PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen will be looking to regain their form when they take part in the Kumamoto Masters Japan 2024. Sindhu has had her fair share of struggles over the last 24 months or so. She won the Singapore Open in 2022, after which she is yet to win a title. Winning the silver and bronze medals in Rio and Tokyo Olympics, Sindhu couldn’t replicate something similar in Paris.
Sindhu crashed out of the quadrennial event after losing to He Bing Jiao in the pre-quarterfinals. The 29-year-old had a disappointing run on her return to court following the Olympics. Last month, she crashed out of the Arctic Open Super 500 tournament after losing to Canada’s Michelle Li in the first round.
Sindhu also did not look at her best after losing to Gregoria Mariska Tunjung of Indonesia in the quarterfinals of the Denmark Open last month. Sindhu, however, sounded confident before her campaign in Japan, having worked with coaches Lee Syun Il and Anup Sridhar.
“I’m in good shape, physically and mentally fit. We’ve been working on different aspects, like speed and defence. I hope to perform well in Japan and China with their guidance,” Sindhu was quoted as saying.
Sindhu, who became the first Indian woman with multiple Olympic medals, is set to face Busanan Ongbamrungphan, the eighth-seeded shuttler from Thailand, in the first round.
Lakshya, on the other hand, lost to Chou Tien Chen in the quarterfinals of the Arctic Open 2024. Thereafter, the youngster went down to Chou Tien Chen from Taiwan in the Round of 32 of the Denmark Open.
Back in August, Lakshya also missed out on the chance to winning an Olympic medal despite going as far as the semi-finals.
The 23-year-old will begin his campaign against Malaysia’s Leong Jun Hao, with a possible clash against eighth seed Anthony Ginting of Indonesia in the subsequent round.
Meanwhile, the only other Indian duo in action, the women’s doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, will take on Taipei’s Hsu Yin-Hui and Lin Jhih Yun in their opening match.
