India's Satwik-Chirag, Thulasimathi Murugesan nominated for BWF Player of the Year Awards 2023

The winners will be announced on December 11.

The Badminton World Federation (BWF) on Tuesday announced the nominees for the Player of the Year Awards that will be given in a gala ceremony at Hangzhou, China on December 11, 2023. India's men's doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty are one among the four pairs that have been nominated for the 2023 Pair of The Year Award. In the Female Para-Badminton Player of the Year Category, Thulasimathi Murugesan finds a well-deserved place.

The Indian pair had a topsy-turvy 2023, where they went on to become World No. 1 but also faced early-round exits in a few tournaments. Satwik-Chirag became the first Indian pair to win the BWF World Super 1000 title when they beat Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik in the 2023 Indonesia Open.

They also won the historic gold in the Asian Games along with the Asian Badminton Championships held in Dubai.

The Swiss and the Korean Open title triumphs could have the Indian pair in good stead to win the award. Their early exits in tournaments like the China Open and the Japan Masters could be a factor to ponder.

The fact that the World No. pair is in doubt for the BWF World Tour Finals is a reflection of the same. Nevertheless, the resilience of the Indians has been an inspiring story in the Badminton circuit of 2023.

Talking about resilience one can't go past Thulasimathi Murugesan's medal-winning spree in the last few months in Para-Badminton circuit. After grabbing gold in singles in the Asian Para Games, she continued it with a women's doubles gold in the Japan Para-Badminton International 2023.

The event also saw her winning a silver in the women's singles and a bronze in the mixed doubles category.

India is hopeful that she will continue her winning run by taking home the Female Para-Badminton Player of the Year Award. Notably, her friend Manisha Ramadass won the same award in 2022.