Badminton Asia C’ships: PV Sindhu, HS Prannoy advance to R16; Kidambi Srikanth, Lakshya Sen exit
Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand lost 2-21, 11-21 to see their 2024 Paris Olympics qualification hopes dashed.
India’s PV Sindhu and HS Prannoy advanced to the pre-quarterfinals of the 2024 Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China on Wednesday.
The double Olympic medallist was forced to work hard for her 64-minute 18-21, 21-14, 21-19 win by Malaysia’s Goh Jin Wei.
The 28-year-old Sindhu endured some tense moments in the contest and even squadered a five-point lead in the decider to the world No 33, but kept her cool to register the first Indian win of the day at the Ningbo Olympic Sports Centre.
Having lost the first game, Sindhu came out determined and asserted her dominance in the second to force a decider. Smashes flowed from her racquet and the Goh was taken aback as the Indian upped the pace of the game.
Sindhu once again found herself struggling in third game, trailing before the change of ends. She, however, fought back to open up a comfortable lead before Goh forced a late comeback to pose a threat.
Sindhu will now face local star Han Yue in the Round of 16.
Prannoy wins
Prannoy, meanwhile, came from behind to defeat Lu Guang Zu of China in a thriller. The Indian, who has suffered four first round exits this year so far, prevailed 17-21, 23-21, 23-21 in a thriller.
Prannoy, bound for the 2024 Paris...
Read more
