PV Sindhu's Early Exit at Arctic Open 2024; Indian Shuttlers Advance

Indian badminton ace PV Sindhu exits Arctic Open 2024 in the first round after a defeat by Canada's Michelle Li. This is Sindhu's first match post-Paris Olympics with new coaches. Meanwhile, Indian compatriots Unnati Hooda, Aakarshi Kashyap, and Kiran George progress to the next rounds.

In a surprising turn of events, Indian badminton star PV Sindhu was eliminated from the Arctic Open 2024, suffering defeat against Canada's Michelle Li in the first round on Tuesday. Sindhu struggled from the onset, ultimately losing to Li with scores of 21-16, 21-10 in a brief 37-minute match.

This marked Sindhu's first tournament appearance following her participation in the Paris Olympics 2024 and was her inaugural game under the guidance of new coaches, India's Anoop Sridhar and Korea's Lee Soon Il. After her exit from the Olympics, Sindhu parted ways with her previous mentor, Indonesia's Agus Dwi Santoso.

Meanwhile, Michelle Li, who has previously faced off against Sindhu 14 times and won only four matches, advances to face India's Unnati Hooda in the next round. Hooda emerged victorious over Brazil's Juliana Viana Vieira. Other Indian hopefuls, including Aakarshi Kashyap and Malvika Bansod, secured their positions in successive rounds, while Kiran George advanced in men's singles.

Sathish Kumar Karunakaran's journey in men's singles ended with a loss, though he and partner Aadya Variyath continued in mixed doubles after defeating the Estonian pair. Lakshya Sen, after reaching the semi-finals in Paris, is set to compete against Denmark's Rasmus Gemke in his first men's singles match.

(With inputs from agencies.)