New Delhi, April 2: The Badminton Association of India (BAI) on Saturday announced the selection trials for the upcoming Thomas and Uber Cup, Commonwealth Games and Asian Games, which will be held here at the Indira Gandhi Stadium from April 15 to 20. The 32nd edition of Thomas Cup and 29th Uber Cup are scheduled in Bangkok from May 8-15, while the 2022 Commonwealth Games and 2022 Asian Games will kickstart in Birmingham and Hangzhou respectively, from July 28 and September 10.
Apart from the major tournaments which are to be held this year, the BAI will also be finalising probables for the senior core group for the 2024 Olympic Games. Aiming to pick best players for the major events, the selection trials will see participation of players ranked between 16 to 50 in the latest BWF world rankings, released on March 29. Players, who are ranked in the Top-16 in singles and Top-8 in doubles in the national rankings, based on the domestic performances in the senior ranking tournaments played in Chennai and Hyderabad, and the core group players selected by the BAI selection committee/SAI in 2019. will also be included for the selection trials.
Players who have notable performances at the international circuit in the last three months will be selected directly alongside those ranked in the Top-15 in the world while the vacant spots will be filled based on the performances of the selection trials as they will be eligible for BAI/SAI assistance for training and competition. While the Commonwealth Games squad will consist of 10 members with equal number of men and women, the Asian Games and Thomas & Uber Cup contingents will have 20 members each, including 10 men and 10 women.
Besides senior selection trials, BAI will also conduct trials for the junior players, who will be chosen on the basis of the performances in the upcoming U-19 ranking tournament to be held in Bengaluru. With dates of Korean Masters clashing with selection trials, BAI will withdraw entries of its players from the Super 500 tournament and settle the withdrawal fine amount so that shuttlers can participate in the trials. The Korean Masters is scheduled from April 12-17. UNI
