Rio Olympics: Shuttler Kidambi Srikanth storms into men's singles pre-quarters

After Saina Nehwal's ouster from Rio Olympics, India's badminton campaign got a major boost with Kidambi Srikanth getting the better of Sweden's Henri Hurskainen in his second group game of the men's singles event on 14 August.

The world no. 11 Indian looked in sublime form and proved a tad too much for his Swedish counterpart who lost the game 6-21 and 18-21.

Ranked 60th in the world, Hurskainen found himself in trouble early on as he failed to keep up with the pace of his opponent. Kidambi's on-court movement and stellar technique saw the Indian clinch the first game with a massive lead.

With his back against the wall, the Swede came back strong in the second game to lead 11-10 going into break. Though an improved net game turned the tide in Hurskainen's favour, Kidambi was not far behind either.

The 23-year-old Indian shuttler relied on his big smashes through the middle, leaving no chance for Hurskainen to counter back. The Swede looked in the fray till he trailed 18-19 in the second game, but the Indian closed it off 21-18 to enter Round of 16.

Earlier, India's premier female shuttler Saina Nehwal crashed out of the Rio Olympics after a shocking 18-21, 19-21 loss to world no. 61 Maria Ulitina in women's singles event.