Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: India have announced their squads for the upcoming Thomas and Uber Cup, with a mix of experienced stars and young talent set to compete in Denmark next month. Lakshya Sen, fresh off his All England runner-up finish, will lead the men’s team, while PV Sindhu and rising youngster Unnati Hooda will headline the women’s challenge.The men’s squad largely retains the core group that won the historic Thomas Cup in 2022, including Kidambi Srikanth, HS Prannoy, and the top doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty.
At the same time, new faces like Ayush Shetty have earned their spot after impressive performances, while players like MR Arjun have returned from injury to strengthen the squad.The women’s team is built around experienced names like Sindhu and the doubles duo of Gayatri Gopichand and Treesa Jolly, along with a group of promising youngsters such as Unnati Hooda, Devika Sihag, and Tanvi Sharma, who have been performing well recently.Explaining the selection, the Badminton Association of India (BAI) said in a press release: “The selections were based on BWF rankings as of March 10, with the top five singles players and top two doubles pairs making the cut. “Additional inclusions were made keeping team combinations in mind, with players like Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto earning spots due to their experience across doubles formats.”BAI General Secretary Sanjay Mishra expressed confidence in the teams, saying, “We have a good mix of youth and experience in both teams. The senior players bring stability, and the youngsters are in great form. They’ve shown they can deliver at this level, which gives us confidence going into the tournament.”Thomas Cup line-up: Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty, Kidambi Srikanth, H. S. Prannoy, Kiran George, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, Chirag Shetty, Hariharan Amsakarunan, M. R. Arjun, Dhruv Kapila.Uber Cup line-up: PV Sindhu, Unnati Hooda, Tanvi Sharma, Devika Sihag, Isharani Baruah, Treesa Jolly, Gayatri Gopichand Pullela, Kavipriya Selvam, Simran Singhi, Tanisha Crasto.
