PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen hand out tough draws at Denmark Open

India’s star badminton player PV Sindhu has been dealt another tough draw, this time at the Denmark Open, after a quarter-final exit at the Arctic open last week. The two-time Olympic medalist is now set to face the daunting task of playing against world number one An Se-young in the Super 750 tournament, which starts in Odense on Tuesday.

Sindhu, a former world champion, will be looking to bounce back after her Arctic Open campaign ended with a three-match defeat to Thailand’s Ratchanok Intanon. However, her task in Denmark will be cut short from the start, the Indian having lost all 10 of her previous matches against An.

The 31-year-old enjoyed a strong performance earlier this season, winning the Japan Open Super 750 title in July. He will now look to carry that form to Denmark where he will look to challenge the best players on the circuit.

In the men’s singles, Lakshya Sen faces a similarly difficult opening challenge against third seed Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei. The Indian will be looking to regain momentum after a disappointing individual campaign at the Asian Games where he finished in the round of 32.

Lakshya beat Japan’s Kodai Naraoka in the men’s team quarter-finals at the Asian Games, but failed to repeat the feat in the singles competition. A back injury has also disrupted his recent run, making his challenge in Denmark more difficult.

Despite his recent setbacks, Lakshya has shown that he can compete with the best. Earlier this year, he finished runner-up at the All England Championships, reaching the final for the second time after his first appearance in 2022. He also became the first Indian men’s singles player to reach the Olympic semi-finals at the 2024 Paris Games.

Chou, meanwhile, comes off the back of a recent win over another Indian when he defeated Ayush Shetty in three games at the Asian Games. Ayush will begin his Denmark Open campaign against Indonesia’s Alwi Farhan, who defeated the Indian in the pre-quarterfinals of the World Championship.

Ayush will be keen to build on a string of encouraging performances. The Indian won the 2025 US Open Super 300 title and made a major statement at this year’s World Championships by defeating then world number one Shi Yuqi. A strong performance in Denmark would offer him another opportunity to establish himself among the up-and-coming contenders on the circuit.

Meanwhile, former world number one Kidambi Srikanth returns to the tournament where he won the men’s singles in 2017. He starts his campaign against the Frenchman Arnaud Merkle.

WHO IS PV SINDHU ANYMORE?

Besides Sindhu, India will have four other representatives in the women’s singles, with Tanvi Sharma, Ashmita Chaliha, Devika Sihag and Unnati Hooda also in the draw.

Tanvi, who won her first BWF World Tour title at the Taipei Open in August, opens against Japan’s Natsuki Nidaira. Ashmita will face Bulgaria’s Kaloyana Nalbant after clinching the Korea Masters Super 300 title in August.

Devika faces a tough task against eighth seed Pornpawee Chochuwong of Thailand, while Unnati will play against China’s Han Qian Xi.

Unnati heads to Denmark after an encouraging campaign at the Asian Games. She reached the quarter-finals after beating a top-10 opponent before pushing Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi to three games. The performances gave her confidence heading into the Super 750 tournament.

SATWIK-CHIRAG WATCH THEY REFUSE

In the men’s doubles, Satwiksiraj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will look to put their disappointing Asian Games campaign behind them after suffering a shock first-round exit.

The fifth seed enjoyed a successful run on the World Tour at the start of the season, winning the Singapore Open Super 750 title in May to end a two-year wait for a tournament crown before adding the China Masters title last month. They will open their Denmark Open campaign against China’s He Ji Ting and Ren Xiang Yu.

The Indian women’s doubles challenge will be led by Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, who won a historic bronze medal at the World Championships in August. The pair reached the quarter-finals at the Asian Games before losing to Malaysia’s Pearly Tan and Thinaah Muralitharan.

Treesa and Gayatri will begin their Denmark Open campaign against Chinese Taipei’s Yan Fei Chen and Hsieh Pei Shan.

Another Indian women’s doubles pair of Rutaparna Panda and Swetaparna Panda will take on sixth seeds Bao Li Jing and Cao Zi Han of China.

– The end