Former world No. 1 India shuttler Kidambi Srikanth pulls out of German Open

Former world No. 1 India shuttler Kidambi Srikanth on March 6 pulled out of the German Open Super 300 badminton tournament which is scheduled to start with the qualifiers on March 7.

However, Lakshya Sen will try to come out with flying colours as he spearheads the Indian challenge as Sen, and newly-crowned national champion Mithun Manjunath will be the top Indian player.

Earlier, Sen had defeated world No. 1 Viktor Axelsen in the semifinals, however, he lost the final in the last edition.

This time, the sixth-seeded player from Almora, will lock horns with France's Christo Popov in the first round and, if he survives those rounds, he is anticipated to play top-seeded Malaysian Lee Zii Jia in the quarterfinals.

''I'm anticipating the quarterfinal match with Lee Zii Jia. I've done everything in my power to prepare for this week in the best possible way, so I'm hoping to build some momentum before the All England," media reports quoted Sen as saying.

Meanwhile, after winning his first national championship, Manjunath will be overjoyed and eager to continue the winning streak as he takes on former world champion Loh Kean Yew in the opening round.

The women's singles draw also includes Malvika Bansod and Saina Nehwal, and the mixed doubles team of Ashwini Ponnappa and B Sumeeth Reddy, who competed at the 2022 CWG, is also in the fray.

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