Star Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen faced an early exit in the opening round of men’s singles at the Badminton Asia Championship. He suffered a straight-game loss to local favourite and top seed Shi Yu Qi at Ningbo in China on April 10. The 22-year-old Indian badminton star performed well and fought tooth and nail but faced a 19-21, 15-21 loss against Shi Yu Qi as he proved too strong in the gruelling opener that lasted 53 minutes.
Priyanshu Rajawat crashes out
The Indians faced further setbacks as Priyanshu Rajawat also crashed out in the men’s singles opening round. Rajawat was flattened by eighth-seeded Malaysian Lee Zii Jia with a scoreline of 9-21, 13-31 in just 39 minutes.
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Panda sisters suffer defeat
In the opening round of women’s doubles, Panda sisters Rutuparna and Swetaparna suffered defeat with a scoreline of 8-21 13-21 against seventh seeds Zhang Shu Xian and Zheng Yu W of China.
Qi beats Sen in both games
Meanwhile, Sen showcased impressive skills in the first game and engaged Qi in long rallies and executing precise shots to lead 11-7 at the change of ends. Sen kept his nose ahead till 14 points. However, Qi's relentless pressure eventually turned the tide in his favour as World No. 2 Qi took the lead at 16-14 by securing five points in a row. But, Sen did not give up without a fight as he drew level at 19-19 before Qi pocketed the first game.
There is nothing new happened in the second game as both the players were running neck and neck till the halfway break. The second game saw Sen continuing to fight hard to keep the rallies alive but mistakes crept into his game which allowed Qi to regain control and seal the victory.
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