Lakshya Sen advances to quarters, Satwik-Chirag pair bows out

Paris, Aug 1: Shuttler Lakshya Sen stormed into the quarterfinals of the men's singles event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games with a commanding straight games victory over compatriot H.S. Prannoy. The all-Indian clash at the La Chapelle Arena on Thursday saw Sen dominate from start to finish, winning 21-12, 21-6 in just 39 minutes.

The 22-year-old Sen secured the opening game in 21 minutes. The second game was even more one-sided, as Sen's aggressive play overwhelmed Prannoy, who struggled to find answers to his younger opponent's relentless attacks. Sen clinched the second game with a resounding 21-6 score, sealing his place in the last eight.

In the first game, Lakshya opened a 5-1 lead and though Prannoy reduced the margin to 5-7, Sen won four points in a row to widen the gap to 10-5. Another four-point burst from 14-9 put the shuttler from Uttarakhand now training in Bengaluru, firmly on course to winning the first game.

In the second game, Sen surged to a 6-1 lead and extended it to 8-2. He won five points in a row and was soon leading 14-3 and went on to win the match rather easily.

Next up for Sen is a quarterfinal showdown with 12th-seed Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei. Chou advanced to the quarterfinals by defeating Japan's Kodai Naraoka in the Round of 16.

Meanwhile, in the men's doubles event, the Indian pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty bowed out of the competition in the quarterfinals. The duo faced a tough challenge against the World No.3 Malaysian pair of Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik.

Despite a strong start, winning the first game 21-13, the Indian duo could not maintain their momentum. Chia and Soh fought back to take the second game 21-14 and sealed their victory with a 21-16 score in the deciding game.

Later in the day, all eyes will be on PV Sindhu as she takes on China's He Bing Jiao in the women's singles round of 16.