Top five Indian shuttlers who can win a medal at Korea Open 2022

These five badminton stars have the potential to go all the way at the Super 500 event.

The Korea Open Super 500 is all set to begin from April 5 and will continue till April 10. The Indian players have been promising throughout the last few tournaments they have played. They will surely eye a podium finish at the event.

With a majority of shuttlers having won a medal at the past few tournaments, Indians will be hoping for a successful outing at the Korea Open. Let’s have a look at top five medal contenders at the Korea Open from India.

5. Kidambi Srikanth

Former World No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth hasn’t been at the top of his game after winning silver at the World Championships last year. But, he's made satisfactory progress at the last few tournaments. He recently reached the semi-finals of the Swiss Open last month.

He will kick-start his campaign against Daren Liew of Malaysia. Srikanth, who hasn’t won an individual tournament since 2017, would look to end this long drought by lifting the Korea Open title.

4. Satiwksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty have had a decent year so far. The duo won the India Open 2022 in January and reached the quarter-finals of the All England Open last month.

Both the players have been in good shape so far and are expected to have a cakewalk to the quarter-finals at the Korea Open. They also might be potential medalists at the event ,if they find the groove against the higher-ranked players they are expected to meet in the later stages. The duo will start their tournament against the Thai pair of Supak Jomkoh and Kittinupong Kedren.

3. HS Prannoy

HS Prannoy has had a convincing start to the new season. The World No. 23 reached three quarter-finals in the last four tournaments and reached the finals of the Swiss Open last week, where he was the runner-up. The Indian shuttler is in fiery form as he enters the Korea Open.

His results in recent months have shown glimpses that he could pose threat to the big players and create major upsets. Prannoy has a decent record against many players in the draw, which could see him easily sail into the later stages of the tournament, where he might end up winning a medal. He will be up against Malaysia’s Cheam June Wei in the first round.

2. PV Sindhu

Two-time Olympic medalist PV Sindhu has been seeded third at the Korea Open 2022. In January, the Indian shuttler won the Syed Modi International Tournament, but had a disappointing performance at the All England Open, losing in the second round. However, the Hyderabad ace impressively won the Swiss Open last week.

With the former world champion looking good with two Super 300 titles already to her name, she’d look to make things fall into place for her in this tournament as well. Sindhu, who is a former winner at this event, would once again look to recreate the magic.

The former World No. 2 is expected to have a smooth run to the quarter-finals, as she faces Lauren Lam of Malaysia in the first round and might end up on the podium at the Super 500 event.

1. Lakshya Sen

Indian youngster Lakshya Sen has played superlatively well this season. This probably takes him to the top of the list of medal contenders. The shuttler from Almora won bronze at the World Championships last year and reached the finals of all three tournaments he played this year. He won the India Open in January and finished as a runner-up at the German Open.

Lakshya carried the momentum to win silver at the prestigious All England Open last month. The youngster has shown impressive play and has beaten most of the top ranked giants in the last few tournaments he has played. He’ll begin his campaign at the Korea Open against Lu Guang Zu of China. The Indian shuttler’s impressive form might make him finish on the top of the podium at the Super 500 tournament.

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