French Open Badminton: 5 players to look forward to

The European swing in badminton continues as the BWF World Tour has headed to Paris this week. Play will continue till October 28 at the Stade Pierre de Coubertin, where the world's creme de la creme of badminton has descended at the French Open, a Super 750 level BWF event.

For this one week, fans of the sport will get to witness some thrilling action as the world's best shuttlers battle it out for glory in the French capital. Playing at the Denmark Open and the French Open in back-to-back weeks will surely test the fitness and stamina of the top shuttlers.

Will the champions in Odense repeat in Paris? Or shall we get to see new winners this week?

These are some questions that we have tried to answer as we gather five names who can make a statement at the French Open.

#1 PV Sindhu

PV Sindhu had a real cause of worry as she was drawn to face her nemesis, Beiwen Zhang in the first round of the French Open. The World No. 11 American has inflicted a lot of pain on Sindhu of late, notching up three consecutive wins over the Indian in just over a year.

One of those three-game wins came last week in Odense, where once again Sindhu failed to crack the Zhang code. But on Tuesday, it was an absolutely different Sindhu on the court as she began her French Open 2018 campaign.

Showing a lot of patience and poise, the Rio Olympic silver medallist first staved off a stiff resistance from Zhang in the first game. Then she totally ran away with the second game to eventually complete a dominating 21-17, 21-8 win.

Needless to say, this would boost Sindhu’s confidence level by several notches. The Pullela Gopichand protégé, a semi-finalist at the French Open last year, would be keen to make amends for her poor show in Denmark by going deeper this week.

#2 Akane Yamaguchi

By Akane Yamaguchi’s lofty standards, her last few months on the BWF World Tour have been a struggle. The World No. 2 has failed to reach a final since finishing as the runner-up to Tai Tzu Ying at the All England Open in March. In between, she has been to semi-finals as many as four times, but could not cross that hurdle.

The Japanese has just one title to show for in what has been a quiet year for her so far. But now she has returned to a tournament where she has fond memories from last year as she made it to the final in 2017.

That could help her find her winning feel again. From the 21-17, 21-12 win that Yamaguchi posted against Michelle Li in the first round of the French Open 2018 on Tuesday, it is evident she is indeed feeling better and wants to reach the final Sunday again.

#3 Saina Nehwal

That age is just a number, Saina Nehwal showed in ample amounts at the Denmark Open last week. At 28, she is the oldest player in the current women’s singles top 10. Yet that hasn’t ebbed her fighting spirit or her hunger.

In Odense, it was a resurgent Saina who stole the show by beating the two in-form Japanese superstars -- Akane Yamaguchi and Nozomi Okuhara -- on her way to the final. Even in the summit clash, she managed to take a game off the irrepressible World No. 1 Tai Tzu Ying, which was the first time in three years she was able to do so.

That raises hopes of a promising performance from the former World No. 1 this week as well. Nehwal is drawn to face the former world champion Okuhara once more in the early stages of the tournament. Considering the improved fitness she showed last week, it will not be wrong to expect her to repeat her heroics in Paris too.

#4 Tai Tzu Ying

Is there any shot that the amazing Tai Tzu Ying can't play? Is there any opponent that Tai Tzu Ying can't handle?

These are pressing questions nobody knows the answer to, for the Chinese Taipei World No. 1 women's singles star seems to have a solution for everything.

For nearly every opponent on the Tour, she has proved to be an insurmountable barrier. On the court, she never goes for the same kind of shots, thus keeping her rivals guessing. Her deception is so good that the player on the opposite side of the net gets outfoxed most of the time as she can't anticipate the trajectory the shuttle will follow.

Tai has shown all of her supreme qualities this season in the eight titles she has won. Having conquered Denmark last week, it is no surprise that she would be eager to successfully defended her Paris crown too.

#5 Kento Momota

Just like Tai in women's singles, the men's singles World No. 1 Kento Momota too has been a dominant force this year. Ever since the Japanese returned in July last year from a suspension that was imposed on him due to illegal gambling, he had been gaining in form and confidence.

This year, the comeback became complete as he fully burst onto the scene, playing better than ever before and racking up wins like he was never even gone.

The 24-year-old southpaw has made winning look so easy as he has been beating each and every established top name in the business. His six titles of the year, that include the World Championships and the Asian Championships, validate that. His continued success helped him climb to the pinnacle of the rankings last month for the first time in his career.

After his last week's triumph in Odense, he would very much like to extend his winning streak and repeat the feat in Paris too, especially because he has never won this tournament before.

Edited by Kishan Prasad