The 2017 edition of Badminton Asia Championships will kickstart from 25 April at Wuhan Sports Centre Gymnasium in Wuhan and both the Men's singles and Women's singles field is star-studded.
Defending champion Lee Chong Wei starts as the top seed in the Men's singles circuit and the 34-year-old, who has been in sublime form in the new season with a title at All England Championships and runner-up finish at Malaysia Open, is favourite to win his third Asian crown.
Competition: Badminton Asia Championships 2017
Date: 25 April, Tuesday to 30 April, Sunday
Also read: All you need to know about Barcelona Open 2017
Venue: Wuhan Sports Center Gymnasium
TV Channel: StarHub Sports will provide live TV coverage in Singapore.
Live streaming: Hotstar, BWF YouTube channel
Drawn in the first quarter, Chong Wei is likely to face fifth seed Tian Houwei in the quarter-final and an early semi-final meeting with fourth seed Lin Dan is also on the cards.
Lin, the four time champion, ended his title drought at the Malaysia Open last month, is drawn in the second quarter and he will face South Korea's Lee Dong Keun in the opening round on Wednesday. Reigning Olympic champion Chen Long, who withdrew from Malaysia Superseries, will resume his season at home and he will face a qualifier in the opening round.
Tai Tzu Ying likely to face Saina Nehwal in quarter-final
Top seed Tai Tzu Ying, after having won five Superseries titles on the trot, is looking good to win her maiden Asian title in China. Notably, the Taiwanese shuttler, who had finished with a bronze medal in 2015, is drawn in a competitive half which also has former winner Sung Ji Hyun, Saina Nehwal (her likely quarter-final opponent) and China's Sun Yu.
With Carolina Marin not there, PV Sindhu might be Tai's biggest hurdle in the tournament and the fourth-seeded Indian shuttler faces Dinar Dyah Ayustine in the first round on Wednesday. She is expected to meet China Masters champion Aya Ohori in the second round and a possible semi-final meeting against second seed Akane Yamaguchi or sixth seed Ratchanok Intanon is on the cards.
In the Men's doubles category, Malaysia's Goh V Shem/Tan Wee Kiong start as second seeds and the duo face stiff competition from in-form, top-seeded pair of Marcus Fernaldi and Kevin Sanjaya.
TV Schedule
India: Star Sports
Malaysia: Astro Supersport 4
Singapore: Hub Sports
Seeding information
| Men's singles | Women's singles |
| 1. Lee Chong Wei (Mas) | 1. Tai Tzu Ying (Twn) |
| 2. Chen Long (Chn) | 2. Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn) |
| 3. Son Wan Ho (Kor) | 3. Sung Ji Hyun (Kor) |
| 4. Lin Dan (Chn) | 4. PV Sindhu (Ind) |
| 5. Tian Houwei (Chn) | 5. Sun Yu (Chn) |
| 6. Shi Yuqi (Chn) | 6. Ratchanok Intanon (Tha) |
| 7. Chou Tien Chen (Twn) | 7. Saina Nehwal (Ind) |
| 8. Ng Ka Long (Hkg) | 8. He Bingjiao (Chn) |
Order of Play of key first round matches on 26 April
Men's singles
- Lee Chong Wei v Kazumasa Sakai
- Tian Houwei v Ajay Jayaram
- Lin Dan v Lee Dong Keun
- Shi Yuqi v Wei Nan
- Iskandar Zulkarnain v Son Wan Ho
- HS Prannoy v Ng Ka Long
- Chen Long v Qualifier
Women's singles
- Tai Tzu Ying v Qualifier
- Saina Nehwal v Sayaka Sato
- Sung Ji Hyun v Hanna Ramadini
- Sun Yu v Cheung Ngan Yi
- PV Sindhu v Dinar Ayustine
- Ratchanok Intanon v Chen Xiaoxin
- Goh Jin Wei v Akane Yamaguchi
