Singapore Open: Treesa/Gayatri enters quarters; Sindhu, Prannoy ousted

SINGAPORE — The Indian women’s doubles pair of Gayatri Gopichand and Treesa Jolly advanced to the quarterfinals of the ongoing Singapore Open BWF Super 750 Series badminton event after ace shuttlers P.V. Sindhu and H.S. Prannoy bowed out of the tournament here on Thursday.

The Indian duo defeated the World No. 2 Korean pair of Baek Na Ha and Lee So Hee in an intense Round of 16 match 21-9, 14-21, 21-15 that lasted close to an hour.

They will face the World No.6 Korean pair of Kim So Yeong and Kong Hee Yong in the quarterfinals on Friday.

Earlier in the day, Sindhu faced a defeat against former Olympic medallist Carolina Marin 21-13, 11-21, 20-22 in the second round match.

In the men’s singles match, Prannoy was outclassed by Japan’s Kenta Nishimoto 21-13, 14-21, 21-15 in the hard-fought encounter. The 31-year-old came back strong in the second game after losing the first game. In the final game, Prannoy fell short against his opponent in one hour and 18-minute-long match.

Treesa and Gayatri are the only Indian players left in the BWF Super 750 Badminton tournament.