CHANGZHOU, 22 July (H.S.): India’s star badminton player PV Sindhu made a winning start at the China Open 2026 on Wednesday, defeating compatriot Unnati Hooda in a thrilling three-game encounter to secure a place in the pre-quarterfinals (Round of 16). Meanwhile, young Indian shuttler Ayush Shetty pulled off a major upset in the men’s singles event by defeating Indonesia’s world No. 11 Alwi Farhan.

World No. 15 Sindhu, who recently won the Japan Open title, defeated Unnati Hooda 21-14, 9-21, 21-10. After losing momentum in the second game, the experienced Indian made a strong comeback in the decider and comfortably sealed the match in her favour. The contest lasted nearly an hour.

In the Round of 16, Sindhu will face fourth-seeded Chinese player Chen Yufei, who defeated Japan’s Natsuki Nidaira in the opening round.

In men’s singles, Ayush Shetty produced an impressive performance to overcome Indonesia’s world No. 11 Alwi Farhan 21-17, 5-21, 21-17 and advance to the pre-quarterfinals. The victory was particularly significant for Shetty as he had lost to the same opponent in the semifinals of the 2023 BWF World Junior Championships.

However, Indian players endured disappointing results in the doubles events. In mixed doubles, the pair of Rohan Kapoor and Ritika Thaker Gadde suffered a straight-game defeat against top-seeded Chinese duo Yan Zhe Feng and Dong Ping Huang, losing 21-9, 21-16.

In another mixed doubles match, Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto were defeated by China’s Xin Wa Guo and Fang Hui Chen in straight games, going down 21-18, 21-18.

In men’s doubles, the pair of M.R. Arjun and Hariharan Amsakarunan also bowed out after losing their match against fourth-seeded Chinese duo Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang.

Meanwhile, India’s top-seeded men’s singles player Lakshya Sen will take on Japan’s world No. 19 Yushi Tanaka in his first-round match later in the day.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar