German Open: Ishaan-Sai Pratheek pair advance to second round but other Indians suffer defeat

Muelheim An Der Ruhr: Unheralded Indian men’s doubles pair of Ishaan Bhatnagar and Sai Pratheek K moved into the second round even as majority of their compatriots suffered defeats at the German Open badminton tournament on Wednesday. Ishaan and Sai Pratheek took just 30 minutes to get the better of English duo of Callum Hemming and Steven Stalwood 21-15 21-16 in their tournament- opener. They will next clash with fellow Indians Krishna Prasad Garaga and  Vishnuvardhan Goud Panjala. The other Indian men’s doubles pair of MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila fought hard before going down 13-21 22-20 19-21 to sixth seeded Malaysia combination of Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi. The women’s doubles pair of Ashwinin Ponnappa and N Sikki Reddy also lost in the opening round to fifth seeded Japanese pair of Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida 13-21 13-21. Men’s singles shuttler Subhankar Dey was shown the door by China’s Zhao Jun Peng with a 21-15 21-8 scoreline.