PV Sindhu says there is 'room to improve' after French Open final defeat to An Se Young
PV Sindhu said she saw "room to improve" after losing to An Se Young in the French Open final in Paris on Sunday, going down 21-16, 11-21, 12-21. The defeat extended Sindhu's head-to-head losing streak against An to 11 matches.
Sindhu acknowledged progress from her season and set out where she wants to get better in the immediate future, telling reporters: "Definitely, there's a lot of room to improve. I'm absolutely looking forward to playing much better badminton. I'm happy with how things are going, but I think there's still a lot of scope for improvement, and I'm looking forward to it." She had taken the opening game and reached an 8-5 lead in the decider before An reversed the momentum.
Sindhu entered the Paris final on the back of her Japan Open title in July, which was her first trophy of the season. Her run at the French Open included a hard-fought semi-final victory over Japan's Hina Akechi, taking her into a second Super 750 final of the year.
In the final Sindhu began strongly, using sharp net play and taking the shuttle early to put the top seed under pressure. An altered her tactics in the second game, concentrating on defensive play and gradually finding better timing; "Sindhu is a very strong and aggressive player, so I focused on my defence. After that, I was struggling a little to find my timing," An said, explaining her approach.
The decider looked promising for Sindhu when she moved 8-5 ahead, but An fought back to level and then led 11-9 at the change of ends, a swing Sindhu identified as decisive: "Even in the third game, I felt I should have maintained my lead when I was ahead 8-5. Unfortunately, she turned it around to make it 11-9 before we changed ends. I think that was where I felt the difference was." Sindhu also reflected on the demands of the match: "When you're playing against top athletes, you have to be at 100 per cent on every single point. There were long rallies, and the points weren't easy to win. It was good that we had those long rallies, but perhaps if I could have converted more of them into points, the result might have been different."
For An, the French Open title added to an already notable season. She said she had rushed shots in the first game but steadied herself by not rushing and focusing on defence: "In the first game, I think I was rushing a little. In the second game, I tried not to rush and focused more on my defence. After that, I was able to find my timing," she said. An added she would celebrate with a good French or Korean meal before resting and following her recovery routine, then decide whether to play more tournaments or take time off.
Both players now face decisions over their next steps on the circuit, with Sindhu leaving Paris having identified specific areas to work on and expressing the belief that her best badminton remains ahead of her.
