India's top badminton stars, including Lakshya Sen, HS Prannoy, and two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu, will look to bounce back from a string of underwhelming performances as they begin their campaigns at the Badminton Asia Championships, set to kick off in Ningbo on Tuesday.

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In the men's singles draw, world No. 17 HS Prannoy and No. 18 Lakshya Sen will lead India's charge. They’ll be joined by Kiran George (ranked 34th) and Priyanshu Rajawat (35th), both eager to make their mark on the continental stage. Sen, a 2021 World Championships bronze medallist, opens against Chinese Taipei’s Lee Chia-Hao, a recent finalist at the All England Championships. Prannoy, still regaining form after a bout of chikungunya, faces a tough test in China’s Guang Zu Lu. Meanwhile, Rajawat is drawn against Thailand’s Kantaphon Wangcharoen, and Kiran George will take on a qualifier.

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In the women's singles, all eyes will be on Sindhu, whose world ranking has slipped to 17. She starts her campaign against Indonesia’s world No. 34, Ester Nurumi Tri Wardoyo. The road ahead looks tougher for her compatriots. Anupama Upadhyaya (ranked 43rd) faces eighth seed and former world champion Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand. Malvika Bansod (23rd) meets China’s Fang Jie Gao, while Aakarshi Kashyap (48th) has a steep challenge against second seed Yue Han of China.

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Young guns ready for challenge

In women’s doubles, the experienced and in-form duo of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand (ranked 9th) have drawn a qualifier in their opening match. Another Indian pair, Priya Konjengbam and Shruti Mishra, will go up against Chinese Taipei’s Shuo Yun Sung and Chien Hui Yu.

The men’s doubles draw sees two relatively untested Indian pairings — Hariharan Amsakarunan/Ruban Kumar Rethinasabapathi and Pruthvi Krishnamurthy Roy/Sai Pratheek K — looking to make an impression.

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India’s mixed doubles challenge will be carried by four pairs: Rohan Kapoor/Ruthvika Shivani Gadde, Sathish Karunakaran/Aadya Variyath, Dhruv Kapila/Tanisha Crasto, and Ashith Surya/Amrutha Pramuthesh.

With a prize pool of USD 500,000 and tough competition from across Asia, Indian shuttlers will need to bring their A-game to leave a mark in Ningbo.

(With inputs from agencies)