Asian badminton Championship: PV Sindhu, Ajay Jayaram advance; Saina Nehwal slump to defeat

Wuhan: Rio-Olympic silver medallist PV Sindhu kicked off her Asian badminton Championship on a winning note as she thrashed Dinar Dyah Ayustine of Indonesia in straight games to storm into the second round of the women`s singles event here on Wednesday.

The fourth-seed produced a rich vein of form to register a comfortable 21-8, 21-18 win over Ayustine in a one-sided opening round clash that lasted about half an hour.Sindhu will now take on either Japan`s Aya Ohori or Philippines` Sarah Joy Barredo for a place in the quarter-finals.Meanwhile, Saina Nehwal`s poor run of form continued as she slumped to a 21-19, 16-21, 18-21 defeat at the hands of Japan`s Sayaka Sato in the opening round that lasted little over an hour.

Saina, who recently made a first-round exit at the Malaysia Open, underwent knee surgery after the 2016 Rio Olympics and since recovering the Hyderabad girl has been struggling to return to her menacing best.In men`s singles, India`s Ajay Jayaram also advanced to the second round after posting a 21-18, 18-21, 21-19 win over fifth-seeded Tian Houwei of China.Meanwhile, Ashwini Ponappa and N. Sikki Reddy suffered a major blow as they bowed out of the tournament after suffering a 20-22, 16-21 defeat to the South Korea duo of Chae Yoo Jung and Kim So Yeong.