India’s wait for first title in the women singles at the Championship still continues as the two lose
Indian badminton stars PV Sindhu and Saina Nehwal lost their respective quarter-finals match at the All England Championships 2017. Sindhu and Saina, seeded sixth and eight, lost their matches in straight sets to the top and third seed respectively.
PV Sindhu, facing the world number one Tzu-ying Tai, opened the first set brightly and was cruising at 7-10. The top-seed Tai then made a remarkable comeback to go 11-10 up and subsequently win the set 21-14.
Opening the second set, Tai took an unassailable lead at 14-6. Sindhu tried to make a comeback by winning three points on the trot to close in the gap at 14-9. Tai never looked back from there onwards as she marched from 16-10 to 21-10 to seal the set, match and the semifinals berth in the Championship’s women singles category.
Saina, facing the world number three Ji Hyun Sung of South Korea, had a similar start to the match as Sindhu. Midway the first set, Saina was leading at 7-11. The Korean then made a steady turn around and lead the set at 19-17. The score was then tied at 20 apiece as the set stretched beyond its regular length. Ultimately, Hyun Sung wrapped up the set by winning two consecutive points, 22-20.
The second set was also a close affair as Hyun Sung lead by a solitary point at 15-14. The Korean then raced through to match point at 20-17. Saina fought her way against three match points to equalise the second set at 20-20. She again floundered at the crucial juncture, giving away two points to lose the set 22-20 and the match.