The badminton events at the Paris Olympics 2024 have seen the draw taking place in Kuala Lumpur by the BWF. India is proudly represented by five athletes across four categories at Paris 2024. The Indian contingent includes Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty in men’s doubles, PV Sindhu in women’s singles, HS Prannoy and Lakshya Sen in men’s singles, and Tanisha Crasto and Ashwini Ponnappa in women’s doubles. Satwik-Chirag are seeded third, while Sindhu is seeded 10th and Prannoy is seeded 13th, setting them up to potentially top their respective groups. The competition kicks off with the group stages, leading to the knockout rounds starting from the Round of 16. However, the men’s doubles draw faced a delay due to a Court of Arbitration of Sport hearing over the number of pairs in the draw. Despite this delay, the other players have been drawn into their respective groups.
PV Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medallist, has been grouped with opponents from Estonia and Maldives in Group M for the women’s singles competition at Paris 2024. Sindhu, seeded 10th, has a relatively smooth start with her group stage matches, but faces potential challenges in the later rounds, including a possible encounter with two-time World Championships medallist He Bingjao. In the men’s singles event, HS Prannoy and Lakshya Sen have also learned of their respective opponents in the group stage. Prannoy faces competitors from Vietnam and Germany in Group K, while Sen faces a tough challenge against the world number 3 from Indonesia in Group L. The draw sets the stage for an intriguing all-Indian clash in the Round of 16 if both Prannoy and Sen progress.
Tanisha Crasto and Ashwini Ponnappa are set to compete in the women’s doubles event at Paris 2024, where they will face strong opposition from Japan and South Korea in their group. The draw analysis suggests that they have a tough task ahead against higher-ranked pairs. The badminton events are scheduled to commence on July 27th, with the group stages running until July 31st. As the anticipation builds for the matches to unfold, fans are looking forward to an exciting and challenging journey for the Indian contingent at the Paris Olympics 2024.
