The 2024 Paris Olympics will see seven shuttlers representing India across four categories. Lakshya Sen and HS Prannoy will compete in men’s singles, whilst PV Sindhu will have the opportunity to win her third medal at the Olympics, as she is set to be India’s sole representative in women’s singles. The decorated pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty will compete in men’s doubles, whilst the Tanisha Crasto-Ashwini Ponnappa duo will be participating in women’s doubles.
About the Olympic Qualification Process
The Olympic qualification period for badminton started on 1 May 2023 and concluded on 28 April 2024. The final list of entries will be published on 30 April 2024.
In both the men's and women's singles events, the top 38 shuttlers on BWF's 'Road to Paris' rankings will earn quotas. However, two shuttlers from one nation can earn quotas only if they both are in the top 16.
Likewise, in the three doubles events, the top 16 pairs will make it to the summer games, but for two pairs from a single nation to earn quotas, they both must be in the top eight.
Meet India’s 7-Strong Contingent
HS Prannoy
Currently the only Indian in the top 10 of any singles event in BWF’s Road to Paris rankings, Prannoy is placed at the ninth position after the latest update on 23 April. He has not enjoyed the best of forms this year, as after finishing third at the India Open earlier this year, where he defeated Chinese Taipei’s Chou Tien-chen, Prannoy’s returns have been slightly underwhelming. He suffered Round of 32 exits at the Indonesia Open, French Open and the All England Championships.
Albeit, he proved his mettle in 2023, making it to the semi-finals at the World Championships in Denmark by beating Viktor Axelsen, and also winning the Malaysia Masters.
Lakshya Sen
Lakshya Sen, who is ranked 13th after the last update, has had an excellent start to the year, as he finished third at the French Open by beating Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew. Then at the All England Championships, he also qualified for the semi-finals with triumphs over higher-rated players like Denmark’s Anders Antonsen and Malaysia’s Lee Zii Jia.
PV Sindhu
A silver medallist at Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and a bronze medallist at Tokyo in 2020, Sindhu will aim for a third Olympics medal in Paris, preferably of the hue she has not won yet. She is currently ranked 12th after the last update. The 28-year-old made it to the quarter-finals in two competitions this year – the French Open, where she defeated the United States of America’s Beiwen Zhang, and the Madrid Masters.
In 2023, she finished third at the Denmark Open by beating a higher-ranked Gregoria Mariska Tunjung, and achieved similar results at the Arctic Open, Canada Open and Malaysia Masters.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty
India’s prized ‘Sat-Chi’ pair always seemed to be assured of a Paris berth, having won the men’s doubles gold at the Commonwealth Games, Asian Games and Asian Championships – all within the last couple of years.
Currently ranked third in the Road to Paris rankings, the pair won the French Open earlier this year, beating Chinese Taipei’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan. They also finished second at the India Open and the Malaysia Open.
Ashwini Ponnappa-Tanisha Crasto
When Ashwini Ponnappa won her maiden South Asian Games medal in 2010, Tanisha Crasto was only six, with her career yet to see its dawn. Fourteen years later, the idiosyncratic pair of a 20-year-old youngster and a 34-year-old veteran will represent India at the Olympics.
Currently ranked 13th in the Road to Paris standings, the pair qualified for the quarter-final of the Malaysia Open earlier this year, beating favourites Mayu Matsumoto and Wakana Nagahara of Japan. They also won the Guwahati Masters, Abu Dhabi Masters and Nantes International Challenge last year.
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