Badminton
Swiss Open 2023: Saina Nehwal pulls out
Saina Nehwal has pulled out from the upcoming Swiss Open tournament making it her third successive withdrawal in last three weeks.
Veteran Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal pulled out from the 2023 Swiss Open late on Monday night. The London Olympics bronze medallist was slated to face Lalinrat Chaiwan of Thailand in the first round on Tuesday.
Putri Kusuma Wardani of Indonesia has replaced Saina Nehwal in the women's singles draw.
This is the third pull-out from World number 27 in as many weeks. Last week, Saina Nehwal pulled out of the All-England Badminton Open and German Open before that.
The reason behind these withdrawals is unknown at the moment.
In the three tournaments, she competed in 2023 so far, Nehwal crashed out in the Round of 32 once while reaching the pre-quarterfinals in the other two.
Top Indian shuttlers will be in action at the Swiss Open with title holder PV Sindhu looking to defend her title after a series of first-round exits.
In men's singles, HS Prannoy, Lakshya Sen, and Kidambi Srikanth will feature after a disappointing exit in the All England Open last week.
HS Prannoy will take on China's Shi Yuqi, who finished second best in Birmingham last week.
Lakshya Sen will take Hong Kong's Lee Cheuk Yiu and is likely to run into fellow Indian Kidambi Srikanth, who opens against the 23-year-old Weng Hong Yang of China.
Chirag Shetty and Satwik Rankireddy will take on a pair, which will enter the main draw from the qualifying round while All-England semi-finalists Gayatri Gopichand and Treesa Jolly will face second seeds Apriyani Rahayu and Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti from Indonesia in the opening round.
The pairings of MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila, Krishna Prasad Garaga and Vishnuvardhan Goud, and Ashwini Bhat K and Shikha Gautam, are also in the fray.
