Multiple times badminton queen Nekeisha Blake will return to the courts this week for the Senior Badminton Rankings Tournament which is scheduled to take place from today (Monday to Friday) at the National Racquet Centre (NRC) in Tacarigua.
Action will begin at 6 pm and run until 9 pm.
The tournament will be played in a round-robin format which will eventually put Blake on a collision course with Chequeda Dedoulet, the rising badminton ace who is targeting a spot in the Olympic Games in Paris, France in 2024.
Deboulet told Guardian Media Sports recently that she needs more international training and tournaments to compete in if she is to earn a berth at the Olympics. Due to scarce financial resources, she has been carefully selecting the international events that she will compete in this year, as she tries to maximise her input with what she gets back.
Needing to be among the top 100 players on the world rankings to potentially qualify for the Olympics, Deboulet has moved from close to 1000th ranked to 275th in the world last year alone. And from this rankings tournament, she could increase her chances at playing at top international competitions, as the top-ranked players will be chosen to represent the country at future international championships.
The last time Deboulet and Blake met was back in 2019 at the semifinals of the Senior National Badminton Championships which Deboulet won 21-16, 21-19 to book a place in the final.
Blake will be just one of many top local players she will have to contend with, officials have said, but there will be many.
Meanwhile, the men’s play-off is also expected to feature some top players, such as Travis Sinanan, Leon Cassie, and brothers Nicholas and Nathaniel Khelawan, among others.
Meanwhile, the Junior Badminton Rankings Tournament continued at the National Racquet Centre yesterday with action in the boys and girls under-15, 17 and 19.
