While Kidambi Srikanth and PV Sindhu won their games in straight sets, Saina Nehwal and Parupalli Kashyap were crashed out of the tournament.
It was a mixed day for India at the Hong Kong Open on Wednesday. Ace Indian shuttlers PV Sindhu, Kidambi Srikanth and HS Prannoy paved their way into the second round of the Hong Kong Open, taking place in Kowloon, Hong Kong.
Saina Nehwal and Parupalli Kashyap ended their show at the tournament.
The 25-yeard old Kidambi looked superlative as he out crashed Hong Kong’s Wong Wing Ki Vincent by 21-11, 21-15 in a half-an-hour match.
Fourth-seed Kidambi Srikanth will now be playing against an opponent from his own country, HS Prannoy. Both are expected to put up a tough match and the best one will move into the quarterfinals of the tournament.
Prannoy battled his way past Denmark’s Anders Antonsen 21-14, 13-21, 21-19.
In another match, PV Sindhu won her match against Thailand’s Nitchaon Jindapol by 21-15, 13-21, 21-17 thus advancing into the second round of the tournament. Sindhu had to put in a lot of efforts to take away the match in her favour.
Sameer Verma also got off to a winning start in Hong Kong with a comfortable 21-17, 21-14 win over Thailand’s Suppanyu Avihingsanon
Sindhu vs. Jindapol
Although Sindhu began the match with a solid win in the first game, she gradually lost her grip and lost the round by 13-21.
The final game saw a tough fight between the two players, who showcased consistency and played powerful shots against one another. Though, Sindhu kept holding the grip right till the end of the game and took away the match by 21-17.
Up next, silver medalist Sindhu will be playing against Korea’s Sung Ji Hyun. Hyderabad girl Sindhu has an 8-5 lead against her Korean opponent in their game to game record.
Disappointment for Saina and Parupalli
Unfortunately, it was bad for India’s top shuttler Saina Nehwal who lost to Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi by 21-10, 10-21, and 19-21.
Parupalli Kashyap also lost to Indonesian player Anthony Sinisuka Ginting by 16-21, 13-21. Both players are hence now out of the tournament race.
Double’s Game
While men’s doubles pair Manu Attri and Sumeeth Reddy registered an easy win against Thai pair Bodin Isara and Maneepong Jongit, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty faced defeat against Denmark’s Mathias Boe-Carsten Mogensen.
