Top five Indian performers at Denmark Open 2021

None of the shuttlers could progress beyond the quarter-finals stage.

Badminton is a sport in which India has been making steady progress in the last decade. The country's top shuttlers were all in action at the Denmark Open 2021, being held at the Odense Sports Park in Odense. The tournament was originally a Super 750 event, but got upgraded to a Super 1000 event this year.

However, it was a largely disappointing campaign for the Indian contingent. Heavyweights like Saina Nehwal and B. Sai Praneeth exited in the opening round itself. Youngster Lakshya Sen showed flashes of his abilities before bowing out. Other big names also tried to leave their mark on the prestigious competition.

Let's take a look at the top five Indian performers at the Denmark Open 2021:

5. Kidambi Srikanth

Only two Indian men have claimed the Denmark Open in the competition's history. Kidambi Srikanth had followed in the footsteps of Prakash Padukone when he won the title in 2017.

He came into this year's tournament with a point to prove, having missed out on a berth for the Tokyo Olympics. The 28-year-old was up against B. Sai Praneeth in the first round. Praneeth had grabbed the ticket to Tokyo, in place of Srikanth after a late surge. At the Denmark Open, Srikanth reminded everyone of his abilities. He took just 30 minutes to oust his compatriot 21-14, 21-11 to sail through to the next round.

Srikanth faced the daunting challenge of Kento Momota in the second round. The Japanese had won back-to-back Denmark Open titles in 2018 and 2019 and was looking to reclaim his lost crown. The Indian shuttler gave him a run for his money in the first game, only to narrowly lose it in the end. The second was a rather comfortable one for Momota, with the scoreline ultimately reading 23-21, 21-9 in his favour. It was a valiant effort from Kidambi Srikanth against the world's best shuttler.

4. Dhruv Kapila & M.R. Arjun

Indian men's doubles prodigies Dhruv Kapila and M.R. Arjun had paired up for the Denmark Open. They were up against Tokyo Olympians Ben Lane and Sean Vendy of England in the first match.

The young Indians were impressive throughout the contest. Dhruv and Arjun won a tense first game before backing it up with a stunning display in the second. The Indians won the match 21-19, 21-15 in 39 minutes. Their second round opponents were Indonesian pair Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto.

Dhruv and Arjun lost the first game, but came back into the contest by winning the second. However, they couldn't find answers in the decisive game going on to lose the match 15-21, 21-17, 12-21 to bring their Denmark Open campaign to a halt.

3. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty

The World No. 10 men's doubles pairing of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty began their campaign against England's Callum Hemming and Steven Stallwood.

It took them 39 minutes to finish off a closely-fought contest. A 23-21, 21-15 scoreline shows that they were made to work hard for the victory. In the second round, Satwiksairaj and Chirag took on Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzuddin of Malaysia. After romping to claim the first game, the Indian duo was undone in the following two. Satwiksairaj and Chirag were shown the exit door after a 21-14, 15-21, 15-21 defeat, in a match that lasted for 55 minutes.

2. P.V. Sindhu

Returning to action after a much-needed break, double Olympic medalist P.V. Sindhu got her Denmark Open campaign off to a perfect start. Sindhu had skipped the Sudirman Cup and the Uber Cup after her Tokyo Olympics exploits.

Back on the court, the ace Indian shuttler took on Neslihan Yigit of Turkey in the opening round. A comfortable 21-12, 21-10 victory was registered in just 30 minutes. The second round match would prove to be a much more difficult task. World No. 7 Sindhu faced World No. 13 Busanan Ongbamrungphan of Thailand in the next match. Sindhu won the first game, but the Thai shuttler won the second game to take it to a decider. The Indian eventually came out on the right side of a 21-16, 12-21, 21-15 scoreline. The energy-sapping encounter lasted for 1 hour and 7 minutes.

The match took its toll on Sindhu in the quarter-finals. She was clearly feeling the heat versus World No. 8 An Se-young of South Korea. Sindhu lost the opening two games to finish her Denmark Open journey. An 11-21, 12-21 loss in 36 minutes underlined the after-effects of her previous round victory. With that, the curtains came down on the Indian contingent's campaign at the Denmark Open 2021.

1. Sameer Verma

Not many fancied Sameer Verma's chances at the Denmark Open, especially given the fact that the limelight was on other heavyweight Indian shuttlers. Sameer's first round opponent was three-time world junior champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand. The 26-year-old Indian was ruthless, winning the match in straight games 21-17, 21-14. The match lasted for a duration of 42 minutes.

Sameer's second round opponent was defending champion and World No. 3, Anders Antonsen. It was a stern test on-paper against the title holder, that too on his home turf. However, the Indian wasn't fazed by the stature of his opponent. Coming into the match with a dismal 1-5 head-to-head count, Sameer showed great athleticism and tactical acumen to down Antonsen, a silver medalist at the 2019 World Championships. He notched up a stunning 21-14, 21-18 straight games victory over the Dane.

In the quarter-finals, Sameer locked horns with Tommy Sugiarto of Indonesia. He lost the first game 17-21 before pulling out of the contest due to an injury. The Denmark Open campaign will certainly breathe new life into Sameer Verma's career in the forthcoming years.

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