Paris Olympics 2024 badminton draw: Lakshya drawn with world no. 3 Christie, Sat-Chi draw postponed

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The draw for the badminton events at the Paris Olympics 2024 was held on Friday in Kuala Lumpur by the BWF, which turned out to be a mixed bag for Indians - Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty (men's doubles), PV Sindhu (women's singles), HS Prannoy and Lakshya Sen (men's singles) and Tanisha Crasto and Ashwini Ponnappa (women's doubles.)

While Sindhu and Prannoy have a relatively easy groups to start with, Lakshya will have a challenge on his hands from the start after being drawn in the same group as world No 3 Jonatan Christie. However, Sindhu will have to fend off a dual Chinese challenge to reach the podium for the third straight Olympics while there is a chance of a terribly early all-Indian knockout clash in men's singles.

The group for Satwik and Chirag, favourites for a medal at Paris, is yet to be announced as the men's doubles draw was pushed back due to a Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS) hearing over the number of pairs in the draw.

Satwik-Chirag are seeded third while Sindhu is seeded 10th and Prannoy is seeded 13th, which means that these Indians top their respective groups and if rankings hold, will play another group-topping seed in the next round. The knockout stages begin with the Round of 16, with winners of each group progressing.

Here's a closer look at the Indian badminton player's Paris Olympics groups and draw:

Women's Singles

PV Sindhu (world no. 13) has been drawn on top of group M with:

Estonia's Kristin Kuuba (world no 75)

Maldives' Fathimath Nabaaha Abdul Razzaq (world no 111)

Draw analysis:

Sindhu, looking to win a third straight Olympics medal, has a relatively easy group stage to start with. The Round of 16, though, will bring her first big challenge with China's 6th seed He Bing Jiao her likely opponent. He leads the Indian 11-9 in their head-to-head. If Sindhu beats her, a potential quarterfinal with China's defending Olympic champion Chen Yu Fei looms. (H2H 6-6)

Path to Paris: Forget form, forget everything... it's time for big-game PV Sindhu

Men's Singles

HS Prannoy (world no. 13) has been drawn in group K with:

Vietnam's Le Duc Phat (world no. 70)

Germany's Fabian Roth (world no. 82)

Lakshya Sen (world no. 19) has been drawn in group L with:

Indonesia's Jonatan Christie (world no. 3)

Guatemala's Kevin Cordon (world no 41, finished fourth in Tokyo Olympics)

Belgium's Julien Carragi (world no 52)

Draw analysis:

While Prannoy, the last seed at 13, has received an easy group on paper, unseeded Lakshya will have his task cut out from the group stage itself with world No 3 and All England champion Jonatan Christie in his group. The Indonesian leads Lakshya 4-1 and has beaten him twice this year, in the All England semis and Thomas Cup. Guatemala's Kevin Cordon, who took the Tokyo Olympics by storm by a surprise run to the semis, can also be a force to be reckoned with.

If both Prannoy and Lakshya can top their group and progress to the next round, they will meet in an all-Indian clash in the Round of 16. (Lakshya leads 4-3)

Women's Doubles

Tanisha Crasto and Ashwini Ponnappa (World no. 19) have been drawn in Group C with:

Japan's Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida (World no. 4)

South Korea's Kim So Yeong and Kong Hee Yong (World no. 7)

Australia's Setyana Mapasa and Angela Yu (World no. 27)

Draw analysis:

A late winner pf the Race to Paris, the relatively inexperienced pair of Ashwini and Tanisha have been placed in a tough group with two higher ranked pairs in the group of four. Japan's fourth seeds Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida will be the biggest challenge, who have beaten the Indians in their only encounter. They have not played the other two pairs yet.

The badminton events at Paris will start on July 27 with the group stages running till July 31.