SHENZHEN: Lakshya Sen's difficult run continued while doubles specialists Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty made a start full of promise in the ongoing China Masters — a BWF Super 750 event — in Shenzhen Arena in Shenzhen, on Wednesday.
Up against in-form Victor Lai, who had recently captured the bronze medal in the Delhi World Championships, Lakshya made a strong start and was 4-0 ahead but Lai closed the gap soon. Until the mid-game interval it was a close affair but Lai shifted to a different gear, pulling off some smashes to kill off rallies and take a handy lead. Lakshya did offer some resistance, landing some good winners of his own but Lai always seemed to be in control and took the lead in no time.
As Lakshya attempted to increase the intensity level in the second game, Lai stood firm, making some sharp returns and forced the Indian to make errors on several occasions. Every attempted smash was calmly returned by Lai as Lakshya cut a frustrated figure. He continued to err as Lai continued to edge ahead. Lai had firm control of the proceedings and eventually coasted to victory. The final score-line read 21-14, 21-7 in the Canadian's favour.
It's back to the drawing board for Lakshya and he'll be hoping for a better show in the upcoming Asian Games. Lai, meanwhile, will meet former World No 1 Kidambi Srikanth next. Srikanth beat Chi Yu Jen 21-16, 21-15.
Later, doubles specialists Satwik and Chirag put up a commanding display against Malaysian duo of Junaidi Arif and Kang Khai Xing.
The Indians made a strong start, showing sharp reflexes in front of the net to win the fast exchanges and take a handy lead. Six minutes into the contest, the Indians had a 11-3 lead and both Satwik and Chirag continued to apply the pressure and go on to pocket the game by a comfortable margin.
The second essay was a much closer battle with both sides playing some intense exchanges. Arif and Kang had a slender lead following the mid-game break but the Indians stood firm to reclaim the lead, before going on to seal the deal. The Indians won 21-11, 21-16 and now will go on to meet Popov brothers — Christo and Toma Junior in the Round of 16 stage.
Promising talent Tanvi Sharma also advanced to the second round of women's singles category with a 21-16, 21-17 win over Amalie Schulz of Denmark. She'll meet Tomoka Miyazaki of Japan next. Devika Sihag, meanwhile, bowed out.
Mixed doubles combination of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto beat Thai pair of Tonkid Saeheng and Tonrug Saeheng 21-8, 21-9 to advance. They'll meet Chinese Taipei pair of Liu Kuang Heng and Hsu Yin-Hui, who stunned reigning world champions Thom Gicquel and Delphine Delrue 23-21, 21-10.
