India Open Badminton Tournament: Kidambi Srikantath, HS PNOY Advance; PV SIDH suffers from exit | Badminton News – The Times of India

Veteran Indian shuttlers Kidambi Srikanth and HS Prannoy turned back the years to reach the second round of the men’s singles at the 2026 India Open, while 16-year-old Tanvi Sharma impressed despite losing in the opening round in the women’s singles at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi on Wednesday.Former world number 1 Srikanth and the experienced Prannoy both defeated younger opponents in contrasting but equally gritty performances at the BWF World Tour Super 750 event organized by the Badminton Association of India.

Srikanth, 32, recovered from a slow start to beat compatriot Tharun M 15-21, 21-6, 21-19, while 33-year-old Prannoy Lee defeated Cheuk Yiu of Hong Kong, last year’s runner-up, 22-20, 21-18.Prannoy’s victory was particularly important, after a difficult 2025 marred by fitness issues. He earned a place in the main draw following the withdrawal of world number 3 Anders Antonsen of Denmark and took full advantage of the opportunity. Prannoy, ranked 38th in the world, showed resilience by saving two game points in the opening game and used his powerful down-the-line smashes and patience in rallies to wear Lee down. He will now face former world champion and eighth seed Loh Kean Yew of Singapore, who defeated China’s Wang Zheng Xing 23-21, 19-21, 21-14.Srikanth, playing his first Super 750 event since Singapore in May 2025, lost his rhythm early and dropped the opening match. However, he dominated the second game and relied on his experience in the decider. Trailing 17-19, Srikanth produced a brilliant spell at the net, winning four straight points and wrapping up the match in 53 minutes. He will next face Frenchman Christo Popov.In the women’s singles, Malvika Bansod was the only Indian to progress, beating Pai Yu Po of Chinese Taipei 21-18, 21-19. However, two-time Olympic medalist and former world champion PV Sindhu was eliminated after losing 20-22, 21-12, 21-15 to Vietnam’s Thuy Linh Nguyen.Teenager Tanvi Sharma, a silver medalist at the World Junior Championships, showed her promise against second seed Wang Zhi Yi of China. In her first Super 750 event, Tanvi pushed the Chinese star to three matches but lost 20-22, 21-18, 21-13 after missing a game point in the opener and tiring in the decider.