Bangkok, 14 May (H.S.): India's star badminton players PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen, and the men's doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty have advanced to the quarterfinals of the Thailand Open Super 500 badminton tournament with stellar performances.
Two-time Olympic medalist and sixth seed in the tournament, PV Sindhu, defeated Denmark's Amalie Schulz 21-13, 21-15 in straight games in the women's singles second round. Sindhu clinched the match in just 28 minutes.
In the quarterfinals, Sindhu will face top-seeded and world number-3 Akane Yamaguchi of Japan, presenting a tough challenge for the Indian star.
In men's singles, seventh seed Lakshya Sen beat China's Zhu Shuang Chen 21-12, 21-13 to enter the last-8. Lakshya displayed aggressive play from the start in this 39-minute encounter.
In the quarterfinals, Lakshya Sen will take on the winner of the match between Li Chia Hao of Chinese Taipei and second-seeded Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand.
In men's doubles, the top-seeded Indian pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty defeated Malaysia's Brian Jeremy Gunting and Mohamad Haikal 21-12, 21-19 to secure a quarterfinal spot. The world number-4 Indian duo won the match in 44 minutes.
Next, Satwiksairaj-Chirag will face Japan's sixth-seeded pair Takumi Nomura and Yuchi Shimogami.
However, young Indian player Devika Sihag's campaign ended in the second round. Devika, who won the Thailand Masters Super 300 title this year, lost 23-21, 21-11 to host Thailand's Pichaemon Opatniputh.
Later in the day, India's former world number-1 Kidambi Srikanth will also play his second-round match against Su Li Yang of Chinese Taipei.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
