Indian badminton doubles star Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, who has been troubled by a shoulder injury, has decided to pull out of the Badminton Asia Championships to focus on his recovery.

While the injury is not a serious one, Satwiksairaj decided to opt out of the Badminton Asia Championships to focus on other important future tournaments, including the Thomas Cup and later the Paris Olympics 2024.

According to news reports, the injury is not a new one and it happens due to the overuse of the shoulder and the Indian shuttler is already on the road to recovery. The injury reportedly flared up after their European sojourn. The duo have also resumed less-intense training sessions.

Both Satwiksairaj and Chirag Shetty, who are ranked number one in the world, will get some additional time to prepare for the Thomas Cup, which begins in Chengdu, China, later this month.

Satwiksairaj and Chirag are the defending champions at the Badminton Asia Championships. The win earned them their world number one ranking, which they have been holding for long.

The duo have been in good form the ongoing season as they finished as the French Open Super 750 champions and runners-up in two finals.

Satwiksairaj and Chirag are currently into their 10th week as world number one, surpassing Saina Nehwal's record of nine successive weeks at the top of the BWF rankings.

The pair have had a stellar season in the last two years, winning the bronze medal at the 2022 World Championships, gold medals at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, 2023 Asia Championships, 2023 Asian Games. They also emerged victorious at the Thomas Cup in 2022, Indonesia Super 1000 and Korea Open in 2023, apart from the French Open 750.