Indian men, women shuttlers likely to run into Japan in quarters

NEW DELHI: The badminton draws for the team events at the 20th Asian Games are out. The PV Sindhu-led Indian women’s team will take on Kazakhstan in the opening round, which is also the Round of 16, on Sunday.

Provided they win, India will likely face hosts and one of the toughest teams on the circuit, Japan, in the quarter-finals. If India somehow manage to beat Japan, they will likely face last edition’s gold medallists South Korea in the semi-finals.

The Indian women’s team has only medalled twice at the Asian Games, clinching bronze at both New Delhi 1982 and Incheon 2014.

The Indian men, on the other hand, will have an easy outing against neighbours Bangladesh in the Round of 16, but like their women counterparts, they will too run into Japan in the quarter-finals.

Which means either Lakshya Sen or Ayush Shetty will take on Kodai Naraoka, who played the men’s singles final at the World Championships here last month. If India manages to get past Japan, they will be up against either South Korea or defending champions China in the semis.

The Indian men’s team achieved an unprecedented silver medal finish at the last Asian Games in Hangzhou 2023. Apart from that they have won bronze in Tehran 1974, New Delhi 1982 and Seoul 1986.

While the men’s team comprises Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty, HS Prannoy, Kidambi Srikanth, Tharun Mannepalli, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, Chirag Shetty, Hariharan Amsakarunan, MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila, the women’s outfit has PV Sindhu, Unnati Hooda, Devika Sihag, Tanvi Sharma, Isharani Baruah, Treesa Jolly, Gayatri Gopichand Pullela, Kavipriya Selvam, Simran Singhi and Tanisha Crasto.

The team events will be held from September 20 to 24 following which the five individual disciplines will take place from September 25 to 29 at Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium in Ichinomiya in Aichi Prefecture.

Indian shuttlers have won gold at the Asian Games only once when Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty claimed the top prize in men’s doubles last time around in Hangzhou 2023.