PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen march into pre-quarterfinals with dominant wins

Paris: Indian badminton heavyweights PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen stormed into the pre-quarterfinals of the women's and men's singles events, respectively, with dominant wins at the Paris Olympics here on Wednesday.

Chasing an unprecedented third Olympic medal, Sindhu did not have to toil much before getting past Kristin Kuuba of Estonia 21-5 21-10 in her second and last Group M match, while Sen was simply sensational in his 21-18 21-12 thrashing of Indonesia's world number 4 Jonatan Christie, the reigning All England and Asian champion.

"I think it was a tough match today, happy with the way I played," world number 22 Sen said.

"Yes, definitely (gold is in sight). I think the last few months the form has been really good.

"There has been ups and downs, but overall, I was in good shape in the last few months, and especially while playing here in the French Open, I found my momentum and from.

"I was just trying to build up for a good event and I'm really pumped up to fight every match and every point." While Sen is expected to face world number 13 HS Prannoy in an all-Indian contest, Sindhu is likely to be up against world number 9 Chinese He Bingjiao, against whom she has lost 11 times and won on nine occasions.

It must be mentioned that Sindhu had beaten the Chinese on way to her bronze medal in Tokyo Games.

Prannoy will face Vietnam's Le Duc Phat later in the day.

The only time Sen had defeated Christie was four years ago at the Badminton Asia Team Championships and came into this match with a dismal 1-4 head-to-head count.

However, the 22-year-old from Almora, a 2021 world championships bronze medallist, showed great maturity and tactical acumen as he went about his business on Wednesday.

He tried to keep the shuttle flat and target the weak forehand of Christie, who looked to slow down the rallies and used his cross-court shots at the corners to trouble the Indian, albeit without much success.

In the first game, Christie opened up a 5-0 lead and soon moved to 8-2. However, Sen regrouped quickly, kept the shuttle flat and waited for his opponent to make mistakes.

It worked as he moved to 7-8 before a thunderous forehand smash earned the Indian a slim one-point advantage.

Sen engaged Christie in fast and flat exchanges to move to 14-12, and the latter slowed down the pace with a gruelling rally, which he won with a push at the backline.

The Indonesian drew parity at 16-16 with a precise cross-court smash, which a diving Sen couldn't reach and soon eked out a two-point lead at 18-16. A straight smash from Sen was followed by a wide smash from Christie, and it was 18-18.

A perfect flat push and then an incredible behind-the-back return in the middle of the next rally gave Sen game point and he converted it easily to earn the bragging rights.

After the change of sides, Sen made some judgment errors at the backline as the two were tied 3-3. But the Indian kept peppering the back court with his pushes and smashes and played at a high tempo. His reflex defence was also rock solid as he moved to 10-5.

Another error from Christie, and it was a five-point advantage for Sen at the halfway mark. The Indian kept his opponent at bay with a barrage of strokes and didn't allow him to come to the net.

The Indonesian made too many errors in desperation, missing the lines often as Sen moved to 18-12. Another flat exchange ended at the net as Sen inched closer to the line.

Another long rally ended with a long shot for the Indonesian as Sen grabbed eight match points and when the Indonesian sent another to the net, the Indian rejoiced.

Dominant show by Sindhu

Earlier, Sindhu, who is seeking to become the first Indian to win three Olympic medals, topped the group following her facile win over Kuuba, ranked 73rd in the world, in 33 minutes.

"It was important for me to top the group. I would be playing against He Bingjiao mostly. I hope I take this confidence and go forward. It's not going to be easy, especially in the next coming rounds, so I have to be prepared and be 100%," said Sindhu, who won a silver medal in the 2016 Rio Games and a bronze in the Tokyo edition.

The winner of each of the 16 groups qualifies for the round of 16.

The gulf in class between the two players was evident as Sindhu pocketed the opening game in 14 minutes with the Estonian looking completely out of sorts.

The 27-year-old Kuuba gave a fight in the second game, making a lot of retrievals, but Sindhu was just too good for her ultimately.

Kuuba took a 2-0 lead but Sindhu quickly seized the initiative and levelled the score. Kuuba did not throw in the towel and engaged the Indian in longer rallies.

There was one rare moment when Sindhu was stretched to the full near the net and Kuuba smashed the shuttle beyond the reach of the Indian.

But the vastly experienced Sindhu was in her elements soon after.

Two cross-court smashes gave Sindhu a 15-6 lead and from there on, it was all over for the Estonian, who saved two match points before surrendering.