Nagoya: Lakshya Sen and PV Sindhu face a stern test after being handed challenging draws, while defending champions Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty got a relatively favourable route to the semifinals as the focus shifts to the individual competitions following the team championships at the Asian Games, beginning here on Friday.
India managed to secure back-to-back medals at the Asian Games after the men's team signed off with a bronze following a silver in the last edition at Hangzhou, China.
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It was a 1-3 loss to China in the semifinals which saw India settle for a bronze on Wednesday. The loss can be attributed to the failure of the singles player as both Lakshya Sen and Ayush Shetty lost their respective matches. It was a similar story in women's team championships as PV Sindhu and Unnati Hooda came a cropper against Japanese counterparts in the quarterfinals to return without a medal.
The single stars will have to quickly recover from the disappointment and regroup as they train their guns at an individual medal at the 20th edition of the quadrennial showpiece.
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World No. 14 Lakshya had come into the competition after a series of first-round exits but showed tremendous grit to see off double world championships silver medallist Kodai Naroka in the clash against Japan in the quarterfinals. But he couldn't sustain the same pressure against China's Shi Yu Qi in the semifinals.
Lakshya, who received a first-round bye, will open his campaign against former world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore in the second round. Things will not get any easier as the 25-year-old from Almora could then face world No. 1 Jonatan Christie of Indonesia in the quarterfinals if he surpasses Loh.
Ayush, who had stunned Shi Yu Qi at the New Delhi World Championships, has also been handed a first-round bye but faces a difficult third-round assignment against Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei if he progresses.
Two-time Olympic medallist Sindhu, like Lakshya, will begin in the second round after receiving a bye. She could face Japan's seventh seed Tomoka Miyazaki in the round of 16 and Tokyo Olympic champion Chen Yufei of China in the quarterfinals if she can continue a winning run.
Young Indian Unnati Hooda will begin against North Korean Yu Mi Song and could face world No. 6 Putri Kusuma Wardani of Indonesia in the third round.
The men's doubles draw presents a different picture, with defending champions Satwik and Chirag getting a favourable path to the semifinals.
The Indian fourth seeds will begin against Thailand's Peeratchai Sukpun and Pakkapon Teeraratsakul and could face Indonesia's Leo Rolly Carnando and Daniel Marthin in the second round. If they cross the initial rounds then South Korea's top seeds Kim Won Ho and Seo Seung Jae could be their opponents in the semifinals.
For Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun, who put up a brave effort in the team semifinal, the challenge begins immediately as they take on second seeds Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Shohibul Fikri of Indonesia in the opening round.
Expectations will be high from women's doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, who won their maiden world championships bronze in New Delhi last month. The duo was the only winners in the team clash against Japan and will start against Hong Kong's Lok Lok Lui and Hiu Yan Tsang.
A win would set up a second-round clash against Japan's world No. 3 pair Yuki Fukushima and Mayu Matsumoto, whom the Indians defeated in the team quarterfinals earlier this week.
Kavipriya Selvam and Simran Singhi have been drawn against Indonesia's Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma and Meilyysa Trias Puspitasari in the opening round. They could then face South Korean second seeds Hana Baek and Sohee Lee.
In mixed doubles, Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto will begin against Maldives' Nibal Ahmed and Abdul Razzaq Aminath Nabeeha.
India have already secured a badminton medal at these Games after the men's team won bronze, losing 1-3 to China in the semifinals.
The Indian shuttlers had enjoyed a historic campaign at the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023, winning three medals. Satwik and Chirag became the first Indian badminton pair to win Asian Games gold in men's doubles, while the men's team won silver and HS Prannoy claimed bronze in men's singles.
It will be a mammoth effort to equal or improve on the three-medal haul of Hangzhou.
