Tokyo Olympics: Praneeth loses opening match on Olympic debut

India’s B Sai Praneeth suffered a demoralising straight-game defeat against lower-ranked Misha Zilberman from Israel in Group D men’s singles, making a disappointing start to his maiden Olympic campaign here on Saturday.

Praneeth, a 2019 World Championship bronze medallist and now ranked 15th, was too erratic as he lost 17-21 15-21 to world number 47 Zilberman in a 41-minute match.

The 13th seeded Indian will next face world number 29 Mark Caljouw of the Netherlands.

In the opening game, Praneeth raced to an 8-4 lead early on but soon Zilberman reeled off five straight points to turn the table as the Indian committed a series of unforced errors.

The Indian entered the break with a one-point advantage after Zilberman made an error.

Praneeth lacked in his execution, which allowed Zilberman to lead 15-13. The Israeli shuttler dominated the proceedings next to zoom to a 19-14 as the Indian miscued a few shots.

A cross-court smash helped Zilberman to grab six game points and he sealed it on the fourth attempt.

A fired-up Zilberman continued to look good with Praneeth sending the first two shuttles long. The Israeli soon led 8-5.

Zilberman continued to dictate terms in the rallies as Praneeth lagged 7-11 at the interval.

Praneeth couldn’t match the pace of his opponent, who seemed to be playing at a different level.

Zilberman eventually grabbed 8 match points after Praneeth went long again and sealed the opening match with a smash.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.