Sindhu bows out of Japan Open; Satwik-Chirag, Lakshya transfer to second spherical

Two-time Olympic medallist P.V. Sindhu endured yet one more first-round exit however Lakshya Sen and the boys’s doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty moved into the second spherical with snug victories on the Japan Open right here on Wednesday (July 16, 2025).

The 30-year-old Sindhu, who’s a former world champion, went down 15-21, 14-21 to Korea’s Sim Yu Jin within the Super 750 match, marking her fifth first-round exit this yr.

Satwik-Chirag and Lakshya, alternatively, registered dominant straight-game wins.

After a gradual begin, Sindhu, who appeared rusty and error-prone and struggled with judgment of size, confirmed some battle within the first sport however Sim regained management to assert her first profession win over the Indian star.

In the second, Sindhu shortly fell behind 1-6. Though she managed to stage the rating at 11-11, the Korean pulled away with ease to seal the match in straight video games.

In males’s doubles, Satwik and Chirag, at present ranked fifteenth on the earth, defeated the Korean duo of Kang Min Hyuk and Kim Dong Ju 21-18, 21-10 in simply 42 minutes.

The former world No. 1 pair took a while to settle in, with the Koreans matching them early within the first sport.

But as soon as the Indians discovered their rhythm, they have been unstoppable, dominating the second sport with medical precision.

Meanwhile, Lakshya who has struggled for kind this season, making a string of first-round exits, regarded sharp as he dispatched China’s Wang Zheng Xing 21-11, 21-18.

The world No. 18 Lakshya was in full management within the opening sport, racing to an 11-2 lead earlier than sealing it with minimal fuss.

While Xing mounted a greater problem within the second sport, Lakshya capitalised on his early momentum to remain forward and shut out the match in straight video games.

He will subsequent face seventh seed and native favorite Kodai Naraoka within the spherical of 16.