Canada Open badminton: Srikanth Kidambi comes from behind to beat Priyanshu Rajawat in a clash of generations

While it was just the third time they have faced each other on the circuit, they know each other’s game inside out, as they train together in Hyderabad. Priyanshu, like many Indian shutlers, looks up to Srikanth and they were, of course, teammates when India clinched the Thomas Cup title in Bangkok. The 23-year-old Dhar shuttler’s silky movement on court, classy strokeplay at the net, and an overall tendency to play attacking badminton are all traits Srikanth possessed in abundance at his peak. Priyanshu is aware of the comparisons but watching them play, the similarities don’t end there – both are error-prone as well, because their first instinct is always to go for the attack and try to paint the lines on court.

That was evident right through the match and in the opening game, Priyanshu was having more joy than Srikanth, and took the lead. But after the change of sides, Srikanth started controlling the shuttle better and was generally dictating the rallies, even the ones he lost with those frustrating errors. The former world No 1 nearly paid the price for those mistakes at the backend of Game 2 but eventually held his nerve to force the decider. In Game 3, things were tight at 14-14 but Srikanth raced through from there to win 7 points in a row – including a stunning defensive block at 16-14 – to enter the second round.

Later, Ayush was evidently feeling the effects of his run to the title in Iowa last week, as he found Sankar’s Kento Momotoa-inspired rallying style frustrating right from the word go. As much as he has been working on his defence, Ayush’s first instinct is to attack with his half smashes or dribbles at the net but Sankar was elongating the rallies every chance he got. Ayush fought back mid-game in the opener, but once Sankar took the lead, the second game saw the Mangalore lad steadily lose steam.