Will 2025 herald a new dawn for Indian Badminton?

A new season is on the horizon as the Malaysia Open begins on Tuesday in Kuala Lumpur. And Indian shuttlers, like their global counterparts, must have embraced a resolution for the new year: to leave behind the heartbreaks of 2024 and usher in a brighter 2025.

The curtain-raising Malaysia Open Super 1000, one of the most prestigious BWF World Tour events, offers Indian players an opportunity to start afresh.

The year gone by was marked by disappointment, with India missing out on an Olympic medal in badminton – a feat that had become a tradition since the London Olympics 2012. But none of the Indian stalwarts managed to keep that legacy alive in Paris.

On the World Tour, there were only a few celebratory moments, with the standout performance being the doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty clinching the French Open Super 750 and Thailand Open Super 500 titles.

And at home, PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen broke their title jinx, while the women’s doubles duo of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand won their maiden title at the Syed Modi India International.

For fans accustomed to celebrating Indian shuttlers’ constant success, this was a noticeable shift.

Satwik-Chirag aims to enjoy the game again

Satwik and Chirag, who had reclaimed the World No. 1 ranking in May 2024, were viewed as a strong Olympic medal contender due to their sheer consistency. However, their quarterfinal exit in Paris dealt a crushing blow. Post-Olympics, injuries kept them out of competition, and they slipped to ninth in the world rankings.

Reflecting on his challenges ahead of the Olympics, Satwik wrote in The Indian Express: "The Olympics were the main goal this year. The build-up was good. We started the year by reaching two finals in Malaysia and India, then won the French Open. It was all going well until, suddenly, I had a back injury and an elbow tear."

As the new Olympic cycle begins, Satwik and Chirag aim to regain their fiery form at the Malaysia Open, with a potential showdown against their famed Malaysian rivals, Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, who had knocked them out of the Paris Olympics.

Malaysia Open, the tournament where they finished runners-up last year, offers an ideal platform to re-establish their dominance. Their journey this season will also test the impact of their new coach, Tan Kim Her, compared to the success they achieved under former coach Mathias Boe.

Beyond their technical skills, the duo’s focus will be on sustaining their season without succumbing to pressure. Having worked diligently on mental health, they are determined to break any rustiness and excel in a challenging season. Satwik aptly summed up their mindset: "I simply want to go there and enjoy."

India will be equally optimistic about the women’s doubles pair Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, the sixth-seeded combination at the Malaysia Open. Their impressive turnaround after narrowly missing Olympic qualification included winning their maiden BWF World Tour title and reaching the season-ending BWF World Tour Finals. It showed their resilience and determination.

Currently ranked 11th, Treesa and Gayatri are also training their eyes on achieving the career milestone of breaking into the top 10 in the new year.

Other doubles pairings, including Tanisha Crasto and Ashwini Ponnappa, and the Panda sisters - Swetaparna and Rutuparna - will also aim to make an impact. In mixed doubles, the promising duo of Tanisha and Dhruv Kapila will seek to keep India’s chances alive along with Sathish Kumar Karunakaran and Aadya Variyath.

Can India shuttlers mark a mark in singles?

In women’s singles, India's hopes hang in a thread in the absence of Olympic medallist PV Sindhu, who has decided to skip the season opener after her recent wedding.

In her absence, youngsters like Malvika Bansod, Anupama Upadhyaya, and Aakarshi Kashyap will have their tasks cut out. While they have shown flashes of brilliance sporadically, making a mark on the World Tour will require them to step up, push their limits, and move beyond their comfort zones.

Meanwhile, men’s singles will see the return of HS Prannoy, side-lined since the Olympics due to weakness following a bout of chikungunya.

Prannoy, who has been a beacon of hope for Indian men’s singles over the past two seasons, enters 2025 with a clear motto: "It is not about how many times you fall but how fiercely you rise.”

The competition, however, will be intense, with Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen, Shi Yu Qi, Anders Antonsen, Jonatan Christie, and others vying for glory.

Lakshya Sen, who finished fourth at the Olympics, has trained extensively, but the question remains: can he overcome his inconsistency?

For Priyanshu Rajawat, promoted to the main draw following Lee Zii Jia’s withdrawal, this season offers a chance to prove his mettle beyond his lone title win at the Orleans Masters in 2023.

As Indian shuttlers embark on this new season, the Malaysia Open provides them a stage to transform heartbreak into hope and make 2025 a beacon of promise and resurgence.