Saina Nehwal feels the year going by is one of the best of her career but rued that a series of injuries affected her chances of winning more titles.
List of international sports events affected by the coronavirus that has killed over 900 people and infected more than 40,000 in China
Rising Indian shuttler P V Sindhu has broken into the world's top 20 in the latest badminton rankings following her giant-killing exploits at last week's China Masters.
Indian mixed doubles pairing of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Ashwini Ponnappa shocked Commonwealth Games silver medallists England's Marcus Ellis and Lauren Smith to enter the pre-quarterfinals of the $ 1 million China Open
Sindhu, who had finished runners-up at the last edition in Dubai, will have a tough task at hand as she has been clubbed with defending champion Akane Yamaguchi of Japan, World No 1 Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei and USAs' Beiwen Zhang in Group A.
Former badminton World No 1 Lee Chong Wei has been nominated for Malaysia's 2014 sportsman of the year award.
Riding on her stupendous performance at the Australian Open Super Series, Indian ace Saina Nehwal jumped two places to reach the World No. six in the latest BWF ranking released on Thursday. The 26-year-old from Hyderabad, who clinched the Australian Open title -- her first of the season - last Sunday, now has 75,369 points in her kitty.
Rio-bound Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal, who just clinched the Australian Open Super Series title in Sydney, said she wants to be aggressive like India Test skipper Virat Kohli. The 26-year-old from Hyderabad defeated Sun Yu of China in the finals yesterday to notch up her first title of the season ahead of the Rio Olympics.
It is Sindhu's second semifinal of the season, following a last-four finish at the India Open last month.
Following her bronze-medal finish at the recently-concluded World badminton Championships, India's top shuttler P V Sindhu has re-entered the top-10 in the latest Badminton World Federation (BWF) rankings, released on Thursday.
Malaysian shuttler Lee Chong Wei was a relieved man on Monday after being handed a backdated eight-month ban for doping by the Badminton World Federation, leaving him free to go for gold at the Rio Olympics next year.
Indian shuttlers and officials welcomed the Badminton World Federation's decision to defer the controversial mandatory skirt rule till December and expressed hope that the body would come up with a better regulation after fresh deliberations.
World No 2 Carolina Marin of Spain also figures in her same group and Sindhu will have task cut out when she faces the Spaniard on Friday.
The Indian saw off World No 3 Chen Yufei 21-19, 21-10 to enter her first final of the season.
Saina, who was looking good at the start of the season, was diagnosed with acute gastroenteritis with mild pancreatitis which affected her performance at the All England Championship.
An unprecedented seven Indian shuttlers are set to qualify for the Olympics Games at Rio de Janeiro when the official BWF rankings are released on Thursday.
While praising the depth in the Indian men's ranks and expecting it to last for the next 10 years, badminton legend Prakash Padukone lamented that the women's side did not possess the same depth in class after world no. 2 Saina Nehwal and no. 12 P V Sindhu.
The World No 25 pair of Satwiksairaj and Chirag put a gallant fight in the second game but couldn't stop the two-time All England Champions from Indonesia, going down 12-21, 24-26 in a 42-minute match.
Top seeds P V Sindhu and K Srikanth notched up contrasting victories to advance to the third round of the $120,000 Indonesia Masters Grand Prix Gold tournament, in Malang, on Thursday.
Was it badminton sensation PV Sindhu, who became the first Indian to win the World Championships gold medal? Or is it the young shooting progidy Saurabh Chaudhary? Or his India colleague Elavenil Valarivan, who recently took over as World No 1? What about India's heroes on the cricketing field -- Virat Kohli? Rohit Sharma?
Parupalli Kashyap and B Sai Praneeth, along with several other Indian players, are in Switzerland
Despite clinching the Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold title last week, Indian shuttler H S Prannoy slipped three places to World No 27 in the latest BWF rankings released on Thursday.
Kim had developed a good rapport with Sindhu, who time and again acknowledged the Korean's role in her success.
Sourabh recovered from a mid-game slump to beat Sun 21-12, 17-21, 21-14 in the summit clash
Ace shuttler Saina Nehwal created history on Saturday by becoming the first Indian singles player to reach the summit clash of the BWF Super Series Finals after defeating Tine Baun of Denmark during the semi-finals in Liuzhou in China.
Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal turned in a superb display to stun world No 3 Xin Wang in the last Group B match of the BWF Super Series Finals in Liuzhou, China, on Friday. The world No 4, who had already qualified for the semi-finals, won 21-17, 22-20 in 39 minutes.
India's ace shuttler Saina Nehwal stormed into the elimination round of the BWF Super Series Finals with a straight-game victory over Sayaka Sato of Japan in the women's singles in Liuzhou, China, on Thursday.
Owing to their good performances in the Sudirman Cup in China, India's women's doubles pair of Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa zoomed to 22nd place, while P Kashyap moved to the 23rd spot in the latest BWF ranking released on Thursday.
India ace Kidambi Srikanth was rewarded for his sensational run this season as he grabbed a career-best ranking of World No. 2 after jumping two places in the latest BWF ranking released on Thursday.
Badminton's new dress code has irked some of the Chinese female shuttlers, who insist wearing a skirt hampers their on-court movement.
'I think Sindhu could have won. We had our chances in women's singles, men's doubles and women's doubles yesterday and they could have pulled through. I think Kashyap also has had a good run. He has had a good tournament. Considering what has happened in the last year with him, it has been a good comeback'
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Saturday
Assured of atleast a bronze at the World Badminton Championship, ace shuttler Saina Nehwal described her quarterfinal win as "special" and said patience was the key to her success.
Indian shuttler Sourabh Varma is one step away from making his third successive final as he entered the men's singles semi-finals of the Chinese Taipei Grand Prix following a hard-fought win over Japan's Kento Horiuchi, in Taipei City, on Friday.
An erratic Saina Nehwal let slip an early advantage to go down to World No 1 Wang Yihan in the summit clash of the BWF season-ending World Super Series Finals in Liuzhou, China on Sunday.
Leverdez, the world number 31, scored only his second win over Lee in nine matches and said playing without fear helped him in the 75-minute contest at the Emirates Arena.
Skirt selection could be as crucial as shot selection for the female shuttlers when they hit the court for this month's India Super Series in New Delhi.
Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal, who had a disappointing Asian Games, rose a rung to reclaim a career-high second spot after 13 weeks in the latest Badminton World Federation rankings.
The administrators are busy thrashing out resumption plans but with the COVID-19 pandemic showing no signs of slowing down, India's sportsperson are pleading for caution as discussion rages on whether competitions can resume by August. Top stars from various disciplines want the waiting period to continue, while others pointed out at the loss it would cause in terms of fitness and readiness.
A quarterfinal loss at the All England Championship saw Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal slip three places down the rung to the sixth spot in the latest BWF world ranking on Thursday. Saina, who turned 26, went through injuries last year and missed out on a few tournaments this season, including the Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold and South Asian Games in January and February respectively. The Olympic bronze medallist, who had finished runners-up at the 2015 All England Championship, lost to Tai Tzu Ying in straight games in the quarterfinals. The Indian now has 73,222 points. Two-time bronze medallist at World Championship, P V Sindhu improved a place to reach the 11th spot.
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