Shaheen C. K. and Aswin Mannambalath.
PANAJI
Goa’s qualification campaign at the Yonex-Sunrise G.H. Raisoni Memorial All India Junior Ranking Badminton Tournament 2026 ended with Sparsh Kolwalkar and Sudhanva Udupa going down 7-15, 4-15 to Maharashtra’s Swarit Satpute and Abheek Sharma in Boys’ Doubles Round 2, while Aswin Mannambalath and Sufiya Shaikh fought hard before losing 10-15, 13-15 to Tamil Nadu’s Hrithick Manikkam P. and Prahathi V. in Mixed Doubles final qualification round.
After four days of qualification action at the Manohar Parrikar Indoor Stadium, Navelim, the tournament now moves into the main-draw stage from October 27, with Goa’s leading players looking to make an impact against the country’s best juniors.
Shaheen C. K. and Aswin Mannambalath, seeded 13th in their event, will spearhead Goa’s challenge after securing direct main-draw entry by virtue of their India ranking. Host wild-card entrants Aarush Pawaskar and Advait Balakrishnan will also be among the Goan players to watch in Boys’ Singles.
The main draw will feature the country’s leading talents, with top seed Bornil Akash Changmai, an Asian medallist and former Asia U-15 Junior Championships gold medallist, and second seed Hardik Divyansh, who has also represented India at the Asia U-15 championships, headlining Boys’ Singles. Diksha S. R. and Nakshatraa Jairaj are the top two seeds in Girls’ Singles.
Former Goa Chief Minister and PWD Minister Digambar Kamat will grace the opening function on October 27 at 8.30 a.m., in the presence of Goa Badminton Association President Manoj Patil, Secretary Praveen Shenoy, Organising Secretary Wayne Fernandes and other officials.
