Singapore Open: Sindhu, Lakshya and Satwik-Chirag storm into quarters
Sindhu continued her impressive form with another comfortable straight-games victory, defeating Japan’s Riko Gunji 21-9, 21-12 in just 37 minutes.
Indian shuttlers produced another impressive day at the Singapore Open 2026, with P. V. Sindhu, Lakshya Sen and the star men’s doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty progressing to the quarter-finals on Thursday.
In mixed doubles, Tanisha Crasto and Dhruv Kapila also delivered one of the standout comebacks of the day to keep India’s strong campaign going.
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Two-time Olympic medallist Sindhu continued her dominant run with a commanding 21-9, 21-12 straight-games win over Japan’s Riko Gunji in just 37 minutes.
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Sindhu looked in complete control from the opening exchanges, dictating rallies comfortably and never allowing her opponent to settle into the contest. After knocking out Indonesian fifth seed Putri Kusuma Wardani in the opening round, the Indian star has carried that momentum smoothly into the last eight.
Her next challenge, however, promises to be far tougher. Sindhu will now face reigning Olympic champion and World No. 1 An Se-young — an opponent she is yet to defeat in eight previous meetings.
In men’s doubles, fourth-seeded Satwik and Chirag were pushed hard before overcoming Chinese Taipei’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan in a gripping three-game contest.
The Indian duo looked firmly in control after taking the opening game 21-15, but completely lost rhythm in the second as their opponents responded strongly with an 11-21 win to force a decider. The third game remained tense deep into the closing stages before Satwik and Chirag regained composure to seal a hard-fought 21-18 victory.
They will next face Malaysia’s Aaron Tai and Kang Khai Xing for a place in the semi-finals.
The day’s biggest turnaround came in mixed doubles, where Tanisha Crasto and Dhruv Kapila staged a superb comeback after being outplayed in the opening game against Japan’s Maya Taguchi and Yuta Watanabe.
After losing the first game 8-21, the Indian pair slowly shifted momentum through aggressive net play and improved defence before storming back to win 21-17, 21-16. The victory comes as a timely boost for the duo after inconsistent results in recent tournaments.
In the quarter-finals, Tanisha and Dhruv will face Malaysian World No. 4 pair Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei.
Lakshya Sen’s path to the quarter-finals came under unusual circumstances after Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn retired just moments into their round-of-16 clash. The Paris 2024 silver medallist pulled out after only two points had been played, sending the Indian through with barely a minute spent on court.
Lakshya will next face Japan’s Koki Watanabe in the quarter-finals.
Later in the day, H. S. Prannoy takes on former world champion and local favourite Loh Kean Yew for a place in the last eight.
(With inputs from IANS)
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