BWF World Championships: When and where to watch Indian shuttlers on Day 1
The BWF World Championships will get off to a blockbuster start on Monday in Delhi, with top seeds Shi Yuqi and An Se Young in action, along with former champion and the face of the event, local star PV Sindhu.
For the first time in 17 years, India will host the prestigious badminton event, and there is plenty of action lined up on the opening day.
The BWF World Championships will get underway at 9 am on Monday, August 17, with Star Sports providing television coverage and JioHotstar offering live streaming of the matches in India.
PV Sindhu, the 2019 champion, begins her campaign against World No. 141 Sophia Noble of Ireland in the women’s singles first round.
Sindhu is bidding to become the first women’s singles shuttler to win six world championships medals. The 2019 champion is currently tied with legendary Zhang Ning of China. Sindhu has a tricky draw in which she could potentially face Wang Zhi Yi of China, the third seed, in the third round before a potential semifinal against Olympic champion An Se Young.
An, who will be the one to beat in Delhi, will begin her campaign against World No. 40 Kaloyana Nalbantova of Bulgaria.
The Indian action will get underway with Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun, the World No. 24 pair, who will begin their campaign against World No. 102 Scott Guildea and Paul Reynolds.
Interestingly, all matches involving Indians will be played on Court 1 on Monday, the opening day of the World Championships.
Tanisha Crasto and Gayatri Gopichand, who are still searching for the form that inspired a consistent run last year, will open their campaign in the afternoon against Paula Lopez and Lucia Rodriguez of Spain.
AYUSH VS SHI IN BLOCKBUSTER
The biggest match of the day will see Ayush Shetty take on defending champion Shi Yuqi. Ayush has not beaten the Chinese star in three meetings so far, but the young Indian, who made it to the final of the Badminton Asia Championships earlier this year, will be determined to make the home advantage count.
“It is the first round for both of us. It will be a tough one,” Ayush said on the eve of the first-round match.
“I had some injury issues and I have been getting better. I am more confident and prepared. Not thinking too much about the past matches. We will analyse and see what needs to be done. I think tactically it was much better last time. Physically I feel much better,” he said.
Ayush trained in Delhi on Saturday evening along with PV Sindhu, with India’s singles coach, Irwansyah, keeping a close eye on both of them.
INDIAN MATCHES ON DAY 1 OF BWF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
Then, Kavipriya Selvam and Simran Singh, the World No. 42 pair, will begin their campaign against Nikol Carulla and Carmen Jimenez in women’s doubles.
Another interesting match will see No. 5 seed Han Yue take on the seasoned Kirsty Gilmour, who has won a silver and a bronze at the World Championships in 2014 and 2018, respectively.
All eyes will also be on Toma Junior Popov, the 15th seed, who begins his campaign against Dominik Kwinta of Poland. He will team up with his brother Christo for their men’s doubles match against Takumi Nomura and Yuichi Shimogami.
The likes of Lakshya Sen in men’s singles, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty in men’s doubles, and Rohan Kapoor and Gadde Ruthivka Shivani in mixed doubles will be in action on Tuesday, the second day of the first-round matches.
Meanwhile, Ashith Surya and Amrutha Pramuthesh, ranked 186th, have been given a late entry into the women’s doubles draw and will begin their campaign on Tuesday.
– Ends
