PV Sindhu loses to Akane Yamaguchi at Asian Games
PV Sindhu fell to Japan's Akane Yamaguchi in the Asian Games quarterfinal match on Tuesday, leaving India trailing 0-1 in the competition. The Indian shuttler lost 23-21, 18-21, 11-21 to her Japanese opponent in a highly competitive first set at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium. With this defeat, India's women's badminton team now faces a challenging task to advance to the semifinals.
Sindhu had won the opening game 23-21, but Yamaguchi redeemed herself by winning the second game 21-18. The Japanese player ultimately secured the match with a dominant victory in the third game, 21-11. India's women's team includes Sindhu alongside Unnati Hooda, Devika Sihag, Tanvi Sharma, Ishar Baruah, Treesa Jolly, and Gayatri Gopichand.
Unnati Hooda will face Japan next in the singles competition, while Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand are crucial players in the doubles lineup. Tanvi Sharma also competes in singles. India entered the quarterfinals with a 3-0 victory over Kazakhstan in the Round of 16, with Sindhu, Hooda, and Sharma winning all their matches without a loss.
A win over Japan would propel India into the semifinals and secure at least a bronze medal. This would be India's first Asian Games team medal, as they have only won a bronze in 2014. The Indian men's badminton team will also clash with Japan in their quarterfinal match later on Tuesday, featuring top players like Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty, HS Prannoy, Kidambi Srikanth, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, and Chirag Shetty.
Written by urgent.news from The Economic Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
