A fast and fluent Lakshya Sen ended a difficult stretch on the international circuit by defeating Japan's Yushi Tanaka in the men's singles final of the US $475,000 Australian Open Super 500 and clinching his first title of the season, in Sydney, on Sunday.
India's Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty fell agonisingly short of a final berth, going down to Japan's Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi in their men's doubles clash at the Denmark Open Super 750, in Odense, on Saturday.
Satwik and Chirag, who finished runners-up in last week's Hong Kong Open, eked out a 24-22, 21-13 victory over Malaysia's Junaidi Arif and Roy King Yap in 42 minutes
And beyond personal grief, Satwik's gratitude spilled outward -- to those who cheered, to those who stood by him, and to the nation itself.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty notched up a dominating straight-game win against Indonesian duo of Muhammad Rian Ardianto and Fajar Alfian to top Group C.
Young Indian shuttler Ayush Shetty put up a spirited fight before going down in three games against France's Toma Junior Popov on a disappointing day for the Indians at the Denmark Open Super 750 badminton tournament, in Odense, on Tuesday.
Satwik and Chirag, who recently bagged their second bronze medal at the World Championships in Paris, overcame Taiwan's Chiu Hsiang Chieh and Wang Chi-Lin 21-13, 18-21, 21-10 in their opening round.
P V Sindhu and the men's doubles pairing of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty sailed into the quarter-finals of the China Masters tournament with straight-game wins, in Shenzhen, on Thursday.
On Saturday, the Indians came out with an all-out attacking approach, backed by a solid defence, while also dominating the front court as the Malaysians -- particularly Aaron -- looked out of sorts during the 41-minute semi-final clash.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty have regained their top spot following their Thailand Open title triumph on Sunday.
Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen and the pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty sailed into the semifinals of their respective events at the Hong Kong Open Super 500 badminton tournament on Friday.
Satwik-Chirag won the match 19-21, 21-15, 21-17.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty's campaign at the Badminton World Championships came to an end in the semifinals
India's top men's doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty continued their consistent run to advance to the semifinals of the China Masters Super 750 badminton tournament but P V Sindhu bowed out after falling yet again to Olympic champion An Se Young, in Shenzhen n Friday.
'In the last couple of tournaments, we've served a lot better than in the past year. The game is too fast to rely on one style. You need multiple ways to score points, and that's what we are trying to develop.'
Chasing India's first-ever mixed doubles medal at the showpiece, Kapila and Crasto lost 15-21, 13-21 in 37 minutes. A win would have guaranteed them of at least a bronze.
'We didn't get really any rhythm. We didn't start off that well. We gave away easy points (in the third game). We should have been a bit smarter. But, credit to them.'
Chirag and his longtime partner Satwiksairaj Rankireddy won the men's doubles bronze last week
India squandered a golden opportunity to return with two titles as both Lakshya Sen and the men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty signed off with runner-up finishes at the Hong Kong Open Super 500 in Hing Kong on Sunday.
Lakshya Sen entered his first major final in two years after edging out Chinese Taipei's Chou Tien Chen in straight games, while the men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty also stormed into the summit clash.
India's top doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty bowed out of the China Open Super 1000 badminton tournament after suffering a straight-game defeat to Malaysian second seeds Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik in the semifinals in Changzhou on Saturday.
Ayush stuns Naraoka to join Satwik-Chirag, Lakshya in quarterfinals at Hong Kong Open
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty outclassed Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi of Malaysia in straight games to enter the semi-finals of the China Open Super 100.
P V Sindhu bowed out, while H S Prannoy and Lakshya Sen scored hard-fought wins to advance in the Hong Kong Open Super 500 tournament.
P V Sindhu knows how to win big tournaments, but as she enters her 30s, the two-time Olympic medallist must be selective about which competitions she chooses to go "all out" in, feels London Games bronze winner Saina Nehwal.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty assured India of a medal at the World Championships after defeating Malaysia's two-time Olympic medallists Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, in the quarter-finals in Paris.
Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy stormed into the men's doubles second round of the Macau Open Super 300 with a straight-game win over Malaysia's Low Hang Yee and Ng Eng Cheong.
Indian doubles coach Tan Kim Her praised Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty for winning a bronze medal at the World Championships but rued the missed opportunity, saying the doubles specialists need to work more on their fitness to go the distance.
New Delhi has been chosen as the host city of the next Badminton World Championships in August 2026, the sport's global governing body BWF announced on Monday.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty hardly broke a sweat while defeating the Chinese pair of Chen Bo Yang and Liu Yi to win the Thailand Open men's doubles crown in Bangkok on Sunday.
In men's doubles, Satwik and Chirag, currently ranked 15th in the world, defeated the Korean duo of Kang Min Hyuk and Kim Dong Ju 21-18, 21-10 in just 42 minutes.
In women's singles, Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medallist and 2019 world champion, will have to recover from the shock defeat against fellow Indian Unnati Hooda at the China Open.
Indian shuttlers handed tough draws, Lakshya Sen to face world No 1 Shi Yu Qi in opener
The Indian duo needed just 35 minutes to beat Lu Ming-Che and Tang Kai-Wei of Chinese Taipei in the semi-finals of the Super 500 tournament.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy has set the Guinness world record for the fastest hit by a male player in badminton, recording a mindboggling 565 km/h with his smash.
This was their third semifinal appearance on the BWF Tour this season, having earlier reached the last four at the Singapore Open and India Open.
Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya presented the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award to badminton stars Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy.
Later in the day, Commonwealth Games champion Lakshya Sen will face Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo of Indonesia.
A gold medallist at the 37th National Games, Mannepalli was trailing 4-7 in the first game before rallying to 12-9. He then took control and scored six straight points from 15-11 to seal the game.
Sindhu regained control in the decider, maintaining a steady lead to close out the contest and secure a hard-fought win in 62 minutes.
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