Apart from Srikanth, Ashwini Ponnappa, Ritika Rahul Thakar, Tarissa Jolly, Mithun Manjunath, Simran Aman Singh and Khushi Gupta are the other players to withdraw.
The India Open tournament on January 13 was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, with seven Indian shuttlers, including World Championships silver medalist Kidambi Srikanth, pulled out of the event after testing positive for the virus.
Before the names were confirmed by the Badminton Association of India (BAI), the Badminton World Federation (BWF) made the announcement in the early hours.
Apart from Srikanth, Ashwini Ponnappa, Ritika Rahul Thakar, Tarissa Jolly, Mithun Manjunath, Simran Aman Singh and Khushi Gupta are the other players to withdraw.
“The players returned a positive result for the mandatory RT-PCR test on January 11. The doubles partners agreed that close contacts of seven players have also been withdrawn from the tournament,” the world governing body said in a statement.
“Players will not be converted into the main draw and their opponents will be given walkovers in the next round.” N. Sikki Reddy, Dhruv Kapila, Gayatri Gopichand, Akshan Shetty and Kavya Gupta were also thrown out of the competition after they were considered close to the infected. However, he did not test positive for the virus.
Sikki plays mixed doubles with Ashwini in women’s doubles, Dhruv plays mixed doubles with Sikki, Akshan forms mixed doubles team with Simran, while Kavya is Khushi’s women’s doubles partner.
Initially, the BWF did not reveal the names of the seven players.
Earlier, 2019 World Championships bronze medalist B Sai Praneeth, double specialist Manu Attri and Dhruv Rawat had tested positive for the virus before their departure for the national capital and were ruled out before the start of the tournament.
The entire England badminton contingent also withdrew ahead of the Super 500 event after the country’s doubles specialist Sean Wendy and coach Nathan Robertson tested positive for the virus.
Organized by BAI, the 2022 edition of the India Open is being held behind closed doors at the KD Jadhav Indoor Hall of the Indira Gandhi Stadium.
As per the COVID-19 protocol, all the participating players are being tested daily outside the hotel and stadium.
Two-time Olympic medalist PV Sindhu, World Championships silver and bronze medalists Kidambi Srikanth and Lakshya Sen, London Games bronze winner Saina Nehwal are among the Indian players who have reached the second round of the tournament.
Top international stars, world champion Loh Keen Yew, three-time men’s doubles world champion Mohamed Ahsan and Thailand’s Busanan Ongbamrungphan are competing in the tournament, being held for the first time in three years after the cancellation of the previous two editions. Is. Due to the pandemic.
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