HS Prannoy goes down fighting to finish runner-up at Australian Open

HS Prannoy came within touching distance of winning the Australian Open Super 500 event in Sydney on Sunday. The Indian shuttler squandered a six point lead in the deciding game to go down 9-21, 23-21, 20-22 to China’s Weng Hong Yang in the men’s singles final. The 31-year-old came from a game down to force a deciding third game and had built a commanding 15-9 lead at one stage. Prannoy had the opportunity to seal the title when luck of the net came his way at 19-19. But, as fate would have it, the Chinese player had the shuttle trickle over the net on the very next point as well. In between, the left-handed shuttler staged a remarkable comeback with deft touches at the net coupled with heroic athleticism to survive a 71 shot rally. At the same time, Prannoy’s inch-perfect badminton started to miss and the weariness of playing over an hour long matches in three of four contests over the week stated to show. Weng Hong Yang would get the job done when HS Prannoy’s shot landed long and the Chinese player went down in a heap at the conclusion of a pulsating 90 minute match. The only time these two had met earlier was in the Malaysia Masters in May when Prannoy had come out victorious in a three-game final. It happened to be the first title for the player from Kerala.