rank in the under-19 girls singles.

"It is a big confidence boost for me. Just like I became world number one in U-19, I want to continue that performance in seniors too," Tasnim, currently ranked 602 in seniors, said in a virtual press-conference organised by Sport Authority of India (SAI) on Sunday.

"My long term goal is to improve my ranking in seniors as well, so that I can participate in Olympics and represent India. So my main aim is to play as many senior tournaments as possible and perform well in them so that my ranking can improve." Tasnim's ascent to the top in the junior circuit has fuelled hopes that India may have finally found a successor to the likes of Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu.

"There is a lot of competition at India level. In the India open, we have seen Malvika (Bansod) and Ashmita (Chaliha), Aakarshi (Kashyap), they are giving good performance.

"I do feel the pressure and responsibility that the entire nation has high hopes from me. Of course I would try to improve myself and live up to the expectations." Korea's An Seyoung has emerged as one of the most sensational talents in the senior circuit in the last couple of years.

Asked if she too would like to have a similar start like the 19-year-old Korean, Tasnim said: "An Seyoung performance is unbelievable and it is going to be tough to emulate that and I want to perform like her, but it will take time..." Tasnim has been simply sensational last year as she secured titles in three junior international tournaments to jump three places to grab the top position in the junior world rankings.

However, she says she will have to learn to deal with failures as she graduates to the senior circuit.

"When I would lose matches, I used to think that I won't be able to do it. If I would have given up then, I wouldn't have reached this stage," she said.

"I don't like losing. In last 2-3 years I have been winning and I am performing well but as I step into seniors circuit, I am facing losses. So I feel it is very difficult. So I used to think about giving up earlier but then I feel from these failures I will improve more." Talking about her training stints, Tasnim said : "I left training under my father six years back. For two years, I was at Gopichand academy and then moved to Assam, where I have been training under Edwin Iriawan for last four years.

"My coach has trained Saina and Sindhu, he is very experienced. So his training regime has helped me a lot. I have evolved as a player, I have improved my strength.

"There are lot of men players there, so I could train against them. It has been a good training stint in Assam."

Also Read : India Open: Sen, Chirag-Satwik enter final, Sindhu out of title race

News Source : PTI

2022-01-15 21:07

India Open: Sen, Chirag-Satwik enter final, Sindhu out of title race

New Delhi, Jan 15 (Badminton News) World championship bronze medallist Lakshya Sen progressed to the men's singles summit clash with a thrilling win but it was curtains for two-time Olympic medallist P V Sindhu at the Yonex-Sunrise India Open here on Saturday.

The 20-year-old Sen rallied his way to a 19-21 21-16 21-12 win over world number 60 Malaysia's Ng Tze Yong to enter his maiden World Tour Super 500 summit clash.

However, there was disappointment in store in women's singles as top seed and home favourite Sindhu lost 14-21 21-13 10-21 to sixth seeded Thai Supanida Katethong.

Young Aakarshi Kashyap too had a golden chance but she squandered five game points in the opening game to allow Busanan register a 26-24 21-9 win in the other women's singles semifinal.

Sen, seeded third, will face reigning world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore in the summit clash on Sunday in a repeat of Dutch Open final last year.

"It is a good feeling to play my first super 500 final at my home country," said Sen, who had won two Super 100 titles -- Dutch Open and SaarLorLux Open -- besides three international challenge at Belgium, Scotland and Bangladesh in 2019. "The first game was pretty close, I did some errors which cost me. But I kept my calm in the second and third game and managed to it pull off." Loh, seeded fifth, was given a walkover in the other semi-finals by Canada's Brian Yang after developing a sore throat and headache.

In the men's doubles, world number 10 pair of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy cruised to a 21-10 21-18 win over France duo of William Villeger and Fabien Delrue to make it to the finals.

Chirag and Satwik will square off against three-time world champion Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan from Indonesia on Sunday. In other results, Indian women's doubles pair of Haritha Manazhiyil Harinarayan and Ashna Roy lost 12-21 9-21 to fourth seeded Benyapa Aimsaard and Nuntakarn Aimsaard of Thailand.

On Sunday, Sen will be itching to set the record straight after losing the Dutch Open final to Loh. Overall, the duo has a 2-2 head-to-head record with Sen losing two of the last three meetings.

"Both of us are playing well, it will be a good match tomorrow and I am really looking forward to playing him," Sen said about his final clash.

In the men's singles semifinals, both shuttlers showed their attacking prowess during the last-four clash.

Sen made his opponent move across the court with his returns and used his smashes to good effect to open up a four-point lead at 10-6 after being 2-4 down initially.

The Indian entered the interval at 11-8 after Yong went wide.

After the break, Sen came up with some stiff smashes to bother the Malaysian but he couldn't sustain the pressure as Yong made it 14-14. The Malaysian left Sen wrong-footed with a precise net shot to take the lead.

Yong then won a video referral to take a two point lead at 16-14. Sen controlled the proceeding thereafter to claw back at 17-17.

However, Yong grabbed two game points when a return of serve from Sen went wide and sealed it comfortably.

Yong carried the momentum in the second game, opening up a 4-1 advantage. Sen did well to erase the deficit but Young ensured he had his nose ahead at the break.

Resuming at 9-11, Sen continued his pursuit to turn things around. He drew parity at 13-13 and crafted his way to a 19-16 lead with a powerful drive away from the forehand of his opponent. A net error from Yong gave Sen four game points and he sealed it when Yong again erred at the net.

In the decider, Sen made a confident start, leading 4-1 and then reached 9-5 with another cross court jump smash. He played another precision shot at the baseline and with Yong going wide, Sen entered the interval with a massive six-point advantage.

Sen went on a smash hitting spree thereafter to quickly jump to a 18-12 lead. He grabbed eight match points with a drop and sealed it without much ado after his opponent went to net again.

Sindhu, who had beaten Katethong at the Indonesia Masters last year, however, couldn't summon her best against an opponent ranked 33rd in the world.

She had no answers to her opponent's compact game as the opening game slipped through her fingers in a jiffy.

A rattled Sindhu dished out some aggressive returns after the change of sides to lead 4-2 and then managed a slender 11-10 lead at the break. She looked in control thereafter and soon grabbed eight game points. She squandered the first chance before roaring back into contest when Katethong erred.

The decider started as a close affair but Katethong soon eked out a slender 9-7 lead before entering the interval at 11-7.

Katethong was precise with her return and water-tight in her defence, attributes which helped her to move to 16-9 lead, before grabbing massive eight match points and sealed it when Sindhu went long again.

Also Read : World championship bronze medallist Lakshya Sen enters India Open final

News Source : PTI

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