Former champion Kidambi Srikanth bowed out of the BWF India Open after losing to Frenchman Christo Popov in the round of 16 here on Thursday.
The former world No. 1 and 2021 World Championships silver medallist went down 14-21, 21-17, 17-21 in a contest that lasted over an hour at the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex.
Srikanth dropped the opening game 14-21 but showed strong character to stage a comeback in the second. Playing with better control, he clinched the game 21-17 to force a decider. However, Popov raised his level in the deciding game, proved steadier in the closing stages, and sealed the match by wrapping up the third game 21-17.
This was Srikanth’s first loss to Popov in their third career meeting. Last December, Popov became the first French shuttler to win the World Tour Finals 2025 after defeating world champion Shi Yu Qi in the final.
On Wednesday, Srikanth, who had last played a Super 750 event in Singapore in May 2025, recovered from an indifferent opening game to defeat compatriot Tharun Mannepalli 15-21, 21-6, 21-19 and advance to the second round.
Meanwhile, India’s campaign in the women’s singles ended after Malvika Bansod suffered a straight-game defeat, 18-21, 15-21, at the hands of Chinese shuttler Han Yue.
Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu was eliminated after losing her opening-round match 20-22, 21-12, 21-15 to Vietnam’s Nguyen Thuy Linh on Wednesday. In contrast, Malvika had kept India’s hopes alive in the women’s singles with a 21-18, 21-19 victory over Chinese Taipei’s Pai Yu-po before succumbing in the second round.
Earlier on Wednesday, HS Prannoy, a bronze medallist at the World Championships, won his first-round encounter against Hong Kong, China’s Lee Cheuk Yiu 22-20, 21-18 in a match that lasted 41 minutes.
Meanwhile, India’s top men’s doubles pair, Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, progressed to the second round after receiving a walkover against Chen Zhi Yi and Presley Smith of the USA.
Elsewhere, all three Indian mixed doubles pairs exited in the first round on Wednesday. Ashith Surya and Amrutha Pramuthesh lost 21-15, 21-7 to Japan’s Yuichi Shimogami and Sayaka Hobara, while Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Gadde were beaten 21-19, 21-14 by Germany’s Marvin Seidel and Thuc Phuong Nguyen.
Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto also went down 21-15, 21-14 against Thailand’s Pakkapon Teeraratsakul and Sapsiree Taerattanachai.
(IANS)
