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India enjoyed a mixed day at the Singapore Open Super 750 tournament on Thursday as Lakshya Sen and PV Sindhu progressed to the quarterfinals with impressive performances, while HS Prannoy suffered a painful exit after letting a strong position slip away in the deciding game.

Sindhu looked in complete command during her second-round clash against Japan’s Riko Gunji and barely gave her opponent any opportunity to settle into the contest. The Indian shuttler wrapped up the match in straight games 21-9, 21-12 in just 37 minutes.

From the very beginning, Sindhu controlled the rallies with aggressive placement and sharp movement around the court. Gunji struggled badly against the pace and intensity brought by the Indian star as the contest quickly turned into a one-sided affair.

PV Sindhu faces toughest challenge next

Sindhu’s quarterfinal challenge, however, will be significantly tougher as she is set to face top seed and Olympic champion An Se Young of South Korea.

The Korean has enjoyed complete dominance in their recent meetings and Sindhu will now look to finally turn things around against one of the strongest players on the women’s circuit.

Lakshya Sen advances after opponent retires hurt

Lakshya Sen also secured his place in the last eight, although his progress came in unfortunate circumstances after Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn retired early from the match due to a back issue.

The contest barely got underway before the Thai shuttler decided he could not continue, allowing Lakshya to move into the quarterfinals after just a couple of points.

The Indian youngster will now face Japan’s Koki Watanabe in the next round.

Satwik-Chirag and Dhruv-Tanisha keep India’s doubles hopes alive

India’s star men’s doubles combination of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty also entered the quarterfinals after surviving a tough three-game battle against Chinese Taipei pair Lee Jhe-Huei and Yang Po-Hsuan.

The Indian duo started strongly and comfortably claimed the opening game before losing rhythm in the second. However, Satwik and Chirag recovered brilliantly in the decider and eventually sealed a hard-fought 21-15, 11-21, 21-18 victory after an hour-long contest.

In mixed doubles too, Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto produced a sensational comeback after dropping the first game heavily against Japan’s Yuta Watanabe and Maya Taguchi.

The Indian pair showed excellent composure and bounced back strongly to register an 8-21, 21-17, 21-16 win and book their place in the quarterfinals.

HS Prannoy suffers heartbreaking defeat

Meanwhile, HS Prannoy’s campaign came to a frustrating end despite the Indian veteran looking in control for major parts of his clash against Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew.

Prannoy made a strong comeback after losing the opening game and appeared set to complete the turnaround when he built a healthy lead midway through the decider. However, a sudden collapse filled with unforced errors completely changed the momentum of the match.

The Indian repeatedly found the net during crucial moments and allowed Loh to make a dramatic comeback in front of the home crowd. Riding on the momentum shift, the Singaporean eventually closed out the contest 18-21, 21-16, 21-15 to eliminate Prannoy from the tournament.

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