Prannoy, Lakshya withdraw from Syed Modi International

Lucknow, 27 Nov: Indian shuttlers HS Prannoy and Lakshya Sen have pulled out of the Syed Modi International, taking some sheen out of the Super 300 badminton tournament starting on Tuesday.

Asian Games bronze medallist Prannoy had recovered from a back injury to reach the semifinals at China Masters Super 750, while Canada Open winner Sen, world No. 17, hasn’t looked his self with six first-round exit since August.

It has been a hectic schedule for the players and with the Olympic qualification on the line, players would like to be fresh for the next season. The BWF ‘Race to Paris Ranking Lists’ of 30 April will be considered for qualification.

Olympic medallist P V Sindhu is also missing in action as she recovers from an injury.

World No. 24 Kidambi Srikanth is now the top-ranked Indian in men’s singles draw, which also has Tokyo Olympian B Sai Praneeth, Indonesian Masters Super 100 winner Kiran George and Priyanshu Rajawat, who won the Orleans Masters Super 300 title this year. (PTI)