CHENNAI: Soon after the Indian men's historic Thomas Cup success in mid-May, the Badminton Association of India (BAI) general secretary Sanjay Mishra, in an interview with this daily, had revealed about the country's ambitions to host more International Challenges in order to help young and upcoming shuttlers gain some valuable playing experience and build their profile. That is soon going to be a reality as the national badminton body has successfully managed to get the blessings of the Badminton World Federation to conduct two International Challenges, apart from the Infosys Foundation International Challenge (October), in the month of September.
According to the BAI calendar for the year 2022-23, both the Grade 3 continental level events will be held in the month of September this year. The first International Challenge is scheduled to be held in Raipur while the second event is due to be held in Nagpur.
This development is a massive shot in the arm for talented shuttlers like Malvika Bansod, Kiran George, Unnati Hooda, to name a few. The youngsters usually travel to Europe or other countries in order to gain experience. However, that means they would end up spending quite a lot of money to do the same. Several Indians including Kiran are currently taking part in an International Challenge in Italy. Shuttlers from several countries like Denmark, Chinese Taipei and
Thailand are part of the competition. Playing against shuttlers from different backgrounds, who have different styles, could help the likes of Kiran become a more rounded player in the near future.
"This is very good for the youngsters as they'll be getting a chance to attain vital exposure. There have been instances of shuttlers, despite being highly talented, being unable to afford travel to Europe or other countries spending over `1 lakh or Rs 2 lakh to participate. Now, we have three International Challenge events in the country and that should be beneficial for the players," Mishra told this newspaper on Friday.
Having two back-to-back events is also beneficial for young shuttlers from other countries who could also be spending quite a fortune to travel all the way to India.
Meanwhile, the 84th senior national championships (men and women) is scheduled to be held in February next year.