-Olympics
Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu and former world No.1 Kidambi Srikanth will spearhead India’s challenge at the BWF Arctic Open 2023, from October 10 to 15 in Vantaa, Finland.
The Arctic Open was last held in 2019. The badminton event was cancelled for three years in a row due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, the Arctic Open returns as a BWF Super 500 event in its 23rd edition.
All the Arctic Open 2023 badminton matches will be streamed live in India.
Results at the Arctic Open 2023 will also count towards qualifying rankings for the Paris 2024 Olympics. The matches will be played at Vantaa Energia Arena.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, men’s doubles gold medallists at the Asian Games 2023, were pitted against compatriots Dhruv Kapila and MR Arjun in the opening round but both the pairs pulled off ahead of the competition.
PV Sindhu will face Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara, a former world champion like Sindhu, in the opening round.
Sindhu missed out on a medal at the Asian Games in Hangzhou earlier this month after losing in the quarter-finals. The Indian badminton player is the eighth seed in the Arctic Open 2023 women’s singles competition. Aakarshi Kashyap and Malvika Bansod will also start from the women’s singles main draw.
Kidambi Srikanth will lead India’s contingent In the men’s singles in the absence of Lakshya Sen and HS Prannoy, who won an Asian Games bronze medal last week. HS Prannoy will sit out the Finland meet due to a back injury.
Two Indian pairs – Tanisha Crasto-Ashwini Ponnappa and Rutuparna Panda-Swetaparna Panda – will compete in the women’s doubles event. K Sai Pratheek and Tanisha Crasto are listed in the mixed doubles.
Where to watch Arctic Open 2023 badminton live in India
Live streaming of the Arctic Open 2023 matches will be available on the Badminton World Federation’s official YouTube channel BWF TV. The event will not be telecast live on any TV channels in India.
Arctic Open 2023 badminton: India squad
Men’s singles main draw: Kidambi Srikanth, Mithun Manjunath, Kiran George
Men’s singles qualifiers: Harshit Agarwal
Women’s singles: PV Sindhu, Aakarshi Kashyap, Malvika Bansod
Women’s doubles: Ashwini Ponnappa/Tanisha Crasto, Rutuparna Panda/Swetaparna Panda
Mixed doubles: K Sai Pratheek/Tanisha Crasto
Featured Image: Badminton World Tour