Thomas Cup champions India will look to recreate the magic when they chase the elusive crown at the Badminton Asia Team Championships, which will mark the return of double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu from injury.

The Indian men, who lifted the Thomas Cup in 2022 and secured a first-ever silver medal at last year’s Asian Games, will look to go all the way in the continental event this week after finishing with bronze medals in the 2016 and 2018 editions.

It won’t be a walk in the park for the them though. They will face formidable China and Hong Kong in their group A league matches.

However, India, led by HS Prannoy, Lakshya Sen and inform doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, will back themselves to finish in the top two and make it to the knockout stage.

The women’s team, led by Sindhu, got lucky as China are the only other team in Group W and India are thus already assured of a knockout berth.

Sindhu and the two doubles pairs — Commonwealth Games bronze medallists Treesa Jolly-Gayatri Gopichand and Guwahati Masters 2023 champions Ashwini Ponnappa-Tanisha Crasto — will have to prove their mettel from then on.

For Sindhu, the event assumes extra significance as she will look to test her match fitness and regain confidence after missing action since October last year.

The 28-year-old had suffered a knee injury at the French Open and took some time to regain her fitness and then shifted her base to Bangalore to train under mentor Prakash Padukone.

The continental competition will also be important as it offers valuable qualification points for the Paris Olympics.

Focus will also be on the young and second string Indian players such as Thailand Open super 300 semi-finalist Ashmita Chaliya, 16-year-old senior national champion Anmol Kharb and Badminton Asia Junior Championships medallist Tanvi Sharma, who would be eager to punch above their weight on the grand stage.

India will begin their campaign on Wednesday with the men’s team taking on Hong Kong and Sindhu and Co. facing China at the Setia City Convention Centre here.

China will be without their top doubles pair but World No. 4 Liu Sheng Shu and Tan Ning will be tough opponents.