Badminton News: As Indian badminton rejoices in unprecedented success, Dhruv Kapila and MR Arjun have also quietly turned into one of the pairs to be reckoned with this season.

22-year-old Dhruv Kapila from Punjab and 25-year-old Arjun from Kerala may not have reached dizzying heights as they are still below their accomplished compatriots, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty (5th place), but the pair are quite strong to rise from the worlds 42 rankings to worlds 19 in the last 12 months.

Victories over stronger opponents, quarter-finals in World Tour tournaments including the BWF World Championships, and the Thomas Cup winning tag give them the confidence to push further into the 2023 season.

“I would rate a Thomas Cup win there. We didn’t play in the Round of 16. Our run last season can be split into before and after the Thomas Cup because it gives us a lot of confidence to transform the three setters in wins and that reflects in our performances,” Arjun told PTI.

“Our performance at the world championships also stands out, which makes the quarter-finals a big deal.”

“We also did well in Indonesia Super 1000 (second round), Singapore Open Super 500 (quarter-final) and winning the Indian Championship, the performances gave us confidence in our progress,” added Dhruv Kapila .

At the Singapore Open, the duo stunned world number 10 pair Goh Sze Fei and Malaysia’s Nur Izzuddin before losing three matches to combined world number 2 Indonesia, Hendra Setiawan and Mohammad Ahsan.

Paris Olympic qualifying will start from May 1 and they say improving performance will be the main focus.

“We have to maintain this level. It’s a pre-Olympic year, so the focus will be on qualifying. It’s a tough task but we still have to try, we think we can do it and we hope we can. we will push to play more tournaments,” said Dhruv Kapila.

The Indian pair, currently ranked 21st, are expected to feature in the top 8 when the final qualifying list for the major championship is announced on April 30, 2024.

“Our goal is to win the Thailand Open in February. We want to do well in this tournament before the start of the European Tour in March,” Arjun said.

“I think the performance at the start of the year will put us in a position on how we can move into an Olympic year. Is it in our mind how to improve our game and get into the top 16 and top 8 and get that qualifying spot.”

Dhruv and Arjun, however, will miss the Malaysian Super 1000 tournament next week due to injury. The pair are also doubts for the Indian Open, which has been upgraded to a Super 750 tournament from this year.

“I picked up this injury during training during the French Open, so I pulled out of the Hylo Open. I feel recovered but felt uncomfortable again when we started. coaching a few people last week, so now I’m in Mumbai to sort it out.” Arjun said.

“Nothing major, I was advised to start rehab and depending on what I do this week I will get a call. So we pulled out of the Malaysian Open. I wasn’t sure about the Open from India so far my top priority is to get my fitness back because of this has been a big year for us.”

Article tags: Dhruv Kapila, Mr Arjun

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