Dhruv replaces injured Satwik in Indian team for Asia Mixed Championships
Dhruv Kapila was on Wednesday included in India’s men’s doubles squad for the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships to be held in Dubai from February 14 to 19 as a replacement for the injured Satwiksairaj Rankireddy. Satwik, who partnered with Chirag Shetty in the men’s doubles, has been ruled out of the tournament with a hip injury, forcing the Badminton Association of India (BAI) to field Dhruv as his replacement. It was lying India will begin their campaign against Commonwealth Games champions Malaysia in Group B on February 16.
Host UAE and Kazakhstan have also got a place in the group. Lakshya Sen and HS Praneeth, who played a key role in India’s title win at the Thomas Cup, will lead the Indian challenge in men’s singles while two-time Olympic medalist PV Sindhu will be India’s top player in women’s singles. The women’s doubles pair will feature 2022 Commonwealth Games bronze-medallist Gayatri Gopichand and Trisha Jolly, while Ishan Bhatnagar and Tanisha Crasto will compete in the mixed doubles. The 17 teams, including defending champions China, have been divided into four groups and the top two teams from each group will advance to the quarter-finals.
