Parupalli Kashyap calls out BWF for 'lack of assurance' over Olympics qualification

Indian badminton star Parupalli Kashyap is facing a race against time to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics 2020. Kashyap, who is recovering from a back injury, took to social media to express his frustration with the Badminton World Federation (BWF) over their rigidity surrounding the Olympics qualifying schedule. The Coronavirus outbreak means several qualifying events have been either cancelled or postponed, leaving Kashyap, wife Saina Nehwal and several other stars with less than an ideal qualifying scenario. 

With BWF's plan to tackle the qualifying campaign still up in the air, Kashyap took to Instagram to urge BWF to extend the Olympic qualification period.

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Olympic qualification badminton: Parupalli Kashyap makes another plea to BWF

Addressing his fans on social media, Parupalli Kashyap provided an update on his injury by stating that he is progressing well in his rehab and that he should be back on the court in two weeks time. Kashyap was forced to retire from the Spain Masters 2020 due to the injury. But the 33-year-old noted that he plans to be back for the India Open that starts on March 24 to kickstart his Olympics qualifying campaign. 

Kashyap further addressed the uncertainty due to the Coronavirus outbreak by stating that the BWF has failed to provide any assurances to the participants. The 33-year-old, however, noted that he and his wife Saina Nehwal still plan to give their best for the remaining events and to gauge their status at the end of the qualifying period. 

Also Read | Korea Open 2019: Parupalli Kashyap Advances To The Quarter-finals

Parupalli Kashyap calls out lack of BWF support after cancelled events

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Olympic qualification badminton

BWF's Road to Tokyo qualifying campaign will end on April 26, 2020, with the final rankings to be released on April 28. As per the rankings, PV Sindhu (7th) and Sai Praneeth (11th) look set to be the only representatives from India. Meanwhile, Saina Nehwal, Kidambi Srikanth and HS Pranoy are all vying for an Olympics qualification berth.

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