Badminton
China Masters 2024: Lakshya Sen, PV Sindhu advance to 2nd round
The men's doubles pairing of Satwik and Chirag also overcame their first-round hurdle on their return to the BWF Circuit.
PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen advanced to second round of the China Masters 2024.
Indian shuttlers enjoyed an outstanding second day at the China Masters 2024, winning all five of their matches in the first round of the Super 750 event in Shenzhen, China on Wednesday.
PV Sindhu, Malvika Bansod, and Lakshya Sen won their respective singles matches whereas the women's doubles pairing of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand registered the victory in straight games.
The men's doubles pairing of Satwiksairaj Rankreddy and Chirag Shetty - on a comeback trail on the BWF circuit since their quarterfinal exit from the Paris Olympics in August - also made a winning start.
Sindhu registers her 20th win over Busanan
The day started with two-time Olympic medal-winning shuttler Sindhu winning her match against Busanan Ongbamrungphan of Thailand in straight games (21-17, 21-19) showcasing her powerful attacking game.
The win marked Sindhu's 20th victory against the Thai shuttler in their 21st meeting on the BWF circuit, showcasing the Indian's dominance.
On the other hand, Malvika Bansod got better of higher ranked Line Højmark Kjaersfeldt of Denmark in her first-round match with a narrow three-game (20-22, 23-21, 21-16) win.
Lakshya broke his losing streak
In men's singles, Lakshya ended his five-match losing streak after a tight three-game (21-14, 13-21, 21-13) victory over Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia, avenging his defeat to the Malaysian in the Paris Olympics bronze medal playoff.
Lee got better of Lakshya in Paris but looked rusty today and conceded the match after a tiring 57-minute clash. The young Indian will face Rasmus Gemke of Denmark in the second round.
Sweet comeback for Satwik-Chirag
The premier Indian doubles pairing of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty returned to the BWF Circuit, for the first time after the Paris Olympics. And they made a statement with a three-game (12-21, 21-19, 21-18) win against the Chinese Taipei pairing of Lee Jhe-Huei and Yang Po-Hsuan.
The Indian pair, playing after three months, made a sloppy start as they looked rusty in the first game.
But, they did not take much time to recover and slowly regained their mojo. They showcased a brilliant defensive display to cross their first huddle in the tournament.
Treesa-Gaaytri step closer to World Tour Final
The young Indian women's doubles pairing of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand advanced to the second round with a straight-game (21-15, 21-14) victory in the first round against the Chinese Taipei pairing of Hu Ling Fang and Jheng Yu Chieh.
With this win, they have increased their chances of qualification for the BWF World Tour Final for the first time. This is the final tournament which will be counted towards the qualification of this prestigious event. Treesa and Gayatri are the only Indian shuttlers in contention for a spot in the season-ending BWF World Tour Finals.
