Kidambi Srikanth Upsets Kodai Naraoka, Storms Into Kumamoto Masters Quarterfinal

Last Updated:November 12, 2026, 10:43 IST

Former world No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth pulled off a major upset in Japan, beating defending champion Kodai Naraoka to reach the last eight of the Kumamoto Masters.

Kidambi Srikanth stunned Kodai Naraoka (Picture credit: Badminton Photo)

Indian men’s singles shuttler Kidambi Srikanth, a runner-up at the US Open earlier this year, pulled off a major upset by beating 2026 World Championships silver medallist and fifth seed Kodai Naraoka in the second round of the Kumamoto Masters.

After edging past Denmark’s Rasmus Gemke 18-21, 21-16, 24-22 in a thrilling first-round encounter on Wednesday, Srikanth produced another hard-fought performance to overcome Naraoka 21-15, 11-21, 21-18.

Srikanth entered the contest as the underdog, having lost all four of his previous meetings with Naraoka. Their most recent encounter came at the 2024 Singapore Open, where the latter had beaten Srikanth comprehensively in straight games.

The star Indian shuttler waited two years to exact his revenge, stunning Naraoka and bringing the Japanese shuttler’s Kumamoto Masters title defence to an end.

Srikanth will next take on Japan’s Koki Watanabe in the quarterfinals on Friday.

Eighth seed Lakshya Sen is currently up against China’s Dong Tian Yao. Later in the day, the men’s doubles pair of Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun will face Japan’s Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi, while the women’s doubles duo of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand are all set to take on third seeds Rin Iwanaga and Kie Nakanishi.

(More to follow)

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Who did Kidambi Srikanth beat to reach the Kumamoto Masters quarterfinal?

Kidambi Srikanth pulled off a major upset by defeating fifth seed and 2026 World Championships silver medallist Kodai Naraoka 21-15, 11-21, 21-18 in the second round of the Kumamoto Masters.

Who is Kidambi Srikanth’s next opponent in the Kumamoto Masters quarterfinals?

Kidambi Srikanth will face Japan’s Koki Watanabe in the quarterfinals on Friday following his victory over Kodai Naraoka.

What was the previous head-to-head record between Kidambi Srikanth and Kodai Naraoka before this match?

Kidambi Srikanth entered the contest having lost all four of his previous meetings against Kodai Naraoka, including a comprehensive straight-game defeat at the 2024 Singapore Open.

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