India Open 2021: PV Sindhu, Sai Praneeth to headline action | Tournament preview

The India Open 2021 is scheduled to start on May 11 at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi. Attracting top international shuttlers like Carolina Marin and Kento Momota, the BWF Super 500 event will also feature Indian Olympic hopefuls Saina Nehwal, PV Sindhu, B Sai Praneeth and Kidambi Srikanth.

With precious points up for grabs, the India Open 2021 will act as an Olympic qualifier as well.

𝗡𝗢 𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗦 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟭 𝗘𝗗𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡🔒As much as we love having you at the stadium, in unprecedented time like this in order to maintain the safety of the participating athletes & officials, we will be playing behind closed doors.#YonexSunriseIndiaOpen2021 pic.twitter.com/S9aejzHBAK

— BAI Media (@BAI_Media) April 13, 2021

After a mostly tournament-less April, the India Open 2021 will mark the resumption of serious badminton action. It will soon be followed by the Spain Masters and the Malaysia Open, with all of them being Olympic qualifiers.

Additionally, the India Open 2021 will be without spectators, ensuring proper safety for the participating shuttlers from 33 countries (114 men and 114 women) in these COVID-19 times.

Sindhu and Praneeth hope to confirm Tokyo ticket at India Open 2021

Kidambi Srikanth

2016 Rio Olympics silver medalist PV Sindhu and 2019 World Championships bronze medalist B. Sai Praneeth are clearly leading the race to head to Tokyo among the Indian shuttlers.

While PV Sindhu, a semi-finalist at the 2019 edition, safely cradles the No.7 spot on the BWF rankings, Sai Praneeth, a quarter-finalist in 2019, is balancing a tricky position, currently being the World No.15. With around two months left before the window for Olympic qualification closes on June 15, Sindhu and Praneeth will be looking to secure their ticket to Tokyo at the India Open 2021.

However, the clock is ticking really fast for 2012 Olympic bronze medalist Saina Nehwal and former World No.1 Kidambi Srikanth, who are really hard-pressed for both time and points. At any cost, both Nehwal and Srikanth, winners of the 2015 edition of the India Open, need to put in their absolute best this year. Srikanth is slightly on the safer side as the India Open has always treated him well as he has also been a runner-up in the 2019 edition of the BWF Super 500 event.

𝙿𝚁𝙴𝙼𝙸𝙴𝚁🍿Today, in our Nostalgia trip we are taking you further 🔙 in time when @nehwalsaina became the 1️⃣st 🇮🇳 to win #YonexIndiaOpen in 2️⃣0️⃣1️⃣5️⃣ and also became World No 1️⃣ shuttler. Relive the Final on our @Facebook handle at 5️⃣:0️⃣0️⃣ PM.#YonexSunriseIndiaOpen2021 pic.twitter.com/GxSbaQ89he

— BAI Media (@BAI_Media) April 3, 2021

All eyes will surely be on yet another Olympic hopeful pair for India - Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty. The World No.10 duo are clearly medal favorites for India and they will be looking to get back to winning ways at the India Open 2021.

Among the other notable players to watch out for in the men's singles are defending champion Viktor Axelsen, reigning World Champion Anders Antonsen and rising Malaysian star Lee Zii Jia, who is riding high following his All England Open 2021 win.

In the women's division, aside from 2016 Rio gold medalist Carolina Marin, there will be Japanese sensation Akane Yamaguchi and young Thai talent, Pornpawee Chochuwong, who would all pose as threats to Sindhu and Saina.

Here's all you need to know about the India Open 2021:

Tournament Name: Yonex-Sunrise India Open 2021

Category: BWF Super 500

Prize Money: USD 400,000

Venue: KD Jadhav Hall, Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, New Delhi, India

Dates: 11th-16th May