I should be back after two weeks of rehab, says Parupalli Kashyap

Left at the sidelines with yet another injury, Indian shuttler Parupalli Kashyap will need at least a couple of weeks to regain his fitness and make a comeback to the international circuit

New Delhi: Left at the sidelines with yet another injury, Indian shuttler Parupalli Kashyap will need at least a couple of weeks to regain his fitness and make a comeback to the international circuit.

Parupalli Kashyap. Pic/ AFP

Kashyap had retired hurt midway through the German Open pre-quarterfinals, suffering a knee injury during his clash against eighth seed Son Wan Ho of Korea, dealing a fresh blow to his Olympic qualification hopes.

Already racing against time to seal his Olympic berth, Kashyap was back on the court at German Open after recovering from a series of injuries, which derailed his preparation for the Summer Games.

"It's an MCL grade 1 strain on the right knee. I will stay out of the All England and Swiss Opens," Kashyap said.

"It could've been worse but all the strengthening of the last month and the knee brace helped me to escape a very serious injury," he added.

The Commonwealth Games champion is likely to be back at the court at the India Super Series in New Delhi.

"I should be back on the courts after two weeks of rehab and strengthening," he said.

Once world No.8, Kashyap has slipped to 17th, owing to a series of injuries that started with the calf muscle tear in October last year. He played in the Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold but could not defend the title, bowing out in the quarterfinals after sustaining an abdominal strain.

The Hyderabad lad was named in the team for the South Asian Games, which was held in Guwahati and Shillong early last month, but after repeated requests to BAI and SAI, he was pulled out of the team at the last moment.

The 29-year-old had also skipped the Badminton Asia Team Championship to regain his fitness so that he can take a shot at Olympic qualification by fetching crucial points to reach the World top-16 before the May 1 cutoff date.

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