India likely to miss Asia Cup badminton

India is unlikely to be represented in the eight-nation Asia Cup badminton championships, which will be held in Singapore from May 2 to 6, as its leading players -- All England champion Pulella Gopichand and Abhinn Shyam Gupta -- are unavailable due to personal reasons.

The absence could have an impact on India's rankings, as it was invited to the tournament on the strength of these two players. The seedings of the countries in the tournament are based on the individual rankings of their players.

In the event of India backing out, Thailand will be the likely replacement.

Badminton Association of India president V K Verma said a final decision on India's participation will be taken by the Asian Badminton Confederation in Singapore on Friday night.

While Gopichand is preparing for the World championships in Spain next month, French Open champion Shyam Gupta had a death in his family, Verma informed.

India is placed in Group B along with China, Malaysia and Japan while Group B comprises Indonesia, Korea, Hong Kong and host Singapore in the world's richest badminton tournament, which offers a winner's purse of $80,000.

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