Indian shuttler PV Sindhu’s search for a first major title in the 2026 season came to an end as she lost to reigning world champion Akane Yamaguchi in the semifinals of the Australian Open 2026 in Sydney on Saturday.
The world No. 10 went down 22-20, 21-12 to world No. 3 Yamaguchi in a 43-minute women’s singles contest at the BWF Super 500 tournament, according to Olympics.com.
With this defeat, Sindhu registered her second semifinal appearance on the 2026 BWF World Tour. Earlier in the year, she had reached the last four at the Malaysia Open Super 1000 in January, where she was beaten by China’s Wang Zhiyi.
The two-time Olympic medallist’s last title on the BWF circuit came at the Syed Modi International in Lucknow in 2024.
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The opening game was tightly contested, with Sindhu making a strong start and holding a narrow advantage at the mid-game interval. After the restart, Yamaguchi surged ahead with a six-point burst to take control, but Sindhu responded strongly to regain momentum and edge ahead once again.
The game went down to the wire, with Sindhu saving a match point at 20-19, but she eventually conceded the opener 22-20.
In the second game, Yamaguchi dominated from the outset, racing to a 13-6 lead with a series of seven consecutive points. She maintained control throughout to close out the match 21-12 and seal her place in the final.
With this result, Sindhu’s campaign at the tournament came to an end, marking the exit of all Indian players from the Australian Open.
India’s challenge in men’s doubles had ended earlier after MR Arjun and Hariharan Amsakarunan retired from their quarter-final match, while none of the Indian men’s singles players progressed beyond the opening round.
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