Syed Modi International: Home comforts
Top-seeded Indians PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen showcased their class and dominance to clinch the women’s and men’s singles titles, respectively, at the Syed Modi International badminton tournament.
Sindhu, a two-time Olympics medallist, ended her long title drought by outplaying China’s world No. 119 Wu Luo Yu 21-14 21-16 to lift the trophy for the third time, having previously triumphed in 2017 and 2022.
Lakshya, a 2021 World Championships bronze medallist, was also at his dominant best as he demolished Singapore’s Jia Heng Jason Teh 21-6 21-7 in the title clash, displaying complete command over the match.
Sindhu’s victory marks her return to the top of the podium after over two years, with her last title win coming at the Singapore Open in July 2022. The world No. 18 also reached the finals of the Malaysia Masters Super 500 earlier this year.
Lakshya’s win comes as a balm after a disappointing loss in the bronze-medal playoff at the Paris Olympics. The victory will undoubtedly boost his confidence ahead of the new season.
Indian badminton had more to celebrate on the day as the women’s doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand clinched its maiden Super 300 title with a convincing 21-18 21-11 win over China’s Bao Li Jing and Li Qian.
The result made Treesa and Gayatri the first Indian women’s doubles team to win the title at this tournament. The Commonwealth Games bronze medallists, who had finished runners-up in 2022, went one step further this year with their solid performance.
In the men’s doubles final, Pruthvi Krishnamurthy Roy and Sai Pratheek K put up a valiant fight before going down 14-21 21-19 17-21 to China’s Huang Di and Liu Yang in a marathon 71-minute clash.
Meanwhile, in the mixed doubles final, fifth seeds Tanisha Crasto and Dhruv Kapila started strong but couldn’t sustain their momentum, losing 21-18 14-21 8-21 to Thailand’s sixth-seeded pair of Dechapol Puavaranukroh and Supissara Paewsampran.
Definitely going to play for next couple of years: Sindhu
After her victory, Sindhu said she is “definitely” going to play for the next couple of years even as the 2028 Los Angeles Games remain at the back of her mind.
The 29-year-old former world champion, in the final stretch of her career, emphasised the need to stay injury-free.
“This (win) will definitely give me a lot of confidence. Being 29 is an advantage in many ways because I have a lot of experience. Being smart and experienced is key, and I’m definitely going to play for the next couple of years,” Sindhu said.
“My main goal is to stay injury-free, which is very, very important. Los Angeles (Olympics) is still too far away. I will definitely play, but the main thing is staying injury-free and enjoying the sport. If I stay fit, then why not?” she added.
Sindhu said she will need to be “smarter” in picking the tournaments she will participate in next season.
“I’m very happy that I’m finishing off with a win. Now it’s time to just go back, relax, and start again from January. I hope this is a comeback, and I’m looking forward to many more victories,” she added.
“I’ll be playing the upcoming tournaments in Malaysia, India, Indonesia, and Thailand. Obviously, we’ll have to pick and choose tournaments because I’ll have to be smart enough to decide what to play and what not. I need to be much smarter in terms of that,” she added.
Sindhu said that she was relieved to end her title drought. “Sometimes I was really close yet so far away. I had good matches in the past, but they didn’t turn into wins. I came back, fought harder, and it was important for me to get this win. Yes, I am relieved. I mean, it’s the end of the year, and finishing off with a win makes me really grateful,” she said.
