India's Parupalli Kashyap entered his maiden Super Series quarter-finals stunning top seed Chen Long of China in the Indonesia Open badminton yesterday
His compatriot Saina Nehwal also overcame a spirited challenge from Indonesian Aprilla Yuswandari to make the last eight stage in the women’s singles.
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Kashyap, ranked 26th, outplayed Chen 21-17, 21-14 in 45 minutes of sensational badminton for his first win over the World No 3.
Parupalli u00a0Kashyap
Saina expectedly made the last eight stage beating Yuswandari 21-17, 14-21, 21-13 in the 59-minute second round affair. She next plays higher-ranked Chinese Shixian Wang.
Kashyap, who qualified for the London Olympics ahead of Ajay Jayaram, was consistent with his smashes and net play against the 2010 Asian Games gold medallist. “He played consistent and was aggressive when he needed to be. I was particularly impressed with his net play,” national coach Pullela Gopichand, who is here with the Indian contingent, said.
Asked if he planned anything different for Kashyap before the match, Gopichand said: “Not really to be honest. We keep changing the strategy from time to time. He kept the shuttle in play just for the right time and it paid off against a top-player.”
Kashyap next faces 16th-ranked Dane Hans-Kristian Vittinghus, who got the better of Chinese Taipei’s Hyun Il Lee 22-10, 21-11. India’s top-ranked men’s player at No 23, Jayaram and PV Sindhu lost their respective matches.
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