Lakshya Sen and Kidambi Srikanth Shine in Opening Rounds at Kumamoto Masters
Indian Shuttlers Advance in Kumamoto Masters
Kumamoto [Japan], November 11: In a thrilling start at the Kumamoto Masters 2026 badminton tournament, India's Lakshya Sen and Kidambi Srikanth secured hard-fought victories in their opening matches, progressing to the men's singles pre-quarterfinals.
Seeded eighth, Lakshya faced off against Chi Yu Jen from Chinese Taipei, winning the match 21-19, 21-18 after a challenging 49 minutes at the Kumamoto Prefectural Gymnasium. Currently ranked 10th in the qualification standings, Lakshya aims to break into the top eight to qualify for the BWF World Tour Finals.
The first game was tightly contested, with Chi Yu Jen initially leading 14-10 before extending his advantage to 16-12. However, Lakshya rallied back, winning four consecutive points to equalize at 16-all. The game remained neck-and-neck at 19-all, but Lakshya clinched the final two points to secure the first game.
The second game mirrored the first, with both players trading points closely. Chi Yu Jen held a slight edge at 17-16, but Lakshya surged ahead by winning three straight points, ultimately sealing the match in straight games.
Next, Lakshya will compete against Dong Tian Yao from the People's Republic of China in the round of 16.
In another exciting match, former world No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth made a remarkable comeback against Denmark's Rasmus Gemke, winning 18-21, 21-16, 24-22 in a match that lasted one hour and eight minutes.
Srikanth started strong, leading by five points at the interval, but Gemke fought back to level the score at 14-all and 17-all before taking the first game.
The second game was equally competitive, with Gemke leading 14-11. However, Srikanth responded with an impressive streak of seven consecutive points, forcing a decisive third game.
In the final game, Srikanth found himself trailing 15-19 and facing elimination. Demonstrating great resilience, he saved two match points and leveled the score at 20-all. After a tense exchange at 22-all, Srikanth won the final two points to complete his comeback.
In the round of 16, Srikanth will face fifth seed Kodai Naraoka from Japan.
In mixed doubles action, Dhruv Rawat and Maneesha K put up a strong fight against the fourth-seeded pair of Ye Hong Wei and Nicole Gonzales Chan from Chinese Taipei but ultimately lost 16-21, 21-14, 21-14.
Additionally, Olympians Tanisha Crasto and Hariharan Amsakarunan faced a tough match, falling 21-7, 21-9 to the top-seeded duo of Jiang Zhen Bang and Wei Ya Xin from China.
Looking ahead, World Championships bronze medalists Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand are set to compete against Japan's third seeds Rin Iwanaga and Kie Nakanishi in the women's doubles round of 16 on Thursday.
In men's doubles, Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun will take on Japan's Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi for a chance to reach the quarter-finals.