Lakshya Sen opens his Kumamoto Masters campaign with a straight-game win, while Kidambi Srikanth saves two match points to progress after a thrilling three-game battle against Denmark's Rasmus Gemke.Lakshya Sen made a strong start to his campaign in Kumamoto Masters (Reuters Photo) Lakshya Sen made a fine start to his campaign at the Kumamoto Masters, extending his winning run on the BWF Tour. The eighth seed defeated World No.
24 Chi Yu Jen of Chinese Taipei in straight games in the men's singles Round of 32. His compatriot and senior campaigner, Kidambi Srikanth, meanwhile, clinched a hard-fought, come-from-behind victory over higher-ranked Rasmus Gemke of Denmark on Wednesday at the Super 500 tournament.Sen, who skipped the Korea Masters last week, had won the Hylo Open Super 500 last month.
The World No. 13 was trailing 12-16 in the opening game but fought back to take it 21-19.
The second game was another topsy-turvy affair, but Sen showed composure at the crucial moments to win 21-18 and avoid being dragged into a decider in his opening match.Sen showcased patience and composure when it mattered, resisting the temptation to go for outright winners. Instead, he was content to keep the rallies going, make his opponent work for every point and force errors from the Taiwanese shuttler.Sen will next face China's Dong Tian Yao, ranked World No.
45, before a potential quarter-final clash against fourth seed Victor Lai of Canada. SRIKANTH SAVES MATCH POINTSSrikanth, meanwhile, produced a gritty performance to save two match points against Gemke and win his opening-round contest 18-21, 21-16, 24-22 in an hour and eight minutes.The former World No.
1 has struggled for consistency this year. After reaching the final of the US Open Super 300 in June, Srikanth made it to the quarter-finals of the China Masters Super 750 in September.
However, he suffered early exits during the European leg before arriving in Kumamoto as one of India's two men's singles entries. Srikanth faces a tough test in the second round, where he will take on local favourite Kodai Naraoka of Japan.
The former World No. 1 has faced the eighth-seeded Japanese shuttler four times in his career but is yet to register a win.
Their most recent meeting came in 2024.There is no Indian representation in the women's singles draw at the Super 500 tournament.In men's doubles, Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun will take on the local pair of Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi in the second round.In women's doubles, Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand will face third seeds Rin Iwanaga and Kie Nakanishi. The Indian pair will draw confidence from their crucial Round of 16 victory over the Japanese duo at the World Championships in Delhi ahead of Thursday's meeting.- Ends