Indian badminton star PV Sindhu suffered a swift exit in her comeback tournament at the Arctic Open 2024.
Playing her first match since the Paris Olympics, Sindhu lost in straight games to Canada's Michelle Li, with a scoreline of 21-16, 21-10. The match, which lasted just 37 minutes, marked Sindhu's first under the guidance of her new coaches, Anoop Sridhar from India and Lee Soon Il from South Korea.
Sindhu, who parted ways with former coach Agus Dwi Santoso following her Olympic campaign, struggled to find her rhythm throughout the match against Li.
This was the 15th encounter between the two, with Li winning for only the fourth time. Michelle Li now moves on to face India's Unnati Hooda, who secured a victory over Brazil's Juliana Viana Vieira in a tough three-set battle, 21-16, 23-25, 21-17.
Meanwhile, other Indian shuttlers found success at the Arctic Open.
Kiran George progressed to the round of 16 after defeating Chinese Taipei’s Wang Tzu Wei 23-21, 21-18 in a closely contested match. Lakshya Sen also advanced to the pre-quarterfinals after his opponent, Denmark's Rasmus Gemke, withdrew due to injury.
In women’s singles, Aakarshi Kashyap and Malvika Bansod both advanced to the round of 16 with victories. Kashyap overcame Germany's Yvonne Li 21-19, 21-14 in a 45-minute clash, while Bansod defeated Chinese Taipei’s Sung Shuo Yun in straight games, 21-19, 24-22.