China Open: Defending champion PV Sindhu loses to teenager in quarter-finals
November 17, 2017
NEW DELHI: World No 2 and defending champion PV Sindhu has been eliminated from the China Open Super Series Premier after a surprising 11-21, 10-21 loss to Chinese teenager Gao Fangje in Friday’s quarter-final in Fuzhou. With her exit, the last of India’s badminton players had bowed out of the tournament.
Second-seeded Sindhu struggled to cope with Fangjie’s range of strokes and quick movement on court, and was particularly off-key. Fangje, ranked 89th in women’s singles, dominated the opening game. With a rally of quick shots the 19-year-old moved ahead of Sindhu after the early exchanges and in one stunning stretch scored seven consecutive points to move from 14-11 and seal the first game.
In the second game, Fangjie sped forward 7-2 and did not let her grasp slip. Sindhu briefly rallied back to make it 6-10, but again struggled as her opponent moved ahead to 16-7. As in the first game, Fangjie finished strongly, this time scoring five points in a row to win 21-10. This was the first meeting between the pair on a badminton court.
