PSCB look invincible on debut

KOCHI, FEBRUARY 22: The Petroleum Sports Control Board, the new entrants in the National Badminton Championship, have already the mark of ...

KOCHI, FEBRUARY 22: The Petroleum Sports Control Board, the new entrants in the National Badminton Championship, have already the mark of champions written all over them. The 55th Indian Oil Servo Inter-State Championships for the Rahmatoolah Cup, beginning at the Rajiv Gandhi indoor stadium here from Feb 24, seems to have already ended even before it has begun now that PSCB has been granted affiliation.

The PSCB sides are virtually the Indian teams that played in Thomas and Uber Cup (Asian qualifiers) competition in New Delhi last week. Even their reserves would have been better than the next best team in the Inter-State championship. No wonder, the other teams in the fray here have only set their sights on the final and are just anxious to know whether the `new giants’ are in their half.

Pullela Gopichand, Nikhil Kanetkar, Abhinn Shyam Gupta, Ajit Wijetilak, Siddarth Jain and Vijay Lancy form the singles options. Jaseel P Ismail/Vincent Lobo and Markose Bristow/George Thomas are the two strong doubles combinations to back them up.

Story continues below this ad

The women’s team has Aparna Popat, Manjusha Kanwar, Neelima Choudhury and PVV Lakshmi, who are the best in the business in the country.

PSCB had in fact faced as good a fight in their qualification to the Inter-State event from Central Zone as they will be facing in the main event. Teams like Air-India, Railways and Combined Universities were all in this zone and it was not a fair trial for them to be clubbed with undisputed kings and queens of badminton.

These States fervently hoped that Badminton Association of India would in due course change the rules and allow PSCB a direct entry into the main draw so that one of them will get a chance to qualify from Central Zone. But no team in the past enjoyed the right to be seeded to play in Inter-State event.

Perhaps, it will be easy for BAI to take the step once and if the PSCB win the title here to set a precedent for future Nationals. Otherwise, the Rahmatoolah Cup will lose its charm.

H-1B visa fee hike, US H-1B visa policy, $100000 H-1B visa fee, India response to H-1B fee, humanitarian impact H-1B visa, Indian government on H-1B, Randhir Jaiswal H-1B statement, Indian IT companies H-1B visas, Infosys H-1B approvals, TCS H-1B visa employees, Wipro H-1B visa applications, HCL H-1B workforce, US visa restrictions 2025, H-1B visa deadline September 21, Microsoft H-1B travel advisory, Amazon H-1B visa holders, JP Morgan H-1B guidance, H-1B visa program abuse, Indian skilled workers in US, USCIS H-1B data 2023

‘I don’t know what awaits me in the US’: The lives upended by Trump’s H-1B proclamation

India7 hr ago

The recent imposition of a $100,000 fee on H-1B visas by Trump has caused chaos and uncertainty for Indian families in Dubai, leading many to rush back to the US. This has particularly affected Telugu-speaking Indians, with the Telangana IT Minister seeking intervention from the Centre.

View all shorts

Live Blog