Srikanth gets 1st round walkover after Momota pull-out

Hong Kong: Top Indian shuttler Kidambi Srikanth advanced to the men’s singles second round without playing a shot after his opponent Kento Momota’s pull-out of he game while Sourabh Verma entered the main draw of the Hong Kong Open after clinching straight-game wins in his two qualifying clashes here on Tuesday.
Srikanth was to play against Kento Momota in the first round on Wednesday but the Japanese world number one pulled out of the tournament on Tuesday. However, the reasons for his withdrawal were not known.
A few days back, the 24-year-old Momota had beaten Taiwan’s world number two Chou Tien-chen to claim his 10th title of the year at the Fuzhou China Open. World number 10 Srikanth will now face either compatriot Sourabh or Frenchman Brice Leverdez, who will clash in the second round on Wednesday, to reach the quarterfinal. Sourabh, seeded fourth in the qualifiers, first defeated Thailand’s Tanongsak Saensomboonsuk 21-15 21-19 before getting the better of Lucas Claerbout of France 21-19 21-19 in the final qualifying round. (PTI)