Indonesia Masters: Kidambi Srikanth, Sourabh Verma crash out in opening round
Kidambi Srikanth went down to local favourite Shesar Hiren Rhustavito 21-18, 12-21, 14-21 in a match lasting one hour and three minutes.
Kidambi Srikanth went down to local favourite Shesar Hiren Rhustavito 21-18, 12-21, 14-21 in a match lasting one hour and three minutes.
Sourabh had a great season where he bagged two BWF Super 100 titles at Hyderabad and Vietnam besides winning the Slovenia International series in May.
After winning the first set comfortably within just 20 minutes, the 26-year-old saw tough competition from Kwang Hee in the next before going down 16-21.
The Women's duo of Simran Singhi and Ritika Thaker made it to the quarterfinals after beating compatriots Riya Mookerjee and Anura Prabhudesai 21-12, 21-15.
With the win, Srikanth has extended his dominance over Vincent, having an 11-3 head-to-head record. The win comes as a morale booster for the 26-year-old who has struggled for form since reaching the final of the India Open in March.
Srikanth will be looking for a turnaround in the tournament as his struggle to emulate his form in 2017 continues.
Sourabh, seeded fourth in the qualifiers, first defeated Thailand's Tanongsak Saensomboonsuk 21-15 21-19 before getting the better of Lucas Claerbout of France 21-19 21-19 in the final qualifying round.
Saina Nehwal lost the first game 15-21 and in the second game threw away a 20-16 lead at one stage to lose the decider 21-23.
London Olympics bronze medallist Saina staved off a spirited challenge from World No.44 Mette Poulsen of Denmark.
