Srikanth Kidambi

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Srikanth Kidambi
Yonex IFB 2013 - Eightfinal - Boonsak Ponsana — K. Srikanth 01.jpg
Personal information
Birth nameSrikanth Nammalwar Kidambi
CountryIndia
Born (1993-02-07) 7 February 1993 (age 28)
Ravulapalem, Andhra Pradesh, India
Height1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Weight73 kg (161 lb)
HandednessRight
CoachPullela Gopichand
Men's singles
Career record256 wins, 141 losses
Career title(s)10
Highest ranking1 (12 April 2018)
Current ranking10 (21 December 2021)
Medal record
Men's badminton
Representing  India
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2021 Huelva Men's singles
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 2018 Gold Coast Mixed team
Silver medal – second place 2018 Gold Coast Men's singles
Asia Team Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Hyderabad Men's team
Bronze medal – third place 2020 Manila Men's team
South Asian Games
Gold medal – first place 2016 Guwahati–Shillong Men's singles
Gold medal – first place 2016 Guwahati–Shillong Men's team
Gold medal – first place 2019 Kathmandu–Pokhara Men's team
Asian Junior Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2011 Lucknow Mixed team
Commonwealth Youth Games
Silver medal – second place 2011 Douglas Mixed doubles
Bronze medal – third place 2011 Douglas Boys' doubles
BWF profile

Srikanth Kidambi (born 7 February 1993) is an Indian badminton player who trains at the Gopichand Badminton Academy, Hyderabad. He ranked as world number 1 at the BWF ranking in April 2018. Kidambi was awarded with the Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian award in 2018.[1] and Arjuna award in 2015. In 2021, he became the first ever Indian to reach the World Championships final in the men's singles and win a silver medal.[2]

Early life and background[]

Srikanth Nammalwar Kidambi was born in Ravulapalem, Andhra Pradesh on 7 February 1993 to a Telugu family. His father, KVS Krishna is a landlord, and his mother Radha a house-wife.[3] Srikanth’s older brother K. Nandagopal is also a badminton player.[4]

Career[]

2011[]

In the 2011 Commonwealth Youth Games in Isle of Man, Kidambi won the silver in mixed doubles and bronze in doubles.[5] He also emerged winner in the singles and doubles category at the All India Junior International Badminton Championship held in Pune.[6]

2012[]

In 2012 Kidambi overcame the then Junior World Champion Zulfadli Zulkiffli of Malaysia in the Maldives International Challenge to claim the men's singles title.[7]

2013[]

In the Thailand Open Grand Prix Gold event, Kidambi won the men's singles title beating then world number eight and local favorite Boonsak Ponsana in straight sets.[8] In the same year, Kidambi beat reigning champion and Olympian Parupalli Kashyap in the All India Senior National Championships in Delhi to claim his first senior national title.[9] He was also part of the Awadhe Warriors team that finished second in the Indian Badminton League, 2013.[10]

2014[]

Kidambi finished runner up at the 2014 India Open Grand Prix Gold event in Lucknow.[11] and was a quarter finalist in 2014 Malaysian Open.[12] He was part of the Indian badminton contingent that reached the semi finals of the Mixed-team event at the Commonwealth Games 2014 in Glasgow.[13] He also reached the quarter finals of the men's singles event in the same tournament. [14] In November, he created a major upset in the final of the 2014 China Open Super Series Premier by beating 5 times World Champion and 2 times Olympic Champion Lin Dan in straight sets (21–19 21–17), thus becoming the first Indian to win a Super Series Premier men's title.[15] He then reached semi finals of Hong Kong Open Super Series after beating in-form Chou Tien-chen in the early rounds. He lost to Chen Long of China in three sets in the semifinals. With those wins he was qualified for the world super series finals. He defeated Kento Momota (15–21 21–16 21–10) and Tommy Sugiarto (21–18 21–13) in the group stage to reach semi finals of the prestigious BWF Super Series Masters Finals where he again lost to Chen Long of China.[16]

2015[]

Kidambi became the first Indian male to win gold at the 2015 Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold by defeating Viktor Axelsen 21–15,12–21,21–14. The same year he also won India Open Super Series title by defeating Viktor Axelsen in the finals.[17]

2016[]

Kidambi reached the semifinal in the Malaysia Masters, where he lost to Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin of Malaysia in January. The following week he won the Syed Modi International Badminton Championships Grand Prix Gold title, defeating Huang Yuxiang 21–13, 14–21, 21–14 in the final. At the 2016 South Asian Games, he won two gold medals, in men's team and men's singles, defeating Prannoy Kumar in the singles final. At the 2016 Badminton Asia Team Championship, although his team lost in the semifinal, he remained undefeated.

In the 2016 Rio Olympics, the World No. 11, Kidambi entered the round of 16 of the men's singles by beating Lino Muñoz and Henri Hurskainen. He went on to beat World No. 5 Jan Ø. Jørgensen 21–19, 21–19 to reach the quarterfinals,[18] but was defeated by Lin Dan by a score of 6–21, 21–11, and 18–21.

2017[]

Kidambi and Sai Praneeth created history when they became the first ever Indian pair to enter the finals of a ranking event in Badminton. Both hailing from Hyderabad and being coached by Pullela Gopichand, it was Sai Praneeth who prevailed 17–21, 21–17, 21–12 eventually to clinch the Singapore Super Series title.[19]

Kidambi won the Indonesia Super Series beating Japan's Kazumasa Sakai 21–11, 21–19 thereby becoming the first ever Indian male player to do so. He went on to win Australian Super Series beating China's Chen Long 22–20, 21–16 in the final, setting an Indian record for entering three consecutive Super Series Finals.[20] At the World Championships, he was defeated in the quarter-final by South Korea's Son Wan-Ho in straight sets. At the next Super Series, in Denmark, he won the title defeating Lee Hyun-il of Korea 21–10, 21–5 in the final. Following his good run, Kidambi became the fourth player ever to win four Super Series titles in a year, after he won the French Super Series that followed, defeating Japan's Kenta Nishimoto 21–14, 21–13 in the final. In the process, he equaled the record held by Lee Chong Wei, Lin Dan, and Chen Long. Following the victory, he reached his career-best ranking of 2.[21]

2018[]

Kidambi started 2018 at the India Open as the second seed. He was defeated in the second round by Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin who had qualified from the qualifiers.[22] He also lost in the second round at the All England Open to Chinese player Huang Yuxiang in three games.[23] At the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Kidambi was more successful, winning a gold in the mixed team event, and a silver in the singles event.[24] He achieved world number 1 ranking for a week during this period.[25]

2019[]

Kidambi represented his country at the South Asian Games in Nepal, and won the gold medal in the team event.[26] Srikant missed most of the 2019 year's BWF Tournaments due to injuries and missed many qualifying tournaments of 2020 Summer Olympics. Srikant later described that he competed in many tournaments not 100% fit this affected his performance.

2020[]

Kidambi was unable to play much international tournaments in 2020 due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. This affected his ranking making him exit top 30 BWF rankings.

2021(Comeback and rise)[]

Srikant started the year with 1st round exit in the 2021 All England Open. He entered 2021 Orléans Masters as seed no.1 and made it to the Quarter-finals. After a 2nd round exit in 2021 Denmark Open and 1st round exit in 2021 French Open (badminton) losing to Japan's Kento Momota both times, he made it to the semi-finals of 2021 Hylo Open and 2021 Indonesia Masters. He finished 5th in the 2021 BWF World Tour Finals. Kidambi ended the year the historic silver medal at 2021 BWF World Championships becoming 1st ever Indian men's singles player to reach the finals, he defeated compatriot Lakshya Sen in the semi-finals but lost to Singapore's Loh Kean Yew in the final 14-21, 20-22

Achievements[]

BWF World Championships[]

Men's singles

Year Venue Opponent Score Result
2021 Palacio de los Deportes Carolina Marín, Huelva, Spain Singapore Loh Kean Yew 15–21, 20–22 Silver Silver

Commonwealth Games[]

Men's singles

Year Venue Opponent Score Result
2018 Carrara Sports and Leisure Centre, Gold Coast, Australia Malaysia Lee Chong Wei 21–19, 14–21, 14–21 Silver Silver

South Asian Games[]

Men's singles

Year Venue Opponent Score Result
2016 Multipurpose Hall SAI–SAG Centre, Shillong, India India Prannoy Kumar 11–21, 21–14, 21–6 Gold Gold

BWF World Tour (1 runner-up)[]

The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018,[27] is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tours are divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300 (part of the HSBC World Tour), and the BWF Tour Super 100.[28]

Men's singles

Year Tournament Level Opponent Score Result
2019 India Open Super 500 Denmark Viktor Axelsen 7–21, 20–22 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up

BWF Superseries (6 titles, 1 runner-up)[]

The BWF Superseries, which was launched on 14 December 2006 and implemented in 2007,[29] is a series of elite badminton tournaments, sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). BWF Superseries levels are Superseries and Superseries Premier. A season of Superseries consists of twelve tournaments around the world that have been introduced since 2011.[30] Successful players are invited to the Superseries Finals, which are held at the end of each year.

Men's singles

Year Tournament Opponent Score Result
2014 China Open China Lin Dan 21–19, 21–17 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
2015 India Open Denmark Viktor Axelsen 18–21, 21–13, 21–12 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
2017 Singapore Open India B. Sai Praneeth 21–17, 17–21, 12–21 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner–up
2017 Indonesia Open Japan Kazumasa Sakai 21–11, 21–19 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
2017 Australian Open China Chen Long 22–20, 21–16 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
2017 Denmark Open South Korea Lee Hyun-il 21–10, 21–5 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
2017 French Open Japan Kenta Nishimoto 21–14, 21–13 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
  BWF World Superseries Premier tournament
  BWF World Superseries tournament

BWF Grand Prix (3 titles, 3 runners-up)[]

The BWF Grand Prix had two levels, the BWF Grand Prix and Grand Prix Gold. It was a series of badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) which was held from 2007 to 2017.

Men's singles

Year Tournament Opponent Score Result
2013 Thailand Open Thailand Boonsak Ponsana 21–16, 21–12 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
2014 India Grand Prix Gold China Xue Song 21–16, 19–21, 13–21 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up
2015 Syed Modi International India Parupalli Kashyap 21–23, 21–23 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up
2015 Swiss Open Denmark Viktor Axelsen 21–15, 12–21, 21–14 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
2015 Indonesian Masters Indonesia Tommy Sugiarto 21–17, 13–21, 22–24 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up
2016 Syed Modi International China Huang Yuxiang 21–13, 14–21, 21–14 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
  BWF Grand Prix Gold tournament
  BWF Grand Prix tournament

BWF International Challenge/Series (1 title)[]

Men's singles

Year Tournament Opponent Score Result
2012 Maldives International Malaysia Zulfadli Zulkiffli 13–21, 21–11, 21–16 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
  BWF International Challenge tournament
  BWF International Series tournament

Record against selected opponents[]

Record against year-end Finals finalists, World Championships semi finalists, and Olympic quarter finalists. Accurate as of 3 December 2021.[31]

Awards[]

  • 500,000 award announced for Kidambi from BAI for 2015 Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold victory. He defeated Viktor Axelsen in the final 21–15,12–21,21–14.[32][33]
  • 500,000 award announced for Kidambi from BAI for 2015 India Super Series victory. He defeated Viktor Axelsen in the final 18–21, 21–13, 21–12.[34]
  • 500,000 award announced for Kidambi from BAI for 2017 Indonesia Super Series Premier victory. He defeated Kazumasa Sakai in the final 21–11, 21–19.[35]
  • 500,000 award announced for Kidambi from BAI for 2017 Australian Super Series victory. He defeated Chen Long in the final 22–20, 21–16.
  • On 21 March 2018, Kidambi received Padma Shri, India's fourth-highest civilian award from Ram Nath Kovind, the President of India.[36]

References[]

  1. ^ "Padma awards 2018 announced, MS Dhoni, Sharda Sinha among 85 recipients: Here's complete list". India TV. 25 January 2018. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
  2. ^ "Kidambi Srikanth clinches historic silver at BWF World Championships". The Times of India. 19 December 2021. Archived from the original on 20 December 2021. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  3. ^ Dev Sukumar (21 December 2012). "dearbadminton.com".
  4. ^ "Brothers from Guntur create history". The Times of India.
  5. ^ Commonwealth Youth Games, 2011
  6. ^ Junior International Championship results
  7. ^ "Maldives International Challenge 2012".
  8. ^ "Thailand Open Grand Prix, 2013". The Times of India.
  9. ^ "All India Senior Nationals, Delhi, 2013". The Times of India.
  10. ^ IBL, 2013
  11. ^ India Open Grand Prix, 2014
  12. ^ "Malaysian Open, 2014". Deccan Chronicle.
  13. ^ "Srikanth Glasgow, 2014".
  14. ^ Rakesh Rao. "Badminton: Srikanth stuns Ajay Jayaram". The Hindu.
  15. ^ "Saina Nehwal, Kidambi Srikanth Win China Open Titles".
  16. ^ "Saina Nehwal, Kidambi Srikanth boost their semifinal chances with second win". timesofindia-economictimes. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  17. ^ "Kidambi Srikanth Is the First Ever Indian Man to Win Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold, 2015". Kridangan.
  18. ^ "Kidambi Srikanth storms into quarters". SportsCafe.in.
  19. ^ Sportswallah Desk (16 April 2017). "sportswallah.com".
  20. ^ "Kidambi Srikanth beats Chen Long to win Australia Open Super Series". The Times of India. 25 June 2017. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
  21. ^ "Kidambi Srikanth rises to career-best number two in latest badminton rankings". The Indian Express. 2 November 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  22. ^ "India Open: Kidambi Srikanth in awe of Zulkarnain's 'unimaginable' retrievals". India Today. 2 February 2018. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
  23. ^ "All England Open 2018: Kidambi Srikanth, Chirag Shetty lash out at 'ridiculous' umpiring after suffering narrow defeats". Firstpost. 16 March 2018. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
  24. ^ "Participants: Srikanth Kidambi". gc2018.com. Gold Coast 2018. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
  25. ^ "world number 1 ranking". ChaiBisket. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  26. ^ "South Asian Games 2019: India collect team gold in men's and women's badminton after overcoming Sri Lanka in summit clashes". www.firstpost.com. 2 December 2019. Archived from the original on 10 December 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
  27. ^ Alleyne, Gayle (19 March 2017). "BWF Launches New Events Structure". bwfbadminton.com. Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
  28. ^ Sukumar, Dev (10 January 2018). "Action-Packed Season Ahead!". bwfbadminton.com. Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 13 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  29. ^ "BWF Launches Super Series". Badminton Australia. 15 December 2006. Archived from the original on 6 October 2007.
  30. ^ "Yonex All England Elevated To BWF Premier Super Series Event". www.ibadmintonstore.com. Archived from the original on 2 October 2013. Retrieved 29 September 2013.
  31. ^ "Srikanth Kidambi Profile – Head To Head". bwf.tournamentsoftware.com. Badminton World Federation. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  32. ^ "5 lakh cash award for Srikanth from Badminton Association of India". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 16 March 2015. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  33. ^ "BAI announces cash award for Srikanth". thehindu.com. 17 March 2015. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  34. ^ "Saina Nehwal, Kidambi Srikanth lift India Open Super Series titles". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 29 March 2015. Retrieved 2 April 2015.
  35. ^ "Srikanth beats Sakai to win Indonesia Open Super Series Premier title - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
  36. ^ "Kidambi Srikanth, Somdev Devvarman receive Padma Shri awards; Padma Bhushan for Dhoni". The Times of India. 21 March 2018.

External links[]

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