Last Updated: October 26, 2022, 22:19 IST
Indian badminton star Kidambi Srikanth (AP)
Kidambi Srikanth defeated Lakshya Sen 21-18 21-18 in the men’s singles first round at the French Open
Kidambi Srikanth prevailed over Lakshya Sen in an all-Indian duel to advance to the men’s singles second round of the French Open Super 750 badminton tournament on Wednesday.
Srikanth, the 2021 World Championships silver winner, beat junior compatriot Sen 21-18 21-18 in a first round match that lasted 46 minutes.
This was only the second career match between the top two Indian shuttlers. Sen had lost to his senior compatriot in their earlier meeting at the semifinals of the 2021 World Championships to settle for a bronze medal.
Srikanth next faces the winner of the first round match between Rasmus Gemke of Denmark and Nhat Nguyen of Ireland.
Lee Zii Jia Shocked
World No 2 Lee Zii Jia crashed out in the first round of French Open badminton championship after losing 19-21, 18-21 to Indonesia’s Shesar Hiren Rhustavito.
It was the ninth meeting between the two, with Rhustavito now having won five of those matches.
The Malaysian star Zii Jia never found his rhythm against the world number 24, and it was all over after just 44 minutes.
It was an unexpected setback for the 24-year-old, who is now the new world number two behind leader Viktor Axelsen (Denmark) in the latest rankings released by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) on Monday.
Danish Olympic and world champion Axelsen opened his French Open campaign on Tuesday with a 21-11, 22-20 win over Japan’s Nishimoto Kenta to set up a meeting with Sitthikom Thammasin (Thailand).
(With inputs from Agencies)
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