All England Open: Lakshya, Malavika win tough openers, Prannoy exits in 1st round

It was a mixed opening day for India at the All England Open Championships, as senior shuttler HS Prannoy suffered a first-round exit from the prestigious tournament. However, Lakshya Sen and Malavika Bansod secured impressive come-from-behind victories to progress to the second round.

Lakshya Sen staged a strong comeback after dropping the opening game against World No. 37 Su Li Yang of Taiwan in the evening session. The former finalist, ranked 15th, clinched a 13-21, 21-17, 21-15 victory



in a match that lasted over an hour on Tuesday in Birmingham.

Playing in his first tournament of the year in European conditions, Lakshya took time to find his rhythm. The Indian shuttler allowed Su Li Yang to take control in the latter half of the first game. However, he fought back to take the second game 21-17. Lakshya led 11-7 in the decider, but the contest was evenly poised at 15-all before he found another gear, unleashing smashes at will to close out the match with renewed aggression.