Fuzhou: P V Sindhu’s championship defence was in jeopardy following a shocking straight-game loss to previously unheard-of Chinese Gao Fangjie in the China Super Series Premier quarterfinals on Friday.
During her 38-minute match with the 19-year-old Fangjie, who outclassed her favoured World No. 2 adversary 21-11 21-10 in a lopsided match, Sindhu was entirely out of character.
Following the elimination of Saina Nehwal and H S Prannoy in the prequarterfinals, Sindhu’s defeat put an end to India’s participation at the China Open.
The 22-year-old from Hyderabad had a difficult day on Friday despite playing nonstop over the previous three weeks in the Danish Open, French Open, and National Championship in Nagpur.
She appeared fatigued and found it difficult to predict Fangjie’s actions as she continued to control the match by altering the length of her strokes and engaging in lengthy rallies.
In the opening match, Sindhu took a 2-0 lead until Fangjie displayed her tenacity and turned the tide at a score of 4–3.
Even though Sindhu made a few shrewd drops and smashes to score points, Fangjie led 11-9 at the half.
The Chinese kid just sped off after the game’s midpoint, scoring 10 of the last 12 points to win the first game.
The second game was again a one-way street since Sindhu struggled to interpret Fangjie’s cunning strokes. Additionally, the Indian’s motions weren’t as fluid, which led to Fangjie gaining an 11-6 advantage at the half.
Following the break, Sindhu made too many unforced errors and fell farther behind the Chinese, who now had a commanding 20-9 match point. The Indian managed to save one, but Fangjie sealed it at the next chance.
Next week, Sindhu is slated to compete in the Hong Kong Open. She has a lot of points to protect after making the finals in the last competition.
