March 13, 2025: Indian Commonwealth Games champion and Olympian Lakshya Sen battled his way into the second round of the ongoing All England Open badminton tournament in Birmingham. On Tuesday, Sen defeated Chinese Taipei’s Su Li-yang with a 13-21, 21-17, 21-15 scoreline in a thrilling encounter lasting 1 hour and 15 minutes.
After losing the first game and trailing 7-11 in the second, Sen mounted a remarkable comeback by winning six successive points, eventually taking the game and leveling the match. In the decider, both players exchanged blows with the scoreline at 15-15, but Sen kept his cool and clinched six consecutive points to win the match.
Meanwhile, in another men’s singles matchup, HS Prannoy’s campaign came to a halt as he suffered a 19-21, 16-21 defeat to France’s Toma Junior Popov in a 53-minute match. Despite an early 4-0 lead in the first game, Prannoy could not maintain the advantage, and Popov turned the tide to win both games and the match.
In the women’s singles, Malvika Bansod made a stunning upset by defeating Singapore’s Yeo Jia Min, ranked 12th in the world. Bansod triumphed 21-13, 10-21, 21-17 in a well-fought match, progressing to the round of 16.
The mixed doubles pairing of Sathish Kumar Karunakaran and Aadya Variyath, unfortunately, fell in the first round, suffering a 21-6, 21-15 defeat to China’s Guo Xin Wa and Chen Fang Hui.
Looking ahead, PV Sindhu and the men’s doubles duo Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty are set to begin their campaigns in the tournament on Wednesday.
Day 1 Results at All England Open 2025:
- Men’s Singles:
- Toma Junior Popov (FRA) bt HS Prannoy 21-19, 21-16
- Lakshya Sen (IND) bt Su Li-yang (TPE) 13-21, 21-17, 21-15
- Women’s Singles:
- Malvika Bansod (IND) bt Yeo Jia Min (SGP) 21-13, 10-21, 21-17
- Women’s Doubles:
- Hsieh Pei-Shan/Hung En-Tzu (TPE) bt Tanisha Crasto/Ashwini Ponnappa 22-20, 21-18
- Mixed Doubles:
- Guo Xin Wa/Chen Fang Hui (CHN) bt Sathish Kumar Karunakaran/Aadya Variyath 21-6, 21-15