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PV Sindhu stranded in Dubai because of Gulf airspace closure, all set to miss All England Championships. Lakshya Sen and Ayush Shetty reach Birmingham.
PV Sindhu. (AFP Photo)
Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu is all set to miss the All England Championships beginning Tuesday because of being stranded in Dubai after the US bombing of Iran and the subsequent airspace closure in the Gulf region.
Travel disruptions have hampered the build-up to the Super 1000 event, with Sindhu stuck in Dubai since Saturday after flights were suspended following US and Israeli strikes on Iran and Tehran’s retaliation.
Sindhu and her team, including Indonesian coach Irwansyah Adi Pratama, narrowly escaped an explosion near their accommodation. They were subsequently moved to a secure location as tensions escalated across the Gulf.
The Indian ace was scheduled to face Thailand’s Supanida Katethong in the opening round, but with Dubai airspace and airport still closed, she will be forced to withdraw from the tournament.
The BWF is closely monitoring the situation and stands ready to assist delegations experiencing delays or route changes, including reviewing and preparing potential contingencies within the competition schedule.
While Sindhu’s participation remains uncertain, some of her fellow shuttlers have managed to reach Birmingham via alternate routes through Singapore and Africa. However, the long and taxing travel may impact their preparations.
India’s top men’s singles contender, Lakshya Sen and rising youngster Ayush Shetty have reached without any travel problems. The former is all set to face world No. 1 Shi Yu Qi of China, while Ayush will compete against Indonesia’s Alwi Farhan in the opening round.
For Lakshya, a former semifinalist and runner-up here, it will be another tough test against Shi, whom he has lost to in four of their five previous meetings.
Ayush, the US Open Super 300 champion, will aim to turn the tide against Farhan, having lost three of their five encounters, including the most recent one at the Indonesia Masters in January.
In women’s singles, Malvika Bansod faces a challenging opening match against Tokyo Olympics champion Chen Yufei of China.
Unnati Hooda, whose flight was cancelled on Sunday, forcing her to travel via Africa, will need to overcome jet lag to take on Thailand’s eighth seed Pornpawee Chochuwong in her opener.
In men’s doubles, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, a former world No. 1, will lead India’s challenge against Malaysia’s Kang Khai Xing and Aaron Tai in the first round.
The women’s doubles pair Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, who achieved back-to-back semifinal finishes at the event in 2022 and 2023, will face Japan’s Sayaka Hirota and Ayako Sakuramoto.
In mixed doubles, Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto will compete against Malaysia’s Hoo Pang Ron and Cheng Su Yin, while Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Shivani Gadde will meet fifth seeds Thom Gicquel and Delphine Delrue of France.
Prakash Padukone (1980) and Pullela Gopichand (2001) remain the only Indians to have won the All England title. Besides them, only Saina Nehwal (2015 runner-up) and Lakshya (2022 runner-up) have come close in recent years.
(With PTI Inputs)
March 02, 2026, 12:45 IST
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