Swiss Open: Satwik-Chirag, Sai Praneeth, PV Sindhu sail into quarterfinals

Basel [Switzerland], March 4 (ANI): Indian shuttlers PV Sindhu, Kidambi Srikanth, and Ajay Jayaram all progressed to the quarter-finals of the ongoing Swiss Open on Thursday.
While Sindhu defeated her opponent Iris Wang of the USA in straight sets 21-13, 21-14, Srikanth got over the line after clinching the game in three sets 21-10, 14-21, 21-14.
Jayaram defeated Danish badminton player Rasmus Gemke to secure a quarter-final berth. Also, Sai Praneeth joined his fellow teammate Srikanth in the run-up to the Olympic Qualification as he beat Spain’s Pablo Abian by 21-12, 21-17 and secured his place in the quarter-finals.
Indian mixed doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Ashwini Ponnappa also had a good day as they confirmed the quarter-final berth after pulling off yet another convincing victory (21-18, 21-16) over the Indonesian combination of Rinov Rivaldy and Pitha Haningtyas Mentari.
Meanwhile, the Indian men’s doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty continued their rise at the Swiss Open with another sensational performance. The duo won their match 21-17, 20-22, 21-17 to seal their place in the quarters.
Earlier, ace Indian shuttlers Saina Nehwal and Parupalli Kashyap had a disappointing start as they crashed out of the Swiss Open in the first round on Wednesday.
Olympic medalist Nehwal lost in a tough-fought clash against Thailand’s Phittayaporn Chaiwan 16-21, 21-17, 21-23 that lasted for 58 minutes. While Nehwal’s husband Kashyap lost to lower-ranked Pablo Abian of Spain 15-21, 10-21 in straight games. (ANI)