Indian star shuttler PV Sindhu, who has returned to the Badminton court after a lengthy injury layoff, was left out of the Malaysia Open 2023 tennis series after losing to Spain's Carolina Marin in the round of 32 in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday.

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

The 27-year-old Sindhu lost 12-21, 21-10, 15-21 to her longtime rival from Spain. The Spanish midfielder started the match on the right foot after putting pressure on Sindhu in the first set. Marin took the first set 21-12. But the 27-year-old Indian rallied in the second set, winning it 21-10 after a controlled display. Both players put in some fast-paced action, with many seeing an improvement in Sindhu's backhands.

In the final set, Marin got off to a great start, taking the first points and putting Sindhu under pressure. The Indian opened the set putting the score 7-9. However, Marin picked up the pace, scoring some quick points and bringing the score to 18-12. Sindhu tried to get back into the match but lost the final set 21-15. The Spaniard had won the last three times against the Hyderabad-born shuttle prior to this match and now leads 10-5.

Before the Malaysian Open 2023, Sindhu had last won a gold medal at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games in August. However, due to a hamstring injury, Sindhu sat out all remaining tournaments in 2022. Like Sindhu, Marin has also struggled with injuries over the past year. The Spaniard was sidelined by a knee injury that required surgery, forcing her to sit out the Tokyo Olympics. The world number 9 won the European Championship again in April last year.

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

In other matches in the Malaysia Open 2023, India's Prannoy HS and Stawik-Chirag duo progressed into the pre-quarters. While Malvika Bansod and Ashwini-Shikha duo lost their match. At the same time, the Satwik-Chirag duo defeated South Korean duo Choi-Kim 21-16, 21-13, while Prannoy HS defeated Lakshya Sen 22-24, 21-12, 21-18.

Indian star shuttler PV Sindhu has been eliminated from the Indonesia Open 2025 badminton tournament after losing in the round of 16. She was defeated badly by Thailand's Pornpawee Chochuwong in the pre-quarterfinals on Thursday.

Sindhu shows tremendous fight in first two games

PV Sindhu started the match brilliantly. She won the first game 22-20. She did not give any chance to the opponent to recover in this game. Pornpawee Chochuwong had no answer to Sindhu's aggressive returns as the score read 10-16 in favour in the first game. However, the tables turned completely in the second game.

Where Sindhu looked set to lose the first game, she pulled it right back in to clinch it, as the score read 22-20. After winning the first game, where Sindhu hoped to capitalise, Chochuwong was quick to turn it around, dominating Sindhu in the game, winning it by 21-10; furthermore, she went on to win the third game by 21-18, as Sindhu was eliminated from the Indonesia Open 2025 badminton tournament.

Satwik-Chirag enter quarterfinals

On the other hand, Indian men’s doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty came back from a game down to notch up a win to enter the quarterfinals of the Indonesia Open 2025.

Satwik-Chirag beat Denmark’s Rasmus Kjaer and Frederik Sogaard 16-21, 21-18, 22-20 in a match lasting one hour and eight minutes in the BWF Super 1000 tournament.

Treesa-Gayatri lost

The women’s doubles duo Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand also lost 13-21, 22-24 to Yuki Fukushima and Mayu Matsumoto of Japan in the round of 16 stage.

In mixed doubles, Sathish Karunakaran and Aadya Variyath exited after a straight-game loss against Thailand’s Dechapol Puavarankuroh and Supissara Paewsampran. The scoreline read 21-7, 21-12 in favour of the Thai shuttlers, who wrapped up the match in just 25 minutes.

The Indian men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty performed brilliantly in the Singapore Open 2025 badminton tournament, making it to the semifinals with a straight-game win over world No. 1 Malaysian duo of Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzuddin on Friday.

Also Read : Kidambi Srikanth Stuns Yushi Tanaka to Reach Malaysia Masters Final, First Since 2019

The Indian pair, which has been facing fitness challenges for some time, showed excellent performance in this match. The Indian pair displayed rock-solid defence and controlled the front court with precision to register a 21-17, 21-15 win in a 39-minute quarterfinal clash at the Singapore Open 2025 Super 750 badminton tournament.

Third semifinal of the season

This is their third semifinal appearance of the season, having reached the last-four stage at both the Malaysia and India Open earlier this year.

The former world No. 1 Indians held a 6-2 head-to-head record against the Malaysians going into the match, although they had lost their most recent meeting at the India Open.

Match Report

The match began with two service faults in the first four points and featured short rallies as both pairs looked to execute angled returns and attack at the earliest opportunity. As a result, the score moved evenly from 1-1 to 7-7 before the Indians gained a three-point cushion at the interval, with Satwik dictating the serve and third shot.

The Indian pair maintained the pressure to go up 15-11 before Satwik committed a service error and Izzuddin unleashed a jump smash to narrow the gap to 13-15. A brutal forehand smash from Satwik pushed India ahead at 18-15. Izzuddin then hit one wide, and Chirag, who had earlier sent a shot long, redeemed himself with a straight smash to earn three game points.

Goh buried a service return into the net, handing the Indians the opening game and the early advantage. Chirag made a few errors early in the second game, but the Indians did well to keep pace in the high-speed exchanges, with the score level at 6-6.

Satwik and Chirag then reeled off four consecutive points before an unforced error halted their momentum. A body blow from Chirag forced a weak return from Izzuddin into the net, giving India a four-point lead at the interval. A sharp backhand at the net took the Indians to 15-9 after the break. Satwik then sent down a thunderous smash to make it 16-10.

Though the Indians committed a few unforced errors, Satwik produced another fierce return to earn five match points. They sealed the win after another error from their opponents.

Kidambi Srikanth turned back the clock in spectacular fashion, battling past Japan’s Yushi Tanaka 21-18, 23-21 in a heart-pounding semi-final at the Malaysia Masters on Saturday.

The 32-year-old Indian badminton star, once the world’s best, is now headed to his first BWF World Tour final since 2019—a moment that feels like a triumphant homecoming for fans who’ve cheered him through thick and thin.

Srikanth, who had slipped to world number 82 earlier this month, battled through the qualifiers to reach the main draw of the tournament. Srikanth's journey to the final has been nothing short of inspiring, as he outclassed higher-ranked opponents with a combination of determination and resilience.

Read Also | India’s Next Badminton Superstar: The Rising Stars to Watch in 2025

The tightly contested match against Tanaka saw Srikanth hold his nerve in crunch moments, particularly in the second game, where he edged out a 23-21 victory after a very close finish.

KIDAMBI SRIKANTH HAS DONE IT 🤯🥹

- First BWF Final for him in 6 Year! pic.twitter.com/Op7XhNE5yj

— The Khel India (@TheKhelIndia) May 24, 2025

This achievement marks a significant comeback for the Indian shuttler, who has faced challenges with form and rankings in recent years. His last BWF final appearance was at the 2019 India Open against Viktor Axelsen, and this achievement in Kuala Lumpur signals a potential return to his peak form.

Srikanth will now face either Kodai Naraoka of Japan or China's Li Shi Feng in the final, as he aims to clinch his first title since the 2017 French Open.

I'M CRYING 😭❤️

Srikanth Kidambi Into The Finals Of BWF Malaysia Masters 2025 !!!

Srikanth Kidambi Defeats Yushi Tanaka In Straight Games
🇮🇳 21-18 , 24-22 🇯🇵

Final vs Kodai Naraoka 🇯🇵 / Li Shi Feng 🇨🇳
Goodluck For The Finals Srikanth ❤️✨#MalaysiaMasters2025 pic.twitter.com/jUzvlkPAAV

— Badminton Media (@BadmintonMedia1) May 24, 2025

India's experienced shuttler Kidambi Srikanth on Friday booked his berth in the semi-finals of the Malaysia Masters 2025 badminton tournament. Srikanth is now the only Indian in the tournament.

Also Read: India’s Next Badminton Superstar: The Rising Stars to Watch in 2025

First semi-final in a year

Against world number 65, Srikanth defeated France's 18th seed Toma Junior Popov 24-22, 17-21, 22-20 in a match that lasted one hour and 14 minutes. Former world number one Srikanth will have to overcome the challenge of Japan's Yushi Tanaka to make it to the Malaysia Masters 2025 final. Tanaka defeated Toma Junior's brother Christo Popov 21-18, 16-21, 21-6.

This will be the first semi-final in a year for World Championship and Asian Games silver medalist Srikanth.

Srikanth made inspiring comeback to seal the contest

The Indian badminton player made a brisk start, surging to a 7-4 lead in the opening game, only for Popov to claw his way back. It was the French shuttler who held a game point opportunity at 21-20, but Srikanth turned the tide to snatch the opener.

Srikanth trailed by four points at the break in the second game. He drew level at 15-15 but lost steam as the match went into the decider.

Srikanth was also four points behind his opponent in the third midgame break of the match, but this time, he mounted an inspiring comeback to seal the contest. It was his fourth win over Toma Junior Popov from six meetings.

Also Read: Indian Badminton players struggle with the slow court: Here is why

Kapila-Crasto's journey ends in quarter-finals

In the other semi-final, fourth seed Kodai Naraoka of Japan and second seed Li Shi Feng of China will face each other. In mixed doubles, the journey of the pair of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto came to an end in the quarter-finals. Kapila and Crasto lost to top seeds Jiang Zhen Bang and Wei Ya Xin of China 22-24, 13-21 in 35 minutes.

Indian badminton player Lakshya Sen crashed out in the first round of the Thailand Open 2025 badminton tournament while Malvika Bansod, Aakarshi Kashyap and Unnati Hooda advanced to the second round of the women's singles after winning tough matches in the Super 500 tournament.

Unnati faces a tough challenge

Unnati Hooda faces a tough challenge against top seed Pornpawee Chochuwong, while Malvika Bansod takes on former world champion and seasoned Thai shuttler Ratchanok Intanon in the second round.

Aakarshi Kashyap completes the women's singles trio as she looks to continue her campaign. In the men’s singles draw, Tharun Mannepalli remains the lone Indian hope.

Lakshya and Priyanshu suffered early exits

In the men's singles, both Lakshya Sen and Priyanshu Rajawat suffered early exits, bowing out in the first round. The women’s singles saw better fortunes, with Aakarshi Kashyap, Unnati Hooda, and Malvika Bansod progressing to the second round, while Anupama Upadhyay and Santosh Ramraj were eliminated.

Lakshya Sen was ousted by Ireland’s Nhat Nguyen in a three-game encounter that lasted 1 hour and 20 minutes. Sen, ranked among India’s top badminton talents, went down 18-21, 21-9, 17-21 in a match that saw momentum swings.

After narrowly losing the opening game, Sen responded with a dominating performance in the second, unleashing sharp smashes and fast-paced rallies to level the match. But Nguyen dug deep in the decider, pulling ahead 17-13 and holding his composure in the pressure moments to complete the upset and move into the second round. India’s men’s singles woes were compounded by Priyanshu Rajawat’s exit, as he fell short in another three-game battle, losing 13-21, 21-17, 16-21 to Indonesia’s Alwi Farhan.

Kidambi Srikanth could not qualify for main round

Earlier, former world no.1 Kidambi Srikanth could not qualify for the main round of the Thailand Open 2025 badminton tournament after losing his second match in the qualifiers on Tuesday.

Srikanth, a world championships silver medallist, defeated Sankar Subramanian 21-15, 21-17 in his first round of qualifiers before losing to Tharun Mannepalli 21-16, 21-19 in the second.