Daijiworld Media Network - Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken, Oct 30: India's PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen advanced to the quarterfinals of the Hylo Open Super 500 badminton tournament in Germany, while compatriots Malvika Bansod and Isharani Baruah bowed out after their respective Round of 16 defeats on Thursday.
Second-seeded Sindhu delivered a dominant performance against France's Rosy Oktavia Pancasari, registering a convincing 21-9, 21-6 victory in just 26 minutes.
The two-time Olympic medallist controlled the match from the outset and secured her place in the last eight. She will next face Denmark's Amalie Schulz in the quarterfinals.
Malvika Bansod, meanwhile, lost 11-21, 17-21 to Canada's Wen Yu Zhang. Isharani Baruah also exited the competition after going down 14-21, 19-21 to Denmark's Line Højmark Kjærsfeldt.
In men's singles, Lakshya Sen defeated fellow Indian Kiran George 21-15, 18-21, 21-12 in a closely contested encounter lasting 54 minutes. After conceding the second game, Sen bounced back strongly in the decider to book his quarterfinal berth.
Sen will next face Finland's Kalle Koljonen for a place in the semifinals.
Sindhu and Sen's progress keeps India's challenge alive in the singles events as the tournament moves into the quarterfinal stage.