Tokyo hopes all but over for Saina, Srikanth

Back in November, Kidambi Srikanth was reasonably confident of making it to the Olympics. With nine months and multiple qualifying tournaments to go for Tokyo, the former world No.1 wasn’t worried.

“If I’m doing well, if I play at my best, if I’m winning tournaments, I don’t really have to think so much about qualifying. If I win a couple of tournaments I’ll definitely qualify for the Olympics,” the 28-year-old had told this paper in an interview.

Little did he anticipate the new wave of Covid-19 which has thrown the badminton calendar into chaos with several events cancelled or postponed indefinitely. To add to the pandemonium, the Badminton World Federation (BWF) on Friday postponed the May 25-30 Malaysia Open—the second last qualifying tournament for the Tokyo Games.

“Tournament organisers Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) and BWF have jointly agreed to postpone the Malaysia Open 2021. All attempts were made by the organisers and BWF to provide a safe tournament environment for all participants, but the recent surge in cases left no choice but to postpone the tournament,” the BWF stated after Malaysia on Wednesday imposed movement restrictions in Kuala Lumpur due to a recent spike in Covid-19 cases. “BWF can confirm the rescheduled tournament will no longer take place in the Olympic qualifying window. New tournament dates will be confirmed at a later date.”

The decision means the Olympic qualification hopes for former world No.1 players Srikanth and Saina Nehwal, among others, are all but over. The announcement also comes following the uncertainty vis-à-vis the travel of Indians to Kuala Lumpur for the tournament. The Malaysian government had imposed a travel ban on Indians April 28 onwards following the massive surge in Covid-19 cases. The sports ministry was also seeking an exemption from the ban for its players to compete in the $600,000 tournament. Meanwhile, the Badminton Association of India (BAI) has asked the BWF for clarity on the qualification scenario.

The Singapore Open from June 1-6 is now the final qualifying tournament left before the Olympic qualification period, known as Race to Tokyo, ends on June 15. Indian shuttlers hoping to qualify will not just have to win the tournament but also hope their rivals fare poorly—provided the tournament goes ahead and if Indians can enter Singapore.

Singapore too imposed a travel ban on Indians April 24 onwards. For Indian players to enter the city-state, they have to be in quarantine in a foreign country for two weeks or undergo a three-week quarantine in Singapore. “We will do whatever best possible can be done to find a better way out so that the shuttlers get the chance to secure the Olympic berths if there’s scope and opportunity,” BAI secretary general Ajay Kumar Singhania said.

As of now, India have confirmed only three entries for the Tokyo Games—PV Sindhu (women’s singles), B Sai Praneeth (men’s singles) and Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy (men’s doubles), two less than Rio 2016.

Currently 22nd in the Race to Tokyo rankings, Saina is unlikely to make it to her fourth Olympics. The 31-year-old—the first Indian to win an Olympic badminton medal with bronze at London 2012—must finish in the top-16 by June 15 to qualify behind Sindhu, who is No.7.

Quarter-finalist at Rio 2016 and No.20 behind Sai (No.13), Srikanth’s chances also look bleak. The pairs of Ashwini Ponnappa-N Sikki Reddy (women’s) and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Ponnappa (mixed) were also in the queue. Their chances took a big hit after the May 11-16 India Open was also postponed indefinitely.