18-member Indian team to compete in Badminton Asia Junior Championships

Yogyakarta [Indonesia], July 7 : India announced an 18-member Indian team which will compete in the Badminton Asia Junior Championships 2023, to be held in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, from July 7 to 16.

The mixed team events will take place between July 7 and July 11, and the individual competitions will be held from July 12 to July 16, as per Olympics.com.

For the mixed team event, 14 teams are divided into four groups. India are placed in Group C alongside Malaysia, Bangladesh and Hong Kong. Group A consist of China, Indonesia and Vietnam. Group B include Japan, Chinese Taipei, Singapore and the Philippines while Group D have Thailand, UAE and Republic of Korea.

The group stage of the mixed team event will be conducted in a single-legged round-robin format. Each team will enter players in five categories - boys doubles, girls singles, boys singles, girls doubles, mixed doubles. Every tie will be a best-of-five affair.

The top two teams from each group will progress to the knockout round. The final will be held on July 11.

Meanwhile, the individual events, featuring players from 17 nations, will also be contested in all five categories. Ayush Shetty and Tara Sha will lead India's challenge in the boys' and girls' singles events, respectively. Lakshya Sharma and Rakshitha Sree S are also medal hopefuls.

India have won two gold medals, one silver and six bronze at the Badminton Asia Junior Championships. Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu was the first Indian badminton player to win a gold medal at the continental event, winning the girl's singles title in 2012. Lakshya Sen clinched the boy's singles crown in 2018.

The Indian team was selected following selection trials in New Delhi last month. Before departing for the competition, the India squad for the Badminton Asia Junior Championships 2023 underwent a 14-day preparation camp at the Tau Devi Lal Stadium in Panchkula, Haryana.