Malaysia Masters: Prannoy, Srikanth Enter Second Round, Sindhu Bows Out

Star duo bring cheer to Indian camp after double Olympic medalist crashes out of women's singles competition

- STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE

Former world number 1 Kidambi Srikanth and H S Prannoy entered the second round of the men's singles at the Malaysia Masters badminton tournament in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday.

However, there was bitter disappointment in store for Indian fans as double Olympic medallist P. V. Sindhu suffered a first-round exit in the women's singles category.

Prannoy battled past fifth seed Kenta Nishimoto of Japan in an 82-minute showdown, clinching a 19-21, 21-17, 21-16 victory.

Not to be outdone, Srikanth stunned sixth seed Lu Guang Zu of China with a gritty 23-21, 13-21, 21-11 win to power into the next round.

Srikanth qualified for the main draw in the men's singles section after beating Chinese Taipei shuttlers Kuo Kuan-lin and Huang Yu Kai in the qualifiers.

Other Indians in the men's singles, Sathish Karunakaran pulled off a stunning upset, toppling third seed Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei with a commanding 21-13, 21-14 victory in just 39 minutes.

Meanwhile, rising star Ayush Shetty, bouncing back a game down, defeated Canada's Brian Yang 20-22, 21-10, 21-8 and stormed into the second round.