Indonesia Masters: Sindhu, Lakshya sail into quarters
PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen qualify for the quarterfinals of the Indonesia Masters badminton tournament after registering straight-game victories in Jakarta.
New Delhi: Star Indian shuttlers P V Sindhu and Lakshya Sen sailed into the quarterfinals of the Indonesia Masters badminton tournament after sealing straight-game wins in their respective round-of-16 matches in Jakarta on Thursday.
Lakshya registered a dominant 21-10, 21-11 victory over Hong Kong China's Jason Gunawan in a men's singles fixture that lasted a little over half an hour.
The Indian shuttler will be up against Thailand's Pakkapon Teeraratsaku in the quarterfinal. Lakshya would aim to cross the last-16 hurdle in Jakarta a week after he was knocked out at the same stage at the India Open 2026 badminton tournament. It was his loss that marked a disappointing end to India's campaign in the BWF 750 event on home soil.
Sindhu eyes India Open redemption in Jakarta
Meanwhile, two-time Olympic-medallist Sindhu recorded a hard-fought 21-19 21-18 win over familiar foe Line Hojmark Kjaerfeldt of Denmark in the women's singles pre-quarterfinal that lasted for close to 45 minutes. Thanks to the battling win, Sindhu continued her dominance over the Dane with a fifth win in the six clashes between the rivals.
Sindhu faces a tough challenge in the quarterfinal against the tournament's top seed and world number four Chen Yu Fei of China.
In the head-to-head contest, Fei holds a slight edge over Sindhu. In the 13 meetings between them, the Chinese shuttler has won seven compared to the Indian star, who has claimed six wins.
Sindhu's last win over Fei came way back in 2019.
The former world number two Indian will look to put behind her India Open disappointment with a title win in Indonesia. Sindhu suffered a shock first-round exit at the India Open Super 750 in New Delhi last week.
Sindhu failed to maintain the momentum after narrowly winning the opening game to eventually slump to a 22-20, 12-21, 15-21 loss to Vietnam's Thuy Linh Nguyen in a hard-fought contest that lasted 68 minutes.
(With PTI Inputs)