China Masters: Lakshya Sen makes another early exit, Kidambi Srikanth progresses

Lakshya Sen suffered an early China Masters exit after a listless loss to Canada's Victor Lai, while Kidambi Srikanth advanced to the second round on Wednesday.Lakshya Sen's poor run continued after another early exit at the World Championships (PTI Photo)Lakshya Sen suffered another early exit as his struggles continued, while Kidambi Srikanth progressed to the second round of the China Masters in Shenzhen on Wednesday. Lakshya, a 2021 World Championships bronze medalist, produced a listless and error-riddled performance against Canada's Victor Lai, going down 14-21, 7-21 in just 38 minutes.Lai, the world No. 9, was in control for most of the contest and made the most of Lakshya's growing frustration to secure a comfortable victory. The Canadian, who won his second World Championships bronze medal last month, has now beaten Lakshya three times in their four meetings.Lakshya's only victory over Lai came at the All England Championships in March this year. The defeat adds to what has been a difficult few weeks for Lakshya, who had already suffered an unceremonious early exit from the World Championships at home.There was little sign of a turnaround against Lai. Lakshya began the match strongly, racing to a 4-0 lead, but Lai quickly settled into the contest and began dictating the rallies with his resolute defence. The Indian struggled to find a way through the Canadian's defence and gradually lost patience. His errors began to mount, particularly when he repeatedly found the backhand sideline, allowing Lai to seize control of the opening game.Once Lai moved ahead, Lakshya was unable to regain his rhythm. The Canadian closed out the first game 21-14 and carried the momentum into the second. After the change of sides, Lakshya's frustration became increasingly evident. Lai continued to absorb pressure, extend rallies and wait for the Indian to make mistakes.Lakshya trailed 4-11 and could not find a response. His attempts to force his way back into the match only resulted in more errors, as Lai moved steadily towards victory.The Canadian wrapped up the second game 21-7 to complete a straightforward win and send Lakshya out at the opening hurdle once again.SRIKANTH KEEPS INDIA'S HOPES ALIVESrikanth, a 2021 World Championships silver-medallist, provided some relief for the Indian contingent by progressing to the second round. The experienced Indian defeated Chinese Taipei's Chi Yu Jen 21-16, 21-15 in his men's singles opener.Srikanth remained in control throughout the contest and completed the straight-games victory to move into the next round. India also enjoyed success in mixed doubles, with Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto advancing after a dominant 21-8, 21-9 victory over Thailand's Tonnakorn Saeheng and Tonnicha Saeheng.There is more Indian interest later in the day, with the men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty and women's singles players Tanvi Sharma and Devika Sihag set to begin their campaigns.- EndsPublished By: Saurabh KumarPublished On: Sep 2, 2026 12:34 IST