Former world No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth made it to the main draw of the Malaysia Masters 2025 in the men’s singles category on Tuesday. The tournament is being held at the Axiata Arena in Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur.
Srikanth, currently ranked 65th in the world, won both his qualifying matches against players from Chinese Taipei. He first defeated world No. 64 Kuo Kuan-lin with ease, finishing the match 21-8, 21-13 in just 29 minutes.
In the second qualifying match, Srikanth faced a tougher challenge against world No. 86 Huang Yu Kai. After losing the first game 9-21, the Indian shuttler came back strongly to win the next two games 21-12, 21-16, securing his place in the main draw.
However, other Indian players had a tough day in the qualifiers. Tharun Mannepalli lost 21-13, 23-21 to Thailand’s Panitchaphon Teeraratsakul. Sankar Subramanian put up a strong fight but was edged out 22-20, 22-20 by China’s Xuan Chen Zhu.
In women’s singles, Anmol Kharb was knocked out early after a 21-14, 21-18 defeat to Hung Yi-Ting of Chinese Taipei.
The women’s doubles saw mixed results. Kavipriya Selvam and Simran Singhi lost in the first round to eighth seeds Lin Jhih-Yun and Hsu Yin-Hui of Chinese Taipei, 21-14, 21-18. Rashmi Ganesh and Sania Sikkandar also exited early, going down 21-10, 21-12 to Thailand’s Pichamon Phatcharaphisutsin and Nannapas Sukklad.
On a positive note, Prerana Alvekar and Mrunmayee Deshpande advanced to the second round in women’s doubles. They beat fellow Indians Vaishnavi Khadkekar and Alisha Khan in a hard-fought match: 21-19, 19-21, 21-13.
In men’s doubles, both Indian pairs were eliminated in the first round. Hariharan Amsakarunan and Ruban Kumar Rethinasabapathi lost 21-13, 21-18 to Chen Zhi-Ray and Lin Yu-Chieh of Chinese Taipei. Pruthvi Krishnamurthy Roy and Sai Pratheek K were beaten 21-15, 23-21 by Malaysian fifth seeds Man Wei Chong and Tee Kai Wun.
In mixed doubles, Mohit Jaglan and Lakshita Jaglan were defeated 21-15, 21-16 by Malaysia’s Ming Yap Too and Yu Shan Lee in the qualifying round.
Looking ahead, top Indian players PV Sindhu and HS Prannoy will begin their campaigns on Wednesday. Sindhu is a two-time Olympic medallist, while Prannoy holds a world championship bronze medal.
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