Singapore
Defending men’s singles champion B. Sai Praneeth of India crashed out of the Singapore Badminton Open in the opening round on Wednesday (July 18) afternoon.
The 25-year-old, ranked 28th in the world, was beaten 16-21, 21-16, 21-18 by Japan’s Yu Igarashi – ranked 59th – in 71 minutes at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
Sixth seed Praneeth had led 11-8, then 14-12, in the third set, but 23-year-old Yu rallied to post a remarkable victory.
When asked what went wrong for him, a stunned Praneeth told The Straits Times: “I don’t know… I was maybe under pressure. I was low on confidence.”
