Syed Modi International: PV Sindhu, Lakshya, Priyanshu clinch victories

Indian shuttlers had a good outing in the second round as India has confirmed eighteen representations in the quarterfinals of the Syed Modi India International at Babu Banarasi Das Indoor Stadium in Lucknow.

Top seeds like PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen, Priyanshu Rajawat, Tanisha-Ashwini, and Treesa-Gayatri registered a win whereas the likes of Malvika Basnod, Anupama Upadhyaya, and Kiran George exited on Thursday.

Two-time Olympic medalist PV Sindhu faced a tough challenge from young Ira Sharma but the experienced Indian held to her composure and won the match in a tight three-game affair, 21-10, 12-21, 21-15.

Meanwhile, the experienced shuttlers like Malvika Bansod and Anupama Upadhyaya conceded a defeat to their younger counterparts, Shriyanshi Vallishetty and Tasnim Mir respectively.

On the other hand, Unnati Hooda registered a good victory in the second round, knocking out the fourth seed Pornpicha Choeikeewong of Thailand in the straight game (21-18, 22-20) encounter.

Lakshya Sen into the quarterfinal

In the men's singles, Lakshya Sen had a comparatively easier game as he eased past his Israeli opponent, Daniil Dubovenko in a straight game (21-14, 21-13) affair.

On the other hand, Mieraba Luwang made a big upset by knocking out the sixth-seeded Nhat Nguyen of Ireland in the straight game. He will now take on the top-seeded Lakshya Sen in the quarterfinal tomorrow.

However, the third-seeded Kiran George suffered an early exit as he lost his match in the tight-three game (21-19, 20-22, 11-21) affair to Japan's Sogo Ogawa, despite winning the first game.

In the women's doubles, the top two-seeded Indian pair of Tanisha-Ashwini and Treesa-Gaytri also moved to the quarterfinal after winning their respective matches against Chinese Taipei and Indian opponents respectively.