New Delhi: Post the success of Premier Badminton League 2016, which wrote a new chapter in the history of badminton, Dr. Akhilesh Das Gupta, President, Badminton Association of India today announced the Yonex-Sunrise India Open BWF World Badminton Super Series 2016 – Powered by TWIST deodorant body spray. The tournament, which is scheduled from 29th March to 3rd April at the Siri Fort Sports Complex in New Delhi, is the last Qualifying Tournament before the much-awaited Rio 2016 Olympics and it carries prize money of Rs. 2 crore along with a glittering trophy.
The Yonex-Sunrise India Open 2016 will see the best players such as Two-time Olympic Champion & Five-time World Champion Lin Dan (China), highly-rated Malaysian Lee Chong Wei, Women Single’s World No. 1 & two-time World Champion Carolina Marin (Spain) along with Li Xuerui and Wang Shixian (both from China). The Indian camp will be spearheaded by World No. 2 & defending champion Saina Nehwal, Men’s Singles defending champion Kidambi Srikanth, HS Prannoy, P Kashyap, PV Sindhu along with Double’s duo Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa.
Total 273 players from 25 countries are participating in the MetLife BWF Super Series tournament in which 223 players are from abroad and a contingent of 50 players will represent India. The qualifying rounds of the tournament will be held on 29th March and the main draw will be from 30th March, with the finals taking place on 3rd April 2016.
Speaking at the announcement of Yonex-Sunrise India Open 2016, BAI’s President Dr. Akhilesh Das Gupta stated, “It’s a proud moment for me today as I announce the Yonex-Sunrise India Open BWF World Badminton Super Series 2016 where the best players around the world are participating. This is the sixth time we are hosting the MetLife BWF Super Series tournament and being an Olympic Year, it is a very important event for all the players as their entry to the Rio 2016 Olympics depends on their performance in this MetLife BWF Super Series. This is their final opportunity for the 2016 Olympic qualification. This in fact guarantees the presence of every top player participate in the mega event. You will witness a week of exhilarating Badminton non-stop. I wish good luck to all the players and expecting another exciting tournament in India.”
Badminton World Federation President Poul-Erik Høyer commented, “The Yonex-Sunrise India Open is a good example of how the profile of a tournament can influence the development of badminton in a country and vice versa. The Badminton Association of India’s determination in hosting world class players, the profile of the India Open underwent a dramatic change and today it is one of the tournaments in which players aspire to participate. This has led to greater fan turnout and has doubtless attracted new generations of Indians to badminton. I would like to compliment BAI for their efforts and Yonex-Sunrise and other sponsors for supporting the event over many years.”
Vikram Dhar, Director & CEO, Sunrise Sports India said, “We are very excited as the YONEX SUNRISE India Open is about to commence in a few hours from now. The Super series is like a Mecca for badminton lovers as all the top ranked players from the world of badminton are converging for the tournament. At YONEX, it is our endeavour to provide them the best equipment to match their style, speed and game and we will continue to provide undaunted support to build badminton as the most favoured game in the world. YONEX SUNRISE has been the Title Sponsor of this Super series since 6 years in a row and we are proud to carry this league in the world of badminton.”
PNB MetLife India MD & CEO Tarun Chugh said, “We are excited to partner once again with BWF to be the title sponsor of the MetLife BWF World Super Series in bringing world class badminton action to the world and in India. We look forward to this year Yonex-Sunrise India Open, featuring many of the world’s top elite badminton players and some of India’s best to battle for top honours. Taking our BWF World Super Series association further, we continue to promote the sport at a grassroots level through initiatives like PNB MetLife Junior Badminton Championship - a first of its kind national platform for talented children across different strata’s to chase their dreams of being a badminton star. As part of our CSR initiative we organized badminton camps to train talented underprivileged children. We are also giving away 16 scholarships to talented underprivileged children as a part of this championship.”
The Men's Singles category will witness high-voltage action among top-seeded Lee Chong Wei (Malaysia), World No. 2 Lin Dan (China), 2nd-seeded Kento Momota (Japan) and 3rd-seeded Jan O Jorgensen (Denmark) who will compete against each other for the top honours. Similarly in the Women's Singles category, top-seeded Carolina Marin (Spain), 3rd-seeded Li Xuerui (China) and Ratchanok Intanon (Thailand) will poise tough challenges against 2nd-seeded Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu at their home-court.
In the Men’s Doubles category, World No. 3 Chinese pair Chai Biao-Hong Wei (China) and World No. 7 Korean duo Kim Gi Jung-Kim Sa Rang along with India’s Akshay Dewalkar-Pranaav Je Chopra will be the star attractions of the tournament. However, the Women’s Doubles will see more action as India’s star-studded duo Jwala Gutta will compete against World No. 3 Indonesian pair Nitya Krishinda Mahaeswari-Greysia Polii and World No. 4 Danish duo Christinna Pedersen-Kamilla Rytter Juhl.
The Mixed Doubles will see intense battles among World No. 2 Indonesian pair Tontowi Ahamd-Lillyana, World No. 4 Korean duo Ko Sung Hyun-Kim Ha Na, World No. 8 England’s Chris Adcock-Gabrielle Adcock and India’s Arun Vishnu-Aparna Balan.
All the matches will be played at Siri Fort Sports Complex from 29th March to 3rd April 2016.
