The Badminton World Federation (BWF) has said that it will not restrict Chinese players from participating in international competitions due to the coronavirus epidemic. Over 550 people have died in mainland China due to the flu-like virus after it first emerged in Wuhan, Hubei province, late last year and it has also shut down Chinese cities and forced thousands more into quarantine around the world.
Sindhu had been left in tears after an 'unfair' call by the umpires midway
The Rio Olympics silver medallist couldn't hold back her happiness at being re-acquainted with her gym equipment.
Both Super 100 tournaments have now been removed from the BWF's revamped calendar.
An unnamed Indian woman shuttler was on Tuesday forced to withdraw from the Orleans Masters after a team entourage member tested positive for COVID-19 and she was identified as a close contact.
India's badminton great Prakash Padukone will receive the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award this year from the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
Kashyap, a Commonwealth Games champion, was trailing 8-14 in the third game when he chose to retire after pulling his calf muscle.
Thomas Cup final: India vs Indonesia
The BWF have developed a new outdoor shuttlecock, the AirShuttle, with increased durability, stability and wind resistance to allow people to play on hard, grass and sand surfaces.
Many believe the Thomas Cup victory can do for badminton what the 1983 World Cup triumph did for cricket in India.
Tasnim Mir, who earlier this month became the first Indian to claim world number one status in the U-19 category, beat Keyura Mopati 13-21, 21-14, 21-19 to set up a second round clash against Malvika Bansod.
No Indians featured in the women's doubles and mixed doubles rankings.
Chirag said "it is difficult to stay motivated" in such uncertain times.
India's Tokyo Paralympics gold winner Pramod Bhagat was on Thursday named among six shuttlers for the Male Para Badminton Player of the Year by the sport's world body but none of his compatriots featured in the able-bodied awards' categories.
P V Sindhu hopes to continue her rich vein of form in upcoming events, including the Birmingham Commonwealth Games, after winning the Singapore Open on Sunday.
It's high time we took fashion lessons from her.
Star Indian shuttler HS Prannoy said the mentality of not giving up without a fight kept him motivated during the epic victory over Denmark in the Thomas Cup semi-finals on Friday.
Now all eyes are on the two Super 1000 events -- Yonex Thailand Open (January 12-17) and Toyota Thailand Open (January 19-24) as the world's best return to action following a prolonged break.
India's badminton ace Saina Nehwal accused the sport's administrators of placing money above players' safety by continuing last week's All England Championships despite the coronavirus pandemic. The 30-year-old lost in the opening round of the marquee event, which was among a handful which continued even as the bulk of global sporting calendar was either postponed or cancelled.
Besides Srikanth, the other players withdrawn are Ashwini Ponnappa, Ritika Rahul Thkar, Treesa Jolly, Mithun Manjunath, Simran Aman Singh and Khushi Gupta.
Indonesia's women's doubles pair of Greysia Polii and Apriyani Rahayu and Apriyani are being showered with lots of gifts by the country for winning gold at the Tokyo Olympics.
Denmark's 2017 World Champion Viktor Axelsen and home favourite Okuhara Nozomi, who won bronze at Rio 2016, are also among the star names.
Two players withdrawn from India Open due to COVID-19
'You can't just have one single player who is individually doing well and be able to win the World Championship or the Olympics.' 'In the Thomas Cup, you need a group of players performing at the same time at their highest level.' 'So that shows how difficult it is, and what a great achievement that is for a country like India to be able to win it.'
The BWF also shared its Standard Operation Procedure with member associations, saying any breach "can result in accreditation being revoked and participants not permitted to enter the venue."
Shuttlers in the singles competition have to be inside top-16 of world rankings to qualify for the Olympics. The cut-off for doubles is also top-16.
Scheduled to be held in Denmark from October 3 to 11, the Thomas and Uber Cup will mark the resumption of international badminton after it was brought to a halt in March because of the dreaded virus.
Badminton's Tokyo rankings frozen as BWF rules out any more qualifying tournaments.
Sindhu will play her opening match on Sunday, while B Sai Praneeth and the men's pair of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy will be in action on Saturday.
India's ace shuttler Saina Nehwal on Monday stressed on the importance of taking necessary precautions in the next two weeks to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus, which has created a global upheaval. Former World No 1 Kidambi Srikanth also took to twitter, urging people to help each other instead of panicking.
The COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed over 6,000 lives and infected close to 160,000 people worldwide, has led to the cancellation or postponement of all sporting events across the globe. ports Minister Kiren Rijiju urged the athletes to not lose spirit and keep working hard to stay battle ready for competitions.
The Malaysia Open Super 750 tournament, one of badminton's last two Olympic qualifying events, was on Friday postponed due to a recent COVID-19 surge in the host country, dealing a severe blow to the Tokyo hopes of Indian stars like Saina Nehwal and Kidambi Srikanth.
In May, the BWF had unveiled a revised international calendar to salvage the remainder of the season. However, with the global health crisis showing no signs of abating, many events were cancelled from the reworked calendar.
Earlier, BWF and Badminton England had delayed the start of the event by a couple of hours following a 'significant number' of inconclusive COVID-19 test results.
BWF, in a statement, said that only those athletes eligible for the originally scheduled championships are allowed to enter.
Asian Para Games bronze medallist Krishna, who had claimed two gold medals at the Dubai Para badminton International Championships in April, was also over the moon to know about his qualification.
The Tokyo Games, originally scheduled to start in July this year, have been postponed to July 23-August 8, 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and will be followed by the Paralympic Games which will run from August 24-September 5.
Brimming with confidence, India will again look to punch above their weight when they run into 14-time winners Indonesia in the final of Thomas Cup in Bangkok on Sunday, seeking to create history one more time.
'Both Saina Nehwal and HS Prannoy have been cleared to participate in the ongoing Yonex Thailand Open after the fourth-round tests reports confirmed that both shuttlers have been tested negative for COVID-19.'
India's shuttlers, including London Olympics bronze medallist Saina Nehwal, expressed shock after reports emerged that a sparring partner of the Taiwanese national team, who was in Birmingham during the All England Championship, tested positive for the coronavirus.
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