Misha Zilberman beats Sai Praneeth 21-17 21-15: Olympics singles badminton live scores, updates & commentary

Guys, don't be disappointed. Our men's doubles pair of Satwik and Chirag, meanwhile, have taken the first game 21-16 over the World No. 3 pair.

You can follow the LIVE UPDATES HERE:

https://www.sportskeeda.com/live/satwiksairaj-chirag-shetty-badminton-doubles-olympics-2021-live-scores-updates-match-commentary?ref=homepage

Sai started off well but lost his control of the match midway through the match. His body language too started looking negative as Misha Zilberman started attacking relentlessly.

Not a good Olympic debut for Sai but all is not lost yet. He needs to win the next match in his group to still be within a chance of progressing to the knockouts.

Let's hope Sai wins his next match against Mark Caljouw.

MISHA ZILBERMAN DASHES INDIAN HOPES AS HE BEATS SAI PRANEETH 21-17, 21-15

THIS IS THE FIRST WIN FOR MISHA OVER SAI IN 4 MEETINGS!

But that's all Sai could do.

Unfortunately Misha has moved ahead to 19-12

Finally a couple of good points from the World No. 15.

Sai has closed the gap to 11-15

Zilberman continues his progress and has surged to a 13-9 lead now

It's 11-7 to Misha Zilberman at the mid-game interval.

This match seems to be slipping away from Sai's grip unless he finds his game.

It's 8-5 to Misha now

A lot of aggression from Misha and he takes a 5-4 lead

It's currently 3-3 in the second game

Misha looks highly charged up but Sai's body language doesn't look that positive.

Here's hoping he finds the solutions.

Can Sai make a comeback?

This is the first game Zilberman has ever taken off Sai in four meetings!

Sai saves three game points but it's not enough!

MISHA ZILBERMAN TAKES THE FIRST GAME 21-17

Sai produced a couple of fine returns and saves a couple of game points.

Still trailing 16-20

Tables have turned!

It's 18-14 to Misha now.

Sai needs to put more power and pace into his shots!

Buoyed by it, Misha is now injecting more aggression into his rallies.

It's 15-13 for the Israeli

Superb netplay from Misha and we are back to level.

13-13

A couple of errors from Misha once again let Sai move ahead to 13-11 after the break.

Misha gave his all in a fabulous rally but got stopped at the net.

Sai leads 11-10 at the mid-game break.

A HUGE SMASH FROM SAI!

It's 10-9 to the Indian

Sai seems to be struggling with the drift in the initial stages of the match.

It's 9-8 to Misha now.

Sai has let Misha come back into the game.

A bit of aggression needed from the Indian.

It's 8-8

Misha tried for a smash but kept overhitting the shuttle. More attacking intent from the Israeli now.

He has got two points in a row and now trails Sai 6-8

Zilberman closed the gap to one point at 4-5 but Sai has once again widened the gap to two points.

It's 6-4 to Sai

Zilberman keeps making unforced errors at the start.

He has now handed Sai a 4-2 lead

Blazing start for Sai!

He keeps drawing errors from Misha

Sai 3-0

What a rally to start the match!!!!

A backhand error from Misha gives Sai the point

Sai leads 1-0

Sai reached the semifinals of the Japan Open in 2019 at the same venue. The slow conditions should suit him better.

Here we go!!!!!

GUYS, THE MOST-AWAITED MOMENT IS HERE!!!!!

SAI PRANEETH AND MISHA ZILBERMAN ARE ON COURT!

INDIA'S FIRST BADMINTON MATCH OF THE TOKYO OLYMPICS IS ABOUT TO START!!!!!!

Sai has a 3-0 record against World No. 47 Misha Zilberman.

Can he make it 4-0 today?

Marcus Fernaldi Gideon and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo just won their match.

Next up is Sai Praneeth!!!!!

Sai Praneeth will be in action on Court No. 2 following the men's doubles match between the teams from Great Britain and Singapore.

Guys, not a long wait now to see our first shuttler in action.

SAI PRANEETH WILL BE IN ACTION IN A FEW MINUTES!!!!!!

As we wait for the match to start, read our preview of the match here:

All eyes will be on 2019 World Championships bronze medalist Sai Praneeth as he kicks off India's singles challenge in badminton against Israel's Misha Zilberman in Group D at the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday. The Pullela Gopichand protégé qualified for his maiden Olympics by dint of his world ranking, which is currently 15th.The former Singapore Open winner has forever been a perennial underachiever. But this is Sai's time to shine. He is the only player to represent India in men's singles this time around and will hope to make the country proud.

https://www.sportskeeda.com/badminton/sai-praneeth-vs-misha-zilberman-tokyo-olympics-badminton-singles-preview-prediction-ranking-watch-ist

Good morning.

Hello and welcome to the LIVE blog for India at Olympics in Badminton!

Sai Praneeth will kick off India's individual badminton campaign with the hope of creating history. Never has an Indian male shuttler won an Olympic medal. However, Sai will not have an easy road to the final. He will be the favourite today against veteran Israel badminton player Misha Zilberman.

Do let us know your comments, your analysis of the game as Sai Praneeth begins his Olympic medal quest.

Misha Zilberman beats Sai Praneeth 21-17 21-15: Olympics singles badminton live scores, updates & commentary

Misha Zilberman beats Sai Praneeth 21-17, 21-15