Sindhu is knocked out of the Thailand Open semifinals

Chen Yu Fei of China, the Olympic champion and world number four, defeated P V Sindhu in straight games Saturday in Bangkok in the semi-finals of the Thailand Open.

Third seeded Chen defeated Sindhu, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, in 43 minutes to end Sindhu’s remarkable run in the Super 500 tournament.

In spite of a 6-4 head-to-head record, Sindhu, seeded sixth, was outplayed by the Chinese, who opted for an aggressive style of badminton in order to defeat the Indian.

Chen had previously defeated the 26-year-old Hyderabadi when the two met at the 2019 BWF World Tour Finals.

Sindhu was the first to score points, but Chen stepped up her defense and kept the rallies going to make the Indian commit errors.

At 3-3 in the first set, Chen ended the match with a cross-court slice of her opponent’s forehand. Sindhu fluffed the lines and Chen was spot on with her video referees in the first game as she led 11-7 at the interval.

Although things were not much different, with Sindhu finding the net and longing to get out of her own way, Chen managed to extend her advantage to 17-12. Cross-court returns from Sindhu on Chen’s backhand made it 15-17 before the Chinese broke the run of play when Sindhu lifted her racket.

After sending the shuttle long and then to the net, Sindhu once again surrendered five game points to Chen, who squandered two before winning the first game.

The Indian, ranked seventh in the world, played better in the second game, taking a 6-3 lead before winning 10-5.

Chen, on the other hand, quickly regained her composure, scoring three straight points with a well-mixed shot. Sindhu, on the other hand, had a two-point advantage going into the break after a 25-shot rally victory.

But Chen, the world’s number four player, quickly tightened her grip on the match and turned the tables on Sindhu, allowing Chen to take a 15-12 lead. In spite of Sindhu’s precise return, she went wide again with a cross-court return, narrowing the gap back to 15-17.

With a winner on Sindhu’s forehand, Chen went on to earn five match points with a second serve at the forecourt.

A long shot by the Chinese went awry before a body slam won the match for them.

In last match Sindhu won against her opponent japanese Akane Yamaguchi to reach the semis.