PV Sindhu, India’s double Olympic medalist, advanced to the second round of the women’s singles competition at the All England Championships on Tuesday. However, HS Prannoy and Kidambi Srikanth faced setbacks in the opening round of men’s singles.
Sindhu, ranked 11th in the world, dominated the first game against German opponent Li Yvonne Li, winning 21-10. However, Li retired in the second game, allowing Sindhu to progress to the next round. The Indian is likely to face top seed An Se Young of Korea, who has been a formidable opponent, having defeated Sindhu in all six of their previous encounters.
In men’s singles, Prannoy, ranked 8th in the world, squandered an early lead to lose 21-14, 13-21, 13-21 to Su Li Yang of Chinese Taipei. This marked Prannoy’s second consecutive first-round exit after his loss at the French Open last week.
Srikanth, who is aiming to qualify for the Paris Olympics, suffered a disappointing defeat against world No. 1 Viktor Axelsen, losing 9-21, 9-21. This leaves Lakshya Sen and Priyanshu Rajawat as the only Indian contenders in men’s singles.
Aakarshi Kashyap also bowed out in the opening round, losing 16-21, 11-21 to Pai Yu Po of Chinese Taipei. Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand will face Indonesia’s Apriyani Rahayu and Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti later in the day.
