Orleans [France], March 18 : Former World No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth suffered a first-round exit at the Orleans Masters 2026 after going down in straight games to Denmark's Magnus Johannesen in Orleans, France, on Wednesday.
Ranked 30th in the world, Srikanth made a bright start, opening up a 5-2 lead in the first game. However, Johannesen quickly took control, moving ahead 11-6 at the interval before wrapping up the opener 21-12, according to Olympics.com.
The Dane continued his dominance in the second game, overcoming a brief challenge from the Indian to reel off nine consecutive points and seal a 21-10 win in just 26 minutes.
While Srikanth's campaign ended early, several Indian shuttlers progressed to the next round with impressive performances.
In men's singles, Ayush Shetty battled past compatriot Kiran George in a three-game contest. After dropping the first game 17-21, Shetty responded strongly to take the next two 21-10, 21-17 and advance to the second round.
In the women's singles draw, Anmol Kharb registered a commanding straight-games win over Turkiye's Neslihan Arin, prevailing 21-12, 21-16. Malvika Bansod also progressed after defeating Chinese Taipei's Sung Shuo-yun 21-18, 21-14.
Teenager Tanvi Sharma delivered one of the biggest upsets of the day, knocking out second seed Supanida Katethong. The Thai player retired midway through the second game with Sharma leading 21-18, 14-12.
However, it was not a successful day for all Indian players. Rakshitha Ramraj and Devika Sihag bowed out in the opening round after losses to Japan's Manami Suizu and Hong Kong, China's Lo Sin Yan, respectively.
In mixed doubles, the Indian pair of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto also exited early, losing 21-14, 21-18 to Indonesia's Dejan Ferdinansyah and Bernadine Wardana.
Despite Srikanth's early departure, India's emerging contingent ensured continued representation in multiple categories heading into the second round.
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