Kidambi Srikanth says BWF should 'look into qualification process after Olympics 2020 miss

The Indian shuttler said the governing body could reconsider the decision.

By Aaryanshi Mohan | May 29, 2021 | 2 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

Indian shuttler Kidambi Srikanth was unable to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics. He wants the Badminton World Federation (BWF) to reconsider the matter and make a decision. BWF confirmed no tournaments will be played inside the qualifying window. As a result, not just Kidambi but Saina Nehwal too missed the chance to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics.

Singapore Open was cancelled at the beginning of the month due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Singapore Open is a Super 500 event on the BWF World Tour, and was the last qualifying event for the Tokyo ranking points inside the qualifying window.

The Indian shuttler said the governing body could reconsider the decision. It will help players who are trying for the Tokyo Olympics.

“See there is nothing much that you and I could have done. Things in the last couple of months went out of control. But BWF can look into this matter and probably take a decision that will help every player. Five-six tournaments were cancelled,” Kidambi Srikanth told ANI.

“And if all of them could have happened there was a very good chance of me qualifying for the Olympics. Tournaments were cancelled and players lost the chance of qualifying. So I think BWF should look into this matter and make a decision,” he added.

Kidambi – ‘those who missed out are disappointed’

Kidambi said players couldn’t control a lot of things amid the coronavirus pandemic. He pointed out how the situation was close to normal in December last year and he featured in tournaments.

“Players who have qualified already I think are very motivated and those who missed out are disappointed and are feeling bad about it,” he said.

“None of us really knew what will happen. Last year in March the first lockdown happened but if you see, in December 2020 things were really normal and I played a tournament in January and in March but immediately after that things started getting worse and everything got cancelled,” Kidambi added.

After representing India in the 2016 Olympics, Kidambi’s goal was to win a medal in Tokyo 2020.

“I’ve been there in 2016 Olympic so it was my dream for 2020, my goal was to get a medal. I am really disappointed not being able to be there in the 2020 Olympics as of now,” he said.

“But if BWF can think of making new rules, it will help the players who were on the verge of qualification. It is not the end for me, I will keep working hard and I will try to do the best in future tournaments,” he added.

According to BWF, while the qualification period officially closes on June 15, as per the Revised Tokyo 2020 qualification system, the current Race To Tokyo rankings list will not change.