Denmark Open 2023: Sindhu, Aakarshi advance to pre-quarters; Srikanth, Lakshya exit

PV Sindhu and Aakarshi Kashyap registered contrasting wins to advance to the second round, as Kidambi Srikanth and Lakhya Sen made a first-round exit at the Denmark Open Super 750 at Arena Fyn in Odense on Tuesday.

Sindhu, playing against Kirsty Gilmour of Scotland, won the match 21-14, 18-21, 21-10.

The world no. 12 Sindhu took an 11-6 lead at the interval in the first game as Gilmour frequently sent the shuttle wide. The Indian shuttler, who made a semifinal finish at the Arctic Open last week, displayed her defending skills and won points with drop shots and smashes to take the opening game.

In the second game, Gilmour, however, fought back, taking an 11-6 lead at the interval, with the Scottish player breaching Sindhu's defence with relentless smashing. Gilmour was also brilliant at the net, charging often to finish with net kills to leave Sindhu stunned.

Sindhu, however, made a late comeback at 17-18 before Gilmour ramped up her pace and forced the decider.

In the deciding third game, Sindhu, unseeded in the tournament, conceded only two points to lead 11-2 at the interval. Her durable defence and ability to retrieve Gilmour's smashes help her win points.

After the break, Gilmour won five points as Sindhu cruised to a 19-6 lead. At the fag end of the game, Gilmour would charge at the net to leave Sindhu's defence exposed, but the Indian shuttler did not have to toil hard to win the game 21-10 and move to the pre-quarterfinal.

Aakarshi, meanwhile, registered a come-from-behind win against Yvonne Li of Germany. Promoted to main draw after world no. 2 Akane Yamaguchi withdrew only a few hours before the tournament, Aakarshi fought with determination and zeal as she conceded the opening game 10-21.

In the second game, Aakarshi saved a match point before forcing the decider, winning the game 22-20.

In the third game, it was one-way traffic, with Aakarshi pummeling Li 21-12 to seal the contest.

2017 winner of the Denmark Open Kidambi Srikanth, on the other hand, conceded his first game lead against Weng Hong Yang to make a first-round exit. Srikanth lost 21-19, 10-21, 16-21.

Lakshya Sen, playing later Tuesday, suffered a straight-game (21-16, 21-18) defeat against Kantaphon Wangcharoen of Thailand in his Round of 32 match.

Satwik-Chirag pulls out

Earlier, Asian Games gold medallists Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty pulled out of the tournament, giving their Malaysian opponents Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi a walkover. Satwik and Chirag also gave the Arctic Open a miss last week.

HS Prannoy, the Asian Games bronze medallist, meanwhile ruled himself out for a minimum of two to three weeks due to a back injury.

The women’s doubles duo of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand and the men’s doubles combination of MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila also withdrew before the start of the Super 750 event.