Singapore Open: PV Sindhu crashes out after losing to Carolina Marin in thriller

PV Sindhu crashed out of the Singapore Open 2024 after losing to Spain’s Carolina Marin in the Round of 16 match on Thursday, May 30.

In a match that had several ebbs and flows, the ace India shuttler won the opening game before losing the match 21-11, 11-21, 20-22. It also happened to be Sindhu’s sixth loss in a row at the hands of the Spaniard.

Out of their 17 meetings thus far on the BWF circuit, Marin beat Sindhu for the 12th time. The last time Sindhu got the better of Marin was back in the quarterfinal of the Malaysia Open back in 2018, when she won in straight games 22-20, 21-19. Since then, Sindhu lost to Marin in the World Championships, Indonesia Masters, Malaysia Open and Denmark Open before going down in Singapore.

In Singapore, Sindhu started on a handsome note after beating Line Kjærsfeldt of Denmark 21-12, 22-20. Against Marin, she dominated in the opening game before her opponent hit back strongly. In the final game, Sindhu was leading 15-10 and later 18-15 before Marin made a stupendous comeback.

PV Sindhu’s wait continues

After losing to Marin, Sindhu’s wait for a title also continued after her Singapore Open heist back in 2022. Having made her return to the court earlier this year in February, Sindhu also missed the Uber Cup and Thailand Open. In the Malaysia Masters, she stunned top seed Han Yue in the quarterfinal before losing to China’s Wang Zhiyi 21-16, 5-21, 16-21 in the final.

Sindhu is now set to take part in the Paris Olympics 2024, which is scheduled to get underway on July 26. Expectations will be high from the 28-year-old, who is the only Indian woman to have won back-to-back medals at the quadrennial event. Sindhu will now be training at the Hermann-Neuberger Sportschule in Saarbrucken, Germany before heading to Paris.