Saina, Srikanth eye strong start

The Yonex Sunrise India Open Super Series is the biggest event for shuttlers in the country and this year the Olympic qualification points will be an added motivation for the players to raise their games.

The Rio qualification stage is on its last leg with the cut-off date being May 5, and the India Open is among the few remaining events to offer crucial ranking points.

Following this event, the Malaysia Open (April 5-10) and Singapore Open (April 12-17) comprise three back-to-back Super Series tournaments, besides China Open GP (April 19-24) and Asian Badminton Championships (April 26-May 1) where shuttlers will have the opportunity to raise their stakes for the Rio Olympics.

Therefore make no mistake that the competition will be cut throat.

All eyes will be again on defending champions Saina Nehwal and Kidambi Srikanth, whose maiden victories here in the last edition had broken barriers and spurred compatriots on. For Saina, it became the crowning moment of what turned out to be the best year of her professional career and gave her the status of World No1 while Srikanth has struggled with consistency that plunged his ranking to No 10. He won the Syed Modi GPG this year but bowed out early in All England.

“I have been making the semis and quarterfinals and I am happy with the way I am playing even though I lost a few matches. It is not that I am not satisfied. If I feel I am doing well, I can do anything. So I am confident and want to continue doing that,” Srikanth said on Monday.

 Saina has struggled with injuries but has worked on her fitness levels. She returned at the All England, where she finished runner-up last year, but could not reach beyond quarterfinals to slip to No 6 in rankings. The 25-year-old, seeded second here, would be expecting to gain fresh impetus from this tournament.

World No 11 PV Sindhu was handed a tough draw against World No 1 Carolina Marin but the Spaniard pulled out at the last minute. The likes of Chinese Li Xuerui and Wang Shixian, Thailand’s Ratchanok Intanon will make it a strong field among women despite Marin’s pullout.

In women’s doubles, Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa would also be looking to put up a good show.

In the men’s draw, Parupalli Kashyap had to pull out because of a knee injury. Kashyap is the second best Indian in world rankings at 18 while HS Prannoy, who won the Swiss Open last week is ranked 20. Another player to watch out for is Sai Praneeth who sensationally knocked out Lee Chong Wei at All England. Top seed Chong Wei heads the strong men’s singles field, which also has his old nemesis and World No 4 Lin Dan, the two time Olympic champion.