Kingdom face India in opener
Thailand’s Thomas Cup team will face a tough opener against defending champions India tomorrow while the women’s Uber team will kick-start their campaign against Australia on Sunday.
The 19-player contingent (10 men and nine women) left for Chengdu, China, yesterday to take part in the biennial championships, which will begin tomorrow and end on May 5.
The Thomas Cup team are in Group C with holders India, Indonesia and England while the women’s Uber Cup team are in Group B with Taiwan, Malaysia and Australia.
Thai badminton chief Khunying Patama Leeswadtrakul said the Uber Cup team are gunning for at least a bronze medal this year.
The team won bronze at the last two editions in 2020 and 2022 and finished runners-up — their best result — in 2018 when the tournament was held in Thailand.
“We are fourth seeds in the Uber Cup event so our opponents in the group stage are not that strong. But we will not underestimate any team. I think Taiwan will be our strongest opponents in the group stage,” said Patama.
As for the men’s Thomas Cup team, Patama admitted it will be tough for the players after being grouped with India and Indonesia.
“We are in a very tough group with India and Indonesia. But I’m sure our athletes will do their best and give their all to win,” she added.
The top two teams in each of the four groups will advance to the quarter-finals for both Thomas Cup and Uber Cup.
DRAW
Thomas Cup
Group A: China, South Korea, Canada, Australia
Group B: Japan, Taiwan, Germany, Czech Republic
Group C: Indonesia, India (c), Thailand, England
Group D: Denmark, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Algeria
Uber Cup
Group A: China, India, Canada, Singapore
Group B: Thailand, Taiwan, Malaysia, Australia
Group C: Japan, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Uganda
Group D: South Korea (c), Denmark, USA, Mexico