Indian men's team failed to defend its title after going down fighting 1-3 to China
The top seeded Indian duo, who reached the semi-finals of the season-opening Malaysia Open super 1000, was scheduled to face Chinese Taipei's Su Ching Heng and Ye Hong Wei in the opening round.
An Indian team which is a nice little blend of youth and experience, will have to punch above its weight in what's going to be an arduous challenge in the Sudirman Cup mixed team championships here on Sunday.
The Indian women's badminton team crashed out of the Uber Cup after losing to Japan in the quarter-finals in Aarhus, Denmark on Thursday while the men completed their group engagements in the Thomas Cup with a defeat to China.
The script remained the same in the second game as well, with Sindhu maintaining her firm grip over the proceedings to race to a 6-0 lead in just two minutes.
H S Prannoy signed off with a bronze -- India's first medal in men's singles at the Asian Games in 41 years,.
Lakshya Sen upset World No 4 Loh Kean Yew of Singapore in the round of 32 match at the Malaysia Masters.
Kidambi Srikanth rallied his way to a thrilling win in a tense decider as India kept alive their hopes of winning a first-ever gold medal at the Asian Games.
The win ensured Srikanth's dominance over his younger countrymate as he took his head-to-head record to 3-0 over Lakshya.
Fresh from their Korea Open triumph, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will look to continue their dream run.
Sourabh Verma and Ajay Jayram also entered the second round
HS Prannoy had almost given up on winning his next title and breaking a six-year long drought before chief national coach Pullela Gopichand instilled in him the belief.
HS Prannoy secured his maiden BWF World Tour title
Saina, who has been battling illness and injuries, is going through a bad patch, having lost six times in the first round this season.
The absence of double Olympic medallist P V Sindhu, London Games bronze medallist Saina Nehwal and men's doubles pair of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy also hurt India's prospect as the team cut a sorry figure at the team-tournament.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday.
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