India lose to China to end campaign in Uber Cup finals

Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu squandered a strong position as India failed to capitalise on chances, going down 0-5 to China to end their campaign at the Uber Cup Finals here.

The Indian women’s team had opened with a 2-3 loss to hosts Denmark before bouncing back with a 4-1 win over Ukraine.

China, the most successful team in Uber Cup history with 16 titles, was always going to be a formidable opponent, with India having lost to them three times in their last three major ties. While Sindhu remained the leader of the group, Isharani Baruah and Devika Sihag were drafted in place of Unnati Hooda and Tanvi Sharma for the other two singles.

Sindhu raised hopes as she looked set for a statement win before letting slip an 18-12 lead in the decider to go down 16-21, 21-19, 19-21 to world Number 2 Wang Zhiyi in the opening singles, handing China a 1-0 lead in the must-win Group A tie on Monday.

It would have taken a miracle to upset the defending champions thereafter and, though the young Indian shuttlers showed fight, they lacked the finishing touch and faltered at crucial moments. Priya Konjengbam and Shruti Mishra were no match for world Number 1 pair Liu Sheng Shu and Tan Ning, losing 11-21, 8-21 in the first doubles.

Tasked with keeping the tie alive, Isharani Baruah produced a fast-paced display to trouble Tokyo Olympic champion Chen Yufei but left too many shuttles and committed errors at the net. The world Number 38 Indian missed a sitter at 20-19 in the opening game as the world Number 4 Chinese eventually sealed a 22-20, 21-13 win in 44 minutes to give China an unassailable 3-0 lead. The pair of Treesa Jolly and Kavipriya Selvam also had their moments before going down 10-21, 21-12, 19-21 in a 59-minute clash against Luo Xu Min and Zhang Shu Xian.

World Number 43 Devika Sihag, who had won her maiden Super 300 title in Thailand this year, too made a strong start but failed to sustain the momentum, losing 21-19, 17-21, 10-21 to world No. 97 Xu Wen Jing in the third singles.

Sindhu vs Wang: Sindhu recovered from an early 4-7 deficit in the first game, drawing level at 9-9 before reeling off five straight points to take an 11-9 lead at the interval. She maintained control with sharp net play and attacking smashes to move to 14-10, but Wang raised her intensity late, using deception and precise placement to claw back.

From 16-16, the Chinese edged ahead and closed out the game with a series of winners.

The Indian responded aggressively in the second game, opening up a 9-4 lead with a barrage of smashes. Wang fought back with her trademark angles and deception to level at 10-10, but Sindhu held her nerve in the closing stages.

Leading 18-16, she earned two game points and converted on the second with a powerful smash to force a decider.

Sindhu carried the momentum into the third game, racing to a 9-3 lead and extending it to 11-6 at the break. She continued to dictate play, stretching the advantage to 18-12 with relentless attacking strokes.

However, the momentum swung dramatically thereafter. Wang mounted a remarkable comeback, stringing together six consecutive points to level at 18-18. The Chinese then edged ahead 19-18 before Sindhu drew level once again.

Wang earned a match point with a steep smash and sealed the contest when Sindhu found the net, completing a stunning turnaround.

“It was a good match. It would have been really good if I would have converted it into a win. I had chances but it wasn’t like there were some easy points, every point was hard fought. Every point we were fighting literally very hard,” said Sindhu.

All eyes will be on the men’s team to avenge the loss when it takes on China on Wednesday in the Thomas Cup.

India, the 2022 champions, sealed a place in the Thomas Cup Finals quarterfinals with a commanding 5-0 victory over Australia in a Group A tie on Monday.

India and China now occupy the top spots in the group. The 2022 champions had opened with a 4-1 win over Canada, while China blanked Australia 5-0 and beat Canada 4-1 earlier in the day.

The two sides will clash in their final group tie on Wednesday to decide the group topper.

China boasts a formidable line-up, featuring world No. 1 Shi Yu Qi, world No. 7 Li Shi Feng and world No. 15 Weng Hong Yang in singles, while world No. 6 pair Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, along with He Ji Ting and Ren Xiang Yu, lead their doubles strength.