Indian Shuttlers Shine at Orleans Masters 2024 Badminton Tournament

Dara Singh Chahal

13th Mar 2024: Indian shuttlers demonstrated promising performances at the Orleans Masters 2024 badminton tournament, with MR Arjun-Dhruv Kapila leading the charge into the second round of men’s doubles.

Seeded fifth at the BWF Super 300 event, MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila secured a convincing victory against Chinese Taipei’s Ming Che Lu and Tang Kai Wei, advancing to the round of 16 with a dominant 21-13, 21-12 win.

Joining them in the second round, Krishna Prasad Garaga and Sai Pratheek K displayed stellar teamwork, defeating Bulgaria’s Ivan Rusev and Iliyan Stoynov 21-10, 21-18 in their opening round encounter.

In women’s singles, Anupama Upadhyaya impressed with her performance, progressing to the main draw after securing victories in the qualifiers. She defeated Australia’s Tiffany Ho and Uganda’s Husina Kobugabe to set up a clash with Bulgaria’s Kaloyana Nalbantova in the round of 32.

However, the journey ended for Priya Konjengbam and Shruti Mishra in the women’s doubles event as they faced a defeat against the Chinese Taipei pair of Hsu Yin-Hui and Lin Jhih Yun in the round of 32.

Despite a valiant effort, Sameer Verma fell short in the men’s singles qualifiers, losing to Kazakhstan’s Dmitriy Panarin after a hard-fought battle in the second round.

While some Indian shuttlers faced early exits, the upcoming matches of youngsters Malvika Bansod and Kiran George offer hope for further success in the singles category as the tournament progresses.