Two-time Olympic medallist P. V. Sindhu emerged as the lone bright spot for India in the singles competition at the Indonesia Open on Tuesday, battling past Thailand’s Busanan Ongbamrungphan to secure a place in the second round of the prestigious Super 1000 tournament in Jakarta.
Sindhu was pushed hard throughout the contest but showed resilience and composure in key moments to register a 25-23, 21-16 victory in 51 minutes. The former world champion had to dig deep in a tightly contested opening game before using the momentum gained from that hard-fought success to take control of the second game and complete the win in straight games.
The Indian star relied on her trademark attacking style and experience under pressure to overcome Busanan’s challenge. The result keeps Sindhu’s campaign alive at one of the most important events on the badminton calendar and offers a timely confidence boost as she looks to regain consistent form on the international circuit.
While Sindhu progressed, it proved to be a disappointing day for several other Indian shuttlers.
Former world No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth suffered a first-round exit after losing 19-21, 15-21 to Japan’s Yushi Tanaka. Srikanth struggled to gain control of the match and was unable to recover after dropping a closely fought opening game.
India’s top-ranked men’s singles player Lakshya Sen also bowed out in the opening round. The world No. 10 went down 19-21, 16-21 to Indonesia’s Alwi Farhan, the 2023 Junior World Champion, who enjoyed strong support from the home crowd.
In women’s singles, Malvika Bansod was comprehensively beaten by seventh-seeded Thai player Pornpawee Chochuwong. Chochuwong dominated from the outset and sealed a comfortable 21-12, 21-10 victory.
India found some success in doubles through the men’s pair of Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun. The duo produced an impressive performance to defeat the higher-ranked Malaysian combination of Nur Mohd Azriyn Ayub and Tan Wee Kiong 21-18, 21-10 and advance to the second round.
However, there was disappointment elsewhere in doubles competition. The women’s pairing of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, playing together for the first time in more than two months, lost 14-21, 12-21 to Indonesia’s Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma and Meilysa Trias Puspitasari.
Meanwhile, mixed doubles pair Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto were also knocked out after a one-sided 11-21, 10-21 defeat to sixth-seeded Chinese duo Guo Xin Wa and Chen Fang Hui.
With several Indian contenders already eliminated, Sindhu will now carry the nation’s primary hopes in the singles draw as the tournament progresses in Jakarta.
