PETALING JAYA: India have been dealt a huge blow ahead of the Sudirman Cup after top men’s doubles shuttlers Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty withdrew from the team meet due to illness.
Former world No. 1 pair Satwiksairaj-Chirag have struggled with injuries since the Paris Olympics last August and their withdrawal from the team meet is yet another setback for them.
The duo, who are currently ranked No. 11, played an important role in helping India clinch a historic Thomas Cup crown in 2022 and their absence is a blow to their team’s chances of progressing far in the Sudirman Cup which starts on Sunday in Xiamen, China.
In Satwiksairaj-Chirag’s absence, India only have inexperienced pair A. Hariharan-R. Ruban Kumar in the men’s doubles as the Badminton Association of India (BAI) have opted against naming a replacement.
No go: India’s Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty are down with illness.
The talismanic pair’s withdrawal leaves India facing an uphill task to survive Group D which also includes Indonesia, Denmark and England.
Only the top two teams will progress to the last eight.
Earlier, India also lost the services of top women’s doubles pair Treesa Jolly-Gayatri Gopichand who pulled out due to injury.
Youngsters Shruthi Mishra-Priya Konjengbam face a tough battle to fill the void left behind by world No. 10 Treesa-Gayatri.
India will be relying heavily on experienced stars Lakshya Sen, H. S. Prannoy (men’s singles) and P. V. Sindhu (women’s singles) for the points.
World No. 17 mixed doubles pair Dhruv Kapila-Tanisha Crasto will also be hoping to pull off a few upsets.
India were knocked out of the group stage in the last three editions (2019, 2021 and 2023) and last made it into the quarter-finals in 2017 where they lost to China.
