Asia Mixed Team Championships Badminton: Dhruv Kapila to be Chirag's new partner as Satwiksairaj pulls out due to injury

Injured Satwiksairaj Rankireddy has been ruled out of the upcoming Asia Mixed Team Championships Badminton. Satwik's absence from the upcoming tournament is a big blow for India. Dhruv Kapila has now taken the place of Satwik.

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Satwiksairaj Rankireddy recently suffered a hip injury during the India Open. Satwik and Chirag were the defending champions in the tournament but due to an injury to Satwik, the pair were eliminated before the second round of the tournament. Earlier this year, the World No.6 pair had made it to the semi-finals of the Malaysia Open. The duo clinched India's first world championships medal, a bronze, in the men's doubles last year and played a huge role in India's maiden Thomas Cup triumph. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty also became India's first men's doubles champions at the Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham and won several tournaments on the BWF World Tour in 2022. 

Satwik's injury put Chirag's participation in the upcoming Asia Mixed Team Championships in doubt. However, BAI has selected Dhruv Kapila as the replacement. Kapila and Chirag will lead India in men's doubles in the third edition of the Asia Mixed Team Championships. The tournament will happen in UAE from February 14.

Dhruv Kapila, world No. 24 in BWF Rankings, usually partners with MR Arjun on the BWF Tour. Satwik is meanwhile recuperating from the injury and will make a comeback before the German Open and the All-England Championships next month.

Meanwhile, India will face a challenge from Malaysia as both teams belong to the same group in the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships. Apart from Malaysia, Kazakhstan, and the host United Arab Emirates are also part of this group.

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In addition, a total of 17 teams will participate in the Asia Mixed Team Championships. A total of four groups will be there in the tournament. There are four teams in groups of three, while there are five teams in groups of singles. China, Japan, Indonesia, and Malaysia are the top-seeded teams in the tournament. The tournament is making its return from 2019. However, the 2021 edition of the tournament didn't happen due to the COVID-19 pandemic.