Pune Pistons rode in their mixed doubles combination to beat Delhi Smashers 3-2 in the opening match of the inaugural Indian Badminton League, in Delhi, on Wednesday.
The other Indian shuttlers who participated in the singles events of the Super 1000 tournament have already left Thailand while the doubles players will fly out on Monday.
Led by young flag-bearer Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, the athletes, clad in blue suits, waved to the crowd with small flags in their hands.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
Check out India's schedule on Day 7 of the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, on Wednesday.
Airbadminton was globally launched at Guangzhou last week by the Badminton World Federation
A rematch of the All England final between India's Saina Nehwal and world champion Carolina Marin is on the cards with the two stars given first and second seeding in the Yonex Sunrise India Open Superseries to be played from March 24.
India began their campaign Badminton Asia Team Championships in style with both men's and women's teams posting victories against their Singapore rivals to make it to the quarterfinals. Indian men made a clean sweep of their five-match tie against Singapore, who had lost to China two days ago. India, China and Singapore are part of Group A. Despite the absence of star player Saina Nehwal, the Indian women registered a comprehensive 5-0 win against Singapore and also entered the quarter finals as the Singapore team lost to Japan earlier. Each tie comprises three singles and two doubles matches. India's rising shuttler Srikanth scored a comfortable 21-16, 12-21, 21-13 win over his Singapore rival Zi Liang Derek Wong in the first Singles match. The Singaporean tried to make matters difficult for Srikanth, but the world number nine bounced back to have the last laugh.
PV Sindhu finally fetched India its first ever World Championships gold in the sport but spent rest of the year struggling for form.
After launching the new season with an emphatic title win at the just-concluded Syed Modi International tournament, India's top shuttler Parupalli Kashyap said he needed this victory to silent the critics after been "written off".
Check out India's schedule on Day 8 of the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, on Thursday.
The Birmingham showpiece will be held from July 28 to August 8.
India will be sending full teams for the Thailand Open Grand Prix Gold (May 30-June 4), Indonesia Open Super Series (June 12-18) and Australian Open Super Series (June 20-25).
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday
The Indian men's team beat a depleted China 3-2 at the Badminton Asia Team Championships at the Gachibowli indoor stadium in Hyderabad
PM Modi met in person and interacted with the badminton squad
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
India's highest ranked male shutter, Kidambi Srikanth, pulled off an upset victory over former world No 1 Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia, but his team Bengaluru Hot Guns went down 2-3 to Hyderabad Hunters in the Premier Badminton League clash in Mumbai on Sunday.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Thursday
P V Sindhu, will have to punch above its weight to salvage any hopes of a medal after being handed a tough draw in the badminton event at the 18th Asian Games.
Asian Games will be a reality check for India's athletes after the Commonwealth Games high
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Thursday
Vijayveer Sidhu, 16, shot a gold in the 25m standard pistol event for junior men after combining with Rajkanwar Singh Sandhu and Adarsh Singh to claim the team gold on the last day of the ISSF World Championships.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
There was no stopping the Indian juggernaut at the 12th South Asian Games with the country's swimmers, wrestlers and weightlifters continuing their dominance in the competition to fetch a bulk of the gold medals, in Guwahati, on Sunday.
An Olympic campaign saved by the fortitude of three women, a cricket team that rediscovered itself under a bold and zealous Virat Kohli -- Indian sports in 2016 was a dramatic mix of highs and lows wherein athletes mostly raised the bar but administrators found new ways to embarrass the country.
Saina Nehwal's wish to be in her home team came true as Hyderabad Hotshots bought the Indian star for USD 120,000 but world number one Lee Chong Wei proved to be the costliest, going to Mumbai Masters for USD 135,000 in the inaugural Indian Badminton League's players auction on Monday.
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