World Championships silver medallist Kidambi Srikanth made a strong start at the Thailand Masters 2025, securing a straight-game victory in the opening round of the men’s singles event in Pathumwan on Wednesday.
Competing at Nimibutr Stadium, the world No. 47 Indian shuttler defeated Israel’s Daniil Dubovenko, ranked 74th, 21-13, 21-18 in the round of 32 at the BWF Super 300 tournament.
Srikanth, who last won a BWF title at the 2017 French Open Super Series, dominated the opening game by racing to a 6-0 lead before Dubovenko found his rhythm. Despite the Israeli’s resistance, Srikanth maintained control, entering the interval at 11-4 and wrapping up the game comfortably.
The second game saw a stronger fight from Dubovenko, who clawed back from 10-5 down to level at 15-15. However, Srikanth responded by increasing his intensity to close out the match and book his spot in the pre-quarterfinals, where he will face world No. 41 Jason Gunawan of Hong Kong China.
India had more success in the tournament, with several players advancing to the second round. Sankar Subramanian battled past Malaysia’s Cheam Jun Wei 15-21, 21-15, 21-19 and will now take on Indonesia’s Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo. In men’s doubles, Ruban Kumar and Hariharan Amsakarunan secured a 21-18, 21-12 win over Thailand’s Pannawat Jamtubtim-Ratchapol Makkasasithorn.
In mixed doubles, Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Shivani triumphed over Thailand’s Weeraphat Phakjarung-Sararat Chueboca 21-8, 21-16. Meanwhile, Rakshitha Ramraj secured a hard-fought 21-19, 21-16 victory against China’s Wu Luo Yu to reach the round of 16.
However, it was a mixed day for India, as several players were eliminated. Tharun Mannepalli, Satish Kumar, Ayush Shetty, and Mithun Manjunath all bowed out in the men’s singles category. In women’s singles, Tanya Hemanth, Shriyanshi Valishetty, and Tara Shah also suffered defeats. The men’s doubles pair of Abinash Mohanty and Ayush Pattanayak were also knocked out.
Meanwhile, Pruthvi Krishnamurthy Roy and Sai Pratheek K, who fought back to defeat Indonesia’s Eng Keat Wesley Koh and Junsuke Kubo in the opening round, will be in action on Thursday as they look to continue their run in the tournament.
