Indian shuttler P Kashyap’s dream of winning a medal at the Rio Olympics i s over because of an impending surgery on his right knee. He is the only Indian male player to reach the quarterfinal of the Olympics. Kashyap will be undergoing surgery in Mumbai this week will be likely to be in action only in June.
With May 5 being the deadline for Olympics qualification, the Commonwealth champion is ruled out of the tournament because he is now at rank 20.
“Olympics is over for me. My dream of winning a medal at the Olympics is shattered. The Olympics Gold quest has done a lot for me and are doing for me” said Kashyap who twisted his knee during the German Open Grand Prix Gold in March. “ The first doctor said that the injury was not serious but on the second diagnosis when we came to know the extent of the injury was serious. I have no control over it and I can wish the best of luck for my teammates” said Kashyap.
Kashyap was doing well to represent India at the Rio Olympics and had defeated Chen Long in the Indonesian Open last year. In his absence, Srikanth is likely to be only Indian in men’s singles.
P Kashyap’s absence will be a big blow for the Indian team. With only two more tournaments – China Masters this week and Badminton Asia Championship next week. Srikanth is expected to be within top 16 by May 5. Kashyap has been missing tournaments due to that injury. K Srikanth has suffered losses in the first rounds in recent turnament. Now the pressure will be on Srikanth to win a medal for the country.