Sai Praneeth decides to pull out of Thomas Cup and Denmark Open

Indian badminton player Sai Praneeth has decided to pull out of India's team for the Thomas Cup as well as the Denmark Open due to fitness concerns.

The Thomas Cup, which is also known as World Men's Team Championship, is scheduled to be held from October 3 - 11 in Aarhus, Denmark. The Indian team is drawn in Group C along with hosts Denmark, Germany and Algeria.

Sai Praneeth, who is India's top-ranked male shuttler and World No. 13, confirmed to Times of India that he decided to pull out owing to issues with his knee.

"Sad that I am not going to be a part of the Indian squad for the Thomas Cup. But I am experiencing discomfort in my right knee. Though I started training from August 7, this problem is persisting. That's the reason why I pulled out of Thomas Cup."

In addition to the Thomas Cup event, Sai Praneeth is also out of the subsequent Denmark Open - I and Denmark Open - II Super 750 tournaments, which were also scheduled for October.

Sai Praneeth will be missing upcoming European action on the BWF circuit but will hope to get back to full fitness for the Asian events lined up later this year.

Kidambi Srikanth likely to replace Sai Praneeth

Kidambi Srikanth is likely to take the place of Sai Praneeth in the Indian team

In the absence of Sai Praneeth, former World No. 1 shuttler Kidambi Srikanth is likely to take the vacant spot and lead the Indian squad for the Thomas Cup.

The Indian team for the Thomas Cup will likely compose of Kidami Srikanth, along with Parupalli Kashyap, Shubhankar Dey and Lakshya Sen for Men's Singles, and the pair of Chirag Shetty and Satiwksairaj Rankireddy for Men's Doubles. The final date for the announcement of the squads is September 18.