Thailand Open: PV Sindhu falters against Chen Yufei in semis
India's ace shuttler PV Sindhu was beaten by reigning Olympic gold medalist Chen Yufei in the semi-finals of the 2022 Thailand Open in Bangkok on Saturday. The two-time Olympic medalist lost the contest in straight games. Sindhu lost the match 17-21, 16-21. Notably, Chen had more control throughout the match and dominated the proceedings. Here are the key details.
Thailand Open: A look at Sindhu's journey
Prior losing to Chen in the semis, Sindhu won the contest against Akane Yamaguchi 21-15, 20-22, 21-13 in the quarters. Earlier, she breezed past Korea's Sim Yu Jin in straight games 21-16, 21-13 in the round of 16. Prior to that, she overcame American Lauren Lam 21-19, 19-21, 21-18 in the round of 32.
Sindhu's run in 2022
Sindhu finished third at the Sunrise India Open. She won the Syed Modi India International in Lucknow. She exited in the round of 16 of the German Open and Yonex All England Open Badminton Championships. She won the Yonex Swiss Open and lost in the semis of the Korea Open. She won bronze at the Badminton Asia Championships. She lost the Thailand Open semis.
Head-to-head: Nothing much to separate the two players
With this win, Chen has improved her head-to-head tally versus Sindhu (5-6). Their last meeting was at the BWF World Tour Finals in 2019. Chen had won the contest 20-22, 21-16, 21-12. The two had met two more times in the same year with Sindhu winning both matches. Their first meeting was at the Macau Open in 2015. Sindhu had won in three games.
Chen to face Tzy-ying or Intanon in the finale
Chen will take on the winner between Chinese Taipei's Tai Tzu-ying and Thailand's Ratchanok Intanon in the summit clash. Tai holds the second place at the BWF Rankings and Intanon is stationed at eighth.
Chen too good for Sindhu
Chen started on the front foot versus Sindhu, gaining an 11-7 lead into the interval. Sindhu earned some crucial points but Chen extended the lead to 15-10. The Indian shuttler fought back to make it 15-17 but thereafter Chen kept her nerves. The second game saw Sindhu lead at the interval. However, Chen grew in stature and killed the contest.
