The Indian Open Grand Prix badminton championship suffered a major setback after top-seeded women's player Saina Nehwal pulled out of the event citing an ankle injury on Wednesday.
The event had already seen quite a few withdrawals including the second-seeded Kusumastuti on Tuesday.
"She had problem with her right ankle during a long rally in the Hong Kong Open," said K. Ch. Punnaiah Choudhary, secretary (events) of Badminton Association of India.
"She had swelling this morning after the training. Though she was keen to play initially even if she is 50 per cent fit, it was decided not to take any risk and pull her out of the championship."
Gold Quest Funded HK
Mumbai: Ace Indian woman shuttler Saina Nehwal's golden run in the Hong Kong Super Series tournament was funded entirely by the Olympic Gold Quest founded by sports legends Prakash Padukone and Geet Sethi.
"Saina's trip to Hong Kong, as well as those of her coach Bhakar Babu and physio, was entirely funded by the Olympic Gold Quest. It was all arranged within two days of her requesting the same," said former All England Badminton champion Prakash at a media conference today to launch OGC's new initiative "Power your Champion" here.
Prakash said timely help given to a sportsperson can make a huge difference. "Perhaps government funding had ended this year with the Asian Games.”
{{/usCountry}}Prakash said timely help given to a sportsperson can make a huge difference. "Perhaps government funding had ended this year with the Asian Games.”
{{/usCountry}}This is where we are different and help players by cutting down on the bureaucrats hurdle as much as possible," the shuttle legend said.