Former world No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth exited in the first round, while HS Prannoy produced a stunning comeback to progress in the Singapore Badminton Open 2026 on Wednesday.
Kidambi Srikanth, 37th in the men’s singles badminton rankings, lost 22-20, 19-21, 21-17 against world No. 14 Loh Kean Yew of Singapore in an ebb and flow encounter at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
Despite trailing 18-15 at one stage, Srikanth mounted a spirited fightback to earn a game point in the opener, but failed to convert as Loh Kean Yew edged ahead to take the first game.
The second game followed a similar script, with both players going toe-to-toe in a tight exchange before Kidambi Srikanth finally capitalised on his third game point to force a decider.
In the third game, however, former world champion Loh Kean Yew seized control after the interval, opening up a decisive lead as Srikanth appeared to run out of steam.
The Singaporean then closed out the match, handing the Indian his fourth defeat in six head-to-head meetings.
HS Prannoy, 35th in the singles badminton rankings, beat world No. 5 Jonatan Christie of Indonesia 10-21, 21-12, 21-18 in an hour and one minute.
HS Prannoy, a World Championships bronze medallist, made a slow start in the first game, trailing 11-5 at the interval as Jonatan Christie cruised through the opener with little resistance from the Indian shuttler.
Prannoy responded strongly in the second game, taking control early with an 11-7 lead at the mid-game break before conceding just five more points to level the match and force a decider.
The third game was a tense battle, with the scores locked at 11-11 and again at 16-all before Christie edged ahead 18-16.
However, just as Prannoy appeared to be heading for defeat, the Indian badminton player produced a late surge, reeling off five straight points to seal a stunning comeback victory.
This was HS Prannoy’s fourth win in 11 matches against Asian Games gold medallist Jonatan Christie.
Paris 2024 semi-finalist Lakshya Sen also entered the men’s singles second round after beating the People’s Republic of China’s Lu Guangzu 21-17, 21-15.
In the women’s singles, Malvika Bansod was ousted in the first round following an 11-21, 21-19, 21-12 defeat to Lin Hsiang-Ti of Chinese Taipei.
Indian women’s doubles duo Rutaparna Panda and Swetaparna Panda also exited in the first round after going down 21-9, 21-17 against Phattharin Aiamvareesrisakul and Sarisa Janpeng of Thailand.
Meanwhile, Dhruv Kapila and Olympian Tanisha Crasto kept India’s mixed doubles challenge alive with a 21-14, 20-22, 21-13 victory over Wong Tien Ci and Lim Chiew Sien.
READ MORE: https://www.olympics.com/en/news/singapore-badminton-open-2026-day-2-report
