Sydney: PV Sindhu’s search for a first title-round appearance of the 2026 season remains unfinished after the Indian star suffered a straight-games defeat to reigning world champion Akane Yamaguchi in the women’s singles semifinals of the Australian Badminton Open on Saturday.
The former world champion pushed the Japanese third seed hard in a fiercely contested opening game before Yamaguchi seized control to register a 22-20, 21-12 victory in 43 minutes and book her place in the final of the BWF Super 500 tournament.
For Sindhu, ranked No. 10 in the world, it marked another near miss in a season that has shown flashes of promise. The Australian Open was her second semifinal appearance on the BWF World Tour this year after a last-four finish at the Malaysia Open in January.
Indian shuttlers will now shift their focus to the Macau Open Super 300 tournament beginning next week. IANS
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