Badminton Asia Team Championships 2023 Preview: India grouped with Malaysia, UAE & Kazakstan

The biennial tournament's 2021 edition was cancelled owing to COVID-19.

17 countries will battle for the title of Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships. The teams were divided into four groups (A-D), with the top two teams in each group advancing to the quarter-finals. China, the defending champion, is in Group A, while Japan, the 2017 champion, is in Group D. The biennial tournament's 2021 edition was cancelled owing to COVID-19. China and Japan are the top two seeds for the 2023 edition as well.

Heavyweights Indonesia are seeded third in the five-team Group C, while India's Group B foes Malaysia are seeded fourth. A 'tie' will be determined by five matches: women's singles, men's singles, mixed doubles, women's doubles, and men's doubles. The tie is decided by the first side to win three games.

India’s opponents in Group B

India is paired in Group B alongside Malaysia, the hosts UAE, and Kazakhstan.

Team Malaysia has a strong doubles team in both the women's and men's categories. Last year, their men's doubles team of Aaron Chia and Soh Yik upset their fellow countrymen in the Commonwealth Games finals. They also took bronze at the Olympics in Tokyo. Pearly Le and Thinaah Muralitharan won gold in the women's doubles event at the CWG 2022.

On their day, Goi Wei and Lai Jing are capable of defeating anyone in the women's and men's singles, respectively. India’s biggest challenge in the group will be Malaysia. India is expected to beat the UAE and Kazakhstan.

Team News

P.V. Sindhu leads the Indian squad, with Thomas Cup winners H.S. Prannoy and Lakshya Sen heading the Indian campaign in men’s singles. Aakarshi Kashyap will be serving as the backup to Sindhu. Gayatri Gopichand and Treesa Jolly, the 2022 CWG bronze medalist combo, will compete in women’s doubles, while Ishaan Bhatnagar and Tanisha Castro will be India’s lone entrants in mixed doubles.

Chirag Shetty will partner Dhruv Kapila in men’s doubles after Satwiksairaj Rankireddy withdrew due to a hip ailment. The second men’s doubles partnership will be Krishna Prasad Garga and Vishnuvardhan Goud P.

India squad for Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championship 2023

Men's singles: Lakshya Sen, HS Prannoy

Women's singles: PV Sindhu, Aakarshi Kashyap

Men's doubles: Dhruv Kapila/Chirag Shetty, Krishna Prasad Garga/Vishnuvardhan Goud P

Women's doubles: Treesa Jolly/Gayatri Gopichand, Ashwini Bhat/Shikha Gautam

Mixed doubles: Ishaan Bhatnagar/Tanisha Crasto

Players to watch

PV Sindhu

Sindhu was injured after winning the Commonwealth Games women's singles gold in Birmingham in August last year, but she made a comeback in this year's first tournament, the Malaysia Open 2023, where she lost a three-game match to Carolina Marin of Spain in the first round. Sindhu lost in the first round of the India Open a week later, but she stated she was satisfied with her footwork, abilities, and strokes on her comeback to competitive activity in Kuala Lumpur. She would be India’s biggest hope in the tournament in their quest for a first podium finish in the competition.

Lakshya Sen

Lakshya Sen, 21, has already earned significant medals for India in his brief career. He earned silver in the Youth Olympic Games in 2018 and bronze at the World Championships in 2021. Last year, Lakshya Sen also helped India win the Thomas Cup, known as the World Cup of badminton. Sen followed in the footsteps of Prakash Padukone by capturing gold at the Commonwealth Games 2022 in August last year. Indian hopes will once upon be on him.

Opponents to watch

Team Malaysia

In both the women’s and men’s doubles categories, Malaysia boasts a formidable doubles squad. Their men’s doubles pair of Aaron Chia and Soh Yik defeated their fellow countrymen in the Commonwealth Games finals last year. They also won bronze at the Tokyo Olympics. At the CWG 2022, Pearly Le and Thinaah Muralitharan won gold in the women’s doubles event. India would hope to top their group by beating the Malaysians. Team Japan India might face Japan in the knockouts.

Team Japan

They won gold in the inaugural edition, however, they were unable to defend their title in 2019, as China defeated them in the finals. They would be attempting to reclaim the trophy this time. The men's doubles combo of Yugo Kobayashi and Tajuro Hogi has been outstanding in previous big events, and the Japanese side will rely on their expertise. Kodai Naraoka reached the finals of the Malaysia Open 2023, where he lost to Victor Axelsen, but that experience would have given him the confidence to do well in the Dubai tournament. The women's doubles team of Arisa Higashino and Yuta Watanabe is very difficult to beat too.

India's Schedule for Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championship 2023

• February 14, Tuesday Group B: India vs Kazakhstan - After 2:30 PM IST
• February 15, Wednesday Group B: India vs Kazakhstan - After 6:30 PM IST
• February 16, Wednesday Group B: India vs Malaysia - After 6:30 PM IST
• February 17, Thursday Quarter-finals (If India qualify) - TBD
• February 18, Friday Semi-finals (If India qualify) - TBD
• February 19, Saturday Final (If India qualify) - TBD

Live Streaming Details

The Sony Sports TEN 2 and Sony Sports TEN 2 HD TV channels in India will begin airing live coverage of the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships 2023 on February 17. The Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships 2023 will also be streamed live on the SonyLIV platform and website. The group matches of the Indian team won’t be live.