JAKARTA:  Kidambi Srikanth utilized his extensive expertise to overcome the challenge posed by Lakshya Sen in a straight game, all-Indian second-round clash. Srikanth's victory propelled him to the quarterfinals of the Indonesia Open World Tour Super 1000 event held on Thursday. Unfortunately, double Olympic medalist PV Sindhu bid farewell to the tournament.

The match between the two Indian players was fiercely contested, but Srikanth displayed his composure and experience during crucial moments, ultimately triumphing over Lakshya with a score of 21-17, 22-20 in a 45-minute men's singles match. This win solidified Srikanth's dominance over his younger compatriot, extending his head-to-head record to 3-0 against Lakshya.

However, the world number 14, Sindhu, faced an early elimination once again, losing to her nemesis, world number 3 Tai Tzu Ying from Chinese Taipei, in a second-round women's singles match with a score of 21-18, 21-16.

Sindhu's struggles against Tai Tzu have been well-documented in the international arena, and this match was no exception. Tai Tzu now holds an impressive 19-5 head-to-head record against Sindhu. Their most recent encounter took place at the 2023 Sudirman Cup, where Tai Tzu emerged victorious with a score of 21-14, 18-21, 21-17. With Sindhu's defeat, the Indian challenge in the women's singles event came to an end.

Earlier in the day, despite the final result, Lakshya made a promising start, taking an early 4-0 lead in the opening game. However, Srikanth mounted a comeback and leveled the score at 17 points each. Srikanth then adopted an aggressive approach, utilizing the court effectively to exhaust his younger opponent. He secured four consecutive points, clinching the first game. The second game followed a similar pattern, with both shuttlers matching each other until the score reached 13-13. At this point, Srikanth won six consecutive points, surging ahead to 20-14.

In an unexpected turn of events, the 2021 world championships silver medalist, Srikanth, squandered six match points as Lakshya mounted a comeback, leveling the score at 20 apiece. However, Srikanth maintained his composure and secured the next two points, ultimately emerging victorious.

In the next round, Srikanth will face Li Shi Feng of China, who caused an upset by defeating the fourth seed, Loh Kean Yew of Singapore, with a score of 21-19, 21-14 in another second-round match.

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