Badminton Malaysia Open: HS Prannoy advances, Sai Praneeth, Sameer Verma exit 

    Indian shuttlers Sameer Verma and Sai Praneeth were knocked out in the opening round of the singles event at the Malaysia Open Super 750 badminton event in Kaula Lumpur on June 28

    HS Prannoy advances HS Prannoy advances

    World No. 19 Sai Praneeth lost to the Indonesian shuttler Anthony Sinisuka Ginting 15-21 21-19 9-21 after 50 minutes of play, while Sameer Verma lost to Jonatan Christie of Indonesia 15-21 21-19 9-21 in his first match since being off the court due to an injury after 49 minutes of play.

    Sai Praneeth was facing Anthony Sinisuka Ginting for the eighth time. He went into the match with a win-loss record of 3-4, with their previous meeting taking place at the 2020 Asian Team championship. The Indian lost after he had to retire mid-match due to a medical issue.

    In the women’s doubles event, the Indian duo of N Sikki Reddy and Ashwini Ponnappa fell to the sixth-seeded Japanese pairing Chihari Shida and Nami Matsuyama 15-21, 11-21.

    After several disappointing performances by the Indian squad, Former top ten HS Pranoy brought some joy with a 21-14, 17-21, 21-18 victory over Liew Daren of Malaysia to secure a second-round spot in the men’s singles event.

    The first game had a slow start, but HS Pranoy got an 11-7 lead by the break. He put forth a brilliant display of aggressive shot-making to take control of the game and broke the defence of his Malaysian opponent. Liew Daren made constant errors allowing HS Pranoy to win the first game 17-21.

    Liew Daren regained his footing in the second game and raced to a 7-4 lead. However, HS Pranoy soon bounced back with back-to-back smashes. The Malaysian pulled a reversal after the break and clinched four consecutive points after a series of unforced errors by HS Pranoy to send the match into a decider.

    HS Pranoy got a hasty 6-3 lead in the third game, but Liew Daren stayed persistent and fought his way back, winning three points to make it 6-6. It was an intense set with constant back and forth between both the players. HS Pranoy managed to get an 11-8 lead at the interval. 

    After the break, Liew Daren returned with renewed vigour and offered strong resistance to the Indian, but HS Pranoy emerged as the winner, ending the thrilling match with a powerful smash.

     

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