Chance for Tanvi, Srikanth at badminton World Championships after withdrawals
Mixed doubles pairing sith Surya and Amrutha P could also find themselves in the draw with multiple withdrawals expected to be announced.
The withdrawals could pave the way for a possible entry for fifth reserve Tanvi Sharma and third reserve Kidambi Srikanth to enter the singles draws. (File Photo)
A spurt of withdrawals at the Delhi Badminton World Championships are expected to be announced on Sunday, paving the way possibly for fifth reserve Tanvi Sharma and third reserve Kidambi Srikanth to enter the singles draws for the event starting Monday.
Mixed doubles pairing sith Surya and Amrutha P could also find themselves in the draw with multiple withdrawals expected to be announced. The draws could also undergo a few changes in case of withdrawals by seeded players.
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Japanese men’s doubles pair of Takuro Hoki and Kobayashi are certain to have withdrawn after confirmation from the Badminton Association of Japan. A Taiwanese pair’s withdrawal led to the invitations going out to Amruta-Surya.
The likes of junior World championship silver medallist Tanvi Sharma and senior silver winner from 2021, Kidambi Srikanth are on stand-by. Sharma is also travelling to Delhi on Sunday, with official confirmations coming through after the managers’ meetings.
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Others like HS Prannoy, Ashmita Chaliha, Rakshitha Ramraj could also be in contention depending on number of pull outs.
While seeded player withdrawals need to be adjusted to avoid lopsided draws, it could also throw opponent-centric preparations into disarray given the expected churn. “Not big names but seeded players are on the list of withdrawals,” a person aware of the developments noted.
This is the second time that India is hosting the badminton World Championships, with the last one being the 2009 edition at the Gachibowli Stadium in Hyderabad. The hosts have 10 entries thus far, of whom three – PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen and doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty – are former medal winners. Sindhu herself has won as many as five medals, the last of which was the historic gold she won at the 2019 World Championships in Basel, Switzerland. Lakshya won bronze at Huelva 2021 while Satwik-Chirag won bronze at Tokyo 2022 and at Paris last year.
The withdrawals could pave the way for a possible entry for fifth reserve Tanvi Sharma and third reserve Kidambi Srikanth to enter the singles draws. (File Photo) 
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