Saina loses as shuttlers stumble in team quarters
JAKARTA:India’s dream of winning a medal in the badminton team championship went for a toss in the quarter-finals with the women losing to Japan and the men going down to Indonesia with 1-3 scorelines, at the GBK Istora Complex on Monday.
Despite heroics from Olympic silver medallist PV Sindhu and HS Prannoy, the teams didn’t get enough supports from the rest. The women, bronze medalists in the last edition in Incheon, couldn’t match the reigning Uber Cup champions and top seeds after a first-round bye. India had lost 0-5 to Japan in the Uber Cup.
Sindhu, the world No 3 and silver medallist at this year’s world championship, surprised world No 2 Akane Yamaguchi 21-18, 21-8. Her blistering smashes and perfect drop shots at the net put India ahead after 44 minutes. At 18-all in the first game, Sindhu sent down back-to-back smashes to fetch two points before executing a perfect drop aimed at Yamaguchi’s backhand.
Much was expected from Yamaguchi in the second game but Sindhu didn’t let the momentum slip. As Sindhu’s smashes landed, Yamaguchi made a slew of unforced errors. Sindhu raced ahead 15-5 and from then on, there was no looking back.
The win was a perfect platform for others to capitalise on but the duo of N Sikki Reddy and Sunil Arathi Sara folded against Yuki Fukushima-Sayaka Hirota 6-21, 15-21 to allow Japan restore parity after the first doubles tie. Saina Nehwal tried her best to lift the morale in the second singles but lost to world No 8 Nozomi Okuhara 11-21, 25-23, 16-21.
Leading 2-1, it was a formality for Japan’s strongest pair of Misaki Matsutomo and Ayaka Takahashi to outclass the makeshift duo of PV Sindhu and Ashwini Ponnappa 21-13, 21-12.
“I wanted to give a good start to the side and I was hoping that others would capitalise on it but things didn’t go our way. Saina too played well and I found that Japanese were too good,” said Sindhu. “Certainly, this experience will help me plan better when individual events start.”
SRIKANTH DISAPPOINTS PTI adds:
World No 8 Kidambi Srikanth failed to give India a good start, losing 21-23, 22-20, 10-21 to 12th ranked Anthony Sinisuka Ginting. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty then went down 21-19, 19-21, 16-21 to the world No 1 combination of Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo and Marcus Fernaldi Gideon. World No 11 Prannoy then beat Jonathan Christie 21-15, 19-21, 21-19 but national champions Manu Attri and B Sumeeth Reddy lost 14-21, 18-21 to world No 9 Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto.