Malaysia Open 2023: HS Prannoy wins the first round after beating compatriot Lakshya Sen in a thrilling match

In-form HS Prannoy maintained his fine form to beat compatriot Lakshya Sen in a thrilling encounter at the Malaysia Open 2023 Super 1000 tournament in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday.

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Prannoy, who was ranked world number eight last year, came back from a game down to beat 10th-ranked Lakshya Sen 22. 24, 21. 12, 21. 18. The 30-year-old Prannoy from Kerala will next face either Indonesia's Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo or Danish veteran Hans-Kristian Solberg Vittinghus. Prannoy and Sen have clashed five times in the last year in which Sen has won 3 ahead of 2.

In this match, both started on a brisk note and Prannoy started with a two-point lead. Sen, however, soon made a comeback to score soon, drew parity at 13-13. Following a few disputable line calls, the duo was locked at 19-19 at one stage. Sen then earned a game point but squandered it. Soon Prannoy grabbed two game points at 21-20 and 22-21 but he too missed it as Sen eventually managed to nose ahead after grabbing another game point.

In the second game, Prannoy lead the match by 4-1 when Sen made several unforced errors. He showed aggression but Pranay was way ahead of him. Prannoy won the game with a nine-point lead. In the deciding game, Sen scored 8. Made a lead of 4 but Prannoy soon came back with 9-9. Since then he did not give Sen a chance to return.

Also Read: Malaysia Open 2023: Saina Nehwal and Kidambi Srikanth lost in the first round

In the second match for the Indian shuttlers on day 2, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty got the better of the Korean duo 21-16, 21-13 in the 1st round of the Malaysia Open 2023.