Indian badminton star PV Sindhu faced an early exit from the All-England Open 2025 after losing to South Korea’s Kim Ga Eun in the first round of the women’s singles event. Ranked 16th in the world, Sindhu fell to world number 21 Kim Ga Eun in a closely fought match that lasted 61 minutes. The final scoreline read 21-19, 13-21, 13-21 in favor of the South Korean. Sindhu began the match in strong form, taking an 11-7 lead at the first break. She appeared in control with a commanding 20-12 advantage but struggled to close the game, allowing Kim to save seven game points before eventually conceding the first game. Despite winning the opener, Sindhu lost momentum as Kim found her rhythm.
The second game saw a tightly contested battle, with both shuttlers tied at 12-12. However, Kim Ga Eun displayed superior control in the latter stages, surging ahead to win 21-13 and level the match. In the decider, Kim took early control, racing to a 7-1 lead. Though Sindhu fought back to reduce the gap to 9-7, the South Korean maintained her aggressive play after the mid-game break and eventually sealed the victory. This defeat marks Sindhu’s second consecutive first-round exit of the year and her fourth straight opening-round loss at this prestigious Super 1000 tournament, raising concerns about her form ahead of the Paris Olympics.
In men’s doubles, India’s Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty advanced to the pre-quarterfinals after defeating Denmark’s Mads Vestergaard and Daniel Lundgaard. Despite trailing 12-7 in the second game, the Indian duo showed great resilience and secured a 21-17, 21-15 win. Their victory ensures India’s continued presence in the tournament’s doubles category.
The women’s doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand also progressed to the next round with a comfortable 21-17, 21-13 victory over Chinese Taipei’s Sung Shuo-Yun and Yu Chien Hui. However, the Indian pair of Priya Konjengbam and Shruti Mishra struggled against South Korea’s Baek Ha-Na and Lee So-Hee, suffering a heavy 21-9, 21-4 defeat to bow out of the tournament.
In the mixed doubles category, Paris 2024 Olympian Tanisha Crasto and her partner faced a disappointing exit, losing 21-17, 21-14 to Thailand’s Ruttanapak Oupthong and Jhenicha Sudjaipraparat. Their early departure adds to India’s struggles in the mixed doubles segment.
Meanwhile, in the singles category, Indian shuttlers Lakshya Sen and Malvika Bansod provided some hope with victories in their opening-round matches on Tuesday. Both players will now compete in the second round on Thursday, aiming to keep India’s campaign alive in the prestigious tournament.
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