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What’s the story?
World No. 7 and reigning World Champion Nozomi Okuhara has pulled out of the Dubai World Superseries Finals, where she was supposed to participate in the women’s singles event.
Japanese national team coach Park Joo-Bong confirmed that the ace shuttler will be missing the event, which is going to be held from December 13-17 in Dubai, due to a knee injury.
The coach stated that she had not completely recovered from the injury, because of which she will not be participating in the tournament. He was quoted as saying, “It will be an inconvenience if she pulls out after entering the competition.”
In case you didn’t know
Okuhara is one of the brightest prospects in the world of badminton to come out of Japan in recent times. The 22-year-old had won a bronze medal at the Rio Olympics in 2016.
She was successful in her endeavour to become the World Champion in 2017 in Glasgow after she defeated India’s PV Sindhu 21-19, 20-22, 22-20 in a hard-fought battle in the final.
The heart of the matter
Okuhara had injured her right knee during the Japan Open Super Series tournament in September.
A build-up of fluid in her knee had apparently made the joint swollen and stiff, because of which she had to withdraw from the tournament right before her match against Carolina Marin.
What’s next?
The Dubai World Series Finals, which has a prize money of $1,000,000 will see the most talented players in the game take part in the tournament and give their best to become champions.
India’s PV Sindhu and Kidambi Srikanth will also be participating in the tournament, along with players like Son Wan Ho of South Korea, Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia and Carolina Marin of Spain.
Author’s take
It is very sad to see that Okuhara, one of the most talented young players in badminton will not get a chance to go toe-to-toe with the best in the world. However, it is best for her to take some time off the game and undergo treatment, and come back with all guns blazing once she is done with her rehabilitation and has fully recovered from her injury.
Considering the fact that she is just 22 years old, she will get many more opportunities in the future to prove her mettle.
