Ouseph beaten in first round at All England Open

Feltham’s Rajiv Ouseph bowed out of the All England Open in the first round as he was beaten by world number 10 Srikanth Kidambi.

Ouseph, ranked eight places below Srikanth, had not won either of their previous two meetings.

However, the west Londoner made a positive start in Birmingham, taking five of the first six points – but then saw Srikanth erode his lead gradually before they were level at 14-14.

India’s number one then hit the front and took the opening game 21-17.

The 23-year-old also took control of the second game, leading 13-7 at one stage, and although Ouseph narrowed the gap, Srikanth won the match with a run of five straight points.

Ouseph is the sixth seed at next week’s Swiss Open, where he is drawn to face 35-year-old Jan Frolich – currently outside the top 100 – in the first round.