Badminton

HS Prannoy, India's badminton ace, will spearhead the nation's challenge at the Australian Open, commencing in Sydney on Tuesday. Prannoy, seeded fifth, has endured a string of disappointing results in recent tournaments. He suffered a shock defeat to compatriot Meiraba Luwang Maisnam in the opening round of the Thailand Open last month. Subsequently, he succumbed to world No. 11 Kenta Nishimoto in the Singapore Open Round of 16.Determined to reverse his fortunes, Prannoy will open his Australian Open campaign against Ygor Coelho of Brazil. Sameer Verma will face Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo of Indonesia, while Ravi will encounter a formidable opponent in eighth seed Loh Kean Yew of Singapore. Other Indian men's singles contenders include Mithun Manjunath, Kiran George, and S Sankar Muthusamy Subramanian.In women's singles, eighth seed Aakarshi Kashyap will lead the Indian charge. She will face Ukraine's Polina Buhrova in the opening round. Ashmita Chaliha, Anupama Upadhyaya, and Samiya Imad Farooqui will also represent India in the women's singles.India will be represented in the women's doubles by the Panda sisters, Rutuparna and Swetaparna, and the pair of Harshita Rout and Sruti Swain. In mixed doubles, eighth seed B Sumeeth Reddy and Sikki Reddy will face Malaysian duo Wong Tien Ci and Lim Chiew Sien. Tarun Kona and Sri Krishna Priya Kudaravalli will also compete in mixed doubles.

PV Sindhu, India's badminton star, showcased her resilience and determination at the French Open Super 750 tournament, overcoming a first-game setback to defeat Beiwen Zhang of the USA in the women's singles quarterfinals. However, Kidambi Srikanth's hopes of advancing were dashed as he suffered a disappointing round-of-16 loss to Guang Zu of China.Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medalist, displayed her fighting spirit after losing the opening game 13-21. She regrouped and dominated the second game 21-10, showcasing her aggressive play and precise returns. In the decider, Sindhu maintained her momentum, securing a 21-14 victory and booking her place in the quarterfinals.The Indian ace will now face either Olympic champion Chen Yu Fei of China or Line Christophersen of Denmark, a formidable challenge that will test her mettle as she aims for a third Olympic medal in Paris.Meanwhile, Srikanth, who had previously defeated Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei, faced a tough opponent in Guang Zu. Despite a strong start, Srikanth's errors proved costly, and he eventually lost 21-19 12-21 20-22 in a grueling 78-minute battle.In the women's singles match, Sindhu initially struggled with Zhang's defensive prowess and committed unforced errors. However, she regained her composure in the second game, dictating the rallies and forcing Zhang into mistakes. In the decider, Sindhu's precise returns and over-the-head smashes proved too much for her opponent.Srikanth, on the other hand, started well against Guang Zu but his errors allowed the Chinese player to level the scores. In the second game, Guang Zu took control, forcing Srikanth into errors and sealing the game. In the third game, Srikanth fought back from a deficit but ultimately succumbed to unforced errors, ending his hopes of advancing.