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World Championships medallists Kidambi Srikanth and HS Prannoy suffered first-round exits from the mens singles event at the Arctic Open 2026 in Vantaa, Finland, on Wednesday, according to Olympics.com.
Srikanth, ranked 31st in the world, won the opening game against Canadas world No 34, Brian Yang, but eventually lost 15-21, 21-15, and 21-13. World No. 38 Prannoy, meanwhile, was beaten by fourth-seeded Denmarks Anders Antonsen. Prannoy struggled against the Dane and exited the tournament after losing 21-10, 21-9. However, India enjoyed a notable result in mens doubles as unseeded Krishna Prasad Garaga and Pruthvi Krishnamurthy Roy upset fifth seeds He Ji Ting and Ren Xiang Yu of the Peoples Republic of China, according to Olympics.com. The Indian duo bounced back after losing the opening game to register a 10-21, 21-18, 22-20 victory in 61 minutes and progress to the round of 16. Tharun Mannepalli, meanwhile, kept Indias hopes alive in the mens singles draw with a straight-game win over Denmarks Magnus Johannesen. The Indian shuttler, who advanced to the main draw through the qualifiers on Tuesday, defeated Johannesen 21-16, 21-14 to book his place in the second round. Tharun will next face second-seed Christo Popov of France for a spot in the quarter-finals. Rounak Chouhan, who also advanced to the main draw through the qualifiers, bowed out after a closely contested encounter against the Peoples Republic of Chinas Weng Hong Yang. Chouhan fought back after losing the opening game to force a decider, but Weng Hong Yang eventually prevailed 22-20, 20-22, 21-17. In womens singles, two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu and Tanvi Sharma will begin their campaigns in the second round on Thursday. Sixth seed Sindhu will face Japans Riko Gunji, while Tanvi will take on top seed and former world champion Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand. (ANI)
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