New Delhi: India will field a strong squad with a perfect mix of youth and experience in the upcoming BWF Thomas and Uber Cup Finals 2024 with the senior selection committee deciding to have more options in singles considering the hectic schedule of all players this season.
The Badminton Association of India (BAI) on Thursday announced both men's and women's teams for the upcoming prestigious tournament to be played in Chengdu, China from April 27 to May 5.
A 10-member team for Thomas Cup will have five singles players with Kiran George joining HS Prannoy, Lakshya Sen, Kidambi Srikanth and Priyanshu Rajawat while Sai Pratheek will be the back-up doubles player to the two first-choice combinations, namely World No. 1 pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty and MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila.
With most of the top players going through a tough Paris Olympic qualification phase in the run up to Thomas Cup 2024, the selectors felt that it was important to have an additional singles player in the squad.
The final decision on the Thomas Cup squad was taken after an online meeting of the selection committee that comprises Chief National coach Pulella Gopichand, former India stars U Vimal Kumar, Jwala Gutta, Manjusha Kanwar, Partho Ganguly and Mallika Baruah Sarma.
For the Uber Cup, the selectors decided to give an opportunity to youngsters after top players in both singles and doubles pulled out. PV Sindhu informed the selectors that due to back-to-back tournaments leading up to the Olympics, she and her team have decided to skip the Uber Cup to prepare for the Olympics.
Top doubles pairs also cited similar reasons and, since it is not a full-strength team, they also pulled out. The selectors then decided to go ahead with young players who have done well recently at the National Championships.
Speaking about the team combination, Badminton Association of India General Secretary Sanjay Mishra said, "The senior selection committee after a lot of discussion has decided the best possible combination for the Thomas Cup team to defend the title.
The committee felt we needed to have one additional player in the singles while in doubles they have picked top two pairs and Sai Pratheek is selected as an additional doubles player after consultation with Mathias Boe (Danish doubles coach) just in case somebody is not fully fit or needs recovery.
"With all the experience as top-level players themselves and years of coaching experience, I believe they have picked a very balanced team and I believe these boys can win the title once again. The Uber Cup team also looks good with the young talented players. I wish them the best of luck and hope they will make the nation proud with their performances," Mishra said in an official statement by BAI.
The Indian men's team had created history two years ago in Thailand when they defeated formidable Indonesia 3-0 in the final to clinch their first-ever Thomas Cup crown.
Thomas Cup squad:
(Singles) HS Prannoy, Lakshya Sen, Kidambi Srikanth, Priyanshu Rajawat and Kiran George; (Doubles) Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, Chirag Shetty, MR Arjun, Dhruv Kapila and Sai Pratheek.
Uber Cup squad:
(Singles) Anmol Kharb, Tanvi Sharma, Ashmita Chaliha and Isharani Baruah; (Doubles) Shruti Mishra, Priya Konjengbam, Simran Singhi and Ritika Thaker. (ANI)
