Five-time medalist PV Sindhu missed out on an unprecedented sixth World Championship medal after falling to China's Wang Zhi Yi in a closely fought three-game match.
Five-time World Championship medalist P.V. Sindhu cited a lack of patience in crucial moments as the key factor in her defeat to China's Wang Zhi Yi, ending her pursuit of an unprecedented sixth medal.
The match remained tightly contested across all three games, but Sindhu noted that the contest slipped away in the final moments. "I should have been patient overall because I can’t see any loopholes otherwise in between the points. Specially in the end, I should have been a little more patient. That’s what I can see from today’s game and in the last 3-4 points," Sindhu said following her loss.
Late in the third game, Wang took two medical time-outs for cramps. Sindhu addressed the interruptions, saying, "I don’t know if she’s injured or not, maybe that’s her strategy or her way of doing it, you never know. Maybe that’s her gameplay but I had to be very focused and very patient and focus on every point. The last three points just changed everything."
Wang maintained that her physical struggles were genuine due to thigh cramps from intense back-to-back matches, though she expressed understanding regarding Sindhu's apprehensions. "I can understand why she said that. She is aware about those tactics. She knows that these kind of things can be used but at that time, I was really injured," Wang said, adding that as long as she could move, she would not give up.
Reporting sourced from The Hindu Sport. Photo courtesy The Hindu Sport.