Birmingham, Mar 14 (UNI) Kidambi Srikanth on Wednesday defeated Brice Leverdez of France 7-21, 21-14, 22-20 in a thrilling match to clear the first-round hurdle at the All England Championship.
Srikanth bounced back well in the second after conceding the first game to the Frenchman 7-21. The third game could have gone either way, but the Indian shuttler held his nerves to win the match.
Earlier in the day, Saina Nehwal was knocked out by World No 1 Tai Tzu-Ying in her first round match.