Canada Open 2023: Lakshya Sen reaches men's singles second round

India's Lakshya Sen has advanced to the next round in the men's singles category in the Canada Open 2023 badminton tournament. Lakshya got the better of Thailand's Kunlavut Vitidsarn 21-18, 21-15.

Also Read: Canada Open 2023: Krishna-Vishnu pair progresses to the men's doubles second round, Parupalli Kashyap knocks out

Lakshya Sen and second seed Kunlavut Vitidsarn were closely matched in the first game. Both shuttlers were involved in an intense battle but Lakshya Sen held his nerve to take the lead. The second game, too, was a closely-fought affair. The Indian badminton player, however, raised his game in the final exchanges and sealed the encounter in 38 minutes.

Meanwhile, PV Sindhu also entered the pre-quarterfinals of the Canada Open 2023 after registering straight-game wins over Canada's Talia NG 21-16 21-9  in her women's singles opening match on Wednesday night.

Competing on the badminton courts of the Markin-MacPhail Centre, PV Sindhu and Talia went toe-to-toe in the early stages. With the scores tied at 13-all, PV Sindhu unleashed a series of smashes to gain the upper hand and pocketed the opening game. Sindhu carried the momentum into the second game as she led Talia Ng 4-0 early on. The Canadian offered a brief resistance to reduce the gap to 6-5. However, the local badminton player failed to match the Indian shuttler's intensity as PV Sindhu bagged seven consecutive points and wrapped up the match with ease.

Lakshya Sen will take on Ygor Coelho of Brazil in the men's singles second round on Friday. While PV Sindhu will face Japan's Natsuki Nidaira in the round of the tournament today.

Also Read: PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen to lead India's challenge at Canada Open 2023

Earlier, the Indian pair of Krishna and Vishnu entered the second round. They will play later in the day against the second-seeded Indonesian combination of Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan. However, the pair of Swetaparna Panda and R Panda lost in the first round of women's doubles.

In the other men's singles matches, India's B Sai Praneeth crashed out of the Canada Open 2023. He lost 21-12, 21-17 to Brazil's Ygor Coelho, who will be Lakshya Sen's opponent in the second round. Another Indian badminton player Gadde Ruthvika Shivani lost 21-12, 21-3 to Thailand's Supanida Katethong in the first round of the women's singles.