PV SindhuThe Indian badminton star’s impressive performance came to an end at the China Open on Thursday as she suffered a hard-fought second-round loss to local favorite and world number four Chen Yufei.Sindhu lost 21-16, 20-22, 18-21 in a gripping match that lasted for nearly 90 minutes. The defeat came just days after she won the Japan Open, ending a long title drought and arriving in China with new confidence.In the first game, the two sides competed fiercely. Sindhu fought back with 7-13 to tie the score at 16-16, and then scored five consecutive points to win the game 21-16.Chen responded dramatically in the second game. Sindhu looked set to end the match after reaching 20-16, but the Tokyo Olympic champion saved four game points and won 22-20 to force a decider.The decider was evenly matched for much of the game, with both players evenly matched in scoring. 17-17, Chen Na improved her level and scored key points, sealing the victory 21-18 and securing her place in the quarterfinals.Despite the loss, Sindhu showed encouraging form after winning the Japan Open but failed to defeat the former Olympic champion in one of the highlights of the tournament.
