China Masters: Kidambi Srikanth Stuns World No. 9 Victor Lai

Veteran Indian shuttler Kidambi Srikanth continued his impressive run at the China Masters Super 750 badminton tournament with a stunning victory over world No. 9 Victor Lai. The 33-year-old, currently ranked 35th in the world, defeated the higher-ranked opponent 21-18, 21-19 in a closely contested pre-quarterfinal to enter the men’s singles quarterfinals. Srikanth, a former world No. 1, has endured a difficult period in recent years but has shown signs of a comeback after reaching the US Open final earlier this year.

Speaking after the victory, Srikanth said he focused on playing well rather than worrying about the score. He will face Hong Kong’s Lee Cheuk Yiu in the quarterfinals. In men’s doubles, India’s star pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty also advanced after beating France’s Christo Popov and Toma Popov 21-15, 22-24, 21-9. Meanwhile, Tanvi Sharma’s campaign in women’s singles ended in the pre-quarterfinals after she lost 17-21, 21-18, 16-21 to Japan’s Tomoka Miyazaki.