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Indian Express
27-04-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
Sudirman Cup: PV Sindhu snatches defeat from the jaws of victory; India thrashed 1-4 by Denmark
Tanisha Crasto and Shruti Mishra objected with a defiant 21-13, 21-18 win in women's doubles, the fifth match of the Sudirman Cup tie. But otherwise, April 27th was threatening to go down as one of the worst days in Indian badminton, where the giants were humbled and rookies were offered an abject reality check of where they stood. India went down 4-1 to Denmark in their first group tie, and seldom has any Indian performance in shuttle, pointed to such hopelessness as on Sunday. Tanisha-Dhruv were shown the yawning gap between Top 20 and Top 10 in mixed doubles. HS Prannoy fought with fiery brimstone but never looked close to winning. PV Sindhu was twice on the verge of winning sets, but ceded 6 and 8 points in a row inexplicably. And Hariharan Amsakarunan and Ruban Kumar Rethinasabapathi realised in a rude awakening how simplicity in the form of a fast-paced, aggressive, flat game over a mere 6 exchanges in a rally, is still a long way off the elite level. The men's doubles, both 21, and barely entering Top 50, will learn their lessons fast. But for India's Top 20 shuttlers, this plummeting of fortunes will be tough to swallow. India has never won a Sudirman Cup medal – probably the toughest team event that tests a country's capability (top range, not depth) in each of the five disciplines. But Sunday made it plain that not much was going to change with the available set of players, with Satwik-Chirag and Treesa-Gayatri not travelling due to injuries. Tanisha and Dhruv Kapila were declared team captains, but the freshly minted Top 20s got a swatting reminder of what Top 10s in mixed doubles is. Playing Danish World No 7s Jesper Toft and Amalie Magelund, the Indians ranked No.17, were never the favourites. But the young duo will need to learn to compose their nerves quickly, and hit the road running in any tournament. Defensively tentative, and overwhelmed by the stage, the top pairing which has been making some headway on the circuit, could not stem the flow of points as the Danes, got cracking quickly and never took the foot off the pedal in a 21-13, 21-14 win in 33 minutes. There had been some debate over whether Lakshya Sen stood a better chance than Prannoy against Anders Antonsen. Given their recent form, But the second-best Dane who turned 28 on the day, weathered a Prannoy second set storm where the Indian amped up the pace, and hit some well-positioned down the line smashes. But Prannoy struggled in an area that has been daunting him through the past few seasons — he just couldn't go toe to toe with Antonsen after the 11th point break, and faded off 21-15, 21-16 in 49 blistering minutes. Dominating an individual rally he managed, stringing together a bunch of points, he couldn't. What's been depressing for India in the leadup is that Sen too has been out-manouvered in the endgame by Antonsen, a strangely resilient, heel-digging player despite his restless antics. The men's doubles team lost 21-7, 21-4 in 21 minutes against former World No.1s Kim Astrup and Anders Rasmussen. They have the heart for a battle, but were just far too taken in by the enormity of the occasion (and replacing Satwik-Chirag), to be able to settle down and regain their poise. Aggression and speed in flat games is all very well but not when the defense disappears. PV Sindhu led Line Kjaersfeldt 20-16 in the opening set. Then she frittered 6 points in the most irrational fashion to cede the opener 22-20. You would think she had regained her equilibrium leading 19-12 in the second set, but this time it was 8 straight points she allowed her opponent to snatch a win, in one of the biggest capitulations of her career. It was literally the lack of application in finishing the job, as she got waylaid by the leads and hoped for the last few points to fall in her lap. The Danish European champion stuck to basics, and sauntered past a crumbling opponent who had no clue about why she was crumbling. Commentators talking of her need to polish her skills and constant changing of coaches, was the final nail in the coffin, though the problem was specifically in finishing, turning the proverbial knife. Nothing to lose Shruti and Tanisha had nothing to lose — not much to win either. And that seemed to liberate them from the pressure as they took to the court beaming away at the opportunity to play badminton. Natasjia Anthonisen and Alexandra Boje were really no match to the scratch Indian pair, who matched aggression with execution. At one point, Mishra and Crasto converged and the former literally tackled her partner, pushing her inadvertently while chasing the shuttle to the back court. She won that point with spunk, and the duo couldn't stop grinning after that episode, haranguing the Danes with fast flat exchanges and cheeky net cord points. Maybe Indian badminton just needs players who enjoy the tiny skirmishes of each point against opponents and don't think too far ahead. Against formidable Indonesia, maybe Sindhu, Lakshya & Co could simply pursue that joie de vivre – the opportunity to represent India at a team event – and not stress the big stuff. Because pressure isn't doing them any good.
Indian Express
27-04-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
Lakshya Sen or HS Prannoy vs Anders Antonsen at Sudirman Cup? Fans ask two different AI models, get two opposite answers
HS Prannoy has been lined up for the men's singles game in India's opening group round of the Sudirman Cup against Denmark's Anders Antonsen at Xiamen, China. The order of play reads: Tanisha Crasto -Dhruv Kapila in mixed doubles vs Jesper xx – Amalie xx, as Indian captains shoulder the first challenge. Prannoy has been fielded against Antonsen (no Viktor Axelsen for Denmark) in second match. This is likely to start a huge debate, given Lakshya Sen is also in the squad. However India tends to think long-term and will most likely field Sen in a better matchup against Jonathan Christie in the Indonesia tie. The men's doubles is a serious question mark for India next, with talented rookies Hariharan and Ruban set to take on Kim Astrup and Anders Sxxx. PV Sindhu slots in for the key fourth match – most likely pivotal against Line Kjaersfeldt, while Tanisha will be back on court against Natasha – Boje alongside Shruti Mishra in the final women's doubles match. India are severely hamstrung in absence of Satwik-Chirag and Treesa-Gayatri, out by illness and injury. But Denmark are vulnerable too with no Axelsen or Mia Blitchfeldt in singles. Head coach Kenneth Larsen has also moved to Malaysia. However, things got interesting on a Sunday morning, when a fan handle @Arya Keshav asked two AI models, Perplexity and Grok for their take on whether Prannoy or Sen were better suited in the match up. In a hilarious happening, Grok and Perplexity spat out two opposite answers, both based on objective facts. Perplexity favoured Sen to get the job done, while Grok gave Prannoy a better likelihood of beating Antonsen, thys underlining importance of human selectors. Prannoy is ranked 30 and Antonsen, 3. In previous encounters, Prannoy leads 2-1, though Antonsen won the last match in straight 14, 11. AskPerplexity wrote to Keshav on Twitter: 'Based on recent form, Lakshya Sen appears to have a slight edge over HS Prannoy when facing Anders Antonsen right now. Prannoy has struggled with fitness and early exits lately, including a first-round loss at the Badminton Asia Championships and a dip in form after illness, while Lakshya has had some notable wins-like reaching the All England Open quarterfinals-though he's also had some inconsistency.' Perplexity noted that Sen had lost his last match to Antonsen too – in straight, 18, 15. Sen, ranked No 18 trails 2-5 in head to head. Perplexity added: 'In their recent head-to-head, Antonsen beat Lakshya Sen in straight games at the China Masters, but Sen's defense and ability to push top players remain (his) strengths. Overall, given Prannoy's current struggles and Lakshya's flashes of high-level play, Lakshya Sen might be the better bet against Antonsen at the moment.' Grok too noted that both Indians were struggling against Antonsen in recent times, but learnt on Pranno's experience and it likely to be a brainy pitting of wits. 'HS Prannoy likely has a slight edge over Lakshya Sen against Anders Antonsen at the Sudirman Cup 2025. Both players are struggling, with early exits at the 2025 India Open and Badminton Asia Championships. Prannoy's experience and ranking (world No. 30) give him an advantage, despite limited head-to-head data with Antonsen. Sen has a 2-4 (2-5 actually) record against Antonsen, including losses in 2024. However, both players' recent form makes the outcome uncertain. Prannoy's tactical play may counter Antonsen's aggression better than Sen's defensive style,' Grok wrote. India looking to tease out at least a 3-2 edge despite being severely understaffed, will how Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto give them a good start, and Prannoy and Sindhu pull their weight.
