Malaysia Open: Indian shuttlers eye strong start

With renewed vigour,Indian shuttlers,including the experienced duo of Lakshya Sen and P V Sindhu,will eye a strong start to the year when they take on the world’s best at the season-opening $1,450,000 Malaysia Open Super 1000 tournament,beginning here on Tuesday.

Indian badminton endured a difficult 2025 marked by injuries and inconsistent performances at the top level. The focus is now on making an early impact and fine-tune preparations for next week’s India Open Super 750 tournament in Delhi.

Lakshya,a 2021 world championships bronze-medallist,was the bright spot last season,returning to winning ways with a title at the Australian Open Super 500 after a lean run following his fourth-place finish at the Paris Olympics. The 24-year-old from Almora,who also reached the final of the Hong Kong Open,will look to carry that momentum when he opens against Singapore’s Jia Heng Jason Teh. Youngster Ayush Shetty too showed promise,winning the US Open Super 300,and will aim to address issues of consistency when he takes on Malaysia’s Lee Zii Jia,the Paris Olympics bronze-medallist.

Two-time Olympic medallist Sindhu,however,endured a torrid phase due to fitness concerns and patchy form. The former world champion,who missed competitions from October onwards while recovering from a foot injury,will be keen to rediscover her best when she opens her campaign against Chinese Taipei’s Sung Shuo Yun.