Sports
Shock Exits for Indian Badminton Stars at Paris Olympics
In a surprising turn of events at the Paris 2024 Olympics, India’s badminton hopes took a hit as both PV Sindhu and the doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty faced early exits from their respective events.
PV Sindhu, a celebrated two-time Olympic medallist, was defeated by China’s He Bingjiao with scores of 21-19, 21-14. Meanwhile, Satwik and Chirag, who are currently ranked fifth in the world, unfortunately lost to the Malaysian duo of Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik in a nail-biting match that ended 12-21, 21-14, 21-16.
On a brighter note, Lakshya Sen managed to advance to the quarter-finals after a convincing victory over compatriot HS Prannoy. He won the match with ease, scoring 21-12, 21-6.
In her match, world No. 13 Sindhu started off poorly, falling behind 7-2 against the ninth-ranked He Bingjiao. The match was competitive, leveling at 19-19, but the Chinese player ultimately closed it out. The second game saw Sindhu struggling to catch up, as Bingjiao quickly took an 8-2 lead, which Sindhu just couldn’t overcome.
After her match, a disappointed PV Sindhu expressed her thoughts, saying, “It’s sad that I couldn’t get the result that I wanted but at the Olympics everybody wants to win. Unfortunately that couldn’t happen.” She reflected on her past encounters with He Bingjiao and mentioned how critical the first game was, noting that winning it might have changed the outcome.
Earlier in the day, Satwik and Chirag were looking good, but after leading early against Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, they let their advantage slip. They were tied at 10-10 in the second game, but the Malaysian pair managed to capitalize on the Indian duo’s errors and clawed their way back into the match, ultimately prevailing in the decider.
In a shining moment for India, Lakshya Sen showcased an impressive performance against HS Prannoy, marking his place in the quarter-finals of the men’s singles. He became only the third Indian player to reach this stage in Olympic history.
Looking ahead, Lakshya Sen will compete against the 12th-seeded Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei in the upcoming quarter-finals. The spotlight is now on him as India’s sole remaining hope in badminton.
