Badminton WC: Ayush, Sindhu sail into pre-quarters; Lakshya, Unnati suffer heartbreak

New Delhi, Aug 19 (IANS) On a mixed day for the hosts, former champion PV Sindhu and giant-killer Ayush Shetty had little trouble overcoming their second-round challengers while Lakshya Sen and Unnati Hooda crashed out of the BWF World Championships 2026 at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in New Delhi on Wednesday. 

Sindhu, seeded ninth, defeated Canada's Zhang Wen Yu 21-16, 21-17 in the women's singles second round, while Ayush needed just 26 minutes to pack off Sri Lanka's Dumindu Abeywickrama 21-8, 21-10 to advance to the men's singles pre-quarterfinals.

In the Round of 16, Sindhu will face third seed Wang Zi Yi of China, who defeated Malaysia's Karuoathevan Letshanaa 21-16, 21-9 earlier in the day. Ayush also set up a pre-quarterfinal clash against Indonesia's 11th seed Alwi Farhan. The 2023 world junior champion had sailed through his second-round match against Joakim Oldorff of Finland 21-12, 21-9.

Two-time world championships bronze medallist Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty also advanced to the Round of 16 without even entering the court after their Scottish opponents gave them a walkover due to an injury to Alexander Dunn. 

While Sindhu and Ayush had little trouble in their second-round clashes, there was heartbreak for Lakshya and Unnati.

Lakshya, seeded 14th, was undone by 18-year-old Garret Tan of the USA in a bruising battle, 19-21, 21-19, 21-17 in an hour and 13 minutes, while Unnati failed to convert two match points against 13th seed Michelle Li of Canada and lost 11-21, 21-9, 23-21 in her world championships debut. 

Lakshya bagged the opening game against Tan, but the American took the fight to the home favourite with his big, booming smashes. Lakshya came back in the second game by saving four game points but could not avoid a decider. In the third and final game, Lakshya again trailed 4-11 before fighting back to 16-17, but a couple of errors and an aggressive Tan put paid to his hopes of turning things around.

Earlier, Unnati came close to creating an upset as she earned two match points against Li. But on both occasions, her pushes went out on the side, and Li then grabbed the opportunity to close out the match with a down-the-line smash.

Important results: 

Men's Singles: Ayush Shetty (IND) bt Dumindu Abeywickrama (SL) 21-8, 21-10; Gareth Tan (USA) bt 14-Lakshya Sen (IND) 19-21, 21-19, 21-17; 3-Jonatan Christie (INA) bt Jia Heng Teh (SIN) 19-21, 21-19, 21-11; Rasmus Gemme (DEN) bt Lin Chun-Yi (TPE) 13-21, 21-17, 21-11;

Women's Singles: 9-PV Sindhu (IND) bt Zhang Wen Yu 21-16, 21-17; 13-Michelle Li (CAN) bt Unnati Hood (IND) 11-21, 21-9, 23-21

Mixed Doubles: 15-Dhruv Kapila/Tanisha Crasto (IND) bt Leong Lok Chong/Ng Weng Chi (MAC) 21-11, 21-11

--IANS

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