Lakshya Sen and Tanvi Sharma will spearhead India’s campaign at the US Open Super 300 badminton tournament, which begins in Fullerton on Tuesday. India have a sizeable presence across the singles draws, with former world championships silver-medallist Kidambi Srikanth also in the men’s field and a seven-strong women’s singles contingent headlining the women’s main draw.
Sen, ranked world No. 14 and a Paris Olympics semifinalist, has been seeded second and will start against Belgium’s Julien Carraggi in the opening round. The men’s singles draw is led by top seed and world No. 6 Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei, who sits in the opposite half.
Sen could potentially run into Chou if he progresses deep into the tournament. The Indian holds a 5-4 head-to-head record against Chou and has won their last two meetings. Sen will also be looking to respond after a disappointing first-round exit at the Indonesia Open earlier this month.
Singles draws: Sen, Srikanth and a seven-player women’s lineup
In men’s singles, Srikanth is the other seeded Indian. Seeded fifth, he will open his campaign against Chinese Taipei’s Liao Jhuo-Fu. India also have Saneeth Dayanand in the main draw, with the unseeded shuttler set to begin against fourth seed Yudai Okimoto of Japan.
S. Sankar Muthusamy Subramanian has also made the main draw and will face a qualifier in the round of 32, adding to India’s depth in the men’s singles bracket.
In women’s singles, India’s presence is led by fifth seed Tanvi Sharma and sixth seed Devika Sihag, ranked 32nd and 34th in the world respectively. The draw distribution places three Indians in the top half and four in the bottom half, including Tanvi and Devika.
Tanvi, 17, will open against Germany’s Yvonne Li. Her recent results include a semifinal run at the Orleans Masters in March and a quarterfinal appearance at the Australian Open Super 500. Devika will begin against Ines Lucia Castillo Salazar of Peru. Devika has already won two titles this year — the Thailand Masters Super 300 and the Azerbaijan International — in back-to-back tournaments in January-February.
World No. 51 Anmol Kharb, who reached the quarterfinals at last week’s Macau Open, will take on Bulgaria’s Kaloyana Nalbantova in the opening round. Rakshitha Sree S is positioned in the top half and will first face a qualifier; if she advances, she is likely to meet top seed and world No. 13 Michelle Li of Canada in the round of 16.
Shriyanshi Valishetty is the other Indian in the top half and will begin against Canada’s Rachel Chan. In the bottom half, Tanya Hemanth has a challenging opener against third seed and world No. 19 Riko Gunji of Japan, while Aakarshi Kashyap will face Chinese Taipei’s Tung Ciou-Tong.
Doubles entries: Jolly-Gayatri in women’s doubles, Rawat-Maneesha in mixed
India’s doubles representation in the main draw is limited but notable. In women’s doubles, Commonwealth Games bronze medallists Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand will be India’s lone representatives. They are slated to open against Spain’s Paula Lopez and Lucia Rodriguez.
In mixed doubles, India will be represented by seventh seeds Dhruv Rawat and Maneesha K, who begin their campaign against Indonesia’s Wirawan Ihsan Adam and Serena Kani.
There are no Indians in the men’s doubles main draw, placing greater emphasis on India’s singles hopes and the two doubles entries as the US Open Super 300 gets underway in Fullerton.