India has taken giant steps towards becoming one of the powerhouses in badminton since the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. With unprecedented success at team events such as the Thomas Cup and Badminton Asia Championships, along with dominance at the Commonwealth Games and breakthroughs at the Asian Games, the country has had plenty to celebrate.
Can the tricolour nation carry all that momentum into the Paris Olympics and produce a record-breaking medal haul? That’s the question.
For only the second time since badminton debuted as a competitive sport at the 1992 Summer Games in Barcelona, India will have as many as seven players across four out of five categories. Led by two-time Olympic medallist P V Sindhu (women’s singles), the squad has H S Prannoy and Lakshya Sen (men’s singles), Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty (men’s doubles), and Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto (women’s doubles).
All eyes on Sat-Chi
A major reason for India’s recent achievements has been the rise of the men’s doubles pair of Satwik and Chirag.
Under the guidance of Denmark’s Mathias Boe, who himself had a highly successful career as a doubles player, Satwik and Chirag have checked all the boxes before Paris. The pair played a significant role in the country’s historic Thomas Cup triumph in 2022, as in the past, it was mostly doubles where India would always have a weak link in team competition.
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Not only has the pair been consistent on the BWF World Tour, clinching titles from the Super 100 to the Super 1000 level, but it has also been to places where no other Indian men’s doubles team has gone before: a World Championships bronze, an Asian Games gold, an Asian Championships title, and, to top it all, the World No. 1 ranking too.
Men’s doubles, arguably, is the toughest category in the sport right now, with every pair in the Top 10 almost at the same level. Therefore, despite being World No. 3, Satwik and Chirag can’t afford to be complacent in Paris, where in the group stage, every game of every match could make a difference. The duo had missed qualification for the knockout stage in Tokyo after a three-way tie in the group stage was settled based on the difference between the number of games won and lost, where the Indians finished third among four pairs.
Out of Satwik-Chirag’s two titles this year, one, the French Open, was clinched at the same venue that will be used for the Olympics. The duo will aim to replicate that run and will be India’s biggest medal hope in badminton.
P.V. Sindhu, aiming for her third Olympic medal, remains a formidable contender. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
Tough challenge in singles
India’s three Olympic medals in badminton have come from singles: Saina Nehwal (bronze in London 2012) and Sindhu (silver in Rio de Janeiro 2016 and bronze in Tokyo 2021). However, it is going to be an extremely tough task to keep that streak going.
The 29-year-old Sindhu has not looked at her imperious best since sustaining a stress fracture on her left ankle during the Commonwealth Games in 2022. However, factors such as training under Indian badminton legend Prakash Padukone, her experience from the last two campaigns, and a favourable draw could help her make another deep run despite the lack of form.
Prannoy, 31, and Lakshya, 22, are set to make their Olympic debuts, and their qualification journeys could not have been more different. For Prannoy, 2023 was the season of his life where he bagged his maiden title on the BWF World Tour, a bronze medal at the World Championships, and a historic bronze at the Asian Games, but 2024 has been a nightmare with health problems and a tremendous loss of form.
Commonwealth Games gold medallist Lakshya struggled for most of the last year and even lost to Kidambi Srikanth in the Asian Games trials, missing out on playing in the singles category in Hangzhou. However, semifinal finishes at the French Open and the All-England Open this year helped Lakshya bounce back in the qualification race for the Olympics and seal his spot.
Both Prannoy and Lakshya are capable of upsetting the best in business on their days, but a deep run at the Olympics will require consistency.
Surprise package
While all eyes were on youngsters Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, a new partnership between the experienced Ashwini Ponnappa, 34, and Tanisha Crasto, 20, grew by leaps and bounds in 2023. The duo made three consecutive finals at tournaments in India in December, and the qualification for Paris, which looked unlikely at one point, turned into a realistic possibility.
The further push provided by reaching the quarterfinals of the Malaysia Open and Madrid Masters eventually got the duo over the line.
Ashwini, who previously played at the Olympics in 2012 and 2016 with Jwala Gutta, has mentored Tanisha well, and the pair could be a surprise package for some higher-ranked teams in Paris.
Badminton will be held at the 8,000-seat Porte de la Chapelle Arena from July 27 to August 5.
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