PV Sindhu kept under protected rankings, likely to be out for at least 3 months

She will be back in action most probably in February next year.

After an unfortunate mid-match withdrawal in the match against Thailand’s Supanida Katethong due to a knee injury at the French Open 2023, PV Sindhu looks to be out of action for almost three months. Two-time olympic medallist is expected to make her return to the court post January next year.

PV Sindhu, who was earlier at 11th rank in the women’s singles category of the BWF rankings has now obtained a protected rank at the 10th position in the latest ranking list. The Indian looked set to make a return to the circuit by reaching two successive semifinals at Arctic and Denmark Open but unfortunately had to withdraw due to an injury.

What does Protected Ranking mean?

Top committed Players for the year have the option to apply for a protected ranking in cases where they are unable to compete for extended periods due to injury or other circumstances. This process allows players to maintain their ranking status despite the inability to actively participate in tournaments.

Rules of Protected Ranking

1. To obtain a protected ranking, the player is required to submit medical and/or other pertinent documentation supporting their request.
2. If the Badminton World Federation (BWF) grants the protected ranking, the player will be exempted from the mandatory tournament participation rules. The rules are as follows:

• The player shall not be eligible to receive any bonus for the respective year.
• The player will be unable to participate in any Tournament for a minimum of three months, up to a maximum of 12 months, or until the Player notifies BWF that they wish to enter a Tournament again. The protected ranking period begins once permission has been granted by BWF. After 12 months, the Player will have to enter Tournaments based on their normal ranking position, and the protected ranking will no longer be in effect.
• The player shall not have the right to receive a comparable protected ranking for a minimum duration of two years from the moment of their return to competitive play.
• Upon return, the players will be granted the privilege to participate in BWF World Tour Tournaments using their protected ranking position, for a duration equivalent to their absence, up to a maximum of six months is important to note that the protected ranking will not be taken into consideration for seeding or any other tournaments apart from those within the BWF World Tour Tournaments.

Rankings updates of other Indian Badminton players

After Sindhu, the next Indian women’s singles player in the list is Aakarshi Kashyap, who is holding the 38th rank. Followed by Ashmita Chaliha at 50th, Malivika Bansod at 52nd, Tanya Hemanth at 59th, Tasnim Mir at 60th and Unnati Hooda, who jumped 16 places to secure a place at 74th. 

HS Prannoy is the highest ranked Indian at WR-8 in men’s singles category. He is followed by Lakshya Sen at 17th, Kidambi Srikanth at 23rd, Priyanshu Rajawat at 30th and Kiran George at 36th rank. 

In the men’s doubles ranking, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty hold the distinction of being the highest-ranked Indian pair, currently placed at 5th in the BWF world rankings. Meanwhile, in women’s doubles Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand hold the highest rank among Indian players, occupying the 18th position. 

In the mixed doubles category, Rohan Kapoor and Reddy Sikki hold the 40th spot and are the highest ranked mixed doubles Indian duo.