Arctic Open 2025: Lakshya Sen crashes out in first round; Tharun Mannepalli, Anmol Kharb advance

Ayush Shetty also exited after loss to top seed.

For Indian shuttlers, the Arctic Open 2025 saw dramatic wins and upsets on the second day. While the rising star Tharun Mannepalli sealed a stunning first-round victory, India’s top singles shuttlers Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty, and Kiran George were knocked out from the BWF Super 500 event in Finland.

WR-46 Mannepalli delivered a brilliant upset victory over seventh seed Toma Junior Popov of France. Despite losing the first game 11-21, the Indian turned the tides, winning the second game 21-11 and pushing the match to a decisive third game.

And then in a thrilling finale, Popov held four match points at 20-16, but Mannepalli saved all four and converted one of his own to win the final game 22-20.

Also Read: BWF Arctic Open 2025: Updated schedule, fixtures, results, live streaming details

This hard-fought 1 hour and 8 mins victory marks a huge comeback for Mannepalli, especially given his recent struggles in qualification rounds. He will next face Koki Watanabe of Japan in the second round.

Tharun Mannepalli upsets 7th seed at Arctic Open 2025!! 🇮🇳🔥The Indian saved four match points in the deciding game to beat Toma Junior Popov of France🇫🇷 in the opening round.Score – 11-21, 21-11, 22-20#ArcticOpen2025 #Badminton pic.twitter.com/WekJB8vghC

— Khel Now (@KhelNow) October 8, 2025

Series of defeats

Sen who is still hunting for his first title of the year faced the fifth seeded Kodai Naraoka of Japan in the first round. However, the Indian, who came unseeded lost the match in straight sets 15-21, 17-21. The 57-minute match saw Naraoka extending his head-to-head lead over Sen to 6-2.

With this, the 24-year-old Indian suffered yet another early setback, recording his tenth first-round exit of the 2025 BWF World Tour season.

Meanwhile, Ayush Shetty faced a tough draw in the first round, where he was eliminated by the tournament’s top seed and Paris 2024 silver medallist, Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand who won the match in straight games with a score of 21-15, 21-16.

Former World No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth gave a walkover to Rasmus Gemke of Denmark. Injury setbacks deepened in the Indian contingent when Kiran George had to retire from his match against Japan’s Koki Watanabe due to an injury early in the second game, after having lost the first game.

Sankar Muthusamy Subramanian was also defeated in straight games by the third seed, Christo Popov of France 21-17, 21-11.

Opening day wins

On the other hand, eighteen-year-old Anmol Kharb scripted one of the most inspiring moments of her young career. She stunned the sixth seed and World No. 21 Lin Hsiang-Ti of Chinese Taipei in a battle that lasted 77 minutes.

The 62nd ranked Indian teenager after falling behind 3-8 in the opening game, clawed her way back to snatch it 23-21.

Though she stumbled in the second, losing 11-21, Anmol refused to back down. She was trailing 0-4 in the decider at the begining.

But just how things changed, the youngster then turned the match around, sealing an unforgettable 21-18 victory. Now, Anmol Kharb will face Wen Chi Hsu of Chinese Taipei in the second round

In the mixed doubles, the Indian top mixed doubles pair of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto who are seeded eighth at the Arctic Open, kicked off their campaign with a dominant straight sets 21-9, 21-7 win against France’s Lucas Renoir and Camille Pognante in just 23 minutes.

This win propels them into the Round of 16, where they are set to face Ukraine’s Oleksii Titon and Yevheniia Kantemyr.

For more updates, follow Khel Now on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Whatsapp & Telegram