Taipei City, Jul 27 (PTI) Seasoned shuttler HS Prannoy and youngster Unnati Hooda will aim for consistency as they spearhead the Indian challenge at the Taipei Open Super 300 badminton tournament here on Tuesday.
Seventh seed Prannoy, a 2023 Asian Games and world championships bronze medallist, will open against Japan’s Minoru Koga, while third seed Unnati will begin against a qualifier in the women’s singles round of 32.
Prannoy, currently ranked World No. 36, has crossed the opening hurdle only thrice this season, while world no. 24 Unnati, who won Polish International this season, has struggled with a series of first-round exits.
Asian Games bound Tharun Mannepalli, a 2023 National Games gold medallist, will have a tough outing against eighth seed Jeon Hyeok Jin of Korea.
M Manjunath will meet Jason Gunawan and S Dayanand, who finished as the runner-up at the Saint Denis Reunion Open in May 2026 and won a bronze medal at the Uganda International Challenge, will open his campaign against Singapore’s Eogene Ewe.
Kiran George, who won the Odisha Masters Super 100 last December, will face local player Wang Po-Wei.
In the women’s singles, eighth seed Devika Sihag will take on Korea’s Park Ga Eun, Tanya Hemanth will face Chinese Taipei’s Hsu Wen Chi, while an all-Indian clash between former world junior champion Tasnim Mir and Tanvi Sharma is one of the highlights of the opening round.
Top seed Chiu Pin-Chian of Chinese Taipei will begin her campaign against India’s Isharani Baruah, while Shriyanshi Valishetty faces a stiff challenge against fourth seed Supanida Katethong of Thailand.
Ashmita Chaliha has also been handed a difficult draw and will take on second seed Lin Hsiang Ti of Chinese Taipei.
In men’s doubles, Bhargav Ram Arigela and Viswa Tej Gobburu will square off against fourth-seeded American pair Chen Zhi Yi and Presley Smith in the opening round.
In mixed doubles, Ishaan Bhatnagar and Shruti Mishra will meet Chinese Taipei’s Tsai Fu Cheng and Sung Yu-Hsuan, while Dhruv Rawat and Maneesha K will take on Thailand’s Supak Jomkoh and Ornnicha Jongsathaporn in their opening-round match. PTI ATK APS APS
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