Tokyo 2020 badminton: Sindhu starts against Polikarpova, Satwik-Chirag face world No 3 pair

World champion PV Sindhu will open her campaign in the Tokyo Olympics against Polikarpova Ksenia of Israel on July 25.

Sindhu, who had lost to Spain’s Carolina Marin in the 2016 Olympics final, has been clubbed in an easy Group J, also comprising Hong Kong’s Cheung Ngan Yi.

Ngan Yi is ranked 34th in the world while Polikarpova is 58th. World number 7 Sindhu is seeded sixth in the tournament.

Tokyo 2020: Here’s the full list of 119 Indian athletes participating at the Olympic Games

The Tokyo Games organisers on Wednesday issued the schedule of the first two days of competition.

In men’s singles, B Sai Praneeth will face Misha Zilberman of Israel in his opening Group D match on the first day of competitions on July 24. The Indian is seeded sixth.

In the singles, the top player from every group will advance to the knock-out round.

The world No 10 men’s doubles pairing of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will take on Chinese Taipei duo of Lee Yang and Wang Chi-Lin in their opening Group A match.

Tokyo 2020, India’s badminton draw analysis: Sindhu has tricky knockout tests, uphill tasks for rest

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