Page 8 - Badminton

Australia Open Badminton: PV Sindhu, Kidambi Srikanth hope for a turnaround

Star Indian shuttlers PV Sindhu and Kidambi Srikanth will look to arrest their slump in form when they begin their campaign at the Australia Open badminton tournament here on Tuesday. The USD 420,000 event, which has been upgraded to a Super 500 tournament, will be the last chance for Sindhu and Srikanth to regain their touch ahead of the World Championships to be held in Copenhagen, Denmark. The 2019 world champion, Sindhu hasn't looked the part since her recovery from an injury as she has repeatedly made early exits in as many as seven of the 12 BWF World Tour events this year. A lot has happened this year for Sindhu as she parted ways with Korea's Park Tae-Sang, worked with SAI coach Vidhi Chaudhary before zeroing on new coach Muhammad Hafiz Hashim, the 2003 All-England champion. With back-to-back tournaments lined up, there is hardly any time but the two-time Olympic medallist will still hope to find her best self with the help of Hashim and try out some of her tricks when she

Japan Open 2023: Satwik-Chirag bow out; Lakshya Sen enters semifinals

India's Lakshya Sen continued his impressive run, notching up a straight-game win over local hope Koki Watanabe to progress to the semifinals of the Japan Open Super 750 badminton tournament here on Thursday. A 2021 world championship bronze medallist, world number 13 Sen registered a 21-15 21-19 victory over Watanabe, ranked 33rd, to make his third successive semifinals, following his exploits in Canada and the United States. The 21-year-old from Almora, the reigning Commonwealth Games champion, will play either fifth seed Indonesian Jonatan Christie or third seed Kunlavut Vitidsarn from Thailand. In-form men's doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, however, couldn't produce their 'A' game, going down fighting 15-21 25-23 16-21 to Olympic champions Lee Yang and Wang Chi-Lan of Chinese Taipei. Sen, who had won the Canada Open Super 500 early this month, opened up a 5-3 lead early on before moving to 11-7 at the break. The Indian didn't have much problem negotiati

Axelsen vs Prannoy: How the Dane's endurance overpowered Indian's skills

India's HS Prannoy led 1-0 and 7-1 in the second game before Viktor Axelsen fought a battle against his frustrations and the Indian's skills to win the match in thrilling three sets

Japan Open Badminton: Prannoy, Lakshya and Satwik-Chirag move to last 8

India's HS Prannoy prevailed in the match of compatriots after Lakshya Sen and the in-form men's doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty sailed into the quarterfinals of the Japan Open badminton here on Thursday. The 21-year-old Birmingham Commonwealth Games gold medallist Sen advanced to the quarters with a convincing pre-quarterfinals 21-14, 21-16 win over Japanese shuttler Kanta Tsuneyama in straight sets. Fresh from their triumph in the Korea Open, the Indian men's doubles pairing of Satwiksairaj and Chirag too secured progress to the last-eight stage with their dominant win over the Danish pair of Lasse Molhede and Jeppe Bay. Satwiksairaj and Chirag won 21-17, 21-11. Then, in the match between compatriots Prannoy and Kidambi Srikanth, the former emerged victorious with a 19-21, 21-9, 21-9 win to advance to the quarters of the Super 750 tournament. However, the Indian women's pairing of Gayatri Gopichand and Treesa Jolly suffered an exit despite their valiant

Japan Open Badminton: PV Sindhu loses, makes another first-round exit

Double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu made yet another first-round exit but Lakshya sen staved off a spirited challenge from fellow Indian Priyanshu Rajawat to progress to the second round of the Japan Open Super 750 badminton tournament here on Wednesday. Newly-crowned Korea Open champion Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and and Chirag Shetty also made a positive start to their campaign, extending their unbeaten run to 11 matches, following the wins in Yeosu and Indonesia. Enduring a tough phase of her career, Sindhu lost 12-21 13-21 to Zhang Yi Man of China in her opener that lasted 32 minutes. It was her seventh first round exit in 13 BWF World Tour events this year. Canada Open champion Sen, returning to action after skipping the Korea event, too showed better mental fortitude to survive a scare against compatriot Rajawat, prevailing 21-15 12-21 24-22 in a 65-minute battle. Sen will face Kanta Tsuneyama of Japan in the second round. Sindhu, the 2019 world champion, has looked a pale shadow

Japan Open Badminton: Satwik-Chirag eye season's first Super 750 title

PV Sindhu and her new coach Hafiz Hashim will be under pressure not to bow out in the first round. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will spearhead India's challenge in Japan Open Super 750

Satwik-Chirag scale new heights, beat top seeds to win Korea Open title

Indian Men's Doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty beat world no. Indonesian pair of Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto in three sets to win the Korea Open 500 title

Korea Open Badminton: Indian challenge over in Singles after Prannoy's loss

Indian badminton ace HS Prannoy made an early exit from the Korea Open Super 500 tournament as he lost his second round match to Lee Cheuk Yiu of Hong Kong here on Thursday. World number 10 Prannoy, seeded fifth in the tournament, lost 15-21 21-19 18-21 to his opponent ranked eight places below him in a closely-contested match that lasted one hour and six minutes. In another men's singles match, Priyanshu Rajawat gave a spirited fight against world number four and top-seeded Kodai Naraoka of Japan before losing 14-21 21-18 17-21 in a second-round match that went on for one hour 22 minutes. The Indian women's doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand was no match to the second seeded South Korean opponents Na Ha Baek and Hee So Lee as they lost 11-21 4-21 in just 33 minutes in the second round. The same was in case of the Indian mixed doubles pair of Rohan Kapoor and Sikki Reddy as they lost to fourth seeded Chinese pair of Zhe Yan Feng and Ping Dong Huang 15-21 12-21 in 35

PV Sindhu slips to world no. 17, her lowest ranking in over a decade

PV Sindhu slips to world number 17 in the BWF rankings released on Tuesday, slipping a further five places as the star grapples with inconsistent performance

Shuttler Rankireddy sets Guinness World Record for fastest badminton smash

Satwiksairaj broke a decade-long record which was set in May 2013 by Malaysian Tan Boon Heong, who had produced a speed of 493 km/h with his smash

'Going to be a hell of journey': Sindhu welcomes new coach Hafiz Hashim

Double Olympic medallist P V Sindhu on Tuesday announced Indonesian Mohammad Hafiz Hashim as her new coach, saying he has all the traits, including the "pedigree" and "attacking instinct", that she was seeking ahead of next year's Paris Olympics. PTI had reported earlier that Sindhu had written to the Sports Authority of India (SAI), seeking its approval to train under the former All England champion Malaysian as part of the Sports Ministry's Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS). "HERE WE GO!! In typical Fabrizio style, I am thrilled to announce Hafiz Hashim as my new coach!!," Sindhu, who is currently in Yeosu for the Korea Open Super 500 tournament, wrote in a social media post. "After a long, drawn-out process, I am ecstatic to declare that I have chosen the incredible Hafiz Hashim as my coach. "Hafiz possesses all the traits I was seeking in a coach, including the height, speed, and an attacking instinct. As a former All England champion in 2003, he sure has the pedigree as well

Satwik 'smashes' Guinness world record with fastest badminton hits

Star India shuttler Satwiksairaj Rankireddy has set the Guinness world record for the fastest hit by a male player in badminton, recording a mindboggling 565 km/h with his smash. Satwik, who alongwith his partner Chirag Shetty won the Indonesia Open Super 1000 recently, thus broke a decade-long record set in May, 2013 by Malaysian Tan Boon Heong, who had produced a speed of 493 km/h (306.34 mph) with his smash. Satwik's smash was faster than the top speed of 372.6 km/h achieved by a Formula 1 car. Malaysia's Tan Pearly set the Guinness world record for the fastest female badminton hits with a remarkable speed of 438 km/h (about 272 mph). "Yonex is proud to announce that Yonex badminton athletes, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy (IND) and Tan Pearly (MAS), have set new Guinness world records title for the fastest male and female badminton hits," the Japanese sports equipment manufacturing company said in a release. "Since the previous Guinness world records title for the fastest badminton h

Shuttler Lakshya Sen bows out of US Open tournament after loss in semifinal

Sen, the Commonwealth Games champion lost to the world number seven and All-England Champion Li Shifeng by 17-21, 24-22, 17-21 in a hard-fought match that lasted an hour and 16 minutes

PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen win openers; Sai Praneeth loses in US Open 2023

Olympic medallist shuttler PV Sindhu defeated her American opponent of Indian origin Disha Gupta while Lakshya Sen began his men's singles campaign with a convincing win over Finland's Kalle Koljonen at the US Open Super 300 badminton tournament here. In another men's singles match, S Sankar Subramanian, who had entered the main draw of the tournament after two tough qualifying matches, defeated his tricky Irish opponent Nhat Nguyen 21-11, 21-16 in the first round. However, B Sai Praneeth lost to 23-year-old world No. 7 Chinese player Li Shi Feng after a gruelling match that lasted three games. Sindhu defeated Diksha 21-15, 21-12 in just 27 minutes to enter the second round, while Lakshya beat his Finnish opponent 21-8, 21-16 in less than 30 minutes. Sankar though was tested by his Irish opponent Nhat Nguyen before winning 21-11, 21-16 in 44 minites, while Praneeth gave a tough fight to second seed Shi Feng before going down 16-21, 21-14, 21-19 in one hour and 14 minutes. In anoth

BWF Rankings: After Canada Open triumph, Sen jumps 7 places to 12th spot

Riding on his sensational Canada Open win, star Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen jumped seven places to occupy the 12th spot in the latest BWF world rankings issued on Tuesday. The 21-year-old Sen had dished out a badminton masterpiece to beat All England champion Li Shi Feng 21-18 22-20 in a thrilling summit clash on Sunday in Calgary, Canada, to notch up his second BWF Super 500 title. With 54,901 points to his kitty, Sen is the second highest-ranked Indian after HS Prannoy, who lost one place to be at ninth spot with 67,677 points. Sen is the highest mover in the latest rankings. Feng also moved up three places at seventh. Denmark's Viktor Axelsen still leads the chart with 1,01,205 points, followed by Anthony Sinisuka Ginting (95,661) of Indonesia and Kodai Naraoka (62,063) of Japan.

Lakshya Sen's triumph testament to his tenacity, determination: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday congratulated Lakshya Sen on reaching the final of the Canada Open Super 500 badminton tournament, calling his success a testament to his tenacity and determination. "Congratulations to the talented @lakshya_sen on his outstanding victory at the Canada Open 2023! His triumph is a testament to his tenacity and determination. It also fills our nation with immense pride. My best wishes to him for his upcoming endeavours," Modi tweeted. Commonwealth Games champion Sen stormed into the final of the tournament underway in Canada with a straight-game win over Japan's Kenta Nishimoto. Sen, who has slipped to world number 19 after struggling to find his form early in the season, saw off the world number 11 Japanese 21-17 21-14 to enter his second Super 500 final and first BWF summit clash in over a year.

US Open Badminton: Laksya Sen, PV Sindhu once again in focus for India

Newly-crowned Canada Open champion Lakshya Sen will hope to continue his winning momentum while beginning his campaign at the US Open Super 300 badminton tournament starting here on Tuesday. Sen turned around a health-related slump in form with a thrilling straight-game win over All England Champion Li Shi Feng in the finals of Canada Open on Sunday night. It was his first BWF title in 17 months and Sen will now train his eyes on US Open, where the third seeded Indian opens against Finland's Kalle Koljonen. Tokyo Olympian B Sai Praneeth, who is going through a poor run of form, will face a tall task of taming second seed and world number 10 Feng, who reached the finals in Calgary. In women's singles, double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu, seeded third, will continue her quest for a first title of the season when she opens her campaign against a qualifier. The Indian had reached the finals of Madrid Spain Masters this year and is coming into the tournament after a good outing at Canad

Lakshya Sen seals Canada Open title beating All England champion Feng

Star Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen dished out a badminton masterpiece to notch up his second BWF Super 500 title with a straight-game win over Li Shi Feng of China in the final of the Canada Open. The 21-year-old from Almora, who had claimed his maiden Super 500 title at the 2022 India Open, mixed incredible speed and power to outshine reigning All England champion Feng 21-18 22-20 in a thrilling summit clash. "Coming into the Olympic qualification year, it was tough as things didn't go my way. So this win will be a big boost to my confidence," Sen told PTI after the win. "I had to dig deep in some matches, the conditions were different and getting used to it was important," the ace shuttler said. This was Sen's first title since claiming his maiden gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in August last year. He is also the second singles player from the country to win a title this year, following HS Prannoy's victory at Malaysia Masters in May. Sen gave ample display of his temperamen

Canada Open Badminton: Lakshya Sen, PV Sindhu storm into the semi-finals

Commonwealth Games champions PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen notched up contrasting wins to advance to the semifinals of the Canada Open Super 500 badminton tournament here. Sindhu, a double Olympic medallist, stamped her authority over Fang Jie to register her first victory in four meetings against her opponent with a dominating 21-13 21-7 margin in the women's singles quarterfinals late on Friday night. Later, Sen staved off a spirited fight from German qualifier Julien Carraggi 21-8 17-21 21-10 in the men's singles quarterfinal. Sindhu will now face world number one Japan's Yamaguchi and Sen is pitted against fourth seeded Japanese Kenta Nishimoto. The 28-year-old from Hyderabad has a favourable 14-10 head-to-head record against the top seeded Japanese, who had beaten the Indian in their last meeting at Singapore Open this year. Sen, on the other hand, has a 1-1 record against Nishimoto, having last played him at the 2022 Japan Open. Sindhu looked more alert as she zoomed to a 5-1 l

Canada Open 2023: Shuttlers PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen enter quarterfinals

Star Indian shuttlers PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen progressed to the quarterfinals of the women's and men's singles competitions respectively at the Canada Open Super 500 tournament here. While Sindhu advanced to the last eight after her opponent Natsuki Nidaira of Japan gave a her a walkover, Sen notched up a 21-15 21-11 win over Brazil's Ygor Coelho in 31 minutes. Sindhu will face 2022 Indonesia Masters champion Gao Fang Jie, who had played an important role in China's win at the Asia Mixed Team Championships this year. Sen, who is a Commonwealth Games gold medallist, takes on Belgium's Julien Carraggi. However, Krishna Prasad Garaga and Vishnuvardhan Goud Panjala couldn't cross the pre-quarterfinal stage, going down 9-21 11-21 to Indonesian second seed and world number 7 Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan. Sen has been slowly regaining his touch after going through a lean patch early in the season. On Thursday, Sen faced a tough battle against Coelho, who erased a 0-2 deficit wit