India’s Kiran George delivered one of the biggest surprises of the opening round at the Swiss Open on Wednesday, defeating former world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore in straight games.
The world No. 42 Indian produced a composed and tactical performance to overcome the third seed 23–21, 21–19 in the men’s singles round of 32. Kiran showed excellent control in crucial moments of both games, edging out the 2021 world champion in tight exchanges to seal a memorable victory.
With the win, Kiran advanced to the next round where he will face Hong Kong’s Jason Gunawan, who progressed after defeating former world No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth. Srikanth began strongly by taking the opening game 21–15 but lost momentum thereafter as Gunawan fought back to win 12–21, 4–21 and claim the match.
India also enjoyed success in the mixed doubles competition. The pair of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto produced an impressive upset, defeating Denmark’s fourth-seeded duo Jesper Toft and Amalie Magelund 21–15, 21–14. The Indian pair controlled the rallies well and maintained pressure throughout the match to secure a straight-game victory. They will next face China’s pair Gao Jia Xuan and Wu Meng Ying.
However, the day also brought several disappointments for the Indian contingent in the Super 300 event. Ayush Shetty, the reigning US Open champion, exited the tournament after a 18–21, 19–21 defeat to Canada’s Brian Yang in the men’s singles.
In the women’s singles draw, Unnati Hooda was outplayed by Chinese Taipei’s Chiu Pin-Chian, who secured a comfortable 21–14, 21–14 win. Another Indian shuttler, Tanvi Sharma, also bowed out after top seed Putri Kusuma Wardani of Indonesia dominated their contest 21–11, 21–10 in just 30 minutes.
India suffered another setback when HS Prannoy, the 2023 World Championships bronze medallist, withdrew from his match and handed a walkover to Japan’s Koki Watanabe.
In mixed doubles, Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Shivani Gadde also exited the competition after losing 19–21, 14–21 to Thailand’s Ruttanapak Oupthong and Jhenicha Sudjaipraparat.
On a brighter note for India, the world No. 4 men’s doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty progressed to the round of 16 after defeating Singapore’s Eng Keat Wesley Koh and Junsuke Kubo 21–19, 21–19 late on Tuesday. Another Indian men’s doubles pair, H Amsakarunan and M R Arjun, also moved into the next round with a 21–16, 24–22 win over Chinese Taipei’s Chen Zhi Ray and Lin Yu Chieh.
Despite mixed results overall, Kiran George’s standout victory ensured India still had a strong presence heading into the next phase of the tournament.
