HS Prannoy Shines in Malaysian Open Return

Indian badminton star HS Prannoy returns victoriously at the Malaysian Open 2025 with a win against Canada's Brian Yang. The mixed doubles pair Crasto-Kapila also had a winning start. Conversely, Lakshya Sen faced a setback during his match against Chi Yu-Jen, losing in straight games.

Indian tennis star HS Prannoy made a spectacular comeback on the badminton court, launching the year with a victory in his first match at the Malaysian Open 2025, taking place in Kuala Lumpur. Prannoy bested Brian Yang of Canada in a thrilling contest that concluded 21-12, 17-21, 21-15, spanning over an hour and 29 minutes.

The mixed doubles team of Tanisha Crasto and Dhruv Kapila also celebrated a successful outing, defeating South Korea's Ko Sung-hyun and Eom Hye-won with scores of 21-13, 21-14 in just two straight games. Shifting focus to the women's singles event, Malvika Bansod delivered an impressive debut, clinching victory over Malaysia's Goh Jin Wei with scores of 21-5, 21-16.

Meanwhile, top Indian shuttler and Paris Olympics 2024 semi-finalist Lakshya Sen suffered a disappointing exit at the Malaysia Open 2025. Sen lost his round of 32 contest against Chi Yu-Jen of Chinese Taipei in straight sets at Kuala Lumpur's Stadium Axiata Arena, registering a 14-21, 7-21 defeat. Sen, ranked 12th in the BWF standings, could not mount a challenge against the world No. 32 player.

Prannoy's return marked his first match since the Paris 2024 Olympics, beginning with a win in the first game against Canada's Brian Yang with scores of 21-12. However, play faced interruptions due to a leaky roof at 6-3 in Prannoy's favor during the second game. After a 25-minute pause, Yang surged back to lead 11-9, before further leaks briefly halted proceedings again.

Prominent Commonwealth Games bronze medallists Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand overcame challenges to triumph in their women's doubles round of 32 at the BWF Super 1000 tournament. They ousted Thailand's Ornnicha Jongsathapornparn and Sukitta Suwachai 21-10, 21-10. Despite minor hiccups in the second game, the duo will now face the world number 4 pair of Zhang Shuxian and Jia Yifan from China in the subsequent stage. (ANI)

(With inputs from agencies.)