NEW DELHI: Returning from a break, two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu advanced to the women's singles second round with a straight-game victory over Scotland's Kirsty Gilmour at the Malaysia Masters Super 500 badminton tournament in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday.
World No. 15 Sindhu, who had skipped the Uber Cup and Thailand Open, secured a 21-17, 21-16 win over Gilmour, ranked 22nd, in an opening-round match that lasted 46 minutes. The fifth-seeded Indian, who last won a title at the 2022 Singapore Open, will next face Korea's Sim Yu Jin.
Ashmita Chaliha also progressed to the second round of women's singles, defeating qualifier Sih Yun Lin of Chinese Taipei 21-17, 21-16. Ashmita will next face third seed Beiwen Zhang of the USA.
However, Unnati Hooda and Aakarshi Kashyap exited in the opening round. Hooda lost 13-21, 18-21 to China's Gao Fang Jie, while Kashyap was beaten 22-24, 13-21 by second-seeded Chinese Wang Zhi Yi. In men's singles, Kiran George also bowed out in the first round, losing 16-21, 17-21 to Japan's Takuma Obayashi.
In mixed doubles, B Sumeeth Reddy and N Sikki Reddy, world No. 53, advanced to the second round after a 21-15, 12-21, 21-17 victory over Hong Kong qualifiers Lui Chun Wai and Fu Chi Yan in 47 minutes. The husband-wife duo will next face top seeds Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei of Malaysia.
The men's doubles pair of Krishna Prasad Garaga and K Sai Pratheek defeated Chinese Taipei's Ming Che Lu and Tang Kai Wei 23-21, 21-11 to progress to the second round.
For Sindhu, it was her third win over Gilmour, a two-time Commonwealth Games medallist. The 28-year-old Sindhu started strong, opening up a 7-1 lead, but Gilmour clawed back to level at 14-14 and 15-15. Sindhu then took six of the next eight points to clinch the first game. In the second game, Sindhu maintained her momentum, leading 3-0 early and 11-6 at the break, ultimately sealing the match comfortably despite Gilmour saving four match points.
A former world champion, Sindhu has faced a series of narrow losses since returning from a knee injury earlier this year. She aims for a strong performance at the Malaysia Masters to boost her confidence ahead of the Paris Olympics.
(With PTI inputs)The TOI Sports Desk excels in a myriad of roles that capture the ...
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