Birmingham, 14 March (H.S.): India’s women’s singles campaign at the All England Championships concluded with Malvika Bansod suffering a straight-games defeat to two-time world champion Akane Yamaguchi from Japan in the pre-quarterfinals. Yamaguchi, ranked world no. 3, won comfortably 21-16, 21-13 in just 33 minutes, extending her lead in their head-to-head record to 4-0.

In men’s singles, Lakshya Sen delivered an impressive performance, overcoming world no. 2 Jonatan Christie of Indonesia in straight games, 21-13, 21-10, in 36 minutes, and narrowing his overall record against Christie to 3-4. This marked their first encounter since the Paris Olympics.

Lakshya Sen, influenced by mentor Prakash Padukone, shares a special bond with the All England Open, shaping his career.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar