Paris Olympics: Indian Badminton Contingent's Olympic Report Card - All You Need To Know

As countries across the globe are gearing up for the Paris Olympics, India will be hopeful of Badminton providing them with a medal in the capital of France. Ahead of the carnival, let us take a look at the basics of the sport like rules, court dimensions etc. and how the Indian squad is stacked up ahead of the event.

Hyderabad: Badminton, the fastest racquet sport in the world is also one of the most popular disciplines across the globe with a passionate fan following it. The sport has a crucial significance in a multi-discipline event like the Olympics. The sport has been a regular fixture since the 1992 edition in Barcelona, Spain. Also, it is now played in five disciplines since mixed doubles was introduced in Atlanta in 1996.

China has been a force to reckon with in the game as they have bagged 20 golds, 12 silver and 15 bronze medals in the games. Indonesia are at second place with eight golds, six silvers and seven bronze medals. Badminton is immensely popular in Asia but it also draws interest from Europe and players from Denmark are rising through the ranks in recent times. With only a few days to go for the competition let's delve into the Indian contingent and how the players have fared this year.

• India Badminton Contingent

1. HS Prannoy: Currently placed at the 13th place in the BWF rankings, 2024 has been a year of disappointments for the Indian shuttler as he achieved only one top 3 finish this year. He finished 3rd in the India Open played in January but had ordinary outings in the other tournaments. He made it to the Quarterfinals in the Australian Open played last month. Overall, Prannoy participated in 10 competitions in the singles event and came out with a solid performance in only two. Going into the competition, his form will be a big worry for the Indian contingent.
2. Lakshya Sen: Placed just below his compatriot Prannoy in the world rankings, Lakshya is emerging through the ranks in the Indian badminton. He participated in six tournaments in the singles category and came up with two top-3 finishes including All England. He also reached the Quarterfinals in the Indonesia Open and thus the 22-year-old can have a shot at a medal in the Olympics if he punches above his weight.
3. PV Sindhu: Star of the Indian badminton, who carried forward the legacy started by Saina Nehwal is already a two-time Olympic medalist. The World No. 12 is known for performing at big stages and form becomes a secondary factor for her. Sindhu has played eight tournaments in 2024 so far and has managed to enter the top 8 or further thrice. Her performance hasn’t been up to her stature in 2024 but her tendency to perform in big situations can come in handy in Paris.
4. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty: India’s World No.3 pair has been prolific this year and they will be India’s biggest hope for a medal in the discipline. The pair played seven tournaments in 2024 and won two tournaments. Also, they were finalists in the Malaysia Open and India Open. The country will hope that the Indian duo continue their form and bag a medal, preferably gold for India.
5. Tanisha Crasto & Ashwini Ponnappa: The pair is World No. 19 and will need a lot to do to secure a podium finish in Paris. The duo has appeared in 11 tournaments in 2024 and managed to only 1 top three and two Quarterfinal finishes. It is unlikely that they will get a medal considering their form but who knows if they can pull off a miraculous run at the grandest stage.

India’s report card in the Olympics

Ever since Badminton’s inception in Barcelona in 1992, Indian shuttlers have been constantly appearing in the Olympics. However, the sport sparkled with hope and bright possibilities when Saina Nehwal bagged a medal at the 2012 London Olympics. Deepankar Bhattacharya had an impressive run in 1992 as he reached pre-quarters in men’s singles before being beaten by China’s Zhao Jianhua. The next significant performance came in 2008 when Nehwal entered the quarterfinal but was outplayed by Maria Kristin Yulianti of Indonesia. She didn’t win a medal but she was to start a legacy which inspired budding shuttlers to excel.

Nehwal won a bronze in 2012 as she got a walkover from Wang Xin of China as her opponent hurt her knee in the medal match. Four years later, Sindhu scripted a dream run toppling elites of the game like Michelle Li, Wang Yihan, Tai Tzu Ying and Nazumi Okuhara on her way to the final. The final was against Carolina Marin and both the players fought tooth and nail but Marin won the gold. Sindhu earned silver and she also carved an incredible run in 2016 winning bronze. She beat China’s He Bingjiao to win bronze. India are coming into Paris with seven shuttlers and the doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty is the brightest prospect to win a medal.

Basics of Sport

1. Badminton can be played in singles or pairs as doubles.
2. All matches consist of three sets and the first side to get to the 21 points wins the set. If the scores are tied at 20-20, one must get a lead of two points to win the set. The side which wins the point gets to serve.
3. The ends are changed after every set. Also, there is a change after the 11th point in the third set.
4. A point is won if the shuttle lands in the opponent’s half inside the lines. If it goes outside the margins the shuttler will concede a point. Touching the net with a body or racket can result in the player being penalised with a point.
5. During service, the shuttler must hit the shuttler below the waste and into the diagonally opposite service box in the opponent’s half. The server will start the service from the right service box in his half.
6. In singles, the badminton court is 13.41m (44ft) long and 5.18m (17ft) wide. In doubles, the width stretches up to 6.1m (20ft).
7. The net is 1.55m (5ft 1in) high at the ends and 1.52m (5ft) high in the middle.
8. Each service box is 3.96m (13ft) long and 2.59m (8.5ft) wide.