Former World Championship medalist Lakshya Sen outplayed All England champion Li Shi Feng of China in Thailand Open Badminton 2023 on Thursday to progress to the men’s singles quarter-final. Lakshya needed only 49 minutes to clinch a dominant win over the 5th seed 21-17, 21-15 to build on a good start at the Super 500 tournament in Bangkok. Meanwhile, Kiran George continued his good run as he through to the quarterfinals of the Thailand Open Super 500 tournament after defeating world number 26 China’s Weng Hong Yang in straight games. There were big upsets for India as the top seeds Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty were knocked out in men’s doubles Round 2 alongside Saina Nehwal who lost to 3rd seed He Bing Jiao of China.
Read Also: Thailand Open 2023 Badminton: India’s Kiran George cruises into the quarterfinals
Thailand Open Badminton 2023: Lakshya Sen cruised into the Quarter-Finals
Lakshya’s rank decreased to No. 20 in the men’s singles badminton rankings. He needed a consistent run in the Olympic qualification cycle that started in May. He took a short break after an ordinary start to the 2023 season but clinched an impressive win over Loh Kean Yew of Singapore at the Malaysia Masters last week.
KIRAN CONTINUES TO SHINE AT THAILAND OPEN
— nnis (@nnis_sports) June 1, 2023
Kiran George continues his fine form to enter his first-ever Quarter-finals at a BWF World Tour Super 500 event.
He defeated World No. 26 China's Weng Hong Yang in straight games 21-11, 21-19 in the Round of 16 clash. pic.twitter.com/WLpSRUF5vX
Lakshya was in complete control against 4th seed Li in the Round of 16 clash on Thursday as he put relentless pressure on the Chinese star. The 21-year-old will next face the Malaysian Leong Jun Hao in the quarterfinals.
Kiran George’s dominant performance guaranteed the spot into the Quarter-Finals
Kiran George also cruised into the quarterfinals of the Thailand Open Super 500 tournament. He defeated world number 26 China’s Weng Hong Yang in straight games here on Thursday. He trained with Lakshya at the Prakash Padukone Academy. The world number 59 just took 39 minutes to beat his higher-ranked Chinese opponent 21-11, 21-19 in the men’s singles round of 16 clash.
THERE’S NO STOPPING THIS GUY 😍
— BAI Media (@BAI_Media) June 1, 2023
Continuing his fine run Kiran defeated Weng Hong Yang 🇨🇳 21-11, 21-19 to enter his first-ever quarterfinal at a BWF World Tour Super 500 event 😎🔥
Keep it up champ! 💪
📸: @badmintonphoto #ThailandOpen2023 #IndiaontheRise#Badminton pic.twitter.com/wHUxqx5mdA
The 2022 Odisha Open winner will face Toma Junior Popov of France in the quarter-finals. The youngster defeated Shi Yu Qi of China in the opening round. Kiran reached the quarter-finals of a BWF Super 500 event for the first time in his young career.
Thailand Open Badminton 2023: Satwiksairaj, Chirag Shetty, and Saina Nehwal were knocked out of the competition
it was the end for 23-year-old Ashmita Chaliha. She went down 18-21, 13-21 to former Olympic and three-time World Champion Carolina Marin of Spain. There were some more big upsets for India. The top seeds Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty bowed out in men’s doubles Round 2. They lost to Indonesia’s Muhammad Shohibul Fikri and Bagas Maulana 26-24, 11-21, 17-21. Saina Nehwal lost her game to 3rd seed He Bing Jiao of China 11-21, 14-21. India suffered early upsets on the opening day of the competition in Bangkok. PV Sindhu and Kidambi Srikanth exited the tournament as early as the first round.
