Viktor Axelsen potentially in HS Prannoy’s path to badminton Worlds medal

India’s five-time medallist PV Sindhu too faces a stiff task. Seeded 16th, she starts out against either Nozomi Okuhara or Thuy Linh Nguyen after a bye in the opener. In Round 3, she might have to go past 7th seed Ratchanok Intanon, who completes 10 years of being crowned the youngest world champion. Sindhu could potentially run into a tall wall in the form of top seed An Se Young in the quarters if she has to get a medal again.

Lakshya Sen, seeded 11 and looking for his second Worlds medal, starts against Georges Paul of Mauritius and could face Korean Jeon Hyeok-Jin next. There’s a tricky encounter against Kunlavut Vitidsarn in Round 3 and either sixth seed Li Shi Feng or Lu Guang Zu in the quarters. There could be either Prannoy or Axelsen in the semis, should he progress.

Kidambi Srikanth, who won silver in 2021 but is unseeded in the lower half of the draw this time, faces 14th seed Kenta Nishimoto in Round 1, and potentially Anthony Ginting in Round 3. Anders Antonsen or Jonatan Christie could line up in the quarters.

Strong favourites and last-time bronze medallists Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty potentially have 10th seeded Indonesians Leo/Daniel in Round 3, and Malaysians Ong/Teo or local pairing Astrup/Rasmussen in the quarters. There’s a possibly tricky semifinal against Chinese Liang/Wang, whom they beat for the first time earlier last month – to ensure the big medal.

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In women’s doubles, three-time champions Chen Qing Chen/Jia Yi Fan are likely to face India’s Treesa Jolly/Gayatri Gopichand Pullela in the Round of 16.