Indian badminton endured a tough day at the Canada Open Super 300 as seven of nine players exited in the first round.
Kidambi Srikanth retired early from his opening match against Malaysia’s Lee Zii Jia due to a fitness issue while trailing 10–11.
Srikanth, who finished runner-up at the US Open last week, withdrew after consulting coach B Sai Praneeth. His early exit marked a disappointing start for India’s campaign.
In women’s singles, Tanya Hemnath and Aakarshi Kashyap kept India’s hopes alive. Tanya defeated USA’s Disha Gupta 21–16, 21–18 to reach the second round, where she will face Japan’s Riko Gunji. Aakarshi beat France’s Anna Tatranova 21–14, 21–12 to set up a clash with fourth seed Beiwen Zhang of the USA.
The rest of the Indian contingent struggled. Devika Sihag lost 14–21, 15–21 to Tung Ciou-Tong of Chinese Taipei. Rakshitha Ramraj fell to Canada’s Rachel Chan after a three-game battle, while Shriyanshi Valishetty bowed out against Huang Ching Pi. Anmol Kharb fought hard but lost to the top seed in three games.
The day’s results underline India’s inconsistent form on the BWF circuit, with only two players advancing to the next round.
