Indonesia Open: Sindhu goes down to Intanon to crash out in semis

Indonesia Open 2021: PV Sindhu, Satwik-Chirag pair enter semifinals; Sai Praneeth crashes out

In a 54-minute encounter, the second-seed Thai shuttler fought back to defeat Sindhu by 15-21, 21-9, 21-14. The win on Saturday saw the Thai shuttler improve her head-to-head over Sindhu, making it 7-4 over the two-times Olympic medallist.

The third-seeded Sindhu had the early advantage as she raced to an 8-3 lead to start the semifinal on a strong foot. Intanon fought back to reduce the deficit, but the Indian capitalised on Intanon’s errors, to pocket the opening game 21-15.

In the second game, Intanon turned the tables, racing to a 11-7 lead during the mid-game break. Misjudgements at the line saw Sindhu lose crucial points as the Thai shuttler levelled the match, racing to a 21-9 win in the second game.

????@Pvsindhu1 put up valiant efforts but fell short as she went down 21-15, 9-21, 14-21 against 2nd seed ????????’s Ratchanok Intanon in the semifinals at #IndonesiaOpen2021.

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— BAI Media (@BAI_Media) November 27, 2021

In the decider, the second seeded Intanon kept the momentum going as she raced to a 11-5 lead in the break. Though Sindhu fought back to win four straight points, Intanon denied Sindhu a chance at defending her title, as she wrapped up the win, clinching the decider 21-14.

In the title clash of the women’s singles event on the Indonesia Open, Sindhu will now face fourth-seed An Se-Young of South Korea. The South Korean shuttler sealed her place in the final with a win over Thailand’s Pornpawee Chochuwong 21-19, 21-19 in the first semifinal of the day.

(Input from agencies)