Srikanth, Sindhu, Saina to light up Badminton Senior Nationals in Nagpur

Nagpur, November 1: Top Indian shuttlers, including Kidambi Srikanth, PV Sindhu and Saina Nehwal, will be seen in action in the seven-day Senior National Badminton Championship which begins here on Thursday (October 2).

Srikanth, who is in red-hot form after becoming the first Indian and fourth in the world to win four Super Series titles in a calendar, will add sheen to the Nationals. No doubt, Srikanth will be the favourite to win the title in the men's singles.

In the women's singles, Saina and Sindhu may clash at some stage, which will be a rare ocassion for badminton fans to relish.

Other top Indian shuttlers in the men's singles are HS Prannoy, Ajay Jayaram, Sai Praneeth B, Sameer Verma, Sourabh Verma, Parupalli Kashyap and Danial Farid in men's singles. Rituparna Das and Anura Prabhudesai will feature in the women's singles along with Saina and Sindhu.

Over 400 players from 29 states and 2 union territories will take part in the event.

Srikanth, Prannoy, Jayaram, Sai Praneeth, Verma brothers, Kashyap and Farid have been given a direct entry to the pre-quarterfinals in men's singles. Similarly, Sindhu, Saina, Rituparna and Anura will start the tournament from the Round of 16.

In men's doubles, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy/Chirag Shetty, Manu Attri/Reddy B, Arjun M R/Ramchandran Shlok and the top pair from the latest BAI rankings have been handed a direct entry to the quarterfinals.

In women's doubles, Ashwini Ponnappa/N Sikki Reddy, Sanjana Santosh/Arathi Sara Sunil, Jakkampudi Meghana/S Ram Poorvisha and a top pair from latest BAI rankings will start the tournament from the quarterfinals.

In mixed doubles, Pranaav Jerry Chopra/N Sikki Reddy, B Sumeeth Reddy/Ashwini Ponnappa, top and second ranked pair from the latest BAI rankings have been handed a direct entry to the quarterfinals.

The 82nd edition, which will continue till November 8 at the Divisional Sports Complex at Mankapur here, is being held under the aegis of Badminton Association of India and Maharashtra Badminton Association.

The total prize money for the event is Rs 60 lakh -- the highest ever in the history of the Senior Nationals. The winner in men's and women's singles as well as the doubles pairs will receive Rs 2 lakhs each while corresponding runners-up will get Rs 1.5 lakh.