Picture Credit: Twitter
After a successful completion of the Indonesia Masters and Indonesia Open, the 2022 BWF Tour moves to Malaysia for the twelfth tournament of the season, Malaysia Open 2022. The Super 750 tournament will kickstart on 28th June and is set to feature top players across the world. Notably, Malaysia Open is returning to BWF World Tour after a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19.
Being held from 1937, the Malaysia Open has been an important tournament in the BWF World Tour. This year, it is being held at the Axiata Arena, Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. The tournament will feature top badminton stars from India as well. PV Sindhu, Kidambi Srikanth, HS Prannoy, Saina Nehwal, and the Men’s double pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will all be in action.
All these players will hope for a better show at the Malaysia Open after a disappointing outing in Indoensia. However, it won’t be an easy task, especially for PV Sindhu who has been handed a tough draw. The two-time Olympic medalist will face Thailand’s Pornpawee Chochuwang in her first round. If Sindhi defeats Chochuwong, she will have to battle Olympic champion Chen Yu Fei of China in the pre-quarters.
Meanwhile, HS Prannoy has been pitted against Malaysian veteran Daren Liew, who had defeated him at the Thailand Open in May this year. Among others, Tokyo Olympian B Sai Praneeth will be up against sixth seeded Indonesian Anthony Sinisuka Ginting, while Sameer Verma takes on another Indonesian Jonata Christie, seeded seventh. Former Commonwealth Games gold medallist Parupalli Kashyap, also returning after recovering from an injury, will meet Korea's Heo Kwang Hee in the opening round.
World number 8 pairing of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will also be back in action after skipping the last two events due to fitness issues. The duo will open against Malaysia's Man Wei Chong and Kai Wun Tee. In mixed doubles, Ashwini Ponnappa and B Sumeeth Reddy, who are part of India's Commonwealth Games squad, will take on the Netherland's Robin Tabeling and Selena Piek. Venkat Gaurav Prasad and Juhi Dewangan will square off against Korea's Kim Won Ho and Jeong Na Eun.
As the tournament is all set to kick off from Tuesday, here is everything you need to know about Malaysia Open 2022.
Date: 28 June- 3 July 2022
Venue: Axiata Arena, Kuala Laumpur, Malaysia
Rounds: Five (R32, R16, Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Finals)
Total Entries: 295
Total Players: 386
Prize Money: USD 675,000
Schedule
1st Round (R32): June 28,29
2nd Round (R16): June 30
3rd Round (Quarterfinals): July 1
4th Round (Semifinals): July 2
5th Round (Finals): July 3
Seeded Entries
Men's Singles
1. Viktor Axelsen
2. Kento Momota
3. Anders Antonsen
4. Chou Tien Chen
5. Lee Zii Jia
6. Anthony Sinisuka Ginting
7. Jonathan Christie
8. Lakshya Sen (Withdrew)
Women's Singles
1. Akane Yamaguchi
2. Tai Tzu Ying
3. An Se Young
4. Chen Yu Fei
5. Carolina Marin
6. Nozomi Okuhara
7. PV Sindhu
8. Ratchanok Intanon
Where to watch Malaysia Open 2022?
The Malaysia Open 2022 will be broadcast live on Voot Select and also on BWF’s official Youtube channel BWF TV. Fans can also catch timely updates on www.sportstiger.com.