Page 3 - Badminton

BAI announces cash rewards for Paralympics 2024 medal-winning shuttlers

The Badminton Association of India announced on Tuesday a total reward of Rs 50 lakh for the para shuttlers who secured medals at the Paris Paralympics last month. Indian para shuttlers won five medals, including one gold, two silver and as many bronze, at the Paris Games. Nitesh Kumar, who clinched the coveted gold in the men's Singles SL3 category, will receive a prize of Rs 15 lakh, while silver medallists Suhas Yathiraj (men's singles SL4) and Thulasimathi Murugesan (women's singles SU5) will each be awarded Rs 10 lakh. Bronze-medal winners Manisha Ramadass (women's singles SU5) and Nithya Sre Sivan (women's single SH6 category) will each receive Rs 7.5 lakh. Thulasimathi, Manisha and Nithya made history by becoming the first Indian women shuttlers to secure medals at the Paralympics. "Indian para badminton players have been performing consistently on the world stage and the cash rewards are just one way for BAI to recognise their efforts in helping the country win medals at t

Indian shuttler Priyanshu Rajawat makes 1st-round exit from China Open

Rising Indian shuttler Priyanshu Rajawat suffered a straight-game defeat to Canada's Brian Yang as he made an opening-round exit from the China Open here on Tuesday. The 22-year-old Indian, who won the Orleans Master last year, went down 13-21 16-21 to his Canadian opponent in a 36-minute men's round-of-32 contest of the Super 1000 tournament. Rajawat, the world number 36, was a member of the Indian team that won the historic Thomas Cup title two years ago. World number 40 Kiran George is now the lone Indian challenger left in the men's singles event. He will take on Japanese shuttler Kenta Nishimoto in the round of 32. The Indian shuttler, who competed at the Paris Olympics including PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen and the men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, are giving the tournament, the year's last BWF Super 1000 event, a miss. Commonwealth Games bronze medallist duo of Gayatri Gopichand and Treesa Jolly and Rutaparna Panda and Swetaparna Panda will compete

Saina Nehwal to take decision on retirement by the end of year 2024

Ace Indian shuttler and former Olympic bronze-medallist Saina Nehwal has revealed that she is battling arthritis and will have to decide on her future in badminton by the end of this year as the ailment has made it impossible for her to train the usual hours. The 34-year-old former world No.1, who was the first Indian shuttler to win an Olympic medal with her bronze in London 2012, participated in three editions of the Games before being hampered by injuries. The 2010 and 2018 Commonwealth Games gold-medallist said she can no longer overlook the fact that her career is in its final leg. "The knee is not very good. I have arthritis. My cartilage has gone to a bad state. It is very difficult to push for eight-nine hours," Nehwal said on the 'House of Glory' podcast hosted by shooting great Gagan Narang, who was India's chef-de-mission in the recent Paris Olympics. "How will you challenge the best players in the world in such a state? I think I will have to accept it somewhere. Becaus

India to send 39-member squad for junior badminton championships in China

India will be sending a 39-member squad to the Badminton Asia (U-15/U-17) junior championships in Chengdu, China, from August 20-25 with an aim to create a strong pool of players ahead of next year's World Junior Championship, which the country is hosting. The Indian contingent, which was picked after extensive selection trials in Bengaluru, will be led by Gnana Dattu and Tanvi Reddy Andluri in the U-17 category, while Shyam Bindiganavile and Tanvi Patri will be the top singles players in the U-15 category. In the last edition of the BAC championship, which was held in the same city, India had bagged one gold, one silver and one bronze with Bornil Changmai standing atop the U-15 boy's singles podium. The Indian contingent left for Chengdu on Saturday after an extensive preparatory camp at the National Centre of Excellence in Guwahati under the watchful eyes of the Indian and foreign coaches. Speaking about the team's chances, Badminton Association of India (BAI) secretary Sanjay ..

Govt & federations have done whatever they can: Padukone on shuttlers show

India have roped in several foreign coaches and Padukone, who trains PV Sindhu, said it's time that India bring sports psychologists from aborad.

“Disappointed”: Former Badminton player Prakash Padukone reacts after Lakshya Sen’s loss at Olympics

Watch the video to know what former Badminton player Prakash Padukone said about Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen after his bronze medal match in Badminton Men's singles at Paris Olympics.

Olympics 2024: Lakshya Sen stuns the crowd with his no-look backhand

While the victory was special in itself, what stayed with fans was his unbelievable no-look backhand shot against his opponent which had Christie surprised and beaten in the 1st game

Olympics 2024: Ponnappa-Crasto stare at early exit after group stage defeat

India's Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto were staring at an early exit after suffering their second consecutive group stage defeat in the women's doubles badminton competition at the Paris Olympic here on Monday. The Indians went down 11-21 12-21 to the world number four Japanese duo of Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida in the 48-minute Group C match. They had lost their opener against South Korea's Kim So Yeong and Kong Hee Yong. Ponnappa and Crasto, world number 19, are currently placed third in their group behind the Japanese and the South Koreans. The two top ranked pairs from each group qualify for the quarterfinals. "A bit disappointed because this was the only shot we had for a chance to get to the quarters. Not the way we wanted to play but they were very strong. I wish we had given them a better fight. We have one more match and hope we can win that," Ponnappa said after the game. "They were very strong, offensively and defensively. Defensively we were a bit lacking to

Paris Olympics 2024 highlights, Day 2: HS Prannoy wins opener; Manu Bhaker wins Bronze

Olympics 2024 highlights: HS Prannoy has won his group K opener vs GER. Rafael Nadal's his 1st round match. Manu wins bronze in shooting. Check Paris 2024 highlights here

Don't experiment new things in preparation ahead of Olympics: Gopichand

India's chief national coach Pullela Gopichand on Wednesday advised the country's shuttlers not to experiment much in their preparation ahead of the Paris Olympics, while also insisting that two-time medallist PV Sindhu has the potential to shine again at the sporting extravaganza. India will be represented by seven players across four out of five categories in the badminton competition at the Games here. Led by two-time Olympic medallist Sindhu (women's singles), the squad has HS Prannoy and Lakshya Sen (men's singles), Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty (men's doubles), and Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto (women's doubles). "I think the generic message to all the athletes would be to treat it like another match and it's important that you don't do any strange things for preparation; keep it simple and treat it like another game, get the preparation right and the matches will take care of themselves," Gopichand told PTI ahead of Friday's opening ceremony. Talking about

Paris Olympics: Neeraj Chopra's gold boosts athletic budget by over 1600%

Paris Olympics: Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra will lead a 28-member contingent of athletes at the Paris Olympics, in which a total of 118 Indians will participate

Paris Olympics: What to know, who to watch during badminton competition

A roadmap to follow for the badminton competition during the Paris Olympics: Athletes to Watch: Beiwen Zhang, United States: After winning the women's singles gold at the 2023 Pan American Games, the 33-year-old is the best shot at the first American badminton medal at the Olympics since its debut as a medal event in 1992. Born in China, Zhang moved to Singapore as a teenager in 2007 and has represented the U.S. internationally since 2013. Viktor Axelsen, Denmark: Axelsen was Europe's only medalist (gold) in Tokyo three years ago, and he was the top qualifier for Paris. At 30, this will be his third Olympics; he won bronze in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. Chen Yu Fei, China: The defending women's singles champion led China to a tournament win in May and finished behind only An Se-young of South Korea in the Paris qualification rankings. Storylines to Follow: The U.S. mixed doubles team of Vinson Chiu and Jennie Gai qualified at the Pan Am Games. It still will be an uphill climb for the

Olympian PV Sindhu joins wellness brand Hoop as investor, brand ambassador

Founded in 2022, Hoop brands itself as India's first wellness brand for an active lifestyle, which focuses on a range of wellness products to deal with effective pain, sleep, stress, and workout

Making a racquet: Can Indian tennis match the success of badminton?

'What I can tell you is that we have been able to create an ecosystem for badminton. I also believe that Indians have a physicality for the sport'

Treesa-Gayatri upset World No. 2 Baek-Lee; Sindhu goes down to Marin

PV Sindhu suffered yet another setback against Carolina Marin, but the rising Indian women's doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand stunned world number two Baek Ha Na and Lee So Hee of South Korea to enter the quarterfinals at Singapore Open here on Thursday. Double Olympic medallist Sindhu blew away 18-15 lead in the decider to go down to familiar rival Marin in a thrilling 21-13 11-21 20-22 women's singles last-16 match. It was Sindhu's sixth loss on the trot against her arch-rival dating back from 2018. But the Commonwealth Games bronze medallist duo of Treesa and Gayatri kept the Indian flag flying by eliminating Baek and Lee 21-9 14-21 21-15 in close to one-hour battle. This was world number 30 Indian duo's maiden win from three meetings against the world number two Korean pair. The Baek-Lee duo was error prone as Treesa and Gayatri held a commanding 18-9 lead before taking the opening game without much fuss. But the Indians allowed the South Koreans to bounce ba

Satwik-Chirag suffer shock defeat in opening round of Singapore Open

World No. 1 Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty crashed out of the Singapore Open after suffering a shock defeat against Denmark's world number 34 Daniel Lundgaard and Mads Vestergaard in the opening round, here Tuesday. One of the favourites to win a gold medal at Paris Olympics, Satwik and Chirag, who had claimed the Thailand Open super 500 early this month, lost 20-22 18-21 to Daniel and Mads in a 47-minute clash of the Super 750 badminton tournament. It turned out to be a dismal day for India as Aakarshu Kashyap and Priyanshu Rajawat also failed to cross the opening hurdle in singles competition. While world no. 41 Kashyap lost 7-21 15-21 to Thailand's Pornpicha Choeikeewong, ranked 42nd, Rajawat fought hard before going down 21-23 19-21 to Hong Kong's Lee Cheuk Yiu. Women's doubles pair of Rutuparna Panda and Swetaparna Panda also played their heart out before losing 12-21 21-12 13-21 to Chinese Taipei's Chang Ching Hui and Yang Ching Tun. Ashith Surya and Amrutha ...

Sindhu, Prannoy exit, Indian challenge ends in Badminton Asia Championships

India's challenge at the Badminton Asia Championships ended after double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu and HS Prannoy bowed out in pre-quarterfinals of their respective events here on Thursday. Sindhu, who is desperately seeking to rediscover her form ahead of the Paris Olympics, fought valiantly for for an hour and nine minutes but was outperformed by sixth seed Han Yue of China 18-21 21-13 17-21. It was Sindhu's first loss against Yue against whom she had a flawless 5-0 record before Thursday's contest. Seventh seed Prannoy went down meekly to unseeded Lin Chun-Yi of Chinese Taipei 18-21 11-21 in just 43 minutes. In another Indian result, the women's doubles combination of Tanisha Crasto and Ashwini Ponnappa lost in the pre-quarterfinals, going down 17-21 12-21 to third seeded Japanese pair of Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida. Sindhu vs Yue ========= The Indian started on a bright note in the first game and used her experience to race to an 8-4 lead, which she increased to 14-8

Badminton Asia Championships: Sindhu wins; Lakshya, Srikanth lose opener

Double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu survived some tense moments before progressing to the women's singles second round but it was curtains for Lakshya Sen and Kidambi Srikanth in men's singles at the Badminton Asia Championships here on Wednesday. Sindhu, who is desperately seeking to rediscover her form ahead of the Paris Olympics, almost blew away a five-point advantage in the decider before managing a gritty 18-21 21-14 21-19 win against world number 33 Goh Jin Wei from Malaysia. Sindhu had lost to her Malaysian opponent the last time they meet in Sudirman Cup though the Indian has a 4-1 record against her. Next up for Sindhu is China's Han Yue, against whom the Indian has a flawless 5-0 record. It was, however, a difficult day for Olympic-bound Sen, who lost 19-21 15-21 to local favourite and top seed Shi Yu Qi, and Srikanth, who suffered a 14-21 13-21 loss against Indonesia's Anthony Ginting in the opening round. Talented Priyanshu Rajawat also crashed out in the men's singles

Sindhu opts out of Uber Cup; strong side for Thomas Cup title defence

Double Olympic medallist P V Sindhu and the two top doubles pairs have opted out of the Uber Cup but a strong men's team will take the court for its title defence in the Thomas Cup, commencing in Chengdu from April 27. Sindhu, who has played six tournaments since returning to action at the Badminton Asia Team Championships in February, pulled out of the event to give herself more time to recover and be battle-ready for the Paris Olympics. Top women's doubles pairs -- Treesa Jolly-Gayatri Gopichand and Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto -- also withdrew since it is not a full strength team with Sindhu missing. They chose to focus on the other assignments as they strive to earn the Olympics qualification. Following the withdrawal of Sindhu and the two pairs, Badminton Association of India (BAI) decided to reward the players who performed at the Senior National Championships by give them the India cap. "Sindhu opted out as she is coming back from an injury and she wants to give herse

Taapsee Pannu-Mathias Boe get married in an intimate event at Udaipur

Taapsee Pannu and Indian badminton coach Mathias Boe's decade-long relationship finally turned into a marriage. The couple married in an intimate event at Udaipur