H.S. Prannoy Exits All-England Badminton Championship After Loss to Popov
Click to start listening
Synopsis
In a disappointing first round at the All-England Badminton Championship, India's H.S. Prannoy lost to France's Toma Junior Popov. The match ended in straight games, with scores of 21-19, 21-16, marking an early exit for the former World No. 6.
Key Takeaways
- H.S. Prannoy lost to Toma Junior Popov in the first round.
- The match ended with scores of 21-19, 21-16.
- This marks an early exit for the former World No. 6.
- Lakshya Sen is set to compete against Li Yang Su.
- P.V. Sindhu leads the women's singles campaign.
Mumbai, March 11 (NationPress) India's former World No. 6, H.S. Prannoy faced an early exit from the esteemed All-England Badminton Championship, succumbing to Toma Junior Popov of France in straight sets during their first-round encounter in Birmingham on Tuesday.
Prannoy, who earned a bronze medal in men's singles at the 2023 World Championships in Copenhagen and a silver at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, lost the match with scores of 21-19, 21-16 against the 26-year-old World No. 17.
The 32-year-old Prannoy commenced the match strongly, establishing a 5-1 advantage in Game One before the French player leveled the score at 6-6. Both competitors battled closely until 11-11, where Prannoy surged ahead to 15-12. However, Popov rallied back to equalize at 16-16 and 18-18 before clinching the first game with three consecutive points.
The second game began with a similar intensity, with Popov taking a slight lead at 7-6 before extending it to 13-9. Prannoy managed to equalize at 13-13, but his opponent responded with three points in succession to secure a 16-13 edge and ultimately won the game 21-16, concluding the match in 53 minutes.
In another men's singles match, Lakshya Sen is set to face Li Yang Su of Chinese Taipei at the Utilita Arena in the BWF World Series Super 1000 event, boasting a prize fund of USD 1,450,000.
Lakshya had reached the semifinals at the All England last year before being defeated by the eventual champion Jonatan Christie of Indonesia. He also finished as the men’s singles runner-up two years ago.
In women's singles, two-time Olympic medalist P.V. Sindhu will lead the Indian team. Currently ranked 15th in women’s singles, this will mark her return to the court since the Indonesia Masters in January.
World No. 28 Malvika Bansod joins Sindhu as the only other Indian competitor in the women's singles category.
In men's doubles, the duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty is seeded seventh and will begin their campaign against Daniel Lundgaard and Mads Vestergaard from Denmark. The world No. 7 Indian pair have not competed together since the Indonesia Masters in January.
In women's doubles, two-time All-England semifinalists Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, along with Tanisha Crasto, Ashwini Ponnappa, and Priya Konjengbam with Shruti Mishra, represent India.
India also fields three pairs in mixed doubles with Rohan Kapoor-Ruthvika Gadde, Sathish Kumar Karunakaran-Aadya Variyath, and Dhruv Kapila-Tanisha Crasto making up the challenge.
