Odense (Denmark): Commonwealth Games 2022 gold medallists Lakshya Sen and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty advanced to the mens singles and mens doubles round of 16, respectively, at the Denmark Open 2022 but their compatriot Saina Nehwal crashed out of the tournament, here on Wednesday.
Lakshya Sen, who climbed to a career-best world No 8 in the BWF world rankings last week, beat Tokyo Olympics bronze-medallist Anthony Sinisuka Ginting of Indonesia 21-16, 21-12 in his men’s singles campaign opener.
The 21-year old Lakshya set the tone early on and took full advantage as Ginting, the world No 6, struggled to find his range on the day. Despite a late hiccup, the Indian badminton player took the opening game.
He was more ruthless in the second game and it reflected on the scoreline as he extended his head-to-head record against Ginting to 3-0.
Lakshya will either face compatriot HS Prannoy or China’s Zhao Jun Peng in the next round.
On the other hand, World championships bronze-medallists Chirag Shetty and Satwikrairaj Rankireddy played some attacking badminton to beat South Korea’s Kang Min Hyuk and Seo Seung Jae 21-15, 21-19.
The Indian pair, seeded seventh, will now face a tough encounter against reigning All England Open champions Muhammad Fikri and Bagas Maulana of Indonesia in the next round.
Meanwhile, former world No 1 Saina Nehwal bowed out of the Denmark Open 2022 women’s singles event after a hard-fought 17-21, 21-19, 11-21 loss to Zhang Yi Man of China.
After losing the first game, Saina fought back in the second and had as many as four game points before finally forcing a decider. However, the London 2012 Olympic medallist ran out of steam as Zhang Yi Man took back control in the third game and completed a fine victory.
This is the third straight tournament where Saina has been knocked out in the opening round.
–IANS
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