PV Sindhu opens campaign with dominant victory

Paris, July 28

Two-time Olympics medallist PV Sindhu began her campaign with a resounding straight-game win over Maldives’ Fathimath Abdul Razzaq in a women’s singles match. The gulf of class between the two players was evident as Sindhu took just 29 minutes to dispatch her lower-ranked opponent 21-9 21-6 in the Group M fixture.

“It was a good start, I am happy. I was able to get used to the court and the atmosphere. It has been a long time, coming back after three years, it’s a very special one,” said Sindhu.

Sindhu has been mentored by the legendary Prakash Padukone in the past few months. “I have been with Prakash sir for more than six months now and it’s going on very well. Everything is coming together. We have to know each other very well to work together,” she said.

HS Prannoy opened his maiden Olympics campaign with a straight-game win over Fabian Roth of Germany in the men’s singles competition. The 32-year-old from Kerala, who was down with chikungunya for almost two weeks ahead of the Games, won 21-18 21-12 in a 45-minute Group K match.