Indian Badminton Players Gear Up for Korea Masters 2023
Indian Contingent Set for Korea Masters
Seoul [South Korea], November 3: The Indian badminton team, led by 21-year-olds Sankar Subramanian and Isharani Baruah, is ready to compete in the Korean Masters starting Tuesday.
This event is part of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Super 300 series and will take place at the Wonkwang University Cultural and Sports Centre in Jeonbuk State, according to reports from Olympics.com.
Notably absent from the tournament is two-time Olympic medalist PV Sindhu, who is sidelined due to an injury. Other prominent players, including Olympics semifinalist Lakshya Sen and the well-known men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, will also miss the competition. Additional withdrawals include Ayush Shetty, Unnati Hooda, Aakarshi Kashyap, Anupama Upadhyaya, and Sai Pratheek K. Veteran player Kidambi Srikkanth has also opted out after initially being listed in the men's singles draw. In women's singles, Anmol Kharb and Tanya Hemanth have also withdrawn.
Sankar, currently ranked 65th in men's singles, and Isharani, who holds the 53rd position in women's singles, will represent India in a five-member squad at the event.
Last week, Sankar made headlines by defeating Lakshya at the Hylo Open, making him the sole Indian competitor in men's singles, where he will face top-seeded Jia Heng Jason Teh from Indonesia.
Isharani will compete alongside world number 69 Devika Sihag, who recently finished as the runner-up at the Indonesia Masters after a loss to Nozomi Okuhara.
Completing the Indian lineup is 17-year-old Naishaa Kaur Bhatoye, who will make her debut in the women's singles qualifiers at the Super 300 level. Interestingly, she portrayed a young Saina Nehwal in the biopic film 'Saina.'
This year, there will be no Indian representation in the doubles events at the Korea Masters, and historically, no Indian player has ever won a title at this tournament.
Korea Masters 2025 badminton: Indian squad
Men's singles: Sankar Subramanian
Women's singles: Isharani Baruah, Devika Sihag, Naishaa Kaur Bhatoye (Q).