Patumwan (Thailand), May 14, : Three seeded Indian entries, including Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty (1), PV Sindhu (6), and Lakshya Sen (7), advanced to the quarterfinals of the Thailand Open on Thursday.
Satwik-Chirag defeated their Malaysian opponents, Goonting Bryan Jeremy and Haikal Muhammad, 21-12, 21-19, while Sindhu won 21-13, 21-15 against Denmark's Amalie Schulz, and Lakshya registered a commanding 21-12, 21-13 win over China's Zhu Xuan Chen to seal their places in the last eight, as per a release.
The World Tour Finals 2025 bronze medal-winning pair of Satwik and Chirag outplayed their Malaysian opponents in straight games in 44 minutes to set up a quarterfinal clash against Japanese sixth seeds Takumi Nomura and Yuichi Shimogami.
Sindhu dominated Schulz in identical games, winning 21-13, 21-15 in 28 minutes. The Indian star scored seven consecutive points in both games, from 9-6 to 15-6 in the first and from 9-7 to 15-7 in the second, to advance.
A tantalising challenge awaits Sindhu in the quarterfinals as she faces World No. 3 Akane Yamaguchi of Japan, where the Indian holds a 15-12 head-to-head advantage.
In men's singles, Sen registered a comfortable victory over Chen in straight games. Lakshya will next face second seed Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the quarterfinals, with the Thai shuttler holding a 7-4 head-to-head advantage over the Indian.
In the other draws, Kidambi Srikanth and Devika Sihag exited the tournament, while Malvika Bansod will play her Round of 16 match against Chen Yufei later today.