Hopes will be high on French Open champions Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty to end India’s 23-year-old title draught at the All England Championships as they lead the country’s charge in the tournament, starting here on Tuesday.
Prakash Padukone (1980) and Pullela Gopichand (2001) were the last Indians to claim the title with Saina Nehwal (2015) and Lakshya Sen (2022) being the only ones to come close when they finished runner-ups.
The prestigious tournament holds an iconic status in India but over the years its exclusivity has somewhat dwindled as it is now one of the four Super 1000 event on the international calendar.
Satwik and Chirag have already won a Super 1000 title in Indonesia last year and given their stellar run this season, expectations would be at a record high when the two towering shuttlers take the court this week, following their exploits at Paris on Sunday night.
Satwik and Chirag, the Asian Games champions, have bossed over their opponents this season, reaching three finals — Malaysia Super 1000, and India Super 750 before winning at Paris and will remain India’s biggest hopes of a title finish at the Utilita Arena Birmingham here.
Standing in front of them in the opening round will be the veteran Indonesian pair of Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan, the three-time world champions, who has left the Indians with a lot of heartbreaks in the past.
The ‘Daddies’ had defeated Satwik and Chirag the last time they faced in the French Open last year and the Indians will be etching for revenge.
If they cross the opening hurdle, the Indian duo is likely to face the Malaysian pair of Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, who has proved to be a nemesis for them but the Indians, had defeated them thrice in the last three meetings.