PV Sindhu's yearning to end her BWF World Tour title drought met with a heartbreaking (21-16, 5-21, 16-21) defeat in a 79-minute final of the Malaysia Masters in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday. Wang Zhi Yi, the winner of the Badminton Asia Championships, pulled off a massive upset victory after losing to Sindhu in the first game and trailing for most of the deciding third game. Wang won the second game 21-5 before facing the onslaught from Sindhu in the decider. Sindhu went 11-3 up against Wang at the third game interval. She extended her lead to 13-3 and the title looked in sight. But Wang shocked everyone. Showing her mental strength, the Chinese youngster held her nerves and engaged Sindhu in sapping rallies - one after another - that left world no. 15 exhausted. Wang would eventually prevail in the game 21-16 to win the title as Sindhu committed several mistakes under pressure, going long and wide. Wang's crisscrossing game also proved too much for Sindhu at the fag end of the match. Sindhu, who played four three-game matches, including an 88-minute semifinal, this week compared to Wang's one, visibly looked tired after Wang forced her to engage in rallies. Sindhu committed mistakes under pressure and Wang drew crucial winners. This was Sindhu's second straight defeat to the Chinese world no. 7. Last year, Sindhu lost to Wang in the semifinal of the Arctic Open. Sindhu, who was in phenomenal form in Kuala Lumpur, had beat top-seeded Han Yue and Busanan Ongbamrungphan in the quarterfinal and semifinals.Catch highlights:
PV Sindhu's yearning to end her BWF World Tour title drought met with a heartbreaking (21-16, 5-21, 16-21) defeat in a 79-minute final of the Malaysia Masters in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday. Wang Zhi Yi, the winner of the Badminton Asia Championships, pulled off a massive upset victory after losing to Sindhu in the first game and trailing for most of the deciding third game. Wang won the second game 21-5 before facing the onslaught from Sindhu in the decider. Sindhu went 11-3 up against Wang at the third game interval. She extended her lead to 13-3 and the title looked in sight. But Wang shocked everyone. Showing her mental strength, the Chinese youngster held her nerves and engaged Sindhu in sapping rallies - one after another - that left world no. 15 exhausted. Wang would eventually prevail in the game 21-16 to win the title as Sindhu committed several mistakes under pressure, going long and wide. Wang's crisscrossing game also proved too much for Sindhu at the fag end of the match. Sindhu, who played four three-game matches, including an 88-minute semifinal, this week compared to Wang's one, visibly looked tired after Wang forced her to engage in rallies. Sindhu committed mistakes under pressure and Wang drew crucial winners. This was Sindhu's second straight defeat to the Chinese world no. 7. Last year, Sindhu lost to Wang in the semifinal of the Arctic Open. Sindhu, who was in phenomenal form in Kuala Lumpur, had beat top-seeded Han Yue and Busanan Ongbamrungphan in the quarterfinal and semifinals.Catch highlights: