After the completion of European Mixed Team Championships and the inaugural Asia Mixed Team Championships, badminton action shifts to Muelheim, Germany as the Yonex German Open 2017 begins on Tuesday.
While the season's first few Grand Prix Gold tournaments, including the Malaysia Masters, Syed Modi and Thailand Masters, lacked big names, the field in Germany is star-studded with the likes of reigning Olympic champions Chen Long and Carolina Marin along with Chinese legend Lin Dan and world number two Jan O Jorgensen.
While top seed Jorgensen's participation is under the cloud, two-time Olympic gold medallist Lin Dan will be in focus ahead of his much-awaited All England campaign, starting 7 March. While rival, Malaysian legend Lee Chong Wei is still nursing an injury, the world number six's stint in Germany can help him prepare for Birmingham.
On the other hand, Chen, who played the China Open after his Rio Olympic gold last year, will be starting as the second seed and will face Japan's Kenta Nishimoto in the opening round later today. China also have world number seven Tian Houwei, who reached the final of Dubai World Superseries last year, featuring in the tournament.
Malaysia Masters winner Ng Ka Long is the fifth seed and given his recent form, he will be looking to pull off quite a few upsets. India's Kidambi Srikanth, who has been struggling since his quarter-final defeat to Lin at Rio Games, will look to hit form in Germany.
On the other hand, Carolina Marin has also travelled to Germany to gain some match practice ahead of All England. The top seed faces world number 21 Line Kjaersfeldt in the opening round. World number six Akane Yamaguchi is the second seed and she will be one of the favourites in the absence of stars from China and India.
Former Singapore shuttler Beiwen Zhang, who nows plays under the US flag, is seeded fourth, a spot below Thailand Masters champion Busanan Ongbumrungpan.
TV Schedule [Coverage from quarter-final]
Singapore: Hub Sports 3
Malaysia: Astro Supersport
India: Star Sports
Seeding Information
| Men's singles | Women's singles |
| 1. Jan O Jorgensen (Den) | 1. Carolina Marin (Esp) |
| 2. Chen Long (Chn) | 2. Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn) |
| 3. Lin Dan (Chn) | 3. Busanan Ongbumrungpan (Tha) |
| 4. Tian Houwei (Chn) | 4. Zhang Beiwen (USA) |
| 5. Ng Ka Long (Hkg) | 5. Cheung Ngan Yi (Hkg) |
| 6. Chou Tien Chen (Twn) | 6. Nitchaon Jindapol (Tha) |
| 7. Marc Zwiebler (Ger) | 7. Sayaka Sato (Jpn) |
| 8. Hu Yun (Hkg) | 8. Ayumi Mine (Jpn) |
| 9. Hans-Kristian Vittinghus (Den) | - |
| 10. Rajiv Ouseph (GBR) | - |
| 11. Vincent Ki Wong (Hkg) | - |
| 12. Kidambi Srikanth (Ind) | - |
| 13. Wei Nan (Hkg) | - |
| 14. Tzu Wei Wang (Twn) | - |
| 15. Hsu Jen Hao (Twn) | - |
| 16. Anders Antonsen (Den) | - |
Schedule of key matches on 28 February
Tian Houwei vs Kanta Tsuneyama - 12am SGT (Wednesday)
Ng Ka Long vs Qualifier - 1:45am SGT (Wednesday)
Lin Dan vs Siril Verma - 2:15am SGT (Wednesday)
Chen Long vs Kenta Nishimoto - 3am SGT (Wednesday)
For the full schedule, click here.
