CHENNAI: While the top Indian senior shuttlers are battling it out at the Sudirman Cup, the best of the next generation will be seen in action in the city when the Microplex Global and Yonex Sunrise All-India Junior Rankplex Global and Yonex Sunrise All-India Junior Ranking badminton meet begins on Tuesday. The meet also serves as a selection event for the Junior Asian Championship to be held in July.
Gayatri Gopichand will be the most famous name among hundreds of shuttlers. The 16-year-old Gayatri, daughter of national coach Pullela Gopichand, will be battling it out in the U-19 girls’ section. She will face fierce test from Chattisgarh’s Aakarshi Kashyap. Both girls were part of the badminton contingent at the Asian Games last year. In the U-19 boys’ section, all eyes will be on Madhya Pradesh’s Priyanshu Rajawat.
Over 500 boys and 220 girls will go through the qualifying rounds in the hope of making it to the main draw. Practice and qualifying matches will happen together. The organisers were scrambling to put everything in place as they got control of the venue only on Monday. The venue was hosting a bodybuilding competition till Sunday.