Star Indian men’s doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will be eying its maiden title of the year while Lakshya Sen will look to put behind a disappointing start to the season when the Indonesia Masters Super 500 tournament gets underway in Jakarta, Indonesia on Tuesday. The world No 9 duo of Satwik and Chirag has been in a fine form, reaching semifinals of the last two tournaments – Malaysia Open Super 1000 and India Open Super 750 – over the last as many weeks and will be keen to cross the final hurdle.

Satwik-Chirag had lost each of the two semifinals in straight sets and their aim would be to go the distance in the upcoming tournament.

They will open their campaign with a round of 32 clash against Chinese Taipei’s Chen Zhi-Ray and Yu Chieh Lin.

The challenge, however, would be greater for India’s singles players Sen and PV Sindhu when they take the court here.

The 23-year-old Sen, who had finished fourth in last year’s Paris Olympics has lost twice in the first round over the last two weeks, will be determined to put his best foot forward in the round of 32 clash.

Priyanshu Rajawat will also begin his campaign at the same stage, taking on Japan’s Kodai Naraoka.

However, two other Indians will face off in the men’s singles qualification round as Kidambi Srikanth, who did not feature in India Open, will look to get the better of Kiran George.

In women’s singles round of 32, Sindhu will open her campaign against Chinese Taipei’s Sung Shuo Yun, Aakarshi Kashyap will face Japan’s world No 19 Nozomi Okuhara and Anupama Upadhyaya will take on local player Gregoria Mariska Tunjung.

Sindhu lost in the quarterfinals of the India Open and the two-time Olympic medallist Indian star will be keen to make amends.

In women’s singles qualification, Isharani Baruah will face compatriot Rakshitha Ramraj while Tanya Hemanth will clash against Chinese Taipei’s Tung Ciou-Tong.

Tanisha Crasto and Ashwini Ponnappa will begin their women’s doubles campaign in round of 32 against Thailand’s Ornnicha Jongsathapornparn and Sukitta Suwachai.

Tanisha will team up with Dhruv Kapila for their mixed doubles’ round of 32 game against Indonesia’s Adnan Maulana and Indah Cahya Sari Jamil.

In the same round, Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Gadde will face off against England’s Gregory Mairs and Jenny Mairs.

File photo of Lakshya Sen.© AFP

File photo of Lakshya Sen.© AFP

Top seeded Indians P V Sindhu and Lakshya Sen showcased their class and dominance to clinch the women’s and men’s singles titles, respectively, at the Syed Modi International badminton tournament in Lucknow on Sunday. Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medallist, ended her long title drought by outplaying China’s world number 119 Wu Luo Yu 21-14, 21-16 to lift the trophy for the third time, having previously triumphed in 2017 and 2022. In the men’s singles final, Lakshya, a 2021 World Championships bronze medallist, was at his dominant best as he demolished Singapore’s Jia Heng Jason Teh 21-6, 21-7 in the title clash, displaying complete command over the match.

Sindhu’s victory marks her return to the top of the podium after over two years, with her last title win coming at the Singapore Open in July 2022. The world number 18 also reached the finals of the Malaysia Masters Super 500 earlier this year.

Lakshya’s win comes as a balm after a disappointing loss in the bronze-medal playoff at the Paris Olympics. The victory will undoubtedly boost his confidence ahead of the new season.

Indian badminton had more to celebrate on the day as the women’s doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand clinched their maiden Super 300 title with a convincing 21-18, 21-11 win over China’s Bao Li Jing and Li Qian.

The result made Treesa and Gayatri the first Indian women’s doubles team to win the title at this tournament. The Commonwealth Games bronze medallists, who had finished runners-up in 2022, went one step further this year with their solid performance.

In the men’s doubles final, Pruthvi Krishnamurthy Roy and Sai Pratheek K put up a valiant fight before going down 14-21, 21-19, 17-21 to China’s Huang Di and Liu Yang in a marathon 71-minute clash.

Meanwhile, in the mixed doubles final, fifth seeds Tanisha Crasto and Dhruv Kapila started strong but couldn’t sustain their momentum, losing 21-18, 14-21, 8-21 to Thailand’s sixth-seeded pair of Dechapol Puavaranukroh and Supissara Paewsampran.

Sindhu vs Wu

Sindhu was up 8-5 in the opening game and despite some resistance from Wu, the Indian managed to secure a two-point lead at 11-9. Sindhu changed gears after the break, surging to 15-10 and then kept a firm grip on the rallies to comfortably close out the opening game.

Sindhu opened strongly, racing to a 3-0 lead, but Wu quickly levelled the score and matched the Indian point-for-point till 10-10. The Chinese left-hander troubled Sindhu with precise drops, earning a slender 11-10 lead at the break.

After resumption, Sindhu shifted gears, drawing errors from Wu and regaining control with a 14-11 lead courtesy of a sharp straight smash. A bodyline smash further extended her lead to 15-11, as Wu misjudged the length on several occasions.

Sindhu’s disguised forehand return at a crucial juncture brought her closer to victory, earning her four match points. She sealed the title with a powerful smash, capping off a dominant performance.

Lakshya vs Jia

Lakshya, 23, was in a hurry to wrap up the proceedings, storming to a massive 8-0 lead early in the first game. Lakshya’s fast-paced game left Teh struggling, with the Singaporean committing a series of unforced errors.

Two aggressive returns helped Teh claim a couple of points, but Lakshya quickly regained control, securing seven game points at the interval. The Indian then won nine of the next 10 points to wrap up the first game in quick time.

Lakshya maintained his relentless attack in the second game, racing to a commanding 10-1 lead at the mid-game interval. Teh, demoralized and unable to match Lakshya’s pace and precision, found himself on the backfoot throughout.

The Indian extended his lead to 15-5, and even when Teh tried to mount a comeback with a flurry of strokes, Lakshya’s impeccable defense and fitness shone through. At 16-7, the Indian showcased his versatility, mixing powerful down-the-line smashes with cross-court net shots to reach 20-7.

The match ended with Teh sending a shot long, handing Lakshya his first Syed Modi International title.

Star Indian shuttler PV Sindhu survived a scare before beating unheralded compatriot Ira Sharma in three games to enter the women’s singles quarterfinals at the Syed Modi International Super 300 badminton tournament in Lucknow on Thursday. Sharma, ranked 147th in the world as against 18th of Sindhu, stretched the second-round match to the decider after winning the second game. Top seed Sindhu, a two-time Olympic silver medallist, recovered in time to pocket the deciding game and win the match 21-10 12-21 21-15 in 49 minutes.

The 29-year-old Sindhu has been struggling for some time and she last clinched a title at the Singapore Open in 2022.

She faces China’s Dai Wang, ranked 118th in the world, in the quarterfinals. Wang beat Devika Sihag of India 19-21 21-18 21-11 in another second-round match.

Unlike Sindhu, top seed Lakshya Sen easily won his second-round men’s singles match against Daniil Dubovenko of Israel 21-14 21-13 in just 35 minutes to also book a quarterfinal berth.

Sen meets compatriot Meiraba Luwang in the quarterfinals. Meiraba was a 21-15 21-13 victor against sixth seed Nhat Nguyen of Ireland.

In other men’s singles matches, Ayush Shetty beat Hoh Justin of Malaysia 21-12 21-19 to enter the quarterfinals while third seed Kiran George suffered a 21-19 20-22 11-21 defeat to Shogo Ogawa of Japan.

Second seed Priyanshu Rajawat of India also made it to the men’s singles quarterfinals after beating Le Duc Phat of Vietnam 21-15 21-8.

In the women’s singles, India’s 17-year-old Unnati Hooda, unseeded in the tournament, stunned fourth seed Pornpicha Choeikeewong of Thailand 21-18 22-20 in 46 minutes to enter the last-eight stage.

However, second-seeded Indian Malvika Bansod lost to 17-year-old compatriot Shriyanshi Valishetty 12-21 15-21. Former junior world No. 1 Tasnim Mir also progressed to the quarterfinals after beating Anupama Upadhyaya 21-15 13-21 21-7.

Other Results: Men’s doubles: Ishaan Bhatnagar-Sankar Prasad Udayakumar (received walkover) vs Cui He Chen-Peng Jian Qin (CHN).

Hariharan Amsakarunan-Ruban Kumar Rethinasabapathi beat Pharanyu Kaosamaang (THA)-Tanadon Punpanich (THA) 21-18 21-17.

Prakash Raj-Gouse Shaik lost to Kittinupong Kedren-Dechapol Puavaranukroh (THA) 13-21 8-21.

Pruthvi Krishnamurthy Roy-Sai Pratheek K beat Chen Xu Jun-Guo Ruo Han (CHN) 21-14 22-20.

Women’s doubles: Rutaparna Panda-Swetaparna Panda beat Dhanyaa Nandakumar-Arul Bala Radhakrishnan 21-15 21-10.

Priya Konjengbam-Shruti Mishra beat Kavipriya Selvam-Simran Singhi 21-15, 21-12.

Gayatri Rawat-Mansa Rawat lost to Go Pei Kee-Teoh Mei Xing (MAS) 7-21 14-21.

Treesa Jolly-Gayatri Gopichand beat Ashwini Bhat K-Shikha Gautam 21-13 21-10.

Mixed doubles: Rohan Kapoor-Gadde Ruthvika Shivani lost to Liao Pin Yi-Huang Ke Xin (CHN) 18-21 19-21.

Vishnu Sreekumar-Aparna Balan lost to Zhou Zhi Hong-Yang Jia Yi (CHN) 11-21 12-21.

Deep Rambhiya-Simran Singhi lost to Rory Easton-Lizzie Tolman (ENG) 18-21 12-21.

B Sumeeth Reddy-N Sikki Reddy lost to Loo Bing Kun-Ho Lo Ee (MAS) 21-19 16-21 13-21.

Sathish Kumar Karunakaran-Aadya Variyath beat Chayanit Joshi-Kavya Gupta 21-18, 21-17.

Gouse Shaik-Maneesha K lost to Wong Tien Ci-Lim Chiew Sien (MAS) 16-21 18-21.

Dhruv Kapila-Tanisha Crasto beat Mohit Jaglan-Lakshita Jaglan 21-7 21-13.

File photo of Lakshya Sen.© AFP

PV Sindhu has been India’s most consistent athlete in the last two Olympics. At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Sindhu won silver in badminton (women’s singles) and then won a bronze in Tokyo 2020. While her form suffered ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics, hopes are high that Sindhu will once again shine bright at the biggest stage to win her third Olympics medal. Ahead of the campaign, a video has gone viral where PV Sindhu can be seen playing simultaneously with Lakshya Sen and HS Prannoy, two of the best men’s badminton players in India.   

Inspired to see our shuttlers gearing up and practicing hard to give their best in #ParisOlympics2024!

With a team as strong & determined as ours, the hopes & prayers of millions of Indians stand tall with them. Let’s cheer our champions on to victory! #Cheer4Bharat pic.twitter.com/bek5cL1fyT

— Dr Mansukh Mandaviya (@mansukhmandviya) July 24, 2024

Later, Prannoy posted a video, where he can be seen taking on Lakshya and Sindhu simultaneously.

pic.twitter.com/sNDaCluFzD

— PRANNOY HS (@PRANNOYHSPRI) July 24, 2024

Earlier, Sindhu said she is “going all-out” in her quest to become the first Indian to win an unprecedented third individual Olympic medal in Paris, drawing on her experience from a successful past. Sindhu stands on the brink of history as she pursues the gold medal in the upcoming Games, having won a silver and bronze in 2016 Rio and 2020 Tokyo edition respectively.

In an exclusive conversation on JioCinema’s ‘The Dreamers,’ Sindhu spoke about her unwavering focus on making history at Paris, though it is going to be an extremely difficult task for the Indian star.

“That third medal at Paris definitely motivates me, and I am going all-out to get that gold medal. For me, the Olympics is where I give my 200%,” Sindhu said.

“The journeys in 2016 and 2020 were wonderful, filled with immense effort and unforgettable moments.

“As I prepare for Paris 2024, it’s a fresh start, and I have to give my 100% no matter what.” Ranked among the world’s top players, Sindhu draws from her past experiences to fuel her quest for gold.

“There are a lot of experiences from my previous outings at the Olympics that I will take into Paris 2024, but I don’t want to get overconfident thinking about the medals.

“I hope I can fulfil the hope of the nation and get the third medal because getting three consecutive medals is not a joke. My mindset is focused on winning the gold and this gives me a lot of motivation and confidence.” She spoke at length about her preparation for the mega event, which will run from July 26 to August 11.

“My preparations are focused on putting in the hard work while being smart and focused on that particular day.” The former world champion understands the fierce competition that awaits and respects the calibre of her opponents.

“The Olympics is extremely competitive, and all the athletes are at their peak. The top 10-15 players in the world are of the same standard, be it the likes of AN Se Young, Akane Yamaguchi, Carolina Marin, or TAI Tzu Ying.

“There are no easy points at the Olympics, and we need to play hard for every point we score against an opponent. Anything can happen at the Olympics; one small mistake can change everything.” Sindhu also shared her perspective on working with Indian badminton legend Prakash Padukone, terming it her good fortune to be associated with the 1980 All England champion.

“This time, we have a whole new team with Prakash (Padukone) sir as my mentor and Agus (Dwi Santoso) as the new coach. Our practice is focused at getting everything perfect and to the point.

“It is my fortune that Prakash sir is my mentor and a part of my journey, and I hope his support can help me win that medal.” Currently ranked 13th in the world, Sindhu’s illustrious career boasts of numerous accolades.

She has won five BWF World Championship medals, including a gold, and an Olympic silver and bronze, making her the only Indian to achieve this feat.

Her Commonwealth Games achievements include gold in 2022, silver in 2018, and bronze in 2014 in the women’s singles event, along with gold in 2018 and silver in 2022 in mixed teams.

Additionally, she claimed silver in women’s singles at the 2018 Asian Games and bronze in women’s teams at the 2014 Asian Games.

File photo of Lakshya Sen.© X (formerly Twitter)