PV Sindhu settles for silver in Indonesia Open
What's the story
Indian women's badminton ace PV Sindhu had to settle for a silver at the 2019 Indonesia Open in Jakarta on Sunday.
The star shuttler was beaten comprehensively in a 15-21, 16-21 contest by Akane Yamaguchi in women's singles final.
This was Sindhu's maiden final appearance this year.
Here is the match report.
Yamaguchi
Yamaguchi too good for Sindhu
Fourth seed and former world number one Yamaguchi beat Sindhu in a match that lasted 51 minutes.
Yamaguchi improved her head-to-head record against the Indian ace to 5-10.
Her aggressive all-round display was too good for Sindhu on the day.
Sindhu, who had earlier reached the semi-finals at Singapore and India Open, is still awaiting her maiden title in 2019.
First game
How did the first game pan out?
Yamaguchi was aggressive from the start and made her intentions clear to Sindhu.
There were two stunning long rallies (27 and 31 shots) and both went in favor of the Japanese shuttler.
Sindhu fought back to stay within touching distance and at one time enjoyed a 12-8 lead.
From there on, Yamaguchi dominated the proceedings to clinch the first game 21-15.
Second game
How did the second game pan out?
The fourth seed, once again, started the second game strongly.
But Sindhu managed to pull things back at 4-4.
Yamaguchi kept Sindhu under control and maintained her lead after gaining impetus.
Sindhu tried her best, but Yamaguchi targeted the Indian's backhand corner with fluent body smashes and lifts to seal the second game by a 21-16 margin.
Information
Yamaguchi pockets third title in 2019
This was Yamaguchi's third title of the season. Earlier, she had claimed the German Open and Asian Championship. Both these players will now turn their attention to Japan Open, starting next week.