Lucknow: Sixteen-year-old Tanvi Sharma produced the standout performance on Day 3 of the Syed Modi International 2025, knocking out former World No. 1, world champion and Olympic medalist Nozomi Okuhara in a gripping three-game match.
The World Juniors silver medalist mounted a strong comeback after losing the opening game, eventually sealing a 13-21, 21-16, 21-19 victory in under an hour — the biggest win of her young career — securing a place in the women’s singles quarterfinals.
Isharani Baruah also pulled off an impressive upset, defeating eighth seed Polina Buhrova of Ukraine 21-15, 21-8. Meanwhile, top seed Unnati Hooda progressed with a solid 21-15, 21-10 victory over Tasnim Mir, and Rakshitha Sree rallied past Devika Sihag 16-21, 21-19, 21-17.
There were surprises in the men’s singles draw as well. Manraj Singh eliminated third seed HS Prannoy 21-15, 21-18, and Mithun Manjunath edged sixth seed Tharun Mannepalli 21-16, 17-21, 21-7. Former champion Kidambi Srikanth eased into the next round with a 21-6, 21-16 win against Saneeth Dayanand.
In women’s doubles, top seeds Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand continued their dominant run, beating Zenith Abbigail and Likhita Srivastava 21-17, 21-12. Jolly also tasted success in mixed doubles, partnering Hariharan Amsakarunan to upset second seeds Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Gadde 24-22, 21-15.
Hariharan then joined MR Arjun to secure a men’s doubles quarterfinal berth with a confident 21-12, 21-18 win over Malaysia’s Lau Yi Sheng and Lim Tze Jian.
Earlier, on Wednesday, top seeds Unnati Hooda and Jason Teh made smooth starts to their campaigns with straight-game victories. Kidambi Srikanth also advanced, defeating compatriot Kavin Thangam 21-13, 21-10 as he pursues another strong finish in Lucknow.
