Top five Indian shuttlers favourite to qualify for Paris Olympics after February 2024

Published at :March 4, 2024 at 12:21 AM

Modified at :March 25, 2024 at 3:29 PM

(Courtesy : Badminton Association of India)

Satwik-Chirag are mathematically assured of qualification for Paris Olympics.

The Indian badminton players are preparing for the greatest occasion of their careers: the Paris Olympics 2024. Shuttlers can qualify for the Olympics between May 1, 2023, and April 28, 2024. On April 30, the complete list of qualified players will be made public.

The ‘Race to Paris rankings list’, which considers only the best 10 event results, serves as the basis for the qualification. Shuttlers ranked in the top 16 of the ‘Race to Paris rankings list’ automatically earn a quota place. However, if more than two shuttlers from a federation are part of the top 16 than the federation can send only two players while the vacant spot will go to the next eligible shuttler.

Similar regulations apply to players competing in the doubles competition, with a maximum of two pairs allowed if they are ranked in the top eight of the ‘Race to Paris rankings list’, while the others are limited to a single pair until the quota of 16 is reached.

So, who are the top five Indian shuttlers who are favourites to qualify for the Paris Olympics 2024? Let’s take a look at their performance and potential.

Satwik Sairajrankireddy/Chirag Shetty

The ‘Brothers of Destruction’ added a valuable 10003 points from the Badminton Asian Team Championships 2024 to their already accumulated 2442 points to increase their gap from the fifth position. They have mathematically qualified for Paris Olympics but still need to ensure a place in the top four to get seeded in the Olympics.

They are currently fourth in the race to Paris with 89,673 points in 15 tournaments. So far, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty have:

Won three titles (Asian Games, Indonesia Open, Korea Open)
Finished second in three tournaments (China Masters, Malaysia Open, India Open)

HS Prannoy

After the Badminton Asian Team Championships, the beast earned 8247 points to overtake Kunlavut Vitidsaran in the Race to Paris Rankings list. HS Prannoy is currently seventh in the race with 74,897 points in 17 tournaments. He will aim to be in the top eight of the rankings. So far, HS Prannoy has:

Won one title at Malaysia Masters
Finished second in the Australia Open
Started the year with a semifinal finish at his home tournament India Open

PV Sindhu

Coming back from an injury, PV Sindhu, double Olympic medalist will be eying a hat-trick of medals at Paris. PV Sindhu returned to the court in style as she defeated Han Yue (WR 8) in her opening match on return from injury. She played a crucial role in the team event to help India win a historic title at the Badminton Asia Team Championships 2024 trophy.

PV Sindhu is currently in 12th position in the race to Paris with 58,542 points and her aim will be to finish in the top eight. She has reached the semifinals four times in the ranking period, which is her best result.

Ashwini Ponnappa/Tanisha Crasto

The newly formed pair of Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto is doing wonders at the court. They quickly climbed to the top 20 of the BWF World rankings and became India’s new number one in women’s doubles, surpassing Tressa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand who has been struggling with injuries.

After the Asia Team Championships, Ashwini /Tanisha climbed to the 19th position in the ‘Race to Paris Rankings List’ with 49,810 points. They have:

Won three tournaments (Nantes International Challenge, Abu Dhabi Masters, Guhawati Masters)
Finished second in two tournaments (Syed Modi and Odisha Masters)

Lakshya Sen

Lakshya Sen, who has been struggling with fitness issues and was not performing well on the court, has upped his game. In the recently concluded Badminton Asia Team Championships, he defeated the tricky Lei Lan Xi easily and a tough opponent in Koki Watanabe to get valuable 6101 points. He is currently out of the top 16 and if he has to qualify, he needs to enter the top 16 in the qualification rankings.

After the team championships, Sen has jumped two places to 17th with 54521 points and is just one spot away from reaching the qualification zone. He has:

Won the Canada Open
Reached the semifinals of three tournaments (Thailand Open, US Open and Japan Open)

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