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India faced a tough start to their 2025 Sudirman Cup campaign, falling to Denmark with a 1-4 loss in their Group D opener held in Xiamen, China, on April 27. With this defeat, India’s chances of advancing have become more difficult, making their next tie against Indonesia absolutely crucial. The absence of key doubles stars Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, Chirag Shetty and Gayatri Gopichand; all sidelined due to injuries, left a clear void in the Indian lineup, significantly weakening the team’s overall strength against a full-strength Danish squad.
The contest began with the mixed doubles match, where Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto were outplayed by Denmark’s Jesper Toft and Amalie Magelund, losing 13-21, 14-21. Things did not improve in the men's singles, with HS Prannoy struggling against world-class shuttler Anders Antonsen. Prannoy tried to keep pace but eventually went down 15-21, 16-21, giving Denmark a strong 2-0 lead early in the tie. The pressure mounted on the Indian side as the results continued to go against them.
Tanisha Crasto and Shruti Mishra’s victory turns out to be sole positive from first round
In the men’s doubles, Hariharan Amsakarunan and Ruban Kumar were up against the world number one pair, Kevin Astrup and Anders Rasmussen. The Danish duo proved far too strong, dismantling the Indian pair with a dominant 21-7, 21-4 victory. Hopes were briefly lifted when PV Sindhu took to the court for the women’s singles match. However, despite her efforts, Sindhu was unable to find her rhythm and fell to Line Kjaersfeldt with scores of 20-22, 21-23, sealing Denmark’s victory well before the final rubber.
India’s only bright spot came late in the tie during the women's doubles match. Tanisha Crasto, teaming up with Shruti Mishra, gave the Indian camp something to cheer about with a hard-fought win. The young Indian pair defeated Denmark’s Natasja P. Anthonisen and Alexandra Boje in straight games, 21-13, 21-18.
