PV Sindhu Advances to Quarterfinals at Malaysia Open, Indian Men's Challenge Ends
Sindhu Shines in Women's Singles
Star badminton player PV Sindhu showcased her skills by defeating Japan's Tomoka Miyazaki, securing her place in the women's singles quarterfinals at the Malaysia Open Super 1000 tournament on Thursday. This victory marks a significant return for Sindhu after a lengthy injury hiatus.
The former world champion, who has two Olympic medals to her name, triumphed over the eighth-seeded Miyazaki with scores of 21-8 and 21-13 in just 33 minutes.
Next, Sindhu will face off against the third-seeded Akane Yamaguchi from Japan, a three-time world champion, who won her match against China's Gao Fang Jie with scores of 21-11, 4-21, and 21-17.
Doubles Success for Indian Pair
In men's doubles, the top Indian duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, who earned a bronze medal at last year's world championships, also advanced to the quarterfinals. They achieved a convincing victory over Malaysia's World No. 17 pair, Junaidi Arif and Roy King Yap, with a score of 21-18, 21-12 in 39 minutes.
This win extends their head-to-head record against the Malaysian team to 4-0. The Asian Games champions are set to compete against the winners of the match between Chen Zhi Ray/Lin Yu Chieh from Chinese Taipei and Indonesia's sixth seeds Fajar Alfian/Fikri Muhammad.
Disappointment for Indian Men's Singles
Unfortunately, the Indian men's singles challenge came to an end as both Lakshya Sen and Ayush Shetty were eliminated in the pre-quarterfinals. Sen, who had previously broken a three-year streak of first-round exits by defeating Singapore's Jia Heng Jason Teh, lost to Hong Kong's Lee Cheuk Yiu with scores of 22-20, 15-21 in a match lasting 53 minutes.
Shetty fought valiantly against top seed Shi Yu Qi from China but ultimately fell short, losing 18-21, 21-18, 12-21 in a grueling 70-minute encounter.
Sindhu's Dominance Over Miyazaki
Sindhu, now 30 years old, continued her impressive comeback by achieving her second victory against Miyazaki, bringing their career head-to-head record to 2-1 in favor of Sindhu. She quickly established a 5-1 lead and then dominated the first game, scoring 13 consecutive points to lead 18-4 before sealing the game.
The second game was similarly one-sided, with Miyazaki briefly trailing by just one point at 8-9. However, Sindhu's experience shone through as she pulled ahead to a 17-11 lead and finished the match comfortably.
Doubles Match Highlights
In their doubles match, Satwik and Chirag took an early lead of 6-3, which they extended to 12-9. Although the Malaysian pair fought back to close the gap, the Indian duo quickly regained control, moving ahead to 16-12.
Despite a brief challenge from Junaidi and Roy, who led 18-17, Satwik and Chirag responded decisively, scoring four consecutive points to win the first game. In the second game, the Malaysians kept pace until 8-8, after which the Indians accelerated their play, leading 11-8 at the interval and finishing strong.