Changzhou [China], July 24 : India's popular men's doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty advanced to the pre-quarterfinals of the ongoing China Open badminton tournament on Thursday.
The world number 12 duo registered a win over Indonesian pair of Leo Rolly Carnando and Bagas Maulana by 21-19, 21-19 across both games.
In their Round of 32 clash, Satwik and Chirag hardly broke a sweat and wrapped up the contest on an emphatic note with a 21-13, 21-9 triumph over the Japanese pair of Kenya Mitsuhashi and Hiroki Okamura in 31 minutes.Before entering the fixture, the Indian duo had never lost a game against the Japanese pair, ensuring their flawless run remained intact.
On the other hand, HS Prannoy, a World Championships medalist, bowed out of the competition in the round of 16, facing a loss to Chinese Taipei's Chou Tien-chen by 21-18, 15-21, 8-21 in a one-sided match despite winning the first game.
In women's singles competition, Unnati Hooda delivered a commanding performance to outplay experienced Scottish shuttler Kirsty Gilmour 21-11, 21-16 in just 36 minutes on Wednesday.
With this impressive win, 17-year-old Unnati advanced to the Round-of-16, where she will take on compatriot PV Sindhu in an all-Indian clash.
Sindhu brushed off an early scare to book her berth in the next phase at the Olympic Sports Centre Gymnasium in Changzhou.Japan's Tomoka Miyazaki threatened to end Sindhu's campaign, but the two-time Olympic medallist roared back to qualify for the pre-quarter-finals. Sindhu clinched a 21-15, 8-21, 21-17 victory over Miyazaki in a fixture that lasted for 1 hour and 2 minutes.In her second meeting against the sixth seed, Sindhu dominated her Japanese opposition in the opening game, built an early healthy lead and clinched the game. In the second game, Sindhu fought for control against Miyazaki and eventually conceded a comprehensive 8-21 defeat.
The match headed to the deciding game, which was fought almost on level terms. However, Sindhu upped the ante and landed the decisive blow to earn a place in the Round of 16.
Meanwhile, in the women's doubles event, the Panda sisters, Rutaparna and Swetaparna, faced a stern challenge against the experienced Hong Kong China duo and concluded their campaign. They were ousted convincingly with a 12-21, 13-21 defeat.
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