India's singles campaign ends, Satwik Chirag and Ashwini Tanisha into quarters

Listen to Story India's singles campaign at the Malaysia Open Super 1000 tournament came to an early end as former World No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth was ousted in the men's singles second round in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday, January 11. Kidambi Srikanth began the campaign with a morale boosting win over 6th seed Jonathan Christie in a marathon three game battle.

However, he went down in straight games to Hong Kong's Ng Ka Long. India's singles campaign has gotten off to a bleak start in 2024 as the likes of HS Prannoy and Lakshya Sen were ousted in the first round. in the absence of PV Sindhu, India's Akarshi Kashyap also lost in the women's singles first round.

On a brighter note, the Indian contingent saw a better showing in doubles. The men's duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, who had an exceptional run in 2023 with six titles to their name, continued their formidable form into the new year. They dominated their match against France's Lucas Corvee and Ronan Labar, securing a straight game victory with scores of 21 11, 21 18.

The win propelled them into the quarterfinals, setting up a clash with China's He Ji Ting and Ren Xiang Yu. Similarly, the women's doubles team comprising Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto continued their consistent run. The pair, who had won titles in Abu Dhabi and Guwahati the previous year, delivered a stunning performance against Japan's world No.

9 team of Wakana Nagahara and Mayu Matsumoto. They emerged victorious with a scoreline of 21 19, 13 21, 21 15, advancing to the quarterfinals and continuing their journey towards potential Olympic qualification. Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto, who are ranked 21 in the Olympic qualifying rankings, will face Japan's unseeded pair of Iwanaga Rin and Nakanishi Kie in the quarter final on Friday..