All posts tagged: Ayush Shetty

Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty exit in first round

Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty exit in first round

Published by Webster

India’s men’s singles campaign at the Japan Open 2026 came to an early end after Lakshya Sen and Ayush Shetty suffered first-round defeats at the BWF Super 750 tournament in Tokyo on Wednesday. World No. 14 Lakshya Sen lost 21-16, 21-14 to Japan’s Koki Watanabe in a match that lasted just 38 minutes. The Indian trailed at the mid-game interval in both games and was unable to recover, conceding his third defeat in seven meetings against the Japanese shuttler. Ayush Shetty put up a spirited fight against world No. 2 Kunlavut Vitidsarn but eventually went down 21-19, 23-25, 21-15 in a three-game contest. Ayush pushes world No. 2 before bowing out The opening game remained closely contested before Kunlavut edged ahead late to take the lead. Ayush responded strongly in the second game, saving four match points before winning 25-23 to force a decider. However, the momentum did not last as the Paris 2024 Olympic silver medallist regained control in the final game to complete the victory and improve his head-to-head record against the Indian …

PV Sindhu, Satwik-Chirag to headline India’s squad for the 2026 Asian Games

PV Sindhu, Satwik-Chirag to headline India’s squad for the 2026 Asian Games

Published by Webster

Two-time Asian Games medalist PV Sindhu and defending champions Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will headline a stacked Indian squad for the badminton event at the 2026 Asian Games. The 20th edition of the continental Games is set to take place in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, from September 19 to October 4, 2026. The Badminton Association of India (BAI) selection committee finalised the squad after reviewing recent performances across national and international tournaments, alongside BWF rankings as of May 26, 2026. Led by India’s top-ranked men’s singles player Lakshya Sen, the squad also features experienced H. S. Prannoy and Kidambi Srikanth—all part of India’s historic men’s team silver-medal campaign at the previous edition. The men’s contingent retains much of the core that secured a bronze medal at the BWF Thomas Cup earlier this year. #News | Badminton Association of India (BAI) announces India’s squad for 2026 Asian Games Individual Event Men’s Singles (MS): Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty Women’s Singles (WS): PV Sindhu, Unnati Hooda Men’s Doubles (MD): Satwiksairaj Rankireddy / Chirag Shetty; Hariharan… pic.twitter.com/7BQsySMxjF — The Bridge …

Australian Open 2026: PV Sindhu, Ayush Shetty lead Indian challenge

Australian Open 2026: PV Sindhu, Ayush Shetty lead Indian challenge

Published by Webster

India’s badminton contingent will return to action at the Australian Open Super 500 tournament in Sydney from June 9-14, with two-time Olympic medallist P. V. Sindhu seeking her first title of the season and rising men’s singles star Ayush Shetty looking to find his lost form on the BWF World Tour. Sindhu enters the tournament as the third seed and one of the favourites in the women’s singles draw. The former world champion has shown flashes of form in 2026, reaching the semifinals of the Malaysia Open earlier this year, but is still searching for her first BWF World Tour title since winning the Syed Modi International in 2024. The Indian star begins her campaign against Peru’s Ines Lucia Castillo and could face fellow Indian Isharani Baruah in the second round. A potential semifinal against Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi and a possible title clash with Thailand’s Pornpawee Chochuwong loom later in the tournament. On the men’s side, sixth-seeded Ayush Shetty will lead India’s challenge after breaking into the world’s top 20. The youngster will open against …

PV Sindhu to lead Indian challenge in Sydney- Preview

PV Sindhu to lead Indian challenge in Sydney- Preview

Published by Webster

India’s badminton contingent will return to action at the Australian Open Super 500 tournament in Sydney from June 9-14, with two-time Olympic medallist P. V. Sindhu seeking her first title of the season. Sindhu has shown flashes of form in 2026, reaching the semifinals of the Malaysia Open earlier this year, but is still searching for her first BWF World Tour title since winning the Syed Modi International in 2024. The former world champion enters the tournament as the third seed, will begin her campaign against Peru’s Ines Lucia Castillo, and could face fellow Indian Isharani Baruah in the second round. A potential semifinal against Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi and a possible title clash with Thailand’s Pornpawee Chochuwong loom later in the tournament. On the men’s side, youngsters Kiran George and Tharun Mannepalli will be in action as India looks for strong performances across the singles events. In men’s doubles, Indian pair of Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun will be hoping to continue their good form and win their first Super500 title as a pair. Indian …

most dig Argentina; Portugal, England, Spain have backers too

most dig Argentina; Portugal, England, Spain have backers too

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Ayush Shetty names Argentina as his favourite FIFA World Cup team, but the youngster is hedging heavily on dark horses, Spain. At her home, PV Sindhu has a Portugal vs Germany rivalry going with her sports-loving husband Venkata Datta Sai, ahead of the World Cup in Mexico, USA and Canada. HS Prannoy’s favourite World Cup memory would be watching football when he was young: “Watching The Brazilian Ronaldo do his magic inside the box.” Former All England champ Pullela Gopichand digs Argentina and Messi magic too, and watched the 2006 World Cup LIVE in Germany, as a nation shrugged off its past, opening up to the world. Game recognises game, goes the saying when athletes identify with exceptional moments in sport – even another sport. But the FIFA World Cup can leave the biggest athletes in their own sport, dealing in superlatives, like crazed happy fans whose moods are regulated for one month in four years by a different sport than their own. Prannoy grew up watching videotapes of Taufiq Hidayat and his backhand that …

PV Sindhu, Ayush Shetty exit in second round

PV Sindhu, Ayush Shetty exit in second round

Published by Webster

India’s singles campaign ended in the second round of the 2026 Indonesia Open as both PV Sindhu and Ayush Shetty lost in Jakarta on Thursday. Sindhu put up a good fight but still lost in straight games 17-21, 15-21 to the world no.1 An Se Young of South Korea in a gruelling 44-minute match. This was their 10th meeting, but Sindhu has still not found an answer to the powerful game of the most consistent player on the circuit right now. On the other hand, the youngster Ayush Shetty lost in three games, 21-16, 13-21, 14-21, to Lee Chiek Yiu of Hong Kong despite winning the first game. After a comfortable first game, the 21-year-old Indian failed to continue the momentum and was outclassed by Lee in an hour-long match. This is the third consecutive tournament where Ayush has failed to reach the quarterfinals, raising some concerns about his form ahead of the long season. India will have two more matches later in the day, where Hariharan Amsakarunan/ MR Arjun in men’s and Dhruv Kapila/ …

Ayush Shetty upsets World No. 15 at Indonesia Open; Satwik-Chirag withdraw due to injury

Ayush Shetty upsets World No. 15 at Indonesia Open; Satwik-Chirag withdraw due to injury

Published by Webster

India experienced mixed fortunes at the Indonesia Open 2026 on Wednesday as Ayush Shetty and the mixed doubles pair of Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Shivani advanced to the pre-quarterfinals, while men’s doubles stars Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty withdrew from the tournament due to injury. The withdrawal came after Satwik sustained an injury, forcing the Indian pair to pull out and shift their focus towards recovery and rehabilitation ahead of upcoming major tournaments. Ayush battles back to defeat higher-ranked opponent Former world junior bronze medallist Ayush produced a spirited comeback to defeat world No. 15 Weng Hong Yang 8-21, 22-20, 21-15 in a match lasting one hour and six minutes. After losing the opening game comfortably, the Indian fought back strongly in the second. Trailing at a crucial stage, Ayush won three consecutive points from 19-20 down to force a decider. He then controlled the third game, opening up a healthy lead and maintaining it to seal victory. The result marked Ayush’s second consecutive win over Weng, having also defeated the Chinese shuttler during the …

PV Sindhu, Satwik-Chirag advance to second round of Singapore Open 2026

PV Sindhu, Satwik-Chirag advance to second round of Singapore Open 2026

Published by Webster

Indian badminton stars PV Sindhu and the men’s doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty made winning starts to their campaigns at the Singapore Open 2026 on Tuesday. Competing at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, Sindhu defeated Indonesia’s Putri Kusuma Wardani 21-17, 21-18 in the women’s singles opening round. The 2022 champion controlled large parts of the first game before facing resistance late on. After the scores were level at 16-16, Sindhu won five consecutive points to take the opening game. The second game proved more closely contested, but the Indian maintained her composure at crucial moments to complete the straight-games victory. The win also helped Sindhu level her head-to-head record against the fifth-seeded Indonesian at 3-3. She will next face Japan’s Riko Gunji in the pre-quarterfinals. Satwik-Chirag recover after losing opening game In men’s doubles, world No. 4 pair Satwik and Chirag came through a tough three-game battle against Chen Zhi Yi and Presley Smith. The Indian duo narrowly lost the opening game 26-28 despite saving seven game points. However, they responded strongly to …

PV Sindhu wards off World No 6 Putri Kusuma Wardani with gritty net play in Singapore Open Super 750

PV Sindhu wards off World No 6 Putri Kusuma Wardani with gritty net play in Singapore Open Super 750

Published by Webster

Not making World No 1 – yet – never interfered with Sindhu’s claims to greatness. So, nine years after the 30-year-old reached the pinnacle of her ranking at World No 2, in April of 2017, a clamber back into the Top 10s, can be viewed from two different lenses. The flattering way to see it, is her longevity and drive to stay in the mix, even as a generational transition is stuttering towards permanence in women’s singles. Avenging her loss to Indonesian Putri Kusuma Wardini from last year’s World Championship, Sindhu defeated the 23-year-old 21-17, 21-18 quite comfortably at the Super 750 Singapore Open. It gives her a second chance to cement her place in Top 10 this year after a brief week in March. Besides seedings leading up to World Championships at home, there’s no material edge a Top 10 spot offers. But at this stage of her career, a good seeding at the home event could be make-or-break for Sindhu to avoid top 3 early. These things didn’t use to matter to the …

Lakshya Sen, PV Sindhu move to R16; Ayush Shetty exits

Lakshya Sen, PV Sindhu move to R16; Ayush Shetty exits

Published by Webster

Indian shuttlers Lakshya Sen and PV Sindhu had comfortable wins in their respective first-round matches at the Thailand Open Super500 Tournament on Wednesday. Lakshya defeated Jason Teh of Singapore 21-16, 21-17, while PV Sindhu hammered the lower-ranked Tung Ciou-Tong of Chinese Taipei in straight games, 21-9, 21-12. Following them, the veteran Srikanth Kidambi also claimed a win in his first round matchup, knocking out the former world champion Loh Kean Yew, 21-14, 21-15. On the other hand, the in-form Ayush Shetty had a disappointing early exit, losing in three games to Kodai Naraoka of Japan, 13-21, 21-17, 4-21. Anmol Kharb misses a big win The youngster Anmol Khrab had a very good chance of upsetting the former Olympic Champion Chen Yufei, but she couldn’t hold her composure and lost in three games. Anmol made a strong start, winning the first game 21-19 and then, despite losing the second game 13-21, she surged ahead with an 11-2 lead in the deciding third game. But then, Chen showed her class and won the next 12 out of …