All England blow for India as Sindhu pulls out, Lakshya eyes big fight

India’s campaign at the prestigious All England Championships has suffered a significant setback with two time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu officially ruled out of the tournament after being stranded in Dubai amid escalating tensions in the Gulf region.

Sindhu was en route to Birmingham for the Super 1000 event when airspace closures and flight suspensions disrupted travel following military escalation in the Middle East. An explosion was reported near her place of stay, prompting security concerns and forcing her team to move to a safer location. With Dubai airport operations continuing to remain affected, Sindhu has been left with no option but to withdraw from the tournament.

Her absence is a major blow for India, especially in women’s singles, where she was scheduled to open her campaign against Thailand’s Supanida Katethong. The Badminton World Federation has been monitoring the situation closely amid widespread travel disruptions affecting several players.

With Sindhu out, the spotlight now shifts to Lakshya Sen , who will lead India’s men’s singles challenge. Lakshya faces a daunting opening round clash on March 3 against world No. 1 Shi Yu Qi of China. A former runner up at this historic tournament, Lakshya has lost four of his five previous encounters against the Chinese ace and will need something special to overturn that record.

Youngster Ayush Shetty opens against Indonesia’s Alwi Farhan, while in women’s singles Malvika Bansod meets Olympic champion Chen Yufei. Unnati Hooda takes on Thailand’s Pornpawee Chochuwong after a disrupted journey.

In doubles, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty spearhead India’s challenge, while Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand begin against a strong Japanese pair.

Historically, only Prakash Padukone and Pullela Gopichand have lifted the All England title for India. With Sindhu sidelined, the responsibility now rests heavily on Lakshya and the rest of the contingent to keep India’s hopes alive at one of badminton’s most storied events.