Indian Women's Doubles Faces Early Setback at Paris Olympics

The Indian women's doubles team of Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto started their Paris Olympics campaign with a straight-sets loss to South Korea's Kim So Yeong and Kong Hee Yong. Despite a strong initial performance, the Indians struggled in the second game, ultimately losing 18-21, 10-21.

The Indian women's doubles pair of Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto began their Paris Olympics campaign with a loss in straight games to South Koreans Kim So Yeong and Kong Hee Yong in their Group C fixture here.

The Indian pair, which put up an inspired show in 2023 to qualify for the Games, went down 18-21, 10-21 in a 44-minute match on Saturday.

The Indians made a bright start as Ponnappa and Crasto managed to stretch the Koreans in the opening game, but struggled to maintain rhythm in the second, which was a one-sided affair.

The Indian pair will next meet the fourth seeds Chiharu Shida and Nami Matsuyama of Japan on Monday.

(With inputs from agencies.)