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The star players of the IBL at the unveiling of the IBL trophy on August 13, 2013 in New Delhi (Getty Images)
Badminton is going to come home in a new avatar this August in the form of the Indian Badminton League which is set to provide a fortnight of entertainment between August 14 and August 31. There are a whole host of players that we will get to see, right from seasoned stars to promising youngsters.
We take a look at 5 players to watch out for through the tournament:
1. Saina Nehwal (Hyderabad Hotshots)
Saina Nehwal will be leading the charge for her hometown franchise the Hyderabad Hotshots (Getty Images)
India’s top badminton player hasn’t exactly had the best of years in 2013. Saina is still in search of her first tournament win this year. In her 9 tournament appearances so far this year, she is yet to make the final, having fallen at the semi-final stage 4 times.
She will also be keen to rebound from her quarterfinal loss at the World Championships to Korean Bae Yeon Ju, a match she was expected to win. There will be much attention on India’s No.1 at the IBL and Saina will be keen to make amends by helping her Hyderabad team to a title push.
2. Ajay Jayaram (Hyderabad Hotshots)
Ajay Jayaram had a fine run at the World Championships 2013 (Getty Images)
The 25-year-old Ajay made it into the 3rd round at last week’s World Championships, beating 12th seed Wing Ki Wong of Hong Kong on the way.
He has also been having a good run in the last year. Supported by Olympic Gold Quest and coached by Tom John, the Bangalore based player is currently ranked 24th in the world and has had a good run at the Indonesia and India Opens this year.
3. Sai Praneeth (Delhi Smashers)
Sai Praneeth is one of India’s bright young stars (Getty Images)
Praneeth is currently having a dream run in 2013. This year, he has stunned the world by beating the likes of Muhammad Hafiz Hashim, former Olympic and World Champion Taufik Hidayat and also World No.4 Yun Hu.
He is currently ranked 37th in the world rankings. 21-year-old Praneeth is the latest in the line of talented badminton players to emerge from the city of Hyderabad.
4. P.V. Sindhu (Awadhe Warriors)
P.V. Sindhu will be keen to continue her good run of form at the IBL (Getty Images)
Sindhu’s name is on everybody’s lips after her remarkable run at the World Championships where she beat defending champion Wang Yihan as well as the Asian Games champion Wang Shixian in back-to-back matches. It was testament to her ability that she was beaten only by eventual champion Ratchanok Inthanon of Thailand.
Sindhu has her sights set on claiming the top ranking in women’s badminton and at 18, is already a star. Coach Gopichand talks about her never-say-die attitude being one of her key strengths; and Sindhu with the likes of Saina, Tine Baun and Juliane Schenk all in the fray, Sindhu will be keen to hold her own in the company of these seasoned players.
5. Nichaon Jindapon (Delhi Smashers)
Thai youngster Nichaon Jindapon is one of the emerging stars from her country in women’s badminton (Getty Images)
This Thai player is gradually entering the Top 10 rankings in the world. She is currently ranked 15th and along with the likes of the new World Champion Ratchanok, forms a part of a new breed of Thai youngsters who have taken the women’s game by storm.
Nichaon, playing for Thailand, won Bronze at the 2013 Sudirman Cup held in Kuala Lumpur.
