New Delhi: World No.1 men shuttler ‘Datuk’ Lee Chong Wei will return to action at the Yonex Sunrise India Open 2013, to be held here at the Siri Fort Indoor Complex from April 23 to 28. The Malaysian star who won the inaugural India Open Superseries title in 2011 and ‘Indian Shuttle Queen’ and world No.2 women shuttler Saina Nehwal will spearhead the challenge in the men’s and women’s categories respectively at the $200,000 Indian leg of the OSIM BWF World Superseries 12-event championship.
Over 200 international men and women shuttlers from 18 countries including Malaysia, Indonesia, Denmark, Germany, England, China, Korea, Japan and the hosts have already confirmed their participation to the Badminton Association of India (BAI) as entries for the India Open came to a close in March.
The 2013 edition of the Yonex Sunrise India Open will provide badminton aficionados a glimpse of some of the greatest players in action. In addition to Chong Wei and Nehwal, the glittering lineup for the Yonex India Open 2013 include the women’s world No.4 Juliane Schenk from Germany, men’s No.4 Sony Dwi Kuncoro from Indonesia, the 2013 Yonex All-England Open women’s runners-up Ratnachok Intathon of Thailand, and Olympics men's doubles silver medalist and world No. 1 pair, Mathias Boe and Cartsen Mogensen of Denmark.
In the men’s singles category, former Olympic champion Taufik Hidayat and compatriot Simon Santoso will boost the starpower arriving from Indonesia, while world No.6 Jan O Jorgensen of Denmark and Japanese star Kenichi Tago will be aiming to lift their maiden India Open crown. Badminton powerhouse China will be represented by world No. 7 Chen Jin and No.11 Wang Jhengming.
The action in the doubles events promises to be a sizzling affair, too, as almost all the top pairs have confirmed their participation. World No.2 Malaysian pair of Kien Keat Koo and Boon Heong Tan, star Korean duo of Ko Sung Hyun and Lee Yong Dae and the world No. 2 women’s pair of Misaki Matsutomo and Ayaka Takahashi from Japan, world No.3 women’s doubles duo of Kamilla Rytter Juhl and Christinna Pedersen of Denmark are geared up for their India sojourn.
The home campaign will be led by Nehwal, seeking her maiden Yonex Sunrise India Open Superseries victory, while the ‘golden girls’ of Indian badminton, Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa will be pairing up with new partners for the first time in the history of the tournament. CWG doubles champion Ponnappa will pair up with Pradnya Gadre this time while Gutta will partner Prajakta Sawant in the Yonex Sunrise India Open.
It will be a nostalgic return for the men’s world No. 8 Parupalli Kashyap, the highest-ranked Indian men shuttler, who shot into the limelight through a dramatic performance in the previous edition. Last year, the Hyderabad-based Kashyap qualified here for the 2012 Olympics, piping compatriot Ajay Jayaram. For the Yonex Sunrise India Open 2013, both Kashyap and Jayaram would be looking forward to an impressive finish. The other Indians in the fray will be women’s world No.16 PV Sindhu and Arundhati Pantawane and promising men shuttlers, RMV Gurusaidutt, Sai Praneeth and K Srikanth.
BAI President Dr Akhilesh Das Gupta said, “We look forward to a smashing tournament this year. Our endeavour is to bring the best badminton players from all over the world to India, and make the India Open a top destination for all badminton fans.”
Yonex Sunrise (India) MD Vikram Dhar said, “The Yonex Sunrise India Open attracts some of the biggest names from the badminton circuit. We are confident the Yonex Sunrise India Open 2013 will dazzle the Indian badminton fans with breath-taking action and scintillating performance.”