BWF World Championships: Top 5 Indian players to watch out for
Indian badminton fans will be glued to their televisions and cell phones, hoping for a medal in any of the categories
PV Sindhu and HS Prannoy (Photo: X/BAI)
NEW DELHI: The badminton fever is set to grip the entire world as the upcoming edition of the BWF World Championships is about to start on August 21 in Copenhagen, Denmark.Like every year, Indian badminton fans will be glued to their televisions and cell phones, hoping for a medal in any of the categories.
Although India will compete in five categories, namely Men's singles, Women's singles, Men's doubles, Women's doubles, and Mixed doubles, badminton fans will be primarily focused on a select few who have either already won a medal or two at the event or are highly likely to do so based on their recent form.
Here are the five Indian players/pairs to watch out for at the World Badminton Championships 2023 in Denmark.
PV Sindhu
PV Sindhu is one of the prime contenders for a medal in the women's singles category. Though her recent form has been concerning, she will rely on her maturity as a player and draw inspiration from her previous success in the competition to go all the way again this time around.
Sindhu, who won gold in the event in 2019, will try to do so again in the upcoming edition. Sindhu has five medals from the main event. She won her first bronze medal in 2013.
Lakshya Sen
Lakshya Sen will be one of the big medal hopes for India this year. In the 2021 event, Lakshya showed some red-hot form on his way to the semifinals before losing to compatriot Kidambi Srikanth in a thrilling match. However, he has significantly improved his game since that edition, as evidenced by gold at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 and silver at the All England Open in 2022.
Kidambi Srikanth
Kidambi Srikanth will be eager to change the colour of his medal at the upcoming event in Denmark. Srikanth was a match away from becoming the first Indian men's badminton player to win a gold medal at the global championship when competing in the 2021 edition but was defeated in the final by Singapore's Loh Kean Yew.
HS Prannoy
With the kind of magnificent performances that Prannoy has provided during his playing career, it's surprising that the 31-year-old hasn't made an appearance at the Championships in all these years. Prannoy's agility and the sheer speed with which he thumps his smashes are a sight to behold, and if he can maintain the form that he showed recently at the Australia Open, he will very certainly earn a medal for India at the top event.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty
The resurgent Indian pair is reaping the benefits of its recent hard work. The Indian pair will attempt to stake a claim to gold this season after winning the Swiss Open, Indonesia Open, and Korea Open this season.