WTC
P.V. Sindhu will be willing to continue in the same rhythm against Indonesia’s world no. 38, Putri Kusuma Wardani, at the Swiss Open Super 300 in Basel that saw her thrash wildcard entry Jenjira Stadelmann in just 32 minutes for her first win in 2023.
Sindhu, the defending champion, will be up against Wardani in the second round on Thursday, as she stands a chance to win her second successive title. Sindhu was a runner-up in 2021 and won the BWF World Tour title in 2022 at St. Jakobshalle, her happy hunting ground since 2019 when she clinched her World Championships title.
Sindhu, however, is the lone Indian women’s singles contender alive in the event since Malvika Bansod and Aakarshi Kashyap bowed out, losing their respective first-round matches.
In men’s singles, India has had three shuttlers - Kidambi Srikanth, H.S. Prannoy, and Mithun Manjunath - advancing to the pre-quarterfinals. In doubles, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty bounced back from their All-England low with a straight-game win over Malaysian qualifiers Boon Xin Yuan and Wong Tien Ci 21-15, 21-18.
Prannoy, seeded fifth, will take on Christo Popov of France after winning a gruelling three-setter against last week’s All England Open runner-up Shi Yuqi in the opening round. Popov advanced after he beat India’s Kiron George in straight games.
Srikanth and Manjunath, meanwhile, play world no. 19 Lee Cheuk Yiu of Hong Kong and Chia Hao Lee of Chinese Taipei in their respective second-round matches.
One of India’s strongest title contenders Satwik-Chirag, the second seed, will look to seal a place in the quarterfinals when the combo meets unseeded Fang-Chih Lee and Fang-Jen Lee of Chinese Taipei.
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