Badminton-Top seeds An, Shi shine in Indonesia Open, Farhan and Christie fuel local hopes
Olympic champion An, who saw her unbeaten run this season snapped by Chen Yufei in the Singapore quarter-finals last week, faced little trouble beating her Thai opponent in 41 minutes.
Defending women's champion Yufei, seeded fifth, will face Thailand's Pornpicha Choeikeewong in her opener on Wednesday.
P.V. Sindhu was the only Indian singles player to reach the second round on Tuesday after her three-game win over old rival Nozomi Okuhara of Japan, who she last played in 2023.
"We played after a long time. I'm glad that we're still there, because we've been playing for more than a decade. It was always good to play with Nozomi," she said.
India's Sen, returning from an back injury that forced him to retire in his opening round match of Singapore Open, came back from a 9-2 deficit to win the second game but Shi eventually took control to close out the match.
Home hope Jonatan Christie, who last won a Super 1000 title at the 2024 All England Open, beat Singaporean Jason Teh after losing the first game.
Another local favourite Alwi Farhan beat Indian H. S. Prannoy and will meet Dane third seed Anders Antonsen in the second round. The 20-year-old Indonesian stunned Antonsen in their only meeting at the Sudirman Cup in May.
Malaysia's world number one pair Goh Sze-Fei and Nur Izzuddin Rumsani beat Taiwan's Lee Fang Chih and Lee Fang Jen to set up an all-Malaysian round of 16 clash with Nur Mohammed Azriyn Ayub and Tan Weekiong.
Indian pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty also advanced.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
7 hours ago
- BBC News
Olympic champion McClenaghan undergoes shoulder surgery
Olympic pommel horse champion Rhys McClenaghan has undergone surgery on a shoulder injury. McClenaghan has not competed since winning Olympic gold in Paris last summer and said he had been "struggling with this injury for a while now". Although it is yet to be officially confirmed, the surgery will likely rule McClenaghan out of all competitions for the rest of the year, including the World Championships in Indonesia in Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and the World Championships are two events for the 25-year-old from Northern Ireland to target in 2026. "I'm delighted that everything went to plan with the operation and I can make my way back to maintaining my spot as the best in the world at what I do," McClenaghan posted on social media."This is the reality of sport, and I love all of the challenges it throws my way. Champion Mindset."McClenaghan was one of fourth athletes from Northern Ireland to win a gold medal in Paris in a historic games after rower Hannah Scott and swimmers Daniel Wiffen and Jack McMillan all had success at the winning gold in France, McClenaghan completed gymnastics' Grand Slam by becoming Olympic, World, European and Commonwealth his Olympic triumph, McClenaghan competed on and won Dancing With the Stars, which is the Irish version of Strictly Come Dancing. He had been due to compete in the European Championships in May but withdrew through injury, and his participation at the Worlds in October is now in doubt.
Reuters
13 hours ago
- Reuters
Chou stuns Vitidsarn, An storms into China Open semis
July 25 (Reuters) - Taiwanese men's sixth seed Chou Tien-chen knocked out Thai top seed Kunlavut Vitidsarn from the China Open quarter-finals with a commanding 21-17 21-11 win in Changzhou on Friday, while women's world number one An Se-young advanced to the semifinals. Chou outclassed Vitidsarn, the 2023 world champion and Paris Olympic silver medallist, in straight sets and will next face Chinese third seed and world number two Shi Yuqi. Shi rallied from a set down to defeat compatriot and fifth seed Li Shifeng 15-21 21-15 21-11. Denmark's second seed Anders Antonsen overcame France's Toma Junior Popov 19-21 21-12 21-8 to cruise into the semi-finals, where he will meet China's Wang Zhengxing. In the women's singles, South Korean top seed An defeated Chinese fifth seed Chen Yufei 21-18 21-19. An, 23, who won Olympic singles gold in Paris, will next face Chinese fourth seed Han Yue, who overcame Indonesian eighth seed Gregoria Mariska Tunjung 21-19 21-18 in a tightly contested encounter. Chinese second seed Wang Zhiyi eased past Taiwan's Chiu Pin-Chian 21-16 21-11 to secure a semi-final clash with Japanese third seed and former world champion Akane Yamaguchi, who defeated India's Unnati Hooda in straight sets.
Reuters
2 days ago
- Reuters
Philippines' rising renewables use could push power prices 24% lower by 2029, market operator says
SINGAPORE, July 24 (Reuters) - Increasing adoption of renewable energy in the Philippines could push average annual spot power prices as much as 24% lower by 2029, its power market operator said on Thursday. Spot power prices in the Philippines have fallen to a post-pandemic low of 4.14 Philippine pesos ($0.0731) per kilowatt-hour (kWh) in the first half of 2025, data from the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) showed. Increased output from cheaper renewable generators have helped displace higher-priced plants this year, the IEMOP said, estimating planned green energy capacity additions to slash prices by 0.90–1.32 pesos per kWh by 2029. Spot electricity prices averaged 5.58 pesos/kWh last year. Natural gas-fired power plants - which can quickly adjust generation to offset renewable supply volatility - also output this year, IEMOP said, helping bring spot prices down. The Philippines, which has the most coal-dependent grid in the region, is on track for an annual decline in coal-fired electricity output for the first time since 2008 due to rising liquefied natural gas-fired power generation. Lower prices on the spot power market don't necessarily translate into reduced electricity tariffs for Philippine residents, who pay the second highest electricity tariffs in southeast Asia behind Singapore. The country's top power retailer Manila Electric Co (MERALCO) ( opens new tab increased tariffs this month despite lower spot prices, citing higher charges from power generators with whom it has expensive supply deals. However, most retailers have increased buying on the spot market, as they seek to cut costs by reducing dependence on pricey long-term supplies. The share of spot market purchases rose to 21% of overall supply in the 24 months ended June, compared with 12% in the preceding two years, an analysis of IEMOP data showed. ($1 = 56.6450 Philippine pesos)
