PV Sindhu and Ayush Shetty Shine at French Open 2026 Badminton Tournament
PV Sindhu Triumphs in Nail-Biting Match
In an exhilarating match at the French Open 2026 badminton tournament held in Paris, two-time Olympic medalist PV Sindhu fought hard to secure her place in the women's singles second round. She faced Thailand's Supanida Katethong and emerged victorious with scores of 21-14, 8-21, 23-21 after a gripping 64-minute encounter.
Sindhu, who is currently ranked 10th in the world, seemed to be on her way to an easy win in the final game, leading 19-8. However, Katethong made a stunning comeback, scoring 11 consecutive points to tie the game at 19-19, putting Sindhu under significant pressure.
Despite the challenge, Sindhu regained her composure and clinched the game 23-21, marking her sixth victory over Katethong in their ten meetings. Next, she will compete against Japan's Riko Gunji, who defeated India's Unnati Hooda in another first-round match.
Ayush Shetty Upsets Kidambi Srikanth
In another exciting match, Ayush Shetty pulled off a remarkable comeback against former world No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth, winning with scores of 19-21, 21-16, 21-12 to advance to the men's singles second round.
After narrowly losing the first game, Ayush bounced back in the second to level the match. In the deciding game, Srikanth initially led by four points, but Ayush turned the tide, leading 11-9 at the mid-game interval. He maintained his momentum and, after leading 14-12, scored seven consecutive points to secure the match. Ayush's next opponent will be Japan's sixth seed Kodai Naraoka, who advanced after Lakshya Sen withdrew from their scheduled match.
Additional Results for Indian Players
In other matches, India's Devika Sihag put up a strong fight against Indonesia's fifth seed Putri Kusuma Wardani, ultimately losing 21-9, 16-21, 22-20.
In women's doubles, the duo of Rutaparna Panda and Swetaparna Panda faced an early exit, losing 21-6, 21-11 to Japan's Ririna Hiramoto and Chiharu Shida.
Earlier in the tournament, Indian men's doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, along with women's doubles pair Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, were eliminated in the first round. However, Tanvi Sharma and Ashmita Chaliha successfully advanced to the women's singles second round.