Lakshya, Satwik-Chirag eye first title of season at China Masters Super 750

Shenzhen: Fresh from a final's appearance, Lakshya Sen will look to ride on his new-found momentum, while Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty too will aim to carry forward their consistency at the China Masters Super 750 badminton tournament beginning here on Tuesday.

Lakshya, who reached his first major final in two years at the just -concluded Hong Kong Open after a prolonged spell of poor form and fitness issues, opens against France's Toma Junior Popov.

The 24-year-old from Almora, who finished fourth at the Paris Olympics, hasn't been his best with multiple early exits but he turned it around to make the summit clash.

"I just need to believe in myself more. I need to keep the same from day one what I was doing, the process," he said.

Eighth seeds Satwik and Chirag have been India's most consistent performers this season, with six semifinal finishes, a second World Championships bronze and a runner-up effort at Hong Kong last week. The Asian Games champions, still chasing their first crown of 2025, will start against Malaysia's Junaidi Arif and Roy King Yap.

It was their first final in 16 months, and while the Indians fell short, the performance underlined progress as they prepare to once again challenge the world's top pairs.

"I think the way we are playing, we are up right there. It's just a matter of time and we should believe in ourselves," Satwik said on Sunday.

Youngster Ayush Shetty, who shocked Japan's Kodai Naraoka last week, will look for another strong run when he faces sixth seed Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei. Ayush had beaten the veteran en route to his maiden BWF title at the US Open Super 300 last June.

In women's singles, two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu will hope to rediscover her top game when she takes on Denmark's Julie Dawall Jakobsen.

The 30-year-old, ranked 14th, had stunned China's world No. 2 Wang Zhi Yi to reach the World Championships quarterfinals but faltered against Line Christophersen last week.

In women's doubles, the Panda sisters — Rutaparna and Swetaparna — face Malaysia's Ong Xin Yee and Carmen Ting.

In mixed doubles, Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Shivani Gadde will meet Japan’s Yuichi Shimogami and Sayaka Hobara, while Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto, quarterfinalists at the World Championships, open against second seeds Feng Yan Zhe and Huang Dong Ping of China.