Oly qualifier postponed: BAI writes to BWF

The USD 600,000 event was scheduled to be held in Kuala Lumpur from May 25 to 30. The decision came as a huge setback for Saina and Srikanth, whose last hopes of qualifying hinged on the Malaysia Open and the Singapore Open (June 1-6). The duo is unlikely to travel to Singapore as the country has suspended all flights from India. 

Indian shuttlers who have already made the cut for the Olympics are PV Sindhu, B Sai Praneeth as well as the men’s doubles pair of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy. Besides the quartet, Saina, Srikanth as well as the women’s doubles pair of N Sikki Reddy and Ashwini Ponnappa were supposed to participate in the two Olympic qualifiers. 

In light of the new development, the Badminton Association of India (BAI) on Friday reached out to the world body BWF, seeking clarity on the qualification scenario. “It is really unfortunate that the crucial qualifier had to be postponed in this way, but that is the time we live in now,” BAI secretary Ajay Singhania said. 

“Though four of our players have already qualified, there are a few more, including Saina and Srikanth, who can still make it. I have reached out to BWF secretary Thomas Lund asking for clarity on the future course of action.”