Lakshya Sen is the top Indian contender in the German Open after Kidambi Srikanth withdraws

Kidambi Srikanth, a former world No. 1, has withdrawn from the German Open Super 300 badminton competition, which begins with qualifiers on Tuesday. Lakshya Sen, who is in charge of leading the Indian challenge, would seek to prevail this time while Srikanth, a finalist in the last edition, will be absent from the fray. The top Indian players will be Sen and Mithun Manjunath, who was just crowned national champion. Sen, the current Commonwealth Games gold medalist, beat Viktor Axelsen, the world’s best, in the quarterfinals of the previous competition, but fell short in the final.

This time, the sixth-seeded player from Almora, Canada, will play France’s Christo Popov in the first round and, if he survives those rounds, is anticipated to play top-seeded Malaysian Lee Zii Jia in the quarterfinals.

“I’m anticipating the quarterfinal matchup with Lee Zii Jia. I’ve done all in my power to prepare for this week in the greatest possible shape, so I’m hoping to build some momentum before the All England, “said Sen.

After winning his first national championship, Manjunath will be overjoyed and eager to continue the winning streak as he takes on former world champion Loh Kean Yew in the opening round.

The women’s singles draw also includes Malvika Bansod and Saina Nehwal, and the mixed doubles team of Ashwini Ponnappa and B Sumeeth Reddy, who competed at the 2022 CWG, is also in the running.