It was a mixed day for India in the All England Open, with players such as B. Sai Praneeth knocking out favourite Lee Chong Wei, while PV Sindhu lost in the first round. Saina Nehwal, Kidambi Srikanth and Sameer Verma progressed into the second round of the All England Open. Ajay Jayaram and HS Prannoy, however, lost their first round fixtures.
Saina, as expected, did not have much trouble in defeating Canada's Michelle Li in the first round. Saina emerged victorious in straight games, with the score reading 21-17, 21-12. Saina will meet Thailand's Busanan Ongbomrungphan in the second round.
However, India's PV Sindhu lost in the first round to Thailand's Porntip Buranaprasertsuk. It was a match in which Sindhu was expected to win, but her inconsistency was again in full display, as she lost the match after winning the first game. Porntip beat Sindhu 18-21, 21-17, 21-12.
If Sindhu's loss against Porntip was a huge disappointment, male shuttler Sai Praneeth brought some joy to the India camp with amazing shuttle play. Sai Praneeth looked top class in his victory over Lee Chong Wei, as the Indian shuttler defeated the Malaysian in straight games 24-22, 22-20.
It was a match in which Praneeth showed nerves of steel. On the other hand, this exit will disappoint the second seeded Chong Wei, as he was one of the top favourites to clinch the All England Open.
India's top male shuttler, Srikanth looked calm and composed against Rajiv Ouseph, as he defeated the Englishman in straight games. The score read 21-17, 21-12. Srikanth is set to face fourth seed Kento Momota in the second round, in what should be a highly entertaining match.
Verma has also reached the second round, defeating Hu Yun in a comfortable manner 21-10, 21-14. The remaining two India shuttlers -- Ajay Jayaram and HS Prannoy -- were knocked out in the first round by NG Ka Long and Xue Song respectively.
