Sindhu and Lakshya Sen Storm into Semifinals at Syed Modi International Super 300
Star Indian shuttlers PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen powered through to the semifinals of the Syed Modi International Super 300 badminton tournament with dominant straight-game victories on Friday.
Top seed Sindhu, a two-time champion at this event (2017, 2022), continued her strong campaign, defeating China’s Dai Wang 21-15, 21-17 in just 48 minutes. Sindhu, ranked 18th in the world, remained aggressive throughout the match, rectifying the mistakes from her previous encounter.
“I was aggressive from the start today and didn’t give her a chance to settle. I’m happy with my performance compared to yesterday,” Sindhu said. She will now face fellow Indian Unnati Hooda in the semifinals.
Lakshya Sen, the 2021 World Championship bronze medallist, also made quick work of his quarterfinal match, overpowering compatriot Meiraba Luwang Maisnam 21-8, 21-19. “I was happy with how I started. The second game was tougher, but I’m glad I managed to close it out,” Lakshya commented. He will take on Japan’s Shogo Ogawa in the next round.
Unnati Hooda, who recently won the Odisha Open title, advanced to the semifinals after a commanding 21-16, 21-9 win over USA’s Ishika Jaiswal. Hooda, who had a six-month injury layoff earlier this year, expressed her satisfaction with her game plan and adjustments to the court conditions.
In women’s doubles, the second-seeded pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand continued their fine form, advancing to the semifinals with a 21-8, 21-15 victory over Malaysia’s Go Pei Kee and Teoh Mei Xing. The duo has already qualified for the World Tour Finals in China.
In mixed doubles, Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto also progressed to the semifinals, defeating Malaysia’s Loo Bing Kun and Ho Lo Ee 21-16, 21-13.
However, there was disappointment for Ayush Shetty, who was knocked out in the men’s singles after a 7-21, 14-21 loss to Shogo Ogawa. Tasnim Mir and Shriyanshi Valishetty also ended their campaigns with defeats in the women’s singles quarterfinals.
With top performances across multiple categories, India’s shuttlers are looking strong as they continue their bid for titles at this prestigious tournament.
