All England Championships: PV Sindhu loses semi-final to Pornpawee Chochuwong
Indian badminton star PV Sindhu was knocked out of the All England Championships on Saturday as she lost the semi-final to Thailand's Pornpawee Chochuwong. Sindhu, who looked solid in the tournament, lost 17-21, 9-21 in under 45 minutes this time, and failed to make the final. Notably, sixth-seeded Chochuwong showed immaculate agility to outclass the Indian in the match. Here is more.
How did the match pan out?
Sindhu cruized to a 3-1 lead early on, but Chochuwong played well to make a comeback. The latter extended her lead to 14-7 before Sindhu staged a turnaround. Although the Indian narrowed it down to 15-13, she lost the opening round eventually (21-17). In the second game, Chochuwong won six consecutive points to make it 10-3. She made it one-sided eventually, winning 21-9.
Sindhu committed quite a few errors in the semi-final
In her semi-final loss, Sindhu bore the brunt of committing several unforced errors. "I knew it was going to be a good match, she's not an easy player. Her strokes are really good and she's going to be a really good player," said Sindhu after the match. "Overall, I should've controlled my unforced errors, maybe things could've been different."
'I have to learn from my mistakes'
Interestingly, Sindhu also lost the semi-final at the 2018 edition of All England Championships as well. "Everybody aims to be in the final, it's over for now so I have to learn from my mistakes and take the positives. I don't have a tournament for another month so I have time to prepare and come back stronger," Sindhu added.
Sindhu won in similar manner against Akane Yamaguchi
Sindhu played in a similar manner against Japan's Akane Yamaguchi in the quarter-finals this time. She lost the first round due to unforced errors before bouncing back in the second. In an intriguing contest, Sindhu defeated her Japanese counterpart 16-21, 21-16, 21-19.
Sindhu will aim to regain her form
Sindhu was the last Indian remaining in the tournament. With her defeat, the journey of Indian contingent comes to an end. Notably, the ace Indian shuttler was deemed favorite to win the title, with Carolina Marin and Tai Tzu Ying not taking part in the tournament. Nevertheless, the ace Indian shuttler will aim to regain her form ahead of the Tokyo Olympics.
