Yonex Thailand Open: A disappointing day 3 for Indian shuttlers on court

Yonex Thailand Open: A disappointing day 3 for Indian shuttlers on court

Saina Nehwal and Chirag Shetty-Satwiksairaj Rankireddy

Saina Nehwal, Chirag Shetty-Satwiksairaj Rankireddy
Saina Nehwal and Chirag Shetty-Satwiksairaj Rankireddy

The third day of the ongoing Yonex Thailand Open has so far turned out to be a disappointment for the Indian shuttlers. Chirag Shetty- Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Saina Nehwal lost their matches while Kidambi Srikanth pulled out of the tournament due to a calf muscle strain.

Defending mens doubles champions, Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy had shown an incredible performance in their opening round against South Koreans Kim Gi Jung and Lee Yong Dae. However the Indian duo proved to be no match for world no. 2 pair of Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan of Indonesia.

The Indonesians were in complete control of the match beating the Indian pair in 33 minutes in a straight-game victory. Ahsan and Setiawan dictated the play at will with their quick returns, dominant match play and powerful strokes from the back court. The Indians tried their best to stay in the match but the Indonesian pair didn’t let the match slip from their fingers. The scores were 19-21, 17-21.

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After PV Sindhu‘s early dismissal from the tournament, Saina Nehwal was the sole Indian in the women’s singles draws. Off the court Nehwal had a few tumultuous days with testing positive for COVID-19, being asked to withdraw and later being reinstated after a re-examination. Despite that the 2012 Thailand Open winner had a commanding victory in her opening round against Malaysia’s Kisona Selvaduray on Wednesday.

However, Nehwal lost her next fixture against local favourite Busanan Ongbamrungphan. She had taken the first game but the Thai shuttler put on a spirited comeback in the final two games securing a win. The Indian star battled it out in a tiring three game match but eventually lost out on her target. She had her opportunities but couldn’t capitalize on them. The scores were 23-21, 14-21, 16-21.

Kidambi Srikanth pulls out

In what came as another major blow to the Indian camp, ace shuttler Kidambi Srikanth pulled out of the ongoing Yonex Thailand Open. He was advised to withdraw from the tournament after suffering a calf muscle strain. He took to social media to announce the news. His withdrawal gave a walkover to Malyasia’s Lee Zii Jia, who he was scheduled to face.

On Wednesday, Indian player Parupalli Kashyap had also pulled out of his opening clash midway after suffering a calf injury.

Now with the Indian contingent facing a string of losses on the third day, all eyes will be on the mixed doubles pair of Ashwini Ponnappa and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy who will be seen in action later on Thursday. The world no. 36 pair will go against Hong Kong duo Chang Tak Ching and NG Wing Yung.

Also read: Yonex Thailand Open: Kidambi Srikanth pulls out due to calf-muscle strain