After making a flying start to their campaign at the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships, Team India now faces a stern test in the second group assignment at Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam on Thursday. They will have to take on the formidable Koreans, who are placed at the top of Group D after the opening matches for both the teams.
Korea, who are seeded second, began their challenge with a thumping 5-0 victory over Singapore. India too put up a brilliant performance by pummelling the same team 4-1.
With the two winners now facing off, it goes without saying that the challenge now gets significantly higher for India as they look to book a berth in the knock-out rounds.
India will surely feel the absence of both the shuttle queens, Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu in today’s match as the Korean team is led by the World No. 3 Sung Ji Hyun. The onus lies on the young shoulders of 20-year-old Rituparna Das, who is the country’s best shuttler after Saina and Sindhu.
The World No. 55 has been on the rise for the last few months and has proved to be very consistent. She was even crowned the national champion this year. But facing Sung Ji Hyun will be a different test altogether. If anything, this experience will surely stand her in good stead as she aims for the top echelons of the sport.
The Korean brigade also have the World No. 4, Son Wan Ho in the men’s singles. It will be up to the Syed Modi International champion Sameer Verma to try and use this platform to establish himself further.
In the doubles, it is expected to be even more of an uphill task for India. Ashwini Ponnappa is the Indian contingent’s most experienced member and will hope to use her vast experience to unsettle the opponents as much as possible.
Chances of a victory, however, look bleak for Ponnappa and Sikki Reddy in the women’s doubles as they will be squaring off against the World No. 4 pair of Chang Ye Na and Lee So Hee. The latter have dropped just 15 points in Korea’s matches at this event.
In the mixed doubles, Kim Ha Na, who is ranked No. 2 in that category, will feature. Sikki Reddy and Pranaav Jerry Chopra will surely have to come up with something special to notch up a win there.
In the men’s doubles, Manu Attri and B Sumeeth Reddy face Solgyu Choi and Gi Jung Kim.
