HS Prannoy joins Lin Dan, Lee Chong Wei in exclusive list with historic Asian Games medal

The Indian won his first BWF World Tour title this year at the Malaysia Masters.

Battling the recurring back injury he picked up during training, HS Prannoy of India suffered a defeat in the men's singles semifinals and secured the bronze medal in Hangzhou Asian Games 2023. This marked India's second medal in men's singles after a 41-year gap since Syed Modi's bronze win in the 1982 games in New Delhi. He also contributed to the men's team's success of earning a silver medal.

This year also marked Prannoy's inaugural World Championship medal which he achieved by out matching Viktor Axelsen for a bronze. He became the fifth Indian to secure a men's singles World Championship medal and marked a substantial hiatus since Prakash Padukone's achievements in the 1980s. Sai Praneeth, Kidambi Srikanth and Lakshya Sen followed with medals in consecutive editions.

With this H.S. Prannoy joined the ranks of Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei as one of only three players to achieve World Championships and Asian Games medals after reaching the age of 30.

Lin Dan from China won the men's singles badminton event at the 2014 Asian Games held in Incheon, South Korea while Lee Chong Wei from Malaysia won the bronze medal in the same edition. Lee Chong Wei also on silver in two editions of the world championship the Guangzhou in 2013 and Jakarta in 2015 at the age of 31 and 33 respectively.

Chinese, Lin Dan, on the other hand, won the 2017 Glasgow World championship and earned the silver medal at the age of 34. Prior to 2023, Prannoy had not clinched a significant BWF World Tour title. His Olympic debut is still pending even though he had once achieved a world ranking as high as No. 8 in 2017 which was driven by impressive victories over icons such as Lin Dan, Lee Chong Wei and Taufik Hidayat.

The ascent of the 31-year-old to become the highest-ranked Indian singles player has been gradual yet consistent which garnered significant attention particularly since the onset of the pandemic shutdown.

In 2023, he clinched victory at the Malaysia Masters, made it to the final round of the Australian Open and reached the semifinals of Indonesia Open. He also advanced to the quarterfinals of the Malaysia Open, Taipei Open and Japan Open respectively.

To combat the effects of age, he implemented new strategies across various aspects, including technical improvements, fitness routines, dietary adjustments and mental preparation. This shift altered the course of his career at the age of 31, a period often considered late for athletes.

Prannoy is a rare exception. Despite being a former junior Worlds and Youth Olympic medalist, he has managed to regain his top form at the age of 31 and with the 2024 Paris Olympics on the horizon, we anticipate that he will achieve more significant milestones in his career.