PV Sindhu Advances to Pre-Quarterfinals at Malaysia Open 2026
Sindhu's Strong Performance at the Malaysia Open
New Delhi, January 7: Indian badminton star PV Sindhu has successfully moved into the pre-quarterfinals of the women's singles at the Malaysia Open 2026, following a straight-games victory at the Axiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur, according to reports from a sports news outlet.
The two-time Olympic medalist, currently positioned 18th in the BWF women's singles rankings, triumphed over world No. 33 Sung Shuo-yun from Chinese Taipei with scores of 21-13, 22-20, advancing to the next round of the competition.
Although Sindhu took a moment to find her footing in the match, she managed to secure a narrow 11-9 lead at the mid-game interval of the first game. She then regained her rhythm and comfortably finished the opening game. The second game proved to be more intense, with Sung challenging Sindhu and pushing the match to a tie-breaker.
This victory marks Sindhu's third consecutive win against Sung Shuo-yun in their encounters. In the pre-quarterfinals, she is set to face Japan's Tomoka Miyazaki, who is currently ranked No. 9 in the world.
Men's Doubles Success and Mixed Results in Women's Doubles
India also celebrated success in the men's doubles category, with Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy advancing to the second round. The third-seeded duo defeated the Taiwanese pair of Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan with a score of 21-13, 21-15 in a match that lasted just 35 minutes.
This victory further solidified their dominant head-to-head record against the Taipei team, now standing at 6-0.
However, the day was mixed for India in women's doubles. Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand faced a tough battle, ultimately losing in three games to Indonesia's Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma and Meilysa Trias Puspita Sari, with scores of 21-9, 21-23, 21-19.
Additionally, Rutaparna Panda and Swetaparna Panda were eliminated in the first round after a straight-games defeat to the second-seeded Malaysian pair, Pearly Tan and Thinaah Muralitharan, losing 21-11, 21-9. Kavipriya Selvam and Simran Singhi also exited the tournament after falling 21-12, 21-11 to Japan's fifth-seeded duo, Yuki Fukushima and Mayu Matsumoto.
Mixed Doubles Campaign Concludes
India's mixed doubles journey also came to an end on Wednesday. Tanisha Crasto and Dhruv Kapila, who represented India at the Paris 2024 Olympics, were knocked out in the first round after a three-game match against Americans Presley Smith and Jennie Gai, with scores of 21-15, 18-21, 21-15.
Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Shivani Gadde also faced elimination in the opening round, losing 21-10, 21-17 to the second-seeded Chinese pair, Jiang Zhenbang and Wei Yaxin. Furthermore, Ashith Surya and Amrutha Pramuthesh's campaign ended with a defeat against Thailand's Phuwanat Horbanluekit and Benyapa Aimsaard, with scores of 21-11, 21-9, concluding India's mixed doubles challenge at this BWF Super 1000 event.